I had a tarantula that lived for 10 years. Her name was Bernard, well I named her before I knew she was a female. Anyhow, I fed her crickets but I suppose meal worms would work as well. They need live prey because movement stimulates their instinct to eat. I kept Bernie in a 10 gallon tank with a lighted hood and plenty of places for her to shade herself. You can use reptile sand but I just used outdoor carpeting and she didn't mind. For water you take a deep dish and fill it with that cottony stuff they use for fish tank filteration then add water and keep the water to the top at all times. When they drink they hover over the cotton, lower their body and proceed to drink. It's quite interesting to say the least. Bernard only escaped once since I had her but I found her quite quickly. Just make sure there are no openings in the top of the tank. Other than that they are basically mantainance free. If you ever decide to hold it dont drop it. The abnomens are very fragile and will explode on impact. Good luck if you decide to get one. They're cool pets to have.