death curl or weird molt?

[Breeum]

my 7" female t stirmi has rolled up into what appears to be a death curl. i know some tarantulas molt in upright positions but it looks like she passed away due to the fact that her abdomen has developed a little dip to it. Has anyone encountered a molt like this or do i need to say goodbye to my T?

 

[Vespula]

Pictures would definitely help. Does she smell bad? That's the best way to tell.

 

[Breeum]

she doesn't smell or anything and she's actually still a live i just saw her move her pedipalps just a little tiny bit, but i'm still concerned about the compression in her abdomen

 

[Vespula]

Maybe she's dehydrated? Does she have constant access to a water dish?

 

[grayzone]

While its not good to disturb a t during a molt, i PERSONALLY would think about getting an ICU set up incase she ends up not making any progress in the hours to come ..
Better to disturb a molt than to lose a t due to ignoring what MAY be a warning sign imo
Id really try to get pics of the t and the setup posted soon so you can get a better idea of whats happening

 

[Breeum]

i set up kind of a make shift ICU in her tank last night i'll wet it down a little more and yes she was actually living in water dish for the past few days

 

[Vespula]

Staying in a water dish like that might mean that she needs more moisture. What's your setup like for her normally?

 

[Breeum]

i usually run a fogger in her and my avics cages that keeps the humidity around 70% if drops bellow that i mist their cages too

heres a picture, my camera sucks but you can kind of see the depressions in her abdomen. She's wet from the mister i use the stupid tube shifted to the left and was dumping right on here i fixed it and taped back in place

 

[jayefbe]

She looks really bad. The abdomen shows signs of severe dehydration. If she was living in her water dish for a few days, then she probably should have been placed in an ICU a few days ago. I'd get her in one ASAP. I hope it helps but it may be too late.

There was another instance where a fogger was used to maintain "sufficient humidity" but another T. stirmi still died of dehydration. I think a fogger alone won't maintain humidity levels unless there is still restricted ventilation. In which case, moistening the substrate will achieve the same effect probably without as much fluctuation in humidity levels.

 

[Breeum]

think moving her into her water dish for a drink may help?

 

[Vespula]

If she'll drink let her drink. Moving her to an ICU would be your best bet, and give her something to drink.

 

[grayzone]

She looks really bad. The abdomen shows signs of severe dehydration. If she was living in her water dish for a few days, then she probably should have been placed in an ICU a few days ago. I'd get her in one ASAP. I hope it helps but it may be too late.

There was another instance where a fogger was used to maintain "sufficient humidity" but another T. stirmi still died of dehydration. I think a fogger alone won't maintain humidity levels unless there is still restricted ventilation. In which case, moistening the substrate will achieve the same effect probably without as much fluctuation in humidity levels.

i think youre right jay.. ive always been under the impression that the foggers arent the best idea. Nothing beats directly wetting the sub

think moving her into her water dish for a drink may help?

if she WILL then thats a good start.. but its not like you can FORCE her to drink. I hear of people flipping them over and dripping water into their mouth parts, but i think thats sketchy with a t like that. I would just ICU and keep a waterdish in with her. Hope the best for your stirmi

 

[Breeum]

so i can't tell how much she actually drank but i filled a small spoon with warm water and held it under her mouth for a few seconds. im guessing she got more on her than in her but every time i gave her more she moved her legs a little bit. i gave her about 5 spoons this time and i figure in another 15 minutes or so i'll try giving her another couple. think this is actually helping?

 

[Vespula]

If she's actually drinking it, then it can't do any harm.

 

[Ivymike1973]

Here is a video that RobC has on youtube showing how to hydrate a T.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eo885LhI4qo&feature=youtube_gdata_player

If she is weak enough you might be able to do this with her. If not you can place her chelicerae in the waterdish so she can drink and keep her in an ICU.
Good luck with your girl.

 

[Breeum]

At this point i dunno if i'm not just trying to delay the inevitable or actually helping her. 3 of her legs are very clearly broken and none of the others look verye good either

 

[Chris_Skeleton]

For future reference, Ts don't curl before molting... upright or not. They'll only curl upon completing the molt.

Otherwise, a curling T is a dying T.

 

[jayefbe]

Have you placed her in an ICU? I'd hydrate and leave her in an ICU until things go one way or another.

 

[zonbonzovi]

There have been a large number of WC stirmi coming in and an equitable number of problems with them. Was this one purchased as WC? I ask because they're will be a host of potential issues from animals collected in the wild, stored in a warehouse, shipped repeatedly, etc.

Just a hunch but it would be helpful to know.

 

[Vespula]

Has there been any change in her today? Is she better or worse today? Still taking water? I hope she gets better for you.