G. porteri female, eggsac -moisture and water dish issues

[Zigana]

I'm needing some advice with my G. porteri female that is on an eggsac. The other day she moved her eggsac out of the hole she dug to beside the water dish. I believe she is wanting/needing some moisture humidity. This started when we started up the word stove for heat and dried the air out. Afraid that momma might put the eggsac in the water dish I took it out and moistened the substrate on the far side of tank. I moved her to a cooler part of the house, not cold just a room that didn't get super warm from the stove. She moved her eggsac to the moistened area.

Several days later, this morning, she had the eggsac half under the substrate with the rest barely above substrate and she is digging up soil elsewhere. I again moistened some substrate and after a few minutes she went to her eggsac and rolled it over to the dampened soil. I have had serand wrap over the top of enclosure with a T-shirt over that trying to keep moisture in and to keep her undisturbed during the day since day one.

Keeping moisture in the enclosure is concerning as well as how to water momma without her putting the eggsac in her water dish for humidity/moisture since this seems to be something she is very concerned about. Wish she would had laid the sac when the a/c was on. The house then has the perfect humidity. I have a humidifier on but evidently is not working well enough to suit momma. Any other ideas that I may not be doing for humidity? Any recommendations on how to water momma? I really don't want a water dish in there since she may put the eggsac in it. Remember the moisture issue was going on even when I had the water dish in there. I only took it out in fear the momma drowning those in the eggsac. I strongly believe she will do it.

 

[tweakz]

How old is the sac? Also these guys even as eggs don't need, or want, much humidity. It almost sounds like she's ditching the sac, maybe it's bad. Someone with experience in egg sac care will chime in soon.

Wet spagnum moss will provide something that mommy can drink from without having a waterbowl.

 

[Zigana]

The sac is 24 days old. I don't think she is ditching the sac at this time, just hunting for moist soil to keep her sac on top of it. After dampening the soil she will immediately get her sac and roll it to that area and sit over it. Not saying she won't abandon it , just for now it seems like she is searching for needs of the eggsac.

I agree about them not usually requiring much humidity but with the wood stove drying air out so much and her behavior has me baffled as to what else to do. Thanks for the water idea.

 

[tweakz]

I think you could probably pull it soon if not now. DO NOT DO THIS OFF MY INPUT ALONE. Like I said people with breeding experience will chime in soon.

 

[Zigana]

I came up with an idea I hope works. I decided to raise her water dish to a height she could still drink from but not be able to get her eggsac in it. The next thing I did was to dampen some substrate in a bowl and fed the female a cricket. While she was eating I arranged the raised water dish in a corner and laid the damp soil at the opposite end of her enclosure packing it so it would be less likely to dry out quickly. I could not find any moss at the lps so I just came up with raising the water dish. I hope this solves the issues. If she doesn't give up on the sac I will pull it at 45-50 days. She's half way there now at 24 days along.

 

[catfishrod69]

If she can climb up to get a drink out of the water dish, she can get her sac in there. Get that water dish back out! Best thing to do right now is leave her completely alone, and dont pay attention to her. If you keep modifying stuff every day and pouring water in every day your either going to start mold to growing, or make her eat her sac. I had a G. rosea RCF recently eat her sac at 25 days, and i didnt bother her at all. Everything was going well, and i was going to pull on day 35. I suggest you pull on day 35, youll be looking at ewls at that time.

 

[Poec54]

I came up with an idea I hope works. I decided to raise her water dish to a height she could still drink from but not be able to get her eggsac in it. The next thing I did was to dampen some substrate in a bowl and fed the female a cricket. While she was eating I arranged the raised water dish in a corner and laid the damp soil at the opposite end of her enclosure packing it so it would be less likely to dry out quickly. I could not find any moss at the lps so I just came up with raising the water dish. I hope this solves the issues. If she doesn't give up on the sac I will pull it at 45-50 days. She's half way there now at 24 days along.

They don't need to drink after they lay a sac, it's optional. They're prepared to stay on the sac and not eat or drink.

Water bowls are favorite places for spiders to dump their sacs. If a sac has a few bad eggs or slings, the female may decide that the rest will go bad too, and either eat the sac or discard it. That means losing the rest of the eggs/slings that are still good. I had an Poec ornata dump her sac days before I was going to pull it. She dumped it in her water bowl and drowned dozens of healthy EWL's. After that, whenever a female lays a ball sac, I immediately remove the water bowl. I advise you to do the same.

With all this going on, the sac isn't going to make it to 45-50 days.

 

[Zigana]

If she can climb up to get a drink out of the water dish, she can get her sac in there. Get that water dish back out! Best thing to do right now is leave her completely alone, and dont pay attention to her. If you keep modifying stuff every day and pouring water in every day your either going to start mold to growing, or make her eat her sac. I had a G. rosea RCF recently eat her sac at 25 days, and i didnt bother her at all. Everything was going well, and i was going to pull on day 35. I suggest you pull on day 35, youll be looking at ewls at that time.

I have only bothered her once several days ago to feed, dampen soil, take dish out and again today dampening soil and putting water dish back in. I hadn't bothered her before this since day one other then for water only. I will definitely heed your advice on taking the water dish back out. I don't feel good about it being in there, not under the circumstance. I don't feel bad lightly dampening the soil because I feel that is what she was looking for/wanting for whatever reason she has even though odd for her species. I definitely wasn't expecting this.

Is there a reason for suggesting to pull the eggsac at 35 days instead of 45 days?

---------- Post added 11-17-2014 at 07:12 PM ----------

They don't need to drink after they lay a sac, it's optional. They're prepared to stay on the sac and not eat or drink.

Water bowls are favorite places for spiders to dump their sacs. If a sac has a few bad eggs or slings, the female may decide that the rest will go bad too, and either eat the sac or discard it. That means losing the rest of the eggs/slings that are still good. I had an Poec ornata dump her sac days before I was going to pull it. She dumped it in her water bowl and drowned dozens of healthy EWL's. After that, whenever a female lays a ball sac, I immediately remove the water bowl. I advise you to do the same.

With all this going on, the sac isn't going to make it to 45-50 days.

Thank you with the info about not needing water during this time. This relieves most of my concern.
I only bothered her twice in the last several days and time was around two minutes or less. This may have been enough to ruin things, but hopefully not. I will take the water dish out and leave her alone for the remaining time.

 

[Poec54]

Is there a reason for suggesting to pull the eggsac at 35 days instead of 45 days?[

Yes. If you don't want to risk losing a ball sac, pull it at 30-35 days. If you don't care, let it go till you see slings or the female tosses it. It's easier with hammock sacs; they almost always hatch out, and the females rarely eat them.

 

[Zigana]

Thanks, I was just curious because with an A. hentzi female I pulled the sac somewhere between 42-45 days. This worked out well. I don't want ewls but neither do I want slings in the enclosure.

 

[catfishrod69]

I usually only dampen the soil once and that is right before the sac is dropped, or right after, just depends on if the substrate needs it. The reason i say 35 days is because the eggs will be developed into ewls, and the longer you leave the sac with the mother, the more of a chance you risk her eating it. What are your temps like?

I have only bothered her once several days ago to feed, dampen soil, take dish out and again today dampening soil and putting water dish back in. I hadn't bothered her before this since day one other then for water only. I will definitely heed your advice on taking the water dish back out. I don't feel good about it being in there, not under the circumstance. I don't feel bad lightly dampening the soil because I feel that is what she was looking for/wanting for whatever reason she has even though odd for her species. I definitely wasn't expecting this.

Is there a reason for suggesting to pull the eggsac at 35 days instead of 45 days?

 

[Zigana]

Thanks for explaining things further. In the room she is in now it's 73-75 degrees. If the house cools some due to low overnight temps it gets 68-70 degrees in the room.

 

[Poec54]

Thanks, I was just curious because with an A. hentzi female I pulled the sac somewhere between 42-45 days. This worked out well. I don't want ewls but neither do I want slings in the enclosure.

Sometimes sacs go full term with the mother, sometimes they don't. It's a roll of the dice.

If you open a sac with EWL's you put them in a deli cup with a slightly moist paper towel in the bottom, and wait for them to shed. Not a lot of work on your part. You need to do some homework.

 

[keeper2013]

Sometimes sacs go full term with the mother, sometimes they don't. It's a roll of the dice.

If you open a sac with EWL's you put them in a deli cup with a slightly moist paper towel in the bottom, and wait for them to shed. Not a lot of work on your part. You need to do some homework.

Some good information on this thread.

 

[Poec54]

To me, pulling a sac and having EWL's or 1st instars inside is great. With reasonable conditions they'll usually go all the way. I don't like having unhatched eggs, as that means I've pulled it too soon. If a female discards a sac, you have to make the best of it and salvage what you can.

 

[catfishrod69]

You should be good to go at 35 days. I keep my room at 80. But its hard to estimate at 73-75 how much longer it will take them to develop to ewls. Also be sure when you put the ewls into a deli with moist paper towels, do not put them onto the paper towels directly! Maybe this will help you out. http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/sho...cubator-tutorial&highlight=incubator+tutorial
Although alot of the time anymore, i dont do that style of incubator. I just use a deli cup and either water in the bottom or moist coco fiber.

Thanks for explaining things further. In the room she is in now it's 73-75 degrees. If the house cools some due to low overnight temps it gets 68-70 degrees in the room.

 

[Zigana]

You should be good to go at 35 days. I keep my room at 80. But its hard to estimate at 73-75 how much longer it will take them to develop to ewls. Also be sure when you put the ewls into a deli with moist paper towels, do not put them onto the paper towels directly! Maybe this will help you out. http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/sho...cubator-tutorial&highlight=incubator+tutorial
Although alot of the time anymore, i dont do that style of incubator. I just use a deli cup and either water in the bottom or moist coco fiber.

I checked the temperature of the room with an Acurate indoors/outdoor weather station and I was way off on actual temp. This morning the room was 81 degrees, this afternoon 79. We have had lows in the low teens at night and twenties during the day which I am sure the house temp fluctuated some, especially in the evenings and over night. I'll keep the Accurate in the room to monitor the temp. Winter arrived with full force this year with temps we usually don't have until January, plus snow. I replaced the space heater today that quit several nights ago. That was fun, all were gone on the store shelf but 4, but I was still able to get a good one.

Thanks for the link to your post. It was very helpful. I'll get supplies soon.

As for momma she is still on the eggsac and doing well.

 

[catfishrod69]

Those temps sound fine. I think you wouldnt have any problems pulling at day 35 and having ewls. I understand what you mean about winter. Last winter i lost a handful of tarantulas to our bad winter, and this year it seems like its going to be worse.

 

[Zigana]

Just a quick update. Momma has been doing great with her eggsac since I last posted, all seems well so far. I plan on pulling the sac this evening or tomorrow. I didn't pull at 30 days because I just didn't feel good about it at the time. Took a chance I know. The mom has ate regularly, hasn't refused a meal once and is very protective of the sac. Hoping it is a good one but regardless I'll be finding out soon one way or the other. It's a large sac so if it is good lots of work ahead, fortunately I have my teenagers ready to help.

 

[catfishrod69]

Hopefully it works out. What day will you be pulling at?