BertWright
Arachnopeon
- Joined
- Aug 1, 2002
- Messages
- 27
:wall:
O.K. - I have a lot of substrate that, according to Stan and Marguerite Schultz's Tarantula Keeper's Guide, I must now dispose of, clean the cages with a bleach solution, prepare new substrate and start again. Does anyone know of any alternatives to disposing of the substrate - and still have a decent home for the tarantula or tarantulas? I know that Stan knows his stuff, but that is a lot of substrate. I suppose I could remove the tarantula and NUKE the substrate in the microwave, cage by cage. I have a feeling though that nuking them wouldn't get them all - the microwaves or heat may miss some for whatever the reason.
At any rate. I have been keeping tarantulas for years. I have not yet dealt with mites. I recently had an elder female Rose Hair that has begun to act strangely - wobbles, stiff, etc. It could be old age. I looked in the Guide and noticed that Mites can adversely affect tarantula health and even kill them over time. My infestation, it seems, is in several cages -and seemingly in some of the dryer cages where I would NOT expect them since moisture is one key attractant for these pests.
I would take a picture, but i don't have a scanning electron microscope as these are wee tiny. As the Guide mentions, they are either tan or white - my mites are tan and they are into everything. I have been brushing my spiders and looking VERY closely and have not noticed any of them ON the tarantulas - so that is good. But, I can't believe how many of these are in the substrate. I am about 1/10th of the way through my cages - if anyone else has any better ideas or advice, please do advise. Thank you.
Bert Wright
Fellow Tarantula Keeper/Enthusiast
O.K. - I have a lot of substrate that, according to Stan and Marguerite Schultz's Tarantula Keeper's Guide, I must now dispose of, clean the cages with a bleach solution, prepare new substrate and start again. Does anyone know of any alternatives to disposing of the substrate - and still have a decent home for the tarantula or tarantulas? I know that Stan knows his stuff, but that is a lot of substrate. I suppose I could remove the tarantula and NUKE the substrate in the microwave, cage by cage. I have a feeling though that nuking them wouldn't get them all - the microwaves or heat may miss some for whatever the reason.
At any rate. I have been keeping tarantulas for years. I have not yet dealt with mites. I recently had an elder female Rose Hair that has begun to act strangely - wobbles, stiff, etc. It could be old age. I looked in the Guide and noticed that Mites can adversely affect tarantula health and even kill them over time. My infestation, it seems, is in several cages -and seemingly in some of the dryer cages where I would NOT expect them since moisture is one key attractant for these pests.
I would take a picture, but i don't have a scanning electron microscope as these are wee tiny. As the Guide mentions, they are either tan or white - my mites are tan and they are into everything. I have been brushing my spiders and looking VERY closely and have not noticed any of them ON the tarantulas - so that is good. But, I can't believe how many of these are in the substrate. I am about 1/10th of the way through my cages - if anyone else has any better ideas or advice, please do advise. Thank you.
Bert Wright
Fellow Tarantula Keeper/Enthusiast