Stinky Tarantula?

behemoth

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 12, 2004
Messages
21
Hey there. I got a T. blondi a little while ago and to put it simply she stinks. I thought it was the substrate at first so I changed it to a completely different kind eventually. When I was switiching the substrate I moved her to a small container and could smell her when she was in there. Anyone know why this might be. I've never heard of it before but it is somewhat disturbing. She has nothing physically wrong with her that I can see either.
 

metzgerzoo

Arachnoangel
Old Timer
Joined
Dec 12, 2003
Messages
984
That's odd, where did you get her? I can't say as that I've ever head (or smelled) of a smelly T...unless of course it was rotting. Since it's a blondi, it's not quite as easy to just snatch her up and look her over real good...but IMO, that's what you should do...with the help of a clear container of course.
I have no clue what to tell you besides buy her some Secret solid deoterant and tell her to hop in her water dish for a bath occasionally. ;P
 

spiderdan

Arachnopeon
Joined
May 31, 2004
Messages
24
g birdeater

thas smell could comefrom a hiden pile of dead and dryed up liquidfied componded into mesh grickets
if you are feeding it agood amount of them ;P
 

behemoth

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 12, 2004
Messages
21
Thanks for both replies.

I've given her a look over in a clear cup to make sure she didn't have any rotting legs or anything. Everything looks to be in tip top shape including her underside.

Now as for it being a pile of dead crickets, I thought is what it was at first, but since replacing the substrate with the new stuff, I have yet to feed her, yet the smell continues to be present.
 

behemoth

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 12, 2004
Messages
21
Hmm, I did a search about this on google and came across only one relevant link where a guy had made a post about his stinky T. blondi in a different message board. Weird. Unfortunately though, no solution.
 

MilkmanWes

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 9, 2004
Messages
489
Is this one wild caught? How long ago? Wonder if something in it's diet previous to your getting it did it. Is that even plausible with Ts?

When and if it moults it would be interesting to know if the smell continued after that.
 

behemoth

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 12, 2004
Messages
21
I believe it is wild caught. It was fairly skinny when I bought it. I think though that I am going to return it, or see if I can exhange it for something else. It's grossing me out.
 

WayneT

Arachnoangel
Old Timer
Joined
May 28, 2004
Messages
865
If this is a recent acquisition, I would think that upon it's next molt the smell should go away. It may have been exposed to something in a prior enclosure, i.e. dead food remains, and the smell was impregnated into her hairs...that's my guess anyway.
 

Immortal_sin

Arachnotemptress
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 17, 2002
Messages
3,952
I hope that she doesn't have something wrong internally....since she's WC, I wonder if she could have a parasite or something? Does she eat and eliminate normally?
 

behemoth

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 12, 2004
Messages
21
Immortal_sin said:
I hope that she doesn't have something wrong internally....since she's WC, I wonder if she could have a parasite or something? Does she eat and eliminate normally?
She's quite the pig I must say. She eats everything that she sees, and eats it all. This is really mind boggling.
 

Greg Wolfe

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
Sep 13, 2003
Messages
1,101
Stinky Goliath...

That is weird. I have 2 adult female goliaths and they don't smell. Most tarantulas are fastidious groomers. Strange.
Being wild caught it is possible she consumed something odorous, if so her elimination process will eventually dissipate the odor. It could be that in transit she sat in excrement and it is all over her underside. The container she was in could have stunk too and she carried the stink upon her.
She needs a bubble bath man... I HOPE no parasites have caused this.
:? Next shed should eliminate the smell. What does it smell like? Rot?
Is there any infection in or around her book lung slits? :? I'm thinking...
Keep your eye on her.
 

mouse

Arachnolord
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 3, 2004
Messages
603
maby she got "sprayed by something"? kinda like getting skunked?
dianne
 

behemoth

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 12, 2004
Messages
21
The closest thing I can equate the smell to is that of dirty dish rags. You know when they sit for a while and get kinda nasty. That's what she smells like. I've put her down in the laundry room closet right now until I can figure what is going on. Like mentioned I hope the next molt gets rid of this stench.
 

Pixie

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Aug 9, 2003
Messages
269
While your waiting for the next molt to see if the smell goes away, you can always get yourself a couple of baking soda boxes to put in the closet with the enclosure to keep offensive smells down. Get the ventilated ones that are for the fridge and it should help cut down on some of the smell in the meantime.

Pixie
 

tarantula666

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 21, 2004
Messages
140
maybe she has been kept "to wet" high humidity promotes bacterial growth and can cause a nasty stench
try lowering the humidity, it just might do the trick
 

Elizabeth

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Dec 22, 2003
Messages
504
In my experience, nasty dish rags are the ones that have started to get moldy! I agree totally that you should try getting the humidity down. (And I really like the idea about the baking soda!)
 

greensleeves

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Jun 28, 2003
Messages
557
That is most odd. I personally vote for her getting impregnated by stink somehow. If you think about it, a T's exoskeleton is made out of (isn't it keratin?) which is like our hair, and when we're out in odourous conditions our hair can often pick up scents. Cigarette smoke is a bad one for that. Unfortunately, unlike you and me, a T can't just grab a bottle of shampoo and freshen up.

If she is smelling like old dish rags, it does sound, imho, as other people have said, that maybe she needs to dry out a little. This is just an idea, but maybe if you want to help her along, you could get a very soft paintbrush and brush her off very lightly with some talcum powder. I seem to remember someone on this board using a little baby powder to brush mites off her T without ill effects, so maybe you could try something similar if everyone thinks it would be safe. She could be smelling "baby fresh" again in no time! {D

Good luck with your "little stinker"! Keep us apprised of how things go!

Greensleeves
 

Malhavoc's

Arachnoking
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 12, 2003
Messages
2,837
As greensleeves siad talcum powder should work if mold is on her but keep it AWAY from the book longs..
 
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