Sudden DKS...

[Valarien]

I just fed my tarantulas yesterday and all are fine except my Poecilotheria Metallica of whom I found in their enclosure this evening twitching legs partially curled up under them self. They had taken the roach and eaten it as they normally do but now they are probably going to die....

Substrate was moist I had just moistened it this weekend...water dish was full of water...she had taken and eaten a roach the day before....I don't know what I did wrong.

 

[dangerforceidle]

Do you have photos, by chance? Of the spider, and of the full enclosure?

 

[Valarien]

This is a picture of her.

 

[Valarien]

These are pictures of her enclosure all four sides note that the water dish was nearly full at the time I discovered her but is empty now from rather....not very level movementof the enclosure.

 

[Dannica]

This is a picture of her.

Did you turn her onto her back? Also, ICUs are generally frowned upon, they do nothing but stress the spider. I’d suggest putting her back in the enclosure, and leaving her alone. If she hasn’t been exposed to anything that you can think of, and really even if she has, there isn’t anything you can accomplish by putting her on a pile of wet paper towels.

 

[KezyGLA]

I'm gonna go with poor ventilation on this one.

Stagnant air is a killer.

Should have vent holes on 2 sides and the top.

 

[Valarien]

I'm gonna go with poor ventilation on this one.

Stagnant air is a killer.

Should have vent holes on 2 sides and the top.

Okay...what signs would there have been for me to see before now that there was not enough air flow?

If you are right...then I mistakenly trusted the site I bought these enclosures from...Also near where she was laying is a patch of a white substance.

 

[KezyGLA]

Not much that would be visible. Condensation maybe. Though cross ventilation is a must for arboreals

Do you have photos of the white stuff?

 

[Sinned]

Don't know lots about Poecilotheria genus, that's out of my reach But @KezyGLA does and I picked up on the cross ventilation thing, those arboreal T's need some fresh air. It's a reoccuring theme it seems. Some enclosures might need a bit of customizing before they are "ok" for specific genus/species. Hope she makes it!

Please as @Dannica pointed out... don't use ICU's if possible, they are only useful in very specific cases .. and unless you are a very experienced keeper it's not a default to fall back on when stuff goes wrong with your T.

 

[Valarien]

Not much that would be visible. Condensation maybe. Though cross ventilation is a must for arboreals

Do you have photos of the white stuff?

There is only ever any condensation after I have misted down the enclosures...and she has been in this enclosure for a number of months...

 

[KezyGLA]

The white stuff looks like mould growth to me. Another sign of poor ventilation (and possibly too much moisture) When there is sufficient ventilation it is harder for moulds to grow.

It may have seemed ok in the beginning, but over time it will have had an effect on your specimen.

 

[Valarien]

The white stuff looks like mould growth to me. Another sign of poor ventilation. When there is sufficient ventilation it is harder for moulds to grow

When I originally found her she was facing away from that spot and it was where the rear part of her abdomen was facing.

Also...what should I do with her? Her twitching has decreased in frequency though she still reacts to water misting, not moving from her spot but pulling all of her legs in on herself.

I ask this because I do not want her to suffer needlessly....from my failure to care for her properly...

 

[Sinned]

Stop misting, if a T is dehydrated and you need to administer water you can opt to using an eye dropper to drop water between her chelicerae. Misting + movement is just her reacting to someone "irritating/touching" every hair/nerve ending she/he has. (like blowing on her will probably result in the same response, and no don't do that - it freaks them out)

I don't know what you should do right now, but if humidity/stagnant air was the problem, misting wont help. I hope an experienced keeper will respond soon( and correct me if needed.)

 

[Dannica]

Honestly it sounds like a lack of cross ventilation, misting (which is never necessary), and stagnant moist air have taken their toll, and I’m not sure there is much you can do at this point. If you can add proper ventilation to the enclosure and fill it with DRY substrate and a water dish, she may have a chance, but there’s no guarantees. Maybe someone with more experience will jump in here, and correct me if I’m mistaken.

 

[Valarien]

Then I have failed as a tarantula keeper.....and I need to reevaluate my ability to actually keep any tarantulas at all.

 

[Dannica]

Then I have failed as a tarantula keeper.....and I need to reevaluate my ability to actually keep any tarantulas at all.

Read up on your husbandry, ask questions and listen to the experienced keepers that comment here all the time. No reason to beat yourself up now over something you can’t change.

 

[Valarien]

Read up on your husbandry, ask questions and listen to the experienced keepers that comment here all the time. No reason to beat yourself up now over something you can’t change.

But I could have done all of that stuff before now so as far as I am concerned saying that it is something that is unchangeable is a falsity because of all the time before now that I had too learn about it and correct it. Ignorance is not an excuse and I will not use it as an excuse to belittle my mistake which lead to the death of an animal that was completely under my care and unable to do anything itself to improve its conditions. Also I watch a YouTuber who cares for a plethora of tarantulas and who on reflection commented many many times about how important cross ventilation is. I was just a fool who never connected the dots as obvious as they should have been to me.

 

[boina]

Is the tarantula already dead? If not try heat treatment. I had several cases of DKS like symptoms recently and what I did was something I'd normally never do: I used a heat lamp to raise the temps to 30°C+ (that's close to 90F for you Americans). It actually did help 4 out of 6 spiders, so it is something you should absolutely try.

1. Leave the spider in it's enclosure and add ventilation
2. find a way to raise the heat for your spider to 85 to 95F, that's really really high.
3. Make sure the water dish is always full and in easy reach, but otherwise don't add extra water.
4. Switch the heat off during night to give your spider a chance to rehydrate
5. Leave it that way for at least two weeks, possibly more

Btw, if you read the original description of the ICU it is mentioned that you should keep your sick spider as warm as possible. Somehow everyone uses the wet paper towels but overlooks the warm part.

 

[Valarien]

Is the tarantula already dead? If not try heat treatment. I had several cases of DKS like symptoms recently and what I did was something I'd normally never do: I used a heat lamp to raise the temps to 30°C+ (that's close to 90F for you Americans). It actually did help 4 out of 6 spiders, so it is something you should absolutely try.

1. Leave the spider in it's enclosure and add ventilation
2. find a way to raise the heat for your spider to 85 to 95F, that's really really high.
3. Make sure the water dish is always full and in easy reach, but otherwise don't add extra water.
4. Switch the heat off during night to give your spider a chance to rehydrate
5. Leave it that way for at least two weeks, possibly more

Btw, if you read the original description of the ICU it is mentioned that you should keep your sick spider as warm as possible. Somehow everyone uses the wet paper towels but overlooks the warm part.

While I will give it a try I cannot say that I am hopeful. She is mostly in a death curl now though last night before I had went to bed she had uncurled and moved a bit. But this morning she is in a corner of her enclosure upright but legs curled underneath her twitching occasionally.

 

[draconisj4]

If you are right...then I mistakenly trusted the site I bought these enclosures from.

I have my I. hirsutum in one of those enclosures, but they definitely need some modification. I modified mine by drilling holes in a square pattern on the side opposite the vent close to the top and a row down another side, since my spider spends it's time at the top. For a pokie since they need more moisture and spend time at the bottom I would have also drilled a row of holes all the way around the bottom just above the substrate.