A not so good update on my tarantulas.

hassman789

Arachnobaron
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Dec 2, 2009
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Hi everyone, I haven't posted here for a while, mostly because I sort of lost interest. Lately I have been pretty discouraged from keeping tarantulas. Here comes the bad news, I have not been able to keep tarantulas alive. All but one have died off from Diskinetic Syndrome. Over the course of a few years I have lost 5 tarantulas from DKS. They have all been juveniles or slings, the one survivor is an adult B. Albopilosum. I have been very careful with chemicals and stuff, but have had no luck. At this point I am almost sure that it's caused by pesticides being sprayed at the vineyards on both sides of my house. I feel like I've really lost touch with this great hobby and I remember how much I used to love it! This makes me want to get more tarantulas, but I fear/know what will happen if I do. So yeah, I'll try to stick around the forum just to observe I guess.
 

angrysnail98

Arachnopeon
Joined
May 9, 2012
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7
Im sorry to hear about that. Maybe you should try something different with a tarantula if you think that would help. If not then avic avics seem to be fareley easy to care for.
 

Tweak

Arachnosquire
Joined
Feb 29, 2012
Messages
134
What are your temperatures like? If it isn't the chemicals it's most likely an overly warm environment that's causing your issue whether it's DKS or not
 

SamuraiSid

Arachnodemon
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Sep 30, 2010
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Dont take this the wrong way, but why do you think DKS? Its one of those strange concepts, where most of the time the T dies/suffers from dehydration and the owner goes on to say, "enclosure conditions are pristine and its DKS" with nothing to back them up but mounds and mounds of others blaming this mystery illness.

Do you have any pics of the deceased in their enclosures?

When cleaning enclosures do you use bleach?

What were the specific symptoms your T's suffered?
 

hassman789

Arachnobaron
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What are your temperatures like? If it isn't the chemicals it's most likely an overly warm environment that's causing your issue whether it's DKS or not
60s during winter 90s during summer. (Fahrenheit)
Dont take this the wrong way, but why do you think DKS? Its one of those strange concepts, where most of the time the T dies/suffers from dehydration and the owner goes on to say, "enclosure conditions are pristine and its DKS" with nothing to back them up but mounds and mounds of others blaming this mystery illness.

Do you have any pics of the deceased in their enclosures?

When cleaning enclosures do you use bleach?

What were the specific symptoms your T's suffered?
This is the most recently deceased. A. Versicolor. Her symptoms started after a molt, (However, not all my losses have) She always had water available and I saw her drink from it on multiple occasions. But I started noticing symptoms and then she rapidly declined. That's usually how it is, I notice the symptoms and they go downhill really fast. No bleach was used. And the symptoms are spastic movements, they pretty much have no control over their legs. Also, this is a picture from winter, I lost this one a few weeks ago.

 

catfishrod69

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Really sorry for your losses. Maybe give us some more info on everything you can think of. What feeders your using, etc..
 

hassman789

Arachnobaron
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Really sorry for your losses. Maybe give us some more info on everything you can think of. What feeders your using, etc..
Pretty basic. I keep them on eco earth. Also, they are given my tap water, which is safe to drink (for me at least), I think it has a lot of minerals or whatever in it, I'm not certain of what exactly though. They are fed B. dubia roaches, which are fed spare vegetables.
 

BrettG

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"am almost sure that it's caused by pesticides being sprayed at the vineyards on both sides of my house"
I think this right there is your issue over tap water,temps,or anything else that has been mentioned so far.
 

catfishrod69

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Yeah that all sounds pretty normal to me. Like Brett said it most likely is from the pesticides being sprayed. Probably not a whole lot you can do. Maybe move to another place, give up critters, or sabotage the vineyards sprayers. Hey atleast you know the dubia are living through it.
Pretty basic. I keep them on eco earth. Also, they are given my tap water, which is safe to drink (for me at least), I think it has a lot of minerals or whatever in it, I'm not certain of what exactly though. They are fed B. dubia roaches, which are fed spare vegetables.
 

Terry D

Arachnodemon
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Nov 21, 2009
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Hassman, I feel your pain- although most of my losses came after a faulty heater thermostat allowing the t room to overheat. This happened twice over a year ago but not since then. I agree with others in that it seems more likely that the spraying of the vineyards adjacent your house might be the culprit.

water- I don't know whether or not your tap water is chlorinated like mine. The t's drink this but only after it has sat for a day or more.

Good luck and hopefully something will work out for you,

T
 

catfishrod69

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You know maybe somehow the spraying is leaching into your water system. Do you have city water evidentily? If so, than you wouldnt think it would be able to get in somehow. Maybe just try using distilled water, and getting a cheaper sling like obt, or something, and see if that happens to have any affect. Hopefully you can figure it out, and be able to get the critters living a long life.
 

Speg

Arachnosquire
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Aug 26, 2012
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It could be possible that the pesticide is invading your tap water slightly. A slight washout of the pesticide and a small hole in your water lines could equal bad news for your tap water...

Also, if the company that you HAVE to use is anything like mine, chlorine in your water is the least of your concerns...there's some really nasty stuff in the tap water and they get away with offering it to customers by saying that those levels are not lethal to humans at such small amounts... however, more sensitive animals may not be able to handle such small amounts of those chemicals.

One thing you could try is changing the water to purified and see if that doesn't change your success...

I'm a newb to this hobby but many of my other hobbies (saltwater fish, dart frogs, etc) use water and it's often a key to keeping the animal healthy/happy.
 

hassman789

Arachnobaron
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Dec 2, 2009
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Thank you for all the replies and ideas! On the topic of water, I have well water. I don't know much about this stuff, but if I'm correct, that would make it even easier for chemicals and such to get into the tap? Well Now I'm interested in getting some slings and trying just giving them store bought water. Also, I will give my B. Albopilosum store bought water from now on.

I'd also try to keep the windows and door shut, in an effort to keep airborne pesticides out. However, I'm afraid that would turn the room into a sauna and bake the spiders.
 

catfishrod69

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Being you have well water, im sure those pestisides are getting in there somehow. Especially when it rains. Yeah, get a few slings and give the store bought water a go, hope it works out for you.
 

donniedark0

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Long island water supply is very good but can be sketchy in certain areas. Buy a couple gallon jugs of Poland spring and you should be fine. I would put money on it that your water supply is just not usable for Inverts under any circumstances. This also means when your spraying the enclosures or anything.

Never let a drop of the public water touch the inside. Use Poland spring, it's cheap to buy it in gallons.

Goodluck and don't be afraid to enjoy the hobby
 

hassman789

Arachnobaron
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Thanks everyone for all the encouragement! Hopefully I can make it to the next reptile expo! :D
 

Formerphobe

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DKS is a symptom, not a disease. I think there is a lot of merit to your suspicion that vineyard pesticides may play a role. Perhaps try a couple of inexpensive slings and bottled water. You may even consider an air purifier. There was a thread in Watering Hole recently about the benefits of air purifiers. Both humans and non-humans could benefit. Sorry for your losses. I can only imagine how disheartening it must be.
 

Tarac

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Oct 6, 2011
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"am almost sure that it's caused by pesticides being sprayed at the vineyards on both sides of my house"
I think this right there is your issue over tap water,temps,or anything else that has been mentioned so far.
Why? Any idea which pesticides are being used? Or if it is even pesticide and not fungicides (which could be bad too), which are much more commonly used on grape vineyards? And then the question is how long are those compounds environmentally active, do they even have any relevance to spiders, etc. etc. Many of the most common broad-spectrum pesticides used in large scale agricultural settings have very short periods of activity so unless your T was in direct contact with the pesticide (i.e. your window was open on a day they sprayed with the T's tank close by) I would really wonder about other possible routes of contamination (if it is even poisoning of some form, may not be at all). Lots of people live near agricultural production centers and don't have this problem. Also it sounds like your T's have been lost over a period of years and at different times of year, meaning that spraying practices would not be constant through the year, especially in NY where there is a decided non-productive season.

I also wonder more about those dubias that are eating "spare vegetables" as they would act like a bio-accumulator of any unwanted systemic pesticides found in your average grocery veggies. As another member mentioned, when items are rated "safe for consumption" it only means the assorted biocides are at low enough levels that they are safe for people to eat. Most of our average veggies contain a surprising amount of assorted pesticides, regardless of how well you wash them- they are systemic, so in the cells of the produce not just on the surface. Things like celery, cucumbers, and leafy veggies with high water content are the worst but any vegetable can be potentially harmful.

Tell us a little more about the veggies and any other conditions that you can think of. It's likely that we won't have a clear cut answer ultimately but at least you can try to find a few things that you can adjust to see if it helps. I'm sure it is frustrating not being able to keep a T alive, I'm sorry you are experiencing such losses and hope that we can come up with some helpful information that will improve your future endeavors.
 
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