Advice Needed - Abdomen Injury?

[emcee]

Hi Everyone,

Looking for some guidance - purchased this E. murinus about a half year ago at an expo. I noticed it wasn't eating or webbing or burrowing, but after a couple of months of peace and quiet and after adding a lot of cover and moisture, it started webbing and eating, although it's always been somewhat finicky with food.

It doesn't spend much time out of it's web pouch, but tonight I caught a rare glimpse of it fully out and about, and I'm concerned. What on earth is going on with it's abdomen? It's not wet-looking - it looks dry and crusty and obviously very sore. It definitely didn't look like this when I purchased it. I've never seen this before... Is it an injury, abscess, dehydration issue, or something else? I posted this to a T facebook group, and they suggested I try asking in this forum as well, since no one was sure. Have any of you seen this sort of thing before? What is going on, and how can I help it?

As background, if it matters - when I bought it, I asked and was told it was captive bred. I have since learned that this vendor sells wild caught animals, so I'm guessing this spider was probably NOT captive bred. Ugh.

Thanks - any help is welcome.

 

[Rigor Mortis]

Has it moulted since you've had it? It reminds me of a gnarly moulting issue tarantuladddict on YouTube had with his AF T. stirmi a few years ago. She had this huge abscess looking thing on her abdomen and it didn't go away until 2 moults later. It looks like exposed, non-setae covered exoskeleton like when a leg is in the process of regenerating.

 

[emcee]

As far as I'm aware, it hasn't molted in my care. I haven't found a molt anywhere, and it's webbed up against the sides where I can see almost all of the inside of its web burrow, so unless it's hidden its molt really well somewhere, I'm not sure if that's it? That was my first thought, but after failing to see any molt in the enclosure, I wasn't sure. It's still moving around its enclosure normally, although it ignored the roach I dropped in today, even when it ran right under the spider.

 

[Thekla]

That doesn't look good, I'm afraid. Can you see if that mass is covering her anus? Because if so, it could very well lead to impaction if she's not able to release herself. Have you seen her poop?

Does she have a water dish? Also, I think the set-up isn't appropriate for this species. They need deep damp substrate as they're obligate burrowers. Could you post a picture of the entire enclosure?

 

[emcee]

It looks like the spider's spinnerets and anus are not obstructed. It just seems to be the top back half of it's abdomen. We keep the soil damp and provide a water bowl, but we can certainly add more substrate if necessary. I've attached another picture of the spider at a different angle, along with pictures of the enclosure.

 

[Thekla]

She definitely needs more substrate. The tub itself is okay, but I would take out all the decor and fill it at least halfway (better 2/3) up with damp substrate. Cover the holes with some tape from the inside, so she can't get stuck and make a starter burrow.

It's good that the mass doesn't cover her anus. Maybe, she'll be able to moult out of it. Try to get her to eat. I would use superworms as they are rich on nutrients and will hopefully fatten her up a bit. You could also try to raise the overall temperature in order to boost up her metabolism. And keep the water dish full.

I don't have that species myself, so, I hope other people will chime in, but that's what I would try. Good luck and keep us updated.

 

[emcee]

We actually have another tub the same size, with fewer holes drilled higher up, so I think I'll just transfer it over to that one tomorrow with fresh substrate, following the guidelines you mentioned. I do like the idea of adding more substrate - I've not seen this spider burrow or even move dirt at all, so hopefully we can encourage it to exhibit that behavior. Really hoping the weirdness on her abdomen is something that will start to go away once the spider molts. It seems to be moving around without issues , so now I just need to make sure it's also eating well. Thank you for the advice!

 

[Rigor Mortis]

Is it possible she had a non-lethal falling injury and this is how it healed? I really want to figure this out, I feel so bad for your girl.

 

[Swagg]

I would also bury that water dish down some. I leave enough of the dish out so that my T's don't have to climb to drink but high enough that nothing will wick the water out of the bowl. Best of luck!

 

[emcee]

I have seen her climbing around occasionally in the evenings, so that's certainly a possibility. I just feel so guilty that this happened to one of my spiders, especially if it's something I did wrong with setup or husbandry. I've never had one look so rough before. I'm just hoping we can set her up in a super safe spider palace and get her eating.

Good advice on the water bowl - I was thinking in the new enclosure, once I get a chance to set that up this evening, I can use a shallower, wider bowl so there's more surface area on the water with less depth.