HELP!! What is wrong with my spider??

[Thistles]

I was open to begin with but whats the point in asking questions if you dont want to hear answers?

I don't think she was closed. She tried your qtip idea but had trouble with it. I think it's more a matter of conflicting info and not knowing who to listen to. Like everything I see around says to remove uneaten crickets and now she's being told not to, y'know?

Sorry Kezy. I have a huge crush on your spiders and you by extension, so please don't take this wrong. I'm just trying to see it from her perspective.

 

[KezyGLA]

I don't think she was closed. She tried your qtip idea but had trouble with it. I think it's more a matter of conflicting info and not knowing who to listen to. Like everything I see around says to remove uneaten crickets and now she's being told not to, y'know?

Sorry Kezy. I have a huge crush on your spiders and you by extension, so please don't take this wrong. I'm just trying to see it from her perspective.

Not taking it wrong. I agree there are threads on here that are very conflicting and not every keeper has the same experiences but when given an answer I wouldnt really challenge it if 4 or so more persons agree and back it.

I dont mean to be cranky but we see it time and time again and I usually keep my cool and take 5 mins to help people when they need it but if I spend more than 5 mins and its going nowhere i turn into a grump

As for the void threads, I wish there was a way admin could skim and delete the nonsense. Theres just to many of them to deal with unfortunately

 

[Andrea82]

You are usually mellow posters from what i've seen...not sure i understand why you are offended by OP's 'attitude'. She is right about conflicting advice, and the link she posted is still in use, and often posted (by me as well as others) as reference, on top of being a sticky. I think she started out asking politely, only after being rated as funny and cornered did OP change attitude, which i can't blame her for, given the answers she got. Sje followed advice and came back because it didn't work.
Threads on care are constantly contradicting each other. How is she to know which posters are experienced and who not to listen to? Titles? Mine says 'arachno prince' but i am only in my third year of keeping, so that doesn't mean squat.

 

[Chris LXXIX]

Take crickets out, leave crickets in, heat, no heat, 65f, 75f, 85f, mist, don't mist, give water, don't give water....

with your funny face

muahahah that was funny

 

[boina]

You are usually mellow posters from what i've seen...not sure i understand why you are offended by OP's 'attitude'. She is right about conflicting advice, and the link she posted is still in use, and often posted (by me as well as others) as reference, on top of being a sticky. I think she started out asking politely, only after being rated as funny and cornered did OP change attitude, which i can't blame her for, given the answers she got. Sje followed advice and came back because it didn't work.
Threads on care are constantly contradicting each other. How is she to know which posters are experienced and who not to listen to? Titles? Mine says 'arachno prince' but i am only in my third year of keeping, so that doesn't mean squat.

It's very, very difficult to judge from something written down without seeing the person and hearing the tone, but what I took from the whole discussion was that she didn't have a clue about how to keep a T but seemed very sure of being right nonetheless and when people told her things she didn't like (like about the heat mat) she got snappy. I didn't see it as only about being conflicting information.
I may be completely wrong, though - it's just my take on things.

 

[darkness975]

View attachment 234451 View attachment 234452 I noticed when I got her out to change the dirt that there is an odd spot on her abdomen. She's bald and huge, also looks crusty, but there's also a scabby spot. I have no clue about this. Does anyone know???

It looks a bit abnormal but it does not appear to be actively leaking any fluids or anything so it will likely be corrected with the next molt. Unless it gets worse or starts leaking I would not be overly concerned about it. Just keep an eye on the behavior to make sure nothing unusual comes up and aside from that you will have to be patient and wait for the molt.

I would remove the stones from the water dish as they harbor bacteria. With regards to feeding, if the spider does not take the prey item within a reasonable amount of time then just remove it and try again next week.

 

[smitje]

I expected to read about a sick tarantula. Im 45 years old and have been to war, but thanks God I still have some whiskey left

 

[cold blood]

Like everything I see around says to remove uneaten crickets and now she's being told not to, y'know?

No one here suggested she not remove crickets...no one...it was clarified that the point of danger with crickets only revolves around a freshly molted t.


The fact that there were multiple crickets running around was my motivation for explaining their low food requirement....as I would never feed this species multiple prey items at once, as its just over-feeding. Literally this species does very well on 1-3 crickets per month, fed one at a time.

 

[Thistles]

Oi, she says:

I might've left the crickets in too long, I guess they could've nibbled at her?...
...I had to take them out bc she never ate them

To which you reply:

Crickets pose no threat to a t that isn't freshly molted.

Both are fine posts. She said what she did and why, and you give her more information. She then says:

Everyone always has something different to say, website aren't any better. Take crickets out, leave crickets in...

This gives us an idea of where her frustration is coming from. You didn't do or say anything wrong, but she thought she had to remove them because that's what she'd been told. Your response, which doesn't tell her NOT to remove them, does suggest that what she did was wrong. It's not explicit, but that's the natural, implicit leap she'll make. She's trying to help her spider, but everyone's telling her different things to do.

You then had a decent back and forth about heat. She got her info HERE, like people just told her to do, and you're still telling her she's wrong. How's she supposed to know? Her source is one of the most prominent figures in the hobby. It must be confusing for her to try to decide who to listen to. Don't get frustrated if she doesn't immediately take your word. Just offer her the advice, and if you want to give her more info, great. No need to be snarky about it. She asked a few times for more info. That's a perfect reaction. Then she was told she has a bad attitude.

The reason people say to remove crickets and prey, is because of the t molts, it will get eaten....molts aren't always predictable. A t would never sit there long enough to be chewed on unless it was in a helpless freshly molted state...their jaws would also be pretty useless against the ts exo when hardened.

More good info explaining why she doesn't need to. Perfect. Except she was told in one of the first posts that her spider is about to molt.

It doesn't look heavy premolt to me, but again, how does she know who to listen to?

No one here suggested she not remove crickets...no one...it was clarified that the point of danger with crickets only revolves around a freshly molted t.

The fact that there were multiple crickets running around was my motivation for explaining their low food requirement....as I would never feed this species multiple prey items at once, as its just over-feeding. Literally this species does very well on 1-3 crickets per month, fed one at a time.

And that's YOUR style. I know a lot of people who feed theirs a few crickets once a month. Some do one cricket per week. Who cares? If she fed more than one, she's not wrong. Removing them is playing it safe, even if it isn't strictly necessary. You made an assumption that she was overfeeding. Maybe she is (her orginal pic shows a plump spider), but I can't blame her for getting defensive.

I didn't mean to call you in particular out. That was just the example that popped in to my head.

OP probably won't come back now, and she'll be forever googling caresheets.

 

[cold blood]

 

[KezyGLA]

 

[boina]

Honestly, if I need I psychology major to post on here I'm out. So @Thistles you need not worry that I may contribute to putting someone off arachnoboards again - the bad attitude post was from me and since you are the authority on attitudes I obviously got it wrong.

 

[nicodimus22]

And now, here to ease any tension is a billionaire dancing like a chicken:

 

[KezyGLA]

And now, here to ease any tension is a billionaire dancing like a chicken:

Vicente always takes pain away

 

[Andrea82]

Honestly, if I need I psychology major to post on here I'm out. So @Thistles you need not worry that I may contribute to putting someone off arachnoboards again - the bad attitude post was from me and since you are the authority on attitudes I obviously got it wrong.

A psychology major isn't necessary , but i would like to remind you why you came to this forum and liked it better than the German forum. You left because the people were unfriendly and not supportive,treating you wrong because you asked a question.
I value your experience and knowledge, but you can be a bit snippy yourself

 

[Leila]

The OP left this conversation a long time ago.
Hey, everyone- maybe we can all just hug this one out and giggle at this meme?

 

[Leila]

And this one? Yes?

 

[boina]

A psychology major isn't necessary , but i would like to remind you why you came to this forum and liked it better than the German forum. You left because the people were unfriendly and not supportive,treating you wrong because you asked a question.
I value your experience and knowledge, but you can be a bit snippy yourself

Yes. I know. Patience isn't my strongest suit. I strongly dislike being lectured, though. Nevermind, lets try again next time.

 

[curiousme]

It's definatly not poop. I changed the dirt because it was old.

What does it matter how old the dirt is? Who knows how old the dirt in nature is. Pick out boluses, but you have just given her world a major shakeup. She had web across that dirt that she could follow and recognize the vibrations of prey moving on it. You may not have been able to see them, but they were there. That is not an apartment that needs vacuumed and the furniture moved. Leave her dirt alone, it doesn't matter if dirt gets 'old'.

 

[curiousme]

So what is so wrong with keeping it around 75f?

That heat mat can short out and start getting ridiculously hot, had it happen with some geckos. That can break the tank, or fry the tarantula eventually. They don't know how to regulate heat and will even dig to get nearer. I have kept my tarantulas in a drafty unheated room during an Indiana winter. Not sure how low temperatures got in there, but it was very cold, coat cold. The tarantulas survived just fine and several were slings. Lose the heat mat and you lose an added unnecessary risk. It might not have happened to you yet, but why risk it when it is unnecessary?

If you can't even get her to stay still to use a q-tip, just watch it. If it is stuck on there taking it off could harm the T and actually cause a problem. I do think I see a bit of blackening, so a molt should be sooner than later. She's larger though, so that could still mean months. As others have already said, you just have to wait for her to molt and it should fix itself.

Also, I'm sorry your thread went completely off topic. I tried to bring it back to it.