P. Metallica vanished!

Esque

Arachnopeon
Joined
Feb 16, 2017
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7
Hi all,
Today I woke up and went to check on my p. Metallica sling (about 4 cm leg to leg) and to my horror can't be found in her own enclosure! I had her for nearly a week, and been hiding and spinning web in 2 corners. She molted on the way to me, but started eating on the 4th day. Attached is a photo of her own enclosure. Really worry as I have two cats, one 2years old boy and lizards/gecko that will happily eat her. I search all area around the enclosure too, hope I didn't miss a spot.
 

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mack1855

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Which enclosure? The delicup.And are you sure shes not burrowed into the substrate?
And if its 4cm,thats roughly 1.5inches.The ventaltion holes on the top should not
be a issue,i would think.It may be in premolt and went to ground.
Whatever you do,DONT panic.How deep is the substrate.
Are you sure it molted?It may just be in the "wanting to be left alone"
frame of mind.
 

Esque

Arachnopeon
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Feb 16, 2017
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It's in the square enclosure in the middle. She is aboreal so there is only 1.5 cm thick of subtrate, and she just molted 4 days ago. Amazing thing is there isn't any gap yet she just vanish. Gotta keep looking then...
 

mack1855

Arachnoangel
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Ill take a guess,and say,she/he is still there.Did you pick up the enclosure,and look at
the bottom?Might need a flashlight to see.
And this has tight seams,with no gaps,correct?
 

mack1855

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Ok,im still thinking its still there.They can and will burrow when small.
and they are really good at not wanting to be seen.
Try looking for small entrances in the substrate
 
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mack1855

Arachnoangel
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Well,looked again,real close at the middle enclosure.Thats a lot of substrate for a 4cm
T to burrow into.Anyway,good luck,and hope all goes well.
 

sdsnybny

Arachnogeek
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Apr 29, 2015
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@Esque
If its the square enclosure with the yellow waterdish I'm seeing plenty of gap where the side and lid meet?? Tthink of it like this, if the carapace (coin/vending machine) can fit through the slot (gap) then the abdomen will squish flat to follow.
Hope you find your T.
 

cold blood

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It's in the square enclosure in the middle. She is aboreal so there is only 1.5 cm thick of subtrate, and she just molted 4 days ago. Amazing thing is there isn't any gap yet she just vanish. Gotta keep looking then...
the enclosure is set up very poorly to be honest....but i see a significant gap along the top....looks easily wide enough for it to fit through.
 

Nixphat

Arachnosquire
Joined
Oct 8, 2016
Messages
62
I can't tell if there's a gap or if it's just a weird angle ;) Buuut I'm on the hopeful side and agree with @mack1855 that your sling is just probably hidden in the substrate somewhere. Slings are easy to lose sight of :embarrassed:
 

Venom1080

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Sep 24, 2015
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Poorly designed cage.
Sift through the substrate and hope for the best. If not, good luck finding it.
 

viper69

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It's in the square enclosure in the middle. She is aboreal so there is only 1.5 cm thick of subtrate, and she just molted 4 days ago. Amazing thing is there isn't any gap yet she just vanish. Gotta keep looking then...
It has a gap the size of the Grand Canyon.
 

Ellenantula

Arachnoking
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Sep 14, 2014
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2,009
I can't decide if there is a gap or not.
I enlarged picture -- three sides (back and side walls) appear taller than top lid; top lid slides in and front wall of enclosure is shorter to allow the slide, yes?
I see top slide appearing to fit snugly on front wall. Slide also appears flush with back wall. I dunno.
Perhaps we need better pictures of the enclosure -- with closeups of where the sliding lid meets the front and back walls.
Sling is 1.5" -- so not tiny.

I would not go trying to dig the sling out. Maybe if it had been unseen for a really long time, but not this soon.
 

MRTLuvva

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jun 4, 2017
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1
Hi I hope it pops out off the soil for you soon mate:(, iknow how guttering things like this can be.
to some people there just spiders but not too us lol.:punch:
by the way people Im new to this forum.. nice to meet you all. :happy:
let me know if you find your tarantula ;)
and like ellanantula said dont dig out it can only do damage. give it abit longer iknow what its like I sometimes check on my Ts when theyve not been on show for a while.. just to put my mind at ease.
 

mconnachan

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If the enclosure has a top on you can't even see it, so I'm assuming it's on, duh, the gap I see is huge for a 4cm sling, it could have escaped easily, poorly designed enclosure for sure, but to be on the safe side take the whole unit to the bath, then sift through all the substrate and hopefully you find the spider. If I were you I'd be worried about my son, not my cats for heavens sake(you mention your cats first). If you find the T change enclosures ASAP, and any other enclosures that are designed that way.:banghead::banghead::banghead:
 
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