P.rufilata bad molt.

[Nightstalker47]

My smallest P.rufilata had a really bad molt about three weeks ago. She dug all the way under her cork slab and decided to molt crammed under it in a very shallow enclosed burrow.

I was immediately worried when I noticed but there was obviously nothing I could do to help. Next time I checked on her I couldn't see much other then that she had molted.

The next night I saw her out on top of her cork dragging her molt behind her, it was stuck to three of her legs in the strangest way. Was a weird thing to see, the silhouette caught me off guard.

Anyway I knew she could self amputate if she needed too, so I left her be for a few days with minimal disturbances. Next time I checked on her she had lost the molt and the three legs that were stuck to it. Good news.

I waited two weeks and then fed her a large superworm. She went crazy for it in the funniest way, her movement was definetely impaired with three less legs.

Anyhow she's now eaten two superworms and a large female cricket just this past week. Im confident she'll be fine and should have her legs back within the next molt or two. She was out so I managed to snap a few pics of her. Here she is in her five legged glory.

 

[Venom1080]

Good luck man.

My girls ready soon if you get a male..

 

[miss moxie]

I'm gonna call her Quinn.

Derived from the word 'Quintuple.'

 

[Jones0911]

She's still beautiful and eating and if it is a female her legs will grow back in a few molts.

I think if its a male his legs might grow back unless his next molt is his final one then they might grow half way....

 

[FrDoc]

You know you have a good looking spider when she loses three legs and STILL looks good.

 

[Nightstalker47]

Good luck man.

My girls ready soon if you get a male..

Thanks bud! I have high hopes for her. My largest rufilata just matured around two months ago, he's ready to go if your looking for a breeding loan.

She's still beautiful and eating and if it is a female her legs will grow back in a few molts.

I think if its a male his legs might grow back unless his next molt is his final one then they might grow half way....

This girl is only around 3.5" so she'll have plenty of time to grow her limbs back. It will be interesting to see if she molts sooner then normal seeing as she needs to repair herself.

 

[Nightstalker47]

Update:

Bad news unfortunately. She molted again, but it didn't go well. Seems she got two legs stuck this time. Not what I was hoping for. I mean what are the odds of this happening twice in a row?

Anyway she should be fine in the long run, but she's still dragging around the molt with her. I really hope she can bounce back next molt with no issues, this is getting really disheartening.

Here she is.

 

[Misty Day]

Damn, that sucks. Still, if its only legs than she should be fine, hopefully she can correct it in her next molt. Wishing you the best of luck with her!

 

[Nightstalker47]

Damn, that sucks. Still, if its only legs than she should be fine, hopefully she can correct it in her next molt. Wishing you the best of luck with her!

Thanks so much... I'm pretty bummed about this one. Still have high hopes for her though.

 

[14pokies]

Update:

Bad news unfortunately. She molted again, but it didn't go well. Seems she got two legs stuck this time. Not what I was hoping for. I mean what are the odds of this happening twice in a row?

Anyway she should be fine in the long run, but she's still dragging around the molt with her. I really hope she can bounce back next molt with no issues, this is getting really disheartening.

Here she is.

Sounds like a humidity problem,perhaps it's from the central heating in your house or a space heater if you run one..

Try reducing ventilation and keeping the substrate a little more moist than you have been.. Watch out that it doesn't become too stuffy though.

 

[Nightstalker47]

Thanks for your input man, but I don't think humidity is the issue. My other poecs are doing absolutely fine. Same goes for all of my moisture loving species. And ironically enough, I have been keeping her more on the moist side.

Maybe this specimen would appreciate a cooler environment though. I hear it can go either way with P.rufilata, with some not doing well too warm and others seeming completely unphased. There are many conflicting reports, so I'm not convinced as of yet. Just brainstorming.

My male rufilata never had any issues with his molts, and he was kept pretty much identically up until he matured. Probably a little drier actually.

Makes me wonder...could be that some specimens are just more prone to this kind of issue.

 

[Olan]

Yeah, a previous difficult molt can make the next molt riskier I think. But if she goes from 5 to 6 legs, that's moving in the right direction!

 

[Nightstalker47]

Yeah, a previous difficult molt can make the next molt riskier I think. But if she goes from 5 to 6 legs, that's moving in the right direction!

Yeah hopefully... I noticed one leg has already been partially regenerated. Two others got stuck again though, she still hasn't discarded the molt or legs as of yet.

 

[Nightstalker47]

Figured I would update this thread. My girl has unfortunately passed away. I had all the hope in the world that she would recover, but seems something kept going wrong every time she attempted to molt. Just wasn't meant to make it I guess.

She died a couple weeks ago I was just too bummed to talk about it. Anyway, hate to finish this thread on such a negative note, but at least there is some data available here in case this happens to someone else.

 

[RonnyT]

Figured I would update this thread. My girl has unfortunately passed away. I had all the hope in the world that she would recover, but seems something kept going wrong every time she attempted to molt. Just wasn't meant to make it I guess.

She died a couple weeks ago I was just too bummed to talk about it. Anyway, hate to finish this thread on such a negative note, but at least there is some data available here in case this happens to someone else.

Sorry for your loss

 

[zoogirl]

So sorry for your loss

 

[Nightstalker47]

Thanks for the kind words you two. As much as these are just inverts and all, it still hurts to lose one like this.

 

[miamc12321]

I'm so sorry! What a heart break! I hope you're okay.

 

[RonnyT]

Thanks for the kind words you two. As much as these are just inverts and all, it still hurts to lose one like this.

I totally agree with you, these are still living creatures