Please help

[StarvingArtist]

I'd leave her alone for now. See if anything changes in 24 hours. An ICU is only helpful in the case of dehydration, for future reference.

We thought maybe she was dehydrated at first. Even though she always has a full dish of water.

 

[Paiige]

Her tank was really dry when she molted last month. I tried doing research and everything kept saying put her in ICU and keep her tank humid. Is it too humid now? Should I put her in a dry ICU? I'm afraid to touch her again, if she is molting.
We always get her crickets from petsmart, and the same location. This is her enclosure.

These t's do not like it humid, at all. It looks way too wet in there. Is she moving? If she is, I would see if you can encourage her to move into a dry enclosure. If moving her would require you physically picking her up, I don't think that's a good idea. There's definitely something strange going on but I would not stress her out more than she already clearly is.

 

[Venom1080]

your set up is wrong.
-remove the heat pad. they are bad for tarantulas.
-the sub level should be bone dry and about 10x the amount you have in there.
-those gauges are useless for tarantulas, you dont need them at all and they have been known to lead keepers astray. which looks to be the exact case here.

i dont think this spider is trying to molt, it has unknowingly been given terrible care and is now dying. if you ever want another, do some research on this forum, the internet has loads of terrible care sheets that beginners follow and unknowingly kill their pet.

 

[clive 82]

your set up is wrong.
-remove the heat pad. they are bad for tarantulas.
-the sub level should be bone dry and about 10x the amount you have in there.
-those gauges are useless for tarantulas, you dont need them at all and they have been known to lead keepers astray. which looks to be the exact case here.

i dont think this spider is trying to molt, it has unknowingly been given terrible care and is now dying. if you ever want another, do some research on this forum, the internet has loads of terrible care sheets that beginners follow and unknowingly kill their pet.

Research before buying any pet is invaluable. All the info you need about anything to do with this hobby can be found on this forum.

 

[cold blood]

Those pics dont look good. It seems like its trying to moult. If it moulted a month ago this is quite strange. The lump doesnt look good.

Look here and see if anything in this thread mighr help you -

http://arachnoboards.com/threads/cysts-cancers-in-tarantulas-survey-fact-gathering-thread.226219/


I have noticed the substrate looks wet. Did you add moisture to help it try to moult? Damp conditions are no good for Rosies I'm afraid.

Right on my man, I agree. Rosies can go downhill quick if conditions are too damp...its about the only thing they can't deal with.

The lump has me worried. It looks like one of a few possible things...mind you this is pure speculation as the area hasn't been the actual focus of the pics.

First, and probably likely (despite being rare) considering the recent molt, would be that it had what's known as a "wet molt". This is when an area of the exo either fails to form completely, or becomes stuck to the old exo and peels a hole wen it molts. Survival of this is rare...not sure I have ever heard of a survivor of a wet molt.

Second would be that it fell shortly after molting, causing irreparable damage to the new, still hardening exoskeleton.

Also, because of the dampness (which is in the salamander territory) it could be a fungal infection....especially if there is a heat mat keeping that moisture warm.

The last, and probably the least likely is a parasite, when parasites emerge, it kinda leaves a bump and hole like that...unless the t was routinely fed wild caught prey, or was a recent wild caught addition to the collection, this is pretty unlikely though and wouldn't be something I would necessarily think is the issue, especially considering you feed pet store crickets and not WC ones and I get the feeling you've had it a while.

Her tank was really dry when she molted last month. I tried doing research and everything kept saying put her in ICU and keep her tank humid. Is it too humid now? Should I put her in a dry ICU? I'm afraid to touch her again, if she is molting.
We always get her crickets from petsmart, and the same location. This is her enclosure.

Never put an arid species in an ICU, it goes completely against the species requirements. Its like getting a frog and drying it out when you think there is a problem....its only going to add to the problem.

your set up is wrong.
-remove the heat pad. they are bad for tarantulas.
-the sub level should be bone dry and about 10x the amount you have in there.
-those gauges are useless for tarantulas, you dont need them at all and they have been known to lead keepers astray. which looks to be the exact case here.

i dont think this spider is trying to molt, it has unknowingly been given terrible care and is now dying. if you ever want another, do some research on this forum, the internet has loads of terrible care sheets that beginners follow and unknowingly kill their pet.

+1 I agree completely.


Especially considering its only been a month since its last molt, there's absolutely no way its trying to molt, its barely recovered from the last one....these things molt on a several year cycle, so it probably won't be due for 2-4 years to molt again....a year minimum.

 

[KezyGLA]

After seeing the photo I would say it is almost definitely damage by fall. Sorry but in almost every case of internal damage due to fall will result in a loss

 

[StarvingArtist]

We've had her for almost 6 years. She's not technically my pet, and my boyfriend did do research before he bought her. I guess that's what sucks is I kept googling her movements and everything said to put her in a humid damp enclosure... I'm the one who talked him into the ICU. I blame myself for her condition.
And tons of sites I have read have said to keep her enclosure moist and humid. Ugh.
I feel awful...


Im going out of town for a few days, should I try and put her in a smaller container? Maybe use the same container we used for the ICU, but empty?

Is there ANYTHING I can do for her????

 

[StarvingArtist]

Also you said they molt every 2-4 years, ours has molted every year almost religiously.
I've read that every molt shortens their life span also... do you think maybe that's why she's not doing well?
She usually disappears for a week when she molts, but this last one was so sudden and fast it caught us off guard.

 

[Andrea82]

Also you said they molt every 2-4 years, ours has molted every year almost religiously.
I've read that every molt shortens their life span also... do you think maybe that's why she's not doing well?
She usually disappears for a week when she molts, but this last one was so sudden and fast it caught us off guard.

It is not the icu only that caused this. As has been said, the set up is wrong, and has been wrong for quite some time. Not enough substrate, too moist, and hard things to fall on. You're boyfriend shares the blame, the research he has done was not correct.

 

[StarvingArtist]

So websites like this, are complete garbage????

http://www.petsuppliesplus.com/content.jsp?pageName=Rose_Hair_Tarantula


It just bums me out that I've been to tons of websites and almost all of them say to keep to keep their enclosure moist and humidity at 70-80%.
How are you supposed to know your research is wrong if tons of places all say the same thing?

 

[StarvingArtist]

I appreciate all your help, I just didn't know I was getting the wrong information from so many different sources.
Hope my last comment didn't come off as Rude.

 

[Haksilence]

It's a mistake 90% of new keepers make. In the future, unless you read it on these forums assume it's false. @EulersK has a good video series on YouTube, but other than that try to search these boards for information or message one of us.

 

[KezyGLA]

So websites like this, are complete garbage????

http://www.petsuppliesplus.com/content.jsp?pageName=Rose_Hair_Tarantula


It just bums me out that I've been to tons of websites and almost all of them say to keep to keep their enclosure moist and humidity at 70-80%.
How are you supposed to know your research is wrong if tons of places all say the same thing?

Unfortunately yes. They are garbage. The right info comes from researching their natural habitat or looking up what experienced keepers/hobbyists have said.

I am sorry to hear about another ill fallen T that has been cause by a care sheet. This happens all too much. You are not alone with this. I see at least 1 post a month here with the same problem as you have now. Care sheets kill.

Pet stores may be good for reptiles but when it comes to husbandry information on theraphosidae most just dont know.

I believe that many of these websites that are giving incorrect info are copying and pasting what others have written etc. That is why it is a problem. Some pet stores just want to sell extra equipment as a 'starter pack' when the accessories are useless.

G. rosea is from one of the driest regions in South America. This is why they dont do well in moist conditions. It isn't right for them.

 

[Haksilence]

Tarantulapedia.com will give the locality data for just about every species in the hobby.

And then you can check that locality data with worldclimate.com for average annual temperatures and rainfall.

To get a good feel for what their annual rainfalls are like, compare it to your location. So say your area averages 40" of rainfall and the locality of that species only gets 30" then you know that it should be kept just a bit dryer than your native region.

 

[EulersK]

If a care sheet ever lists any specific numbers for humidity, then that's a huge red flag. I usually stop reading if I see numbers next to "humidity".

Concerning humidity, you'll learn to read your spider. It's next to impossible to give good humidity advice over the internet, as our climates are wildly different. I actually need to water down my G. porteri every so often, but I'd never suggest someone living in Florida do the same. If your spider spends all of its time around the water dish, then boost the humidity. If your spider is constantly roaming, then let it dry out a bit.

EDIT: So I clicked that link. They didn't even spell the scientific name properly. It's Grammostola rosea, not "Gramastola rosea". Also, 6 large crickets per week? That's the definition of gluttony. For an adult, 6 large crickets per month would be excessive. It also suggests that you have an under tank heater (which can actually kill your spider), a screen top (which they can chew through at best or die from at worst), a thermometer/hydrometer (useless and inaccurate), and moistened substrate (this species hates humidity).

That's actually one of the worst care sheets I've seen lately

 

[Haksilence]

That feeling when a care sheet is so bad it's worse than trolly

 

[cold blood]

Also you said they molt every 2-4 years, ours has molted every year almost religiously.
I've read that every molt shortens their life span also... do you think maybe that's why she's not doing well?
She usually disappears for a week when she molts, but this last one was so sudden and fast it caught us off guard.

Its just younger than I expected, that's all.

Every molt does not decrease the ts life span, molting is how they grow and a necessary part of a ts life. Its not a cause for anything.

As for research, many beginners learn the hard way just how difficult it is to find reliable advice on the internet, especially if you are using google. Care sheets are awful, most vids are terrible and a lot of the other stuff is parroted from what people were told in pet stores...like adding humidity...pet stores are also one of the worst places for advice, just look at how pet stores keep their ts, its almost always completely wrong.

The place to learn is from keepers, experienced, long time keepers...and that's what AB is all about, so from now on, restrict your learning experiences to this site or message reliable people.

 

[mistertim]

We've had her for almost 6 years. She's not technically my pet, and my boyfriend did do research before he bought her. I guess that's what sucks is I kept googling her movements and everything said to put her in a humid damp enclosure... I'm the one who talked him into the ICU. I blame myself for her condition.
And tons of sites I have read have said to keep her enclosure moist and humid. Ugh.
I feel awful...


Im going out of town for a few days, should I try and put her in a smaller container? Maybe use the same container we used for the ICU, but empty?

Is there ANYTHING I can do for her????

Unfortunately no. Just leave her be and what will happen will happen. It sucks but it's just the reality of the situation. As far as care, yes you followed bad advice and made mistakes and it certainly could have influenced the current situation. That being said, it won't do you any good to beat yourself up too much. The important thing is that you learn from it and you now know where to go and where not to go for information.

 

[Crone Returns]

I appreciate all your help, I just didn't know I was getting the wrong information from so many different sources.
Hope my last comment didn't come off as Rude.

Not rude, sounded frustrated. Listen exclusively to the old timers here and you'll be ok.

 

[cold blood]

Not rude, sounded frustrated. Listen exclusively to the old timers here and you'll be ok.

I agree, we've seen more than our share of rude around here, nothing in this thread struck me as the least bit rude.