Prone To Injuries Due To Old Age?

[aphonopelmapaloma]

My MM A. gen died this past Tuesday. On Monday, it was feeding day. I fed him 3 crickets and observed him eat one. He was a bit slow when ambushing, but caught the cricket anyway and ate it. For the past two or so months Ive observed him moving a bit slower and constantly placing himself inside his water bowl, but he would still eat. Definitely was no longer aggressive as he used to be when catching prey. On Tuesday, I decided to check on them since I still heard the sounds of a live cricket which was in his enclosure. What I saw was one of his first legs completely underneath him and curling in some legs. I took the enclosure out to look closer and noticed his first leg was hanging by a thin piece of exoskeleton and hymolymph leaking right out. I could tell he was already dead. I’m thinking, he injured himself while chasing after the prey in his enclosure at some point during the night and bled out? My question is, how much of that is due to old age or poor husbandry? As a T gets older, does something happen to its body where it’s riskier for it to attempt to be active? Can dehydration make it easier for legs to brake off, etc?
A little background on him: I’ve had him since he was about the size of my pinky nail. He grew up fast! He matured in March of 2023. The enclosure he was in was the enclosure he’s been in for the past 3 years. I’ve added springtails and spot clean on occasion. From what I’ve researched, male A. gens don’t live very long after maturity. I’ve added pictures of his enclosure and of the injury. He was a total size of 7”, there’s a water dish and hide in the enclosure.
I’ve had older MMs die naturally, but seeing this is a first for me.

 

[Ratmosphere]

Yes, lots of MM's lose their legs nearing the end of their life.

 

[viper69]

Being dehydrated is never good for a T, they use hydraulics primarily to move.

 

[aphonopelmapaloma]

I understand. He was never without water. He spent a lot of time inside his dish, even when full. As they get older, does it become more difficult for them to hydrate/absorb the water they intake?

 

[fcat]

I understand. He was never without water. He spent a lot of time inside his dish, even when full. As they get older, does it become more difficult for them to hydrate/absorb the water they intake?

If it's a sucking stomach issue, it prevents them from eating/drinking. Symptoms are repeated attempts to do either while wasting.

This is a mature male, when was his last molt? It's likely you didn't do anything wrong!!! In theory the only thing you can do to prolong their lives is encourage hydration but you can't force them to drink. The next best way to push moisture is well hydrated feeders. MM lose interest in that too.

One of the fastest mature males I lost was an Aphonopelma moderatum. I couldn't get him to eat or drink. He never tried so I don't think it was a sucking stomach issue. Only interested in one thing. I have slings that could live longer without food or water!

 

[aphonopelmapaloma]

Sucking stomach issue? Wow, okay. I didn’t consider that? Very interesting! But I don’t think it was that as I’ve observed him catching and consuming the first cricket I gave him way before I found him the way I did. He matured (his last molt) was in March 2023. Thank you for the thorough response. Do sucking stomach issues occur at any point in their lives or worsen as they age?

 

[Muffinforall]

Sucking stomach issue? Wow, okay. I didn’t consider that? Very interesting! But I don’t think it was that as I’ve observed him catching and consuming the first cricket I gave him way before I found him the way I did. He matured (his last molt) was in March 2023. Thank you for the thorough response. Do sucking stomach issues occur at any point in their lives or worsen as they age?

Sucking stomach issues can happen at any age. Its something keepers check for every moult. If you see the old sucking stomach in the moult then odds are they have a new one.
Regardless of species, if your T matured into a male in March of 2023, then he lived quite a while. MMs do not live long post maturity. He died of old age.