Tarantulas in the cold - experiences?

[Scoot]

I really hoped I'd never feel the need to post something like this, but I'm genuinely worried about the health of my tarantulas.

To cut a long story short, the heating in our home has failed and we are out of the area with no immediate prospect of return. We were told that the repair should be a quick fix but this has not transpired. Consequently, my tarantulas have been at home without any source of heat since last Wednesday (12th). We're currently having a cold spell in the north of England, with outside temperatures hovering above 0 in our area. We live in a country cottage, old and cold; I imagine it's about 8-10C in there. We've now been told that someone will be there tomorrow to fix things, but I obviously can't say for certain if this will be the case. I will not be home until Thursday (20th).

So, my big (quite possibly unanswerable) question is, will my Ts be ok? I only have the three - B albiceps, B emilia and A geniculata (the latter is, I believe, in heavy pre-moult - another concern).

Have others had this happen before? If so, for how long? And with what outcome? I'm preparing for the worst but I don't know if this is rather fatalistic and I'm panicking without due reason.

Any ideas, anecdotes or just encouragement would be welcome.

 

[fcat]

I’ve taken them camping multiple times…they can all fit in a one insulated box… one disposable heating pad per day does the trick.

You haven’t lost power correct, so you still have a working oven?

How much substrate did you give them in the first place? It’s an excellent insulator and how they survive cold temps in the wild.

 

[Hardus nameous]

Any chance of a friend getting over to your house to move them or put them in a cooler or something?

 

[Andrew Clayton]

I really hoped I'd never feel the need to post something like this, but I'm genuinely worried about the health of my tarantulas.

To cut a long story short, the heating in our home has failed and we are out of the area with no immediate prospect of return. We were told that the repair should be a quick fix but this has not transpired. Consequently, my tarantulas have been at home without any source of heat since last Wednesday (12th). We're currently having a cold spell in the north of England, with outside temperatures hovering above 0 in our area. We live in a country cottage, old and cold; I imagine it's about 8-10C in there. We've now been told that someone will be there tomorrow to fix things, but I obviously can't say for certain if this will be the case. I will not be home until Thursday (20th).

So, my big (quite possibly unanswerable) question is, will my Ts be ok? I only have the three - B albiceps, B emilia and A geniculata (the latter is, I believe, in heavy pre-moult - another concern).

Have others had this happen before? If so, for how long? And with what outcome? I'm preparing for the worst but I don't know if this is rather fatalistic and I'm panicking without due reason.

Any ideas, anecdotes or just encouragement would be welcome.

I've never had this exact issue but just before Christmas I had a package delayed for nearly 18 days with just a 24 hour heat pack, I was sure they would have perished, but Upton arrival they were very slow moving a couple not moving at all, the seller told me to bring them up to heat gradually, so done that and they are all fine. I don't know if I was just lucky or if the bringing them back up to heat gradually actually worked. As said before though dirt is a great insulator do they have plenty in there enclosures?

 

[Wolfram1]

I would say its right on the edge, if it persists for too long it could have some adverse repercussions for the animals, but in my estimate most spiders should be able to withstand that for a week or so, as long as they are still protected from the elements, don't experience frost and within their own terrarium-microclimates.
It is a personal assumtion though, based on some related experiences and retellings by other keepers, not something i have ever tested out or would do on purpose.

Like @fcat said, their burrow will protect them to an extent as dirt and the air within is a good insulator. It will depend on their own independant needs too. The three you have are pretty hardy, i'd worry about the A. geniculata the most and with the premolt in addition to that... do report how the next moult turned out if it gets to that point.

if possible i would have taken them somewhere warmer temporarily (like a friend or neighbor) or added some minor additional heating like putting a lamp close to the enclosures, but considering its already been almost a week and should be fixed tomorrow i would be interested in an update further down the line. take notes if you notice any reactions, changes in behavior or even losses in the weeks after the situation was rectified. Do they still feed normally etc.

It could be valuable information.

your situation isn't all that rare sadly

 

[l4nsky]

If they're cold and dry, there's hope. If they're cold and wet on the other hand, well..... when water evaporates, it takes heat from it's surroundings. Cold and wet is uber cold.

In regards to the species, I believe a lot of Brachy's weather conditions like this naturally during some nights in the desert, so they should be able to cope if on the drier side. The genic is the concern, especially if it's on the moist side of the enclosure spectrum. They naturally hail from the Northern Brazilian Amazon, close to the equator IIRC. They likely would never encounter anything below 68 degrees in their natural habitat.

 

[Scoot]

How much substrate did you give them in the first place? It’s an excellent insulator and how they survive cold temps in the wild.

This is a good point that I hadn't considered - they have plenty of substrate to burrow in and established burrows. Fingers crossed.

their burrow will protect them to an extent as dirt and the air within is a good insulator. It will depend on their own independant needs too. The three you have are pretty hardy, i'd worry about the A. geniculata the most and with the premolt in addition to that... do report how the next moult turned out if it gets to that point. I will do. Fingers crossed.

if possible i would have taken them somewhere warmer temporarily (like a friend or neighbor) or added some minor additional heating like putting a lamp close to the enclosures, Alas, hindsight is a wonderful thing; I'd consider additional heating in future, but as I've never had any issue with the heating before, I would never have pre-empted it.

but considering its already been almost a week and should be fixed tomorrow i would be interested in an update further down the line. take notes if you notice any reactions, changes in behavior or even losses in the weeks after the situation was rectified. Do they still feed normally etc.

It could be valuable information.

I'll certainly report back.

 

[Ratmosphere]

I'm lucky enough to have a few family members within a 30 minute drive of each other. They all are willing to temporarily take in my collection if any outages happen.

Do you have any friends or family nearby that will allow you to bring them over?

 

[Scoot]

If they're cold and dry, there's hope. If they're cold and wet on the other hand, well..... when water evaporates, it takes heat from it's surroundings. Cold and wet is uber cold.

In regards to the species, I believe a lot of Brachy's weather conditions like this naturally during some nights in the desert, so they should be able to cope if on the drier side. The genic is the concern, especially if it's on the moist side of the enclosure spectrum. They naturally hail from the Northern Brazilian Amazon, close to the equator IIRC. They likely would never encounter anything below 68 degrees in their natural habitat.

The enclosures are definitely on the drier side, genic slightly more moist but only marginally so. And yes, that one is the one I'm most concerned about, especially with a suspected moult on the horizon.

Hopefully the heating will be sorted tomorrow. I've read plenty in the past about slowly warming them up, so I'll be careful to just let the ambient temperature do its thing and I'll leave the spiders well alone.

I'm lucky enough to have a few family members within a 30 minute drive of each other. They all are willing to temporarily take in my collection if any outages happen.

Do you have any friends or family nearby that will allow you to bring them over?

Sadly none in the vicinity. This would've been my first go-to a couple of days ago.

As it is, I'm just going to have to wait it out.

 

[Dspikes87]

I had something similar happen. I actually went to the Family Dollar and bought six heat packs. I kept them in their cubes I had six slings and one spiderling. And I put them all into one cardboard box and wrapped the heat packs and towels and put into box. I only used one small heat pack and switched it out when it would stop putting off the heat. It was only six days, but it definitely helped.

 

[TheraMygale]

I would do as @fcat suggests if you feel its getting too long.

get them in an insualted container if the size of your enclosures permit. Otherwise, get them in a closet or a small space that is the warmest, and get some boiled water or magic pads you can keep close. Someone has got to have access to power or fire close by that will help you get some warm water.

the heat will get in the space, and if the enclosures are well surrounded with coats or furs, youll create a temporary micro climate.

thats what id do if i had too.

my small collection is in a book shelf.

id put plastic up, and put warm water on the bottom shelves.

 

[cold blood]

OP is NOT home, so they cannot accomplish things like adding heat pads or turning on the stove.....all they can do is wait for the furnace to be repaired.

Best of luck.

 

[TheraMygale]

OP is NOT home, so they cannot accomplish things like adding heat pads or turning on the stove.....all they can do is wait for the furnace to be repaired.

Best of luck.

my bad. It was wishful thinking. Sometimes i lose some facts in my hope to help.

has failed and we are out of the area with no immediate prospect of return.

I get it now:

@cold blood is right. Cross your fingers, and hope in the magic of tarantulas. They can get through droughts, floods, cold and extreme heat.

way better then we can.

i want to believe they will surprise you.

 

[AphonopelmaTX]

I’ve taken them camping multiple times…they can all fit in a one insulated box… one disposable heating pad per day does the trick.

I'm curious. Why would you take your tarantulas on camping trips?

 

[fcat]

I'm curious. Why would you take your tarantulas on camping trips?

So they can see the world lol…more so I get to while combining hobbies. They even spent the night on top of a waterfall once

Many of the places I like to camp are several hours away from Phoenix so I try to make the most of the trip by coordinating a T exchange or to an expo, it’s cheaper and safer than a hotel (pesticides) and personally I prefer it. I’ve found some cool old cottages through the state parks website that are always filled with native spiders so I consider them safe too. There aren’t many great things about AZ but the ones I know about, I keep secret to protect them! My last trip we rented a campsite through Airbnb that put us in perfect view of the planetary alignment and 4 different exchanges including a few mature males (2 pokies) and made 3 new friends that are also lady keepers. We traded our labors of love and it was such a rewarding experience. I did try recruiting them to the boards don’t worry

I don’t see it much differently than the accommodations I made for my dog…aside from family packs of heat or ice, secondary and tertiary measures in case the first two fail.

 

[nicodimus22]

We just lost power for a couple of days. It was 53F in here. All of my 67 tarantulas are doing fine, even the slings. I reckon short-term cold isn't a big problem as long as it's not near freezing.

 

[spideyspinneret78]

My tarantulas and I have been through multiple power outages in the winter. I've had temperatures drop to mid fifties indoors for about a day. I lost one tiny sling. My juvenile and adult spiders all survived with no ongoing issues.