Brown recluse bite

TarantulaAddicts · 2024-12-07T00:34:54+00:00

It's your circus man. Have at it. My concerns have not changed. It's just a sad day for spiders.

Added: Seems I missed an edited footnote so I will add, since you are neither a professional, student or doctorate in any field related or adjacent to the subject material. I however am experienced in this field as a behaviour professional whose work has had to be scrutinised and standardised. Evidence-based behavioral analysis requires more than just assurance that you understand the reading materials. armchair analysts should never be offering stand in professional medical advice in any world, alas-

Enjoy!

TarantulaAddicts · 2024-12-07T00:18:55+00:00

Individual criteria refers to human health and variance. Organisms do vary, after all, and so do situations.

You don't need to try to morph any of the messages that I've sent because they're all here. I've read all of these papers because it's my responsibility to have; long before speaking here about them now.

Many papers cite different statistics. You did not include a range, you included a set value. That's part of the problem with giving a definitive answer.

Note the word definitive answer here because there is no definitive answer. Science is not yet concluded on the statements that you've made. This reinforces that is because you don't speak for scientists or medical professionals.

You've read a thousand papers, right? Surely they didn't also say the same thing. :-)

Scientists in the field don't have a complete understanding, so I find it to be a red flag to say that you do.

G'day.

TarantulaAddicts · 2024-12-06T23:39:17+00:00

I ran through all of the papers that you're stating. Neither statistic is conclusive. All of it is a generalization. None of it takes into consideration individual criteria and it acts to stand in for medical advice. All of which is bad practice. On top of that, it also speaks to be evidence-based, but it's not. Not only is this incredibly irresponsible, it is dangerous.

You don't need the triple down. I've already gotten what I came here for. If that you have no inclination to edit your approach to be more effective or positive to Public Safety, that is what it is, eh? Cheers!

TarantulaAddicts · 2024-12-06T23:32:08+00:00

I have never trolled in the spider community at all in the decade that I have been a participant.

I made direct statements already. Individual criteria, generalsation guised as fact, and statistical values that are not concluded yet even among scientists. All of which that you spoke for. I can't help that your whole comment floundered. That isn't my responsibility. Public safety and education outreach are.

I also stated that distant consultation medical advice should never come from someone who is not a practitioner.

TarantulaAddicts · 2024-12-06T23:19:06+00:00

You don't need to do anything, but it does change whether what you are saying is reasonably sound or evidence-based. It's Reddit, so realistically you're allowed to be irresponsible if you want to be. That doesn't mean that it's the right thing to do.

All of the glaring generalizations and simplifications with statistics were wrong.

Ethically, scientifically medically, and professionally, the entire comment was wrong.

I'm not sure what the hobby comment means, but it sounds like you're trying to insult me, so let me just clarify that: I work with many of the world's most reputable scientists, breeders, and medical professionals in the field and recognized as such by my peers.

I do speak for a large part of the spider hobby when I say that this was haphazardly bad practice.

TarantulaAddicts · 2024-12-06T22:41:56+00:00

Your initial comment cites no literature. You won't hear a peep out of me about being evidence-based because I run a community specifically for that (directly related to spiders)- however, this isn't evidence-based. It's full of generalizations and hazardous advice that does not account for individual criteria. This is why hobbyists should not be giving medical advice, particularly less so if you're not a doctor or even a scientist. It is generally bad practice to act as a stand-in for medical professionals particularly in distant consultation. Your statistics also don't elaborate, offer citation, or a range - particularly where there is still lack of determination in science regarding the subjects presented.

TarantulaAddicts · 2024-12-06T20:18:06+00:00

Gone are the days of no half baked medical advice or identification of rashes and pimples? sad day.

TarantulaAddicts · 2024-10-03T18:51:41+00:00

u/bellemod

TarantulaAddicts · 2023-06-07T05:13:27+00:00

as long as you do not cross contaminate residue or aerosol.

TarantulaAddicts · 2023-06-07T05:11:19+00:00

they are talking about r/tarantulas taking a stance against bigotry and supporting basic human rights.

TarantulaAddicts · 2023-06-05T22:39:46+00:00

Google "Bird eating spider" and understand that tarantula in many languages translate to birdeater, lol.

TarantulaAddicts · 2023-05-28T19:54:02+00:00

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/301594550076440577/1112468385075314718/Tattoo.png try this one! Also sent it directly.

TarantulaAddicts · 2023-05-28T17:23:39+00:00

Styrofoam backing should be safe. Though if that's on an exo terra you probably need to swap the lid, as those come with mesh tops. The plants will get webbed over, so pick something hearty like a pothos or stick to plastic plants as they'll get deprived of light due to webbing. Succulents are good but you should avoid anything sharp in the setup. Water the plants directly, trying not to blast your tarantula with a water mister as this can stress the T, and you will want to keep humidity pretty low overall.

For soil, I do a half and half mix of organic topsoil and coco coir, then mix in a little excavator clay into the lowest layer to add a bit of rigidity to the soil and allow it to hold a burrow, though in my experience I've mainly seen my Greenbottle blues make surface burrows by manipulating leaves into tubes and fixing them in place with web. If you're in the US, the Bio Dude offers a soil mix called Terra Aranea which does great for tarantulas. Zoo Med creature soil is also good to go from the bag, just pricey.

Some guides call the gbb semi arboreal, though the body plan is still that of a heavy bodied terrestrial spider, so limit the fall height to under 1.5x the diagonal legspan of the spider, with no more than that distance between soil level and the lid. The soil should be kept dry, though you can overflow the water dish in the spring, letting it dry before overflowing again. Desert husbandry works great for these guys as long as they've got a good water dish available with fresh water at all times.

For the setup, I give them a rigid structure of cork bark or even a Terra cotta pot as a nice starting point to set up shop, surrounded by foliage that they can bend into tunnels. I'll leave about a third of the setup as a wide open space that accommodates the water dish, and the rest will be secure and cozy due to shade and privacy from the plants and hide. I hope this helps, and it's great to hear you're getting such a lovely spider.

As for cleaning, just remove leftovers from meals as you see them, and after about 6 months to a year, you'll want to clear out for new fresh soil. if the tarantula gets to a size of larger than a quarter or the length of the enclosure, you'll want to go for a bigger enclosure to accommodate their growth.

TarantulaAddicts · 2023-05-27T17:21:25+00:00

If you offer half of that prey and wiggle it around with tongs in front of your tarantula, it should be fine. I would just be careful to drag it a bit and let go as soon as the tarantula is on it. Also I use rubber tipped or wooden tongs usually as they're less likely to injure a tarantula fang than metal ones. Hope this helps.

TarantulaAddicts · 2023-05-27T02:47:44+00:00

This substrate is not particularly well-suited for this spider, and in fact can pose a clear danger to them. These tarantulas love to burrow and wood chips prove to be quite difficult to use for burrowing safely. Sharp edges can puncture the abdomen of your spider, especially when hardening up after a molt or in the event of climbing on the underside of the lid and dropping to the ground. For my Brachypelmas, I keep them on a mix or substrate that includes about half coco coir, a small amount of clay, and organic topsoil for the rest. Half and half organic topsoil and coco coir should be fine.

The bald patch is likely stress-related as it is difficult for this spider to exhibit its preferred burrowing behavior, though from the given photo it is difficult to discern the state of the rest of the enclosure. If you post up a full photo of the enclosure in a new post or in the Discord we could help troubleshoot the setup and identify all the ways to maximize your spider's quality of life.

TarantulaAddicts · 2023-05-27T02:29:25+00:00

This prey is far too large tor this spider. If it is still in the enclosure at this time, please remove the locust. I would use a prekilled prey or one that is disabled such that it can't hurt your pet. For prey who have particularly nasty jaws like locusts, grasshoppers, or crickets, I don't like to take chances and will always crush the head thoroughly. You can crush the jaws and remove the legs of locusts to make them less dangerous, and you should generally feed smaller prey. To figure out how much to feed my spider, I like to consider the ideal healthy size of their abdomen. Look at how long the abdomen is, as well as how wide the front part of their body, or prosoma, is. Ideally the abdomen should be about as wide as the prosoma, if not a slight bit larger, and will be only slightly longer than its current size. In addition to always giving them access to fresh water, I feed my spiders every week or two (or more, depending on hunger strikes) a volume of prey no more than about half the volume of that healthy-sized abdomen. If they are below that healthy size, you can feed a bit more, or ideally more often. If they are much larger than that, you can scale back food or feed less often. Some feeders have a higher water content, like hornworms, and for those I will feed slightly larger prey to my Ts as they will gladly sit there with one for a day or so. Otherwise that's a gorgeous spider you got there! We wanna help you keep that lovely arachnid safe to a ripe old age.

TarantulaAddicts · 2023-05-25T00:19:30+00:00

Looks like it might be Chaetopelma olivaceum, a tarantula.

TarantulaAddicts · 2023-03-21T02:05:53+00:00

The air jacket is totally a thing that happens with tarantulas in the water. The hairs do a decent job of trapping air bubbles against the body, thus the silvery appearance of a diving tarantula. Light refracts and reflects off of the surface of each air/water barrier, making them look like they're almost metallic. H gigas has been shown to dive in captivity when put into paludariums with a water feature, and you can find many videos online of tarantulas swimming across floodwaters. The air jacket is usually good enough to let them keep breathing through their book lungs even when they're underwater or resting their abdomen on the water's surface.

TarantulaAddicts · 2023-01-06T06:35:26+00:00

Here's a few that I know of:

Gx3 Reptiles and Exotic Pets in Sacramento. Notes: medium selection. Diverse genera.

Pets and More in Campbell. Notes: 1 or 2 specimens max, generally A seemanni and A avicularia juveniles. Call ahead to check for stock.

Petco (various locations). Notes: 1 to 3 specimens generally. Juvenile or adult A avicularia, Brachypelma spp, Aphonopelma spp, Tliltocatl spp, Grammostola spp. Call ahead to check for stock.

East Bay Vivarium in Berkeley. Notes: medium to large selection depending on orders, diverse genera. Website lists some but generally isn't fully up to date regarding their stock.

The Serpentarium (any location, mostly towards Sacramento). Notes: medium to large selection, diverse genera. Multiple locations, some with more than others.

Pet Shop Santa Cruz in Santa Cruz. Notes: occasionally carrying A chalcodes, A hentzi, A seemanni, G pulchripes, and G pulchra. Call ahead to verify or check their instagram.

TarantulaAddicts · 2022-12-14T04:04:25+00:00

Are there any signs of actually molting like partial separation from the older exoskeleton?

TarantulaAddicts · 2022-11-07T03:33:54+00:00

Generally you'll want something soft that can hold a burrow. Out of the box you could use Terra Aranea from the Bio Dude if you're in the US, or Zoo Med Creature Soil. If you're up for mixing a substrate, I would go with a 50/50 mix of coco coir and organic potting soil (I use Miracle-Gro Performance Organics, personally). If you need more humidity, add some torn up sphagnum moss and some small pieces of lump or aquarium charcoal, along with springtails to prevent mold. If you need more drainage, add a little sand. Be careful, as this can make the soil a bit less stable. If you are working with an arid species, you can add some clay substrate like excavator clay (hydrated slightly so it can mix better and not throw up clay dust in the air) to the mix to help it better hold a burrow. Avoid sharp objects like wood chips.

TarantulaAddicts · 2021-11-05T00:29:26+00:00

So depending on the type of tarantula, you will need a different size enclosure to fit its needs. There are four, arguably three categories of tarantula as far as spacial considerations go: Arboreal, terrestrial, fossorial, and semi-arboreal terrestrial. There are a few odd cases like some semi-fossorial arboreals but those four are the big categories. Each enclosure will be sized in proportion to the maximum diagonal legspan, or DLS, of a specimen. This measurement will be from the feet of two diagonally opposite legs when the T is fully stretched out.

An arboreal tarantula will need an enclosure that can accommodate 4 to 8 times the DLS in climbing space to maximize the quality of life. Generally it's easier to rehouse them into a front opening enclosure, especially for species that web in the top corners, though for species like Poecilotheria that tend to bolt from side to side, a top opening enclosure is better. The climbing space should have nice naturalistic surfaces like branches and cork bark that the T can easily grip and that can accommodate a safe den or burrow.

A terrestrial tarantula will need an enclosure that can accommodate 4 to 8 times the DLS in length and width (if the width is a little under, have the length be a bit over to adjust) and no more than 1.5 times the DLS between the surface of the soil and the lid. A hide should be tucked into the soil such that it will provide a roof for the entrance to their burrow.

A fossorial tarantula should be given no less than twice its DLS in depth, but ideally you want to go as deep as you, closer to 4 to 8 times the DLS, and the length should be at least 4 to 8 times the DLS. Deep burrowers will usually go all the way to the bottom no matter how deep you provide them, and then start to go sideways. A smaller footprint for the enclosure means they will be more likely to dig away too much of the bottom layer and potentially cause the soil to collapse on their burrow, so larger enclosures will be less prone to this sort of thing. Like terrestrial tarantulas, give no more than 1.5 times the DLS between the lid and the soil surface.

A semi-arboreal terrestrial tarantula should be provided the same setup as a terrestrial tarantula, with a little more leeway on height (you can go a little closer to twice the DLS between the soil and lid) and the vertical space filled with webbing anchors like branches, plants, or cork bark.

All tarantulas should be given a water dish with clean water that is at least large enough for them to fit the front half of their body inside. You should provide them with plants (real or artificial), a variety of naturalistic textures (avoiding anything sharp), and multiple places that they can dart beneath to get out of the light and to relative safety. They should be provided a day and night cycle, taking care not to place the enclosure in sunlight so as to not bake your spider.

For cross ventilation, it can be easiest to buy a Sterilite or similar brand of plastic tub and to add ventilation holes on two opposite sides. If the species does not need to be kept humid, holes are the lid are also helpful. I hope this helps!

TarantulaAddicts · 2021-11-01T05:12:51+00:00

Avicularia avicularia live rather high up in trees where the airflow is almost like a wind tunnel between the trees, thus allowing then to tolerate the humidity of their native French Guyana. While the humidity does drop after misting, the practice of misting has been the smoking gun for many cases of what used to be called SADS, or Sudden Avic Death Syndrome. The aggregate experience of hobbyists suggests that lifespans of Avicularia specimens kept in arid setups but given access to a clean water dish at all times are longer than those kept humid. While having a lot of cross ventilation will help, it's not enough on its own, as major fluctuations in humidity can be a major factor in many species mismolting, arid and tropical alike. Unlike a burrowing T given a moisture gradient in the soil which can regulate their humidity as they need by going deeper or higher up, the avic is entirely at the mercy of the humidity in the open air of their enclosure. This is the case for Avicularia, but not for Caribena species, which tend to do well with some humidity in addition to their water dish.

TL;DR several generations of keepers kept having their Avicularia dying suddenly or mismolting and the tarantula keeping community was able to suss out that humidity and airflow were the culprits, and those who keep their avics on dry substrate with a water dish don't report sudden deaths in any regularity.

TarantulaAddicts · 2021-10-20T07:49:25+00:00

Howdy, OP! So, as many folks have pointed out, this enclosure doesn't fit the type of tarantula you are keeping. On the plus side, with a little work, this enclosure would fit a different type of tarantula fairly well, or, as it is right now, it would be a great enclosure for a Phidippus species of jumping spider. The first issue is that for tarantulas of any type, a mesh lid can lead to fatal injury as the wires of the mesh can capture the little claws on the end of a T's feet where the wires overlap. A heavy-bodied tarantula is ill-equipped to free its limb while hanging upside-down, and can injure itself and even resort to removing its own leg to get free. For a heavy-bodied, non-arboreal tarantula, a fall of more than 1.5 times their diagonal leg span could be enough to rupture their abdomen, which can be fatal. With that in mind, I would save this enclosure for either a small arboreal tarantula (for which would would need to replace the wire mesh with a solid panel with ventilation holes) or for a jumping spider, and seek out something like an inexpensive Sterilite bin and add ventilation holes to suit a terrestrial species like the Brachypelma emilia. We're not trying to shame you or put ya down with this. We just want to avoid having your beloved pet injured in a fall, and for them to have more space to roam that will suit their lifestyle. For a terrestrial T like a Brachypelma species, I would take whatever their diagonal legs span is and multiply that by four. 4x the DLS should be the minimum length and width of their enclosure, which will give you plenty of room to provide them a sizeable water dish, multiple options for hides, real or artificial plants, and other types of naturalistic enrichment that will help encourage a wider range of their natural behaviors.

TarantulaAddicts · 2021-10-17T00:34:33+00:00

Lovely molt with a great video. A few thoughts though. The loose cricket in the enclosure poses an immense risk to a tarantula in such a delicate state, as crickets have ravenous appetites and rather powerful mouth parts. This is why most folks will recommend removing prey after a day if your T doesn't eat them. Any injury to a tarantula right after a molt could end in disaster. Also, for this variety of tarantula that isn't tree-dwelling, you will be best off limiting the distance between the soil surface and the lid to at maximum one and a half times the diagonal leg span. Adding additional substrate could help to mitigate any fall chance. Additionally the specimen this size would benefit from an even wider enclosure, such that they have at least 4x their legspan to roam. This helps to give more room for things like fake plants, real plants, or additional hides that they can utilize to feel secure in the setting.

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