is she dying? i need help immediatly :(

beccahosierr

Arachnosquire
Joined
Jan 13, 2012
Messages
67
OK so my pink toe won't climb, will not come out of her log, won't eat, and will not even come out to drink any water :( so tonight I decided to try and take her out. Well as soon as I took her log out (Wich she was hiding in). She came out and lunged at my hands. She didn't get me. But as I have been reading about them, I guess this is very odd behavior. Well... I put her log back into her cage, and I accidentally dropped her and she ran back into her log. I really do not want to disturb her again :( I think she is OK because I went back in to peek and now she made a HUGE web inside of her log. She made no exit or anything. Is she stressed? Going to molt? I'm getting very worried :( please. Help. :(
 

Drakk

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Aug 29, 2010
Messages
129
Could be going to moult could be sick the the no exit says moulting to me.
 

Alireza

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Old Timer
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Sep 4, 2010
Messages
88
Considering the refusal of the food and the webbing, I would say molting too. Does she look like premolting?
 

Drakk

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Aug 29, 2010
Messages
129
Ive had a moult sneak up on me before...i hope moulting rather than worse!
 

beccahosierr

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Jan 13, 2012
Messages
67
To be honest, I really don't know :( . I am new to the hobby. I just got her on Christmas. She seemed great at first, no problems whatsoever. She wasn't aggressive or anything. And she was really active. She jumped onto my face when I first got her. Now she is very mean. Am I doing something wrong?
 

curtisgiganteus

ArachnoViking, Conqueror of Poikilos and Therion
Old Timer
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Nov 15, 2010
Messages
518
Your harassing the spider when it obviously wants to be left alone. NO tarantula is mean, agressive, or will attach unprovoked, if shes refusing food and getting more defensive up the humidity and LEAVE HER ALONE. Avic sp. Seal themselves off when they prepare for a moult. Like i said Leave the tarantula ALONE and she will come out when she is ready.
 

Drakk

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Joined
Aug 29, 2010
Messages
129
Well i would have to know what you are doing to know that...but id give it a 80-90% that shes gonna moult...its always freaky..the first few times and then u will look forward to it.
The higher defensiveness could possibly have to do with premoult as well and she would be darkish from christmas if she was going to moult assuming its an adult or near to.
If she is moulting and i think that she is, you will absolutely drool at the fresh colors!
I have a few avics and thats my 2 cents anyway.

---------- Post added 01-14-2012 at 03:09 AM ----------

Its really best to not handle her a couple weeks b4 or a week or two after she moults.
Just an added bit if u didnt know.
 

beccahosierr

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Jan 13, 2012
Messages
67
I have only ever handled her twice because she scared me the first time I held her. I also am too scared of her jumping out of my hands and killing herself. Her humidity is at 70 percent. I also keep her cage around 65-70 degrees.

---------- Post added 01-14-2012 at 07:29 AM ----------

I don't think she is full grown yet. She is only 2.5-3 inches
I forgot to add that she has only eaten one cricket since I got her.
 

Shell

ArachnoVixen AKA Dream Crusher AKA Heartbreaker
Staff member
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Sep 14, 2009
Messages
1,659
I agree that it sounds more like pre molt. Keep the humidity up, water dish full and leave it alone. They can go long amounts of time without food, as long as you provide it access to water. As for darkening, Avics are generally darker colored to begin with so it's not going to be as obvious as another NW that has kicked hairs and has a bald patch or is lighter colored (for those confused, a bald patch is NOT an indicator of a molt, but can make it easier to tell if the abdomen is getting darker, also the entire abdomen darkens when in premolt ;) )

Any spider has the ability to act defensively, even species that are typically "docile."

One other point, in the future if you're going to attempt to handle, I personally would advise against just sticking your hands into the enclosure, even with a typically docile species. Typically they are going to be more defensive of their territory, and using a catch cup to remove them from their home first, is a better idea and will help you to avoid a bite.

Again, I would assume pre molt from all the behavior you have described. How long that will last is hard to say, but leave it alone and try not to panic.
 

matt82

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Joined
Jun 4, 2011
Messages
270
I'll echo all comments that say the spider is in pre moult, absolutely nothing untoward in the description you gave :)

Only thing I would say, and it is unrelated to any defensive behaviour you described, is up your temps; 65-70 F seems too cool to me, for a species that have a recommended temp range of 75-82 F.
Again, if you were keeping it cooler, I don't think it would be a disaster, as a lot of Ts are quite hardy inverts, but you might find it will molt faster and generally behave more characteristically if kept at the optimum temps.
A little too cool is a lot better than a little too warm IMO, so nothing to worry about, just something to consider.

Good luck with it, should look great after a moult ;)
 

Shrike

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 8, 2006
Messages
1,598
I agree that it sounds more like pre molt. Keep the humidity up, water dish full and leave it alone. They can go long amounts of time without food, as long as you provide it access to water. As for darkening, Avics are generally darker colored to begin with so it's not going to be as obvious as another NW that has kicked hairs and has a bald patch or is lighter colored (for those confused, a bald patch is NOT an indicator of a molt, but can make it easier to tell if the abdomen is getting darker, also the entire abdomen darkens when in premolt ;) )

Any spider has the ability to act defensively, even species that are typically "docile."

One other point, in the future if you're going to attempt to handle, I personally would advise against just sticking your hands into the enclosure, even with a typically docile species. Typically they are going to be more defensive of their territory, and using a catch cup to remove them from their home first, is a better idea and will help you to avoid a bite.

Again, I would assume pre molt from all the behavior you have described. How long that will last is hard to say, but leave it alone and try not to panic.
Good advice. It's only natural to worry about what your tarantula is doing, especially when you don't understand why it's doing what it does. The best antidote for this is research. Reading a good book on tarantulas, such as the TKG or Tarantulas and Other Arachnids will give you tons of insight into your tarantula's behavior. You'll be able to differentiate between non-emergencies like you're experiencing currently and situations where you might really need to intervene. Since your tarantula chose to isolate itself, I wouldn't worry very much, as long as you are providing it with what it needs (food, water, shelter, etc). It sounds like it webbed itself a nice little hide :)

Keep us posted.
 

gumby

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Old Timer
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Feb 15, 2006
Messages
1,659
First off welcome to the hobby Becca its one of those hobbies that is very rewarding. I've had avics(pink toes) almost as long as any of my other Ts it was the 2nd T I got after my rose hair. I've notced that Avics are a little harder to tell when they re about to molt cmpared to other Tsso don't feel bad if yu can't tell yet it takes time t develop thoe type of skills and its your first T :). There are tons of grea threads about handling out there but when I first started I useda snowboarding glove because it freaked me out a little less. Just remember you got a tarantula not a puppy and tarantulas are not all that cuddly. They like to hang out by themselves most of the time. Good luck and keep the humidity high if you think she might molt. Don't b affraid to jump up to 90%
 
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