Freeze drying an Tarantula

CABIV

Arachnosquire
Joined
Aug 6, 2014
Messages
95
Hey guys,

As you may know, My Avicularia just passed away. I would like to freeze dry it, but I have a technical question.

I have access to a laboratory freeze dryer, hooked up to a fairly impressive vacuum pump. About how long do you think it would take to dehydrate this taratnula?

it was about 3.5". I have it sitting in the freezer right now. I presume that if I need to position it, I can put it in a relaxation chamber and strap it down prior to freeze drying.


Any advice?

Thanks!

Chris
 

Ripa

Arachnobaron
Joined
Jan 17, 2015
Messages
341
Honestly, I had luck with just placing dead inverts (including Ts) in the case I wanted to mount them in and letting them dry out on their own. I guess there's always a risk of mold (for at least as long as it takes for them to desiccate- maybe a few days to a week- two weeks for them to stop reeking were you to open the case back up), but it's never happened to me, and would be unlikely to happen to you, especially in an extremely claustrophobic, airtight environment.
 

Ripa

Arachnobaron
Joined
Jan 17, 2015
Messages
341
These have been in the frig for 4 months at least
Reminds me of those freebie turkey promotions my parents would sometimes get from ShopRite around Thanksgiving, and never actually cook them, so they're left in the freezer for a year or two before being junked. Honestly, I should just take the one in their freezer back to my dorm when I go there to visit.
On that note, I hope your dead Ts don't go to waste. I'm sure there are stew recipes out there :)
 

just1moreT

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
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Jun 1, 2009
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I Keep them in frig that I Keep fruit and vegetables for my roaches and such.wife wouldn't like them in the main frig of the house ,most of time when I have a dead one I recycle it :)
 

z32upgrader

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
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Mar 13, 2012
Messages
366
I plan on freezing my dead ones and then,when dried out,put them in this:http://www.smooth-on.com/gallery.php?galleryid=327
I actually bought that stuff and put my first T who passed from old age in it.
I turned out OK. Even after being brushed with acetone, air bubbles still got trapped. I should have fully dipped her in it instead. The clear rubber is pretty soft, so I'd recommend getting an acrylic box to put the finished product in so it doesn't get damaged on accident.
DSCF1684.jpg
Kelly 19??-2014
 
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pyro fiend

Arachnoprince
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
Messages
1,216
I actually bought that stuff and put my first T who passed from old age in it.
I turned out OK. Even after being brushed with acetone, air bubbles still got trapped. I should have fully dipped her in it instead. The clear rubber is pretty soft, so I'd recommend getting an acrylic box to put the finished product in so it doesn't get damaged on accident.
View attachment 134705
Kelly 19??-2014
did you let them thaw out completely before putting them in? or did you put her in frozen?

i been thinking about doing this with the actual stuff not rubber on a scorp but i dont want to gutt her and stuff with cotton like alot say to do, and i feel like id forget it if drying, and the heat from the mixture may cook it if frozen still XD just wanting an idea ^_^
 

z32upgrader

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
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Mar 13, 2012
Messages
366
Did you let her thaw out completely before putting her in, or did you put her in frozen?

I've been thinking about doing this with the actual stuff, not rubber on a scorp but I don't want to gut her and stuff with cotton like a lot say to do. I feel like I'd forget it if drying, and the heat from the mixture may cook it if frozen still XD just wanting an idea ^_^
No, she was completely thawed. I had to remove the black gunk from her abdomen first and I did my best to stuff her with cotton. Her skin was very fragile after being in the freezer for 2 months. Though that could have been attributed to the circumstances of her death. She had refused food for some 20 months beforehand and her abdomen looked dark like she was in premolt when she passed. It wasn't pleasant and it wasn't easy preserving her. By the way, this stuff doesn't heat up when it's setting so no worries there.
Using other resins, you have to do it in thin layers to avoid cooking the specimen.
 

pyro fiend

Arachnoprince
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
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No, she was completely thawed. I had to remove the black gunk from her abdomen first and I did my best to stuff her with cotton. Her skin was very fragile after being in the freezer for 2 months. Though that could have been attributed to the circumstances of her death. She had refused food for some 20 months beforehand and her abdomen looked dark like she was in premolt when she passed. It wasn't pleasant and it wasn't easy preserving her. By the way, this stuff doesn't heat up when it's setting so no worries there.
Using other resins, you have to do it in thin layers to avoid cooking the specimen.
yuck thats no fun :[ i wana preserv my gal but i dont want rubbery stuff =\
 

Aviara

Arachnoknight
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Jun 26, 2012
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261
Freeze drying might work, but the tarantula would be extremely brittle when dried out. There is also the risk that the tarantula would crumble during this process or its body may be warped by the drying process. I would prefer a method like the Encapso K a previous poster linked, because the specimen would retain its original shape and would be protected from breaking and crumbling. If you are very careful handling the freeze dried tarantula it may work, but I would think even putting a pin through the specimen to mount it for display would cause shattering. You might have some luck with relaxing the specimen to mount it upon freeze drying - I wouldn't think pinning it before freeze drying would end up with a natural look - but I would recommend finding others' freeze drying experiences before you commit to the process.
 

shawno821

Arachno Pimp
Joined
Dec 31, 2013
Messages
172
I would like to hear more experiences of freeze drying,too.I have an AF P.antinous that came to me frozen due to some very bad packing.I have her in the freezer now(commercial vacuum freezer) and am looking for info on how long to leave her in there before she dries out from sublimation.Then I'm gonna try the Encapso K.
 

CABIV

Arachnosquire
Joined
Aug 6, 2014
Messages
95
I'm not sure I'm as afraid of the brittleness aspect. I have some experience mount freeze dried insects. In particular, I used to mount butterflies and other insects with generally favorable results.

Though I have had no experience mounting spiders, so it might be apples and oranges. I think as long as it is posed generally in a good way when I freeze dry it, I should be able to avoid having to play with it too much. then it becomes a question of how to mount it in the case.
 

gambite

Arachnoprince
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Is there a reason that freeze drying might be prefered to regular freezing? If you leave it in the regular freezer long enough, it should start to dry out naturally due to sublimation (aka freezer burn)
 

CABIV

Arachnosquire
Joined
Aug 6, 2014
Messages
95
Freeze Drying is supposed to be faster. It causes nearly instant sublimation. In fact, freeze drying doesn't work unless the subject is frozen.

That said, it didn't seem to work.

I had been storing the body in the freezer. It was intact when I brought it into the lab. I allowed it to thaw on the drive to the lab, and by the time I got there it was posable, so i laid it out on some styrofoam. I then placed it in a -80 C freezer for an hour and a half. Once frozen solid, I placed it in the freeze dry apparatus and left it there for 24 hours.


Curiously, the tarantula looked exactly the same until I cut the vacuum off. It instantly curled and the opisthoma collapsed. I noticed the legs still moved a little, making me think that it didn't loose all moisture. I decided not to leave it in there another day, but i'm banking on most of the fluids being "removed" from the body.

I'm willing to bet I could use a syringe to inflate the rear, so we'll see what happens.


Hopefully, I won't have to try this out again anytime soon. My new Avicularia, as well as the G. rosea seem to doing very well! I can tell my first tarantula was just a bad experience.
 
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