When to throw in the towel on a "dead" sling

dtknow · Nov 30, 2006

Well one of my smaller B. vagans slings molted(they are growing pretty fast and the current molts of these slings are producing black legs and a hint of red hairs). Although the critter was fine after the molt the humidity in the vial apparently dropped to unsuitable levels as the next day it was curled up. So I dumped out the substrate(vermiculite...lesson learned is that coco fiber is better as it holds moisture better and keep an eye on the humidity level)...and put in a damp paper towel and a drop of water for the sling. Its been I think almost 2 days and so far no movement...the 4 front legs are curled under and the back ones out a bit.

I've sniffed it and so far no smell. Has anyone had them go for this long without any signs of revival?

Talkenlate04 · Nov 30, 2006

Na from the way you describe it, sounds like its a gonner.......Sorry man.

Midnightrdr456 · Nov 30, 2006

i dont think humidity would kill it that quickly, especially not a brachy which seem to do ok with low humidity. It might have been something else, or just one of those cases where a sling dies for no obvious reason.

At this point it sounds gone, but i would try touching it a little and see if it moves, it usually isnt a good idea but at this point i dont think it can get much worse.

MindUtopia · Nov 30, 2006

Yeah, I would also question that humidity had anything to do with it as I believe it has a lot less impact on molts than we believe. Plus vermiculite is one of the best substrates I've found as far as holding moisture, which is why I use it with all my Avics. Sounds like either just a bad molt or failure to thrive. I had a A. minatrix in a death curl which I was able to revive after a few days in ICU. Unfortunately though it died several weeks later. It's unfortunate, but sometimes just one of those things that happens.

ShadowBlade · Nov 30, 2006

dtknow said:
lesson learned is that coco fiber is better as it holds moisture better

Vermiculite is better, IME.
And coco fiber molds like nothing else.

dtknow said:
I've sniffed it and so far no smell.

I've never really had a dead sling smell bad. I had one dead in its container, and I never cleaned it out, (I forgot) for over a week. When I went to dump it, I smelled it.. nothing.

PhilR · Nov 30, 2006

MindUtopia said:
Yeah, I would also question that humidity had anything to do with it as I believe it has a lot less impact on molts than we believe.

I share your thoughts on humidity and moulting, seeing as the spider itself comprises approximately 70% water

Also, many African spiders can be kept more or less bone dry, and they moult without problems.

Dehydration is another matter in my opinion. I would suggest that even a little dehydration in the spider itself can be extremely detrimental and can cause bad moults and even death.

From what you've described in the original post dtknow, I would agree with the others that your spiderling is most likely dead

cacoseraph · Nov 30, 2006

ShadowBlade said:
Vermiculite is better, IME.
And coco fiber molds like nothing else.

coco *usually* doesn't mold in and of itself, per se. i have had it in hundreds of cages for years and the only time i get mold is when i introduce something that brings it, be it feeders or outside bark etc. if the substrate stays moist for long periods of time then bug juice will mold and look like the substrate is molding... but i have NEVER seen pure clean coconut fiber mold

ShadowBlade said:
I've never really had a dead sling smell bad. I had one dead in its container, and I never cleaned it out, (I forgot) for over a week. When I went to dump it, I smelled it.. nothing.

fully. the only time i have had a smell at all was when i had a fat sling die in a cage and then start to rot and mold. there was a perceptible funk. but for 100+ other slings and tiny things dying... no smell

as far as when to give up on a sling... i have brought slings that looked completely dead back to life. i am talking withered shrunken abdomen and complete death curl. i never give up until a few weeks have passed with no improvement. these things are insanely tough, sometimes, someways

elyanalyous · Nov 30, 2006

i've had brand new coco mold within 24 hours of putting it in a sterilized KK, so it does mold sometimes. there was nothing in the tank at all, not even a T yet, i was waiting for the coco to dry a bit...

dtknow · Dec 2, 2006

Could be. Most of my other vials are around 50/50 cocofiber vermiculite and it seems to hold moisture pretty well...sometimes their is some condensation on the walls of their tunnels which they seem to drink. They are near a heatsource(CF lights for another tank with the vials lined up infront of it to take advantage). Its true it could have been just a random thing though.

So far its been a few days and I've removed it from the vial to inspect and nothing at all. I'm guessing the bugger is dead, which would be my first loss.

Hopefully the other 4 vagans(which are looking really nice right now after molting) will progress with no problems.

cacoseraph · Dec 2, 2006

dtknow said:
Could be. Most of my other vials are around 50/50 cocofiber vermiculite and it seems to hold moisture pretty well...sometimes their is some condensation on the walls of their tunnels which they seem to drink. They are near a heatsource(CF lights for another tank with the vials lined up infront of it to take advantage). Its true it could have been just a random thing though.

ooh. could you explain this part: "(CF lights for another tank with the vials lined up infront of it to take advantage" to me.

i don't know what CF lights are, but lining up slings in front of anything more powerful than those wimpy indoor xmas lights is probably not a good idea. with a tiny little vial with good ventilation it would be entirely possible to dry it out and heat it up to 100*F in a fairly short amount of time.

i would say, unless your room is getting significantly below 55*F during this kind of prewinter period it is more safe to not heat them, rather than risk a possibly unsafe heating solution

dtknow said:
So far its been a few days and I've removed it from the vial to inspect and nothing at all. I'm guessing the bugger is dead, which would be my first loss.
Hopefully the other 4 vagans(which are looking really nice right now after molting) will progress with no problems.

bummer. you have waited... 5 days or so, i think? that is a decent indicator that you lost this one. i am pretty sure when i have had comatoselike spiders revive it has generally been after less than five days of treatment

sorry to hear.

AfterTheAsylum · Dec 2, 2006

Yeah, not all slings survive. Just out of probability - some will die. Think of all the animals that have large amounts of babies... how many actually survive? Some are weak, some get eaten, etc. It just happens.

T.S.

dtknow · Dec 5, 2006

CF: Compact flourescent lights. These are for a fish tank, and they throw off quite a bit of heat. I keep my roaches warm by placing them directly on top of it(this has worked fine for over a year), so I thought it might be nice for the slings if I put them near it. I'm guessing that the lights raise the temp of the vials to 73-78, dropping off to house temps at night. House temps are around 65ish. Everyone else with more coco fiber and whatnot has molted fine except for this one. Of course, a sling kept cooler is better than a dead sling, so maybe I should move them.

That little bugger showed no improvement so is a goner I'm sure by now.

cacoseraph · Dec 5, 2006

dtknow said:
CF: Compact flourescent lights. These are for a fish tank, and they throw off quite a bit of heat. I keep my roaches warm by placing them directly on top of it(this has worked fine for over a year), so I thought it might be nice for the slings if I put them near it. I'm guessing that the lights raise the temp of the vials to 73-78, dropping off to house temps at night. House temps are around 65ish. Everyone else with more coco fiber and whatnot has molted fine except for this one. Of course, a sling kept cooler is better than a dead sling, so maybe I should move them.

That little bugger showed no improvement so is a goner I'm sure by now.

unless that particular kind of light is more dessicating than a "normal" incandescant, raising the temps up a tiny bit shouldn't have dried the vials out that severely. dunno, back to being a crummy random spiderling death

When to throw in the towel on a "dead" sling

dtknow

Arachnoking

Talkenlate04

ArachnoGod

Midnightrdr456

Arachnoprince

MindUtopia

Arachnoking

ShadowBlade

Planeswalker

PhilR

Arachnoknight

cacoseraph

ArachnoGod

elyanalyous

Arachnobaron

dtknow

Arachnoking

cacoseraph

ArachnoGod

AfterTheAsylum

Arachnodemon

dtknow

Arachnoking

cacoseraph

ArachnoGod