Prey removal

[NixHexDude]

I'm new to keeping true spiders and was wondering if removing remains of prey was at all neccessary. I wouldn't think in my case this would be neccessary because I'm refering to widows, and I've yet to see prey mold at ambient humidity. Confirmation of this from the experts would be appreciated. Thanks guys.

[sick4x4]

yeah i would otherwise you have a floor covered in discarded carcasses and can kinda smell...

[Python]

I would clean them out periodically. The smell will knock a maggot off a gut wagon so to speak. Definitely clean them out.

[cacoseraph]

for totally dry spiders you need to remove prey remains about once a year. for more wet spiders with substrate in their cage you would probably be forced to remove prey remains more often cuz of mites and stuff

[Bothrops]

I keep my widows without substrate, and I clean the prey remains from the bottom of the cages maybe once every 3-4 months

[Bayushi]

I saw some cool pics of widows being kept in inverted jars. ( not sure where. possibly on the forums here somewhere). It looked to make cleaning the remains of meals incredibly easy, just take the lid off and dump the remains......

[buthus]

I have some hesperus enclosures that are going on 3 years without ever cleaning out prey.
Treds and pals use their prey carcasses as building materials, so I never remove those either. Infact if I dont need to remove prey due to mold, mites and meat flies, I choose not to.

Heres a trick.. add a few small roaches and/or earwigs to your widow enclosures. If they get to the bottom unnoticed they will become your janitorial staff. You'll end up with cleaned prey ...no meat left for problems like flies, mites, whatnot.

There is absolutely NO reason to use substrate for widows and kin. Infact, substrate or any absorbable material adds to the problem. To keep species that need higher humidity, fill a cup with h2o crystals or mix of coconut substrate/crystals, punch some big holes in the cups lid and place it at the bottom of the enclosure. With inverted jars I silicone this cup to the lid, so when I turn the jar over the cup remains in place... and when the lid is removed, the cup come with it.

Cups and small containers are different. Misting and/or higher humidity = meatflies and mold. Yet, I only remove the prey when I see a problem.

[NixHexDude]

Thanks everyone. This info will I'm sure prove to be most useful in the following months.

[TNeal]

I keep my widows and other spiders in inverted jars also. I have found this method to be a very easy to clean method. Whenever I open the jar to feed the spiders I simply dump out the remains and wash the lid. Keeps everything very tidy,

Tom