Dish soap

[yellow-blob-101]

Okay, so my mom has dish soap water in a bottle for her plants, I accidentally used it in my pink toe tarantula Phelma's dirt to wet it.....will this kill her? Is she safe? What do I do? Im new to having her and new to spiders....please help me with my situation

 

[SikmT7]

It's ok don't panic, dish soap won't harm them but I would suggest you take her out, and change the substrate as soon as you can to ensure that your T will not be uncomfortable in any way as they just will try to escape because they don't like the soap. T's detect chemical changes and that's how they hunt, along with eye sight and the hairs they use to sense vibrations. Other than that, as long as you didn't spray it directly on your T, she will be fine . What kind of substrate do you use? I reccomend a 50/50 mix of coconut fiber and peat moss, put at least 4-6 inches in it to ensure that your aboreal doesn't injure herself from a high fall. The enclosure should have more height than floor space as they are climbers. They rarely go to the ground, so provide a nice cork bark hollowed out for a hide and decor such as vines for her to climb. Do not over mist the enclosure, just put a shallow lid for water dish, keep it overflowed, make sure there is plenty of ventilation in the enclosure as this is crucial for aboreals especially A avicularia. When you do mist the enclosure make sure the substrate is completely dried out before you do. Pink toes are great beginner T's and as long as you care for them properly you will really enjoy this species, they are sweethearts .

 

[yellow-blob-101]

It's ok don't panic, dish soap wont harm them but I would suggest you take her out, and change the substrate as soon as you can to ensure that your T will not be uncomfortable in any way as they just will try and climb the sides because they don't like the soap. T's detect chemical changes and that's how they hunt, along with eye sight and the hairs they use to sense vibrations. Other than that, as long as you didn't spray it directly on your T, she will be fine

Thank you so much, ill have my mom pick some more coconut husk on her way home and ill change if out then....that'll be in about 7-8 hours....is that too long?

 

[SikmT7]

Thank you so much, ill have my mom pick some more coconut husk on her way home and ill change if out then....that'll be in about 7-8 hours....is that too long?

You're welcome! You can just take her out and put her in something small like a deli container or critter keeper if you have one until you change the substrate, but a few hours won't harm her

 

[SikmT7]

How is your Avic? Did you change the substrate? I hope all is well!

 

[yellow-blob-101]

hey, sorry for the super late reply...but im happy to say that yes, she even got a new tank for Christmas that will suit her better. this one will not interfere with her web at the top of the mesh, it has a door big enough for me to access everything. she has been eating crickets and she has proper heat. however, she hasn't been able to climb up the glass...ive cleaned it and she still can't, not even on her wood. im hoping this might have something to do with her seven legs(dropped one about two months before dishsoap incident) but im not sure

 

[Arachnoclown]

Glad to hear everything is ok. Can't believe I never saw this post until now.

 

[Enn49]

The inability to climb up the glass could be a sign of a moult coming up. Often if they have lost a leg they will moult sooner to replace it.

 

[Arachnoclown]

hey, sorry for the super late reply...but im happy to say that yes, she even got a new tank for Christmas that will suit her better. this one will not interfere with her web at the top of the mesh, it has a door big enough for me to access everything. she has been eating crickets and she has proper heat. however, she hasn't been able to climb up the glass...ive cleaned it and she still can't, not even on her wood. im hoping this might have something to do with her seven legs(dropped one about two months before dishsoap incident) but im not sure

Sounds like shes in premolt. They have a hard time climbing in premolt due to their new exoskeleton inside the old one. She should molt out of this fine with a new leg.

 

[Jess S]

hey, sorry for the super late reply...but im happy to say that yes, she even got a new tank for Christmas that will suit her better. this one will not interfere with her web at the top of the mesh, it has a door big enough for me to access everything. she has been eating crickets and she has proper heat.

Hi there. May I ask how you are heating the enclosure?

 

[Soulman]

Okay, so my mom has dish soap water in a bottle for her plants, I accidentally used it in my pink toe tarantula Phelma's dirt to wet it.....will this kill her? Is she safe? What do I do? Im new to having her and new to spiders....please help me with my situation

soap no good,little a lot .I would get her out.and have a clean out,or maybe spray some clean water over.

 

[yellow-blob-101]

Hi there. May I ask how you are heating the enclosure?

she has a heat pad under her tank but it doesn't seem to be enough to effect the top of the tank(the bottom is the right temperature, the top is way off) so i plan on either getting a bigger one or just getting another smaller one to put at the top.

 

[yellow-blob-101]

The inability to climb up the glass could be a sign of a moult coming up. Often if they have lost a leg they will moult sooner to replace it.

thank you so much, i can't believe i didn't know this...

 

[yellow-blob-101]

Sounds like shes in premolt. They have a hard time climbing in premolt due to their new exoskeleton inside the old one. She should molt out of this fine with a new leg.

thank you so much, great to know

 

[Jess S]

she has a heat pad under her tank but it doesn't seem to be enough to effect the top of the tank(the bottom is the right temperature, the top is way off) so i plan on either getting a bigger one or just getting another smaller one to put at the top.

Please remove the heat pad immediately and forget about getting the bigger one. As you're from California I'm sure normal room temperature (anywhere from high sixties to high seventies f) will be absolutely fine for your t. The reason heat pads aren't good for tarantulas is that they can dehydrate them to death. Unfortunately, tarantulas tend to gravitate towards heat and aren't able to move away from it. By the time they realise they should move away, physically they can't. So they cook.

I wouldn't worry about measuring the temp of the enclosure as your thermometer may not be accurate. If you are comfortable in your room in a t-shirt then your t will be too.

Hope this helps.

 

[yellow-blob-101]

i live on the delta in East Bay area, so my house does tend to run a little cold, sometimes as low as mid 50's, i know they're uncomfortable with bright light so i avoided getting a heat lamp for her, is there something else that would work even just for at night when it gets lower, or is she okay?

 

[Jess S]

i live on the delta in East Bay area, so my house does tend to run a little cold, sometimes as low as mid 50's, i know they're uncomfortable with bright light so i avoided getting a heat lamp for her, is there something else that would work even just for at night when it gets lower, or is she okay?

A space heater would work perfectly, especially if it has an inbuilt thermostat that makes it switch on and off if the room falls below a certain temp. That's what most keepers do - heat the room the enclosure is in. Just ensure it is not too near the enclosure so it doesn't over heat it.

 

[yellow-blob-101]

thank you, a space heater may be the way to go, and my mom would like that since i just moved my T to the living room, so then our living room would stay warm.

A space heater would work perfectly, especially if it has an inbuilt thermostat that makes it switch on and off if the room falls below a certain temp. That's what most keepers do - heat the room the enclosure is in. Just ensure it is not too near the enclosure so it doesn't over heat it.

 

[m0lsx]

she has a heat pad under her tank but it doesn't seem to be enough to effect the top of the tank(the bottom is the right temperature, the top is way off) so i plan on either getting a bigger one or just getting another smaller one to put at the top.

Heat pads are potential killers of T's & they should NEVER be placed under the enclosure as that just increases the danger. Tarantulas burrow to get away for heat, thus get closer to a heat pad under a enclosure. So if heat pads are used they should be always be placed on the side of an enclosure, but never under it. Like that, the T has a method of moving away from the heat.

T's will survive perfectly OK in temperatures that are comfortable for us. So if it's warm enough for you. The T is perfectly OK.

 

[yellow-blob-101]

thank you, its on the side until i get a space heater for the room