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P.Vittata climbing issue and enclosure trouble

Cody-Myles

Active Member
3 Year Member
Messages
126
Location
Burntwood, Staffordshire
Got a bit of a bother with my ghost ornamental ATM.
As some know she dropped one of her back legs randomly a few days ago and up until last night she was getting on fine and crawling all over her enclosure as normal.
During routine maintenance last night I found tiny white worm-like things in her water bowl and roaming around her substrate, for the second time. I removed her from her enclosure and set up a brand new one with arid dry substrate that I added a little water to and mixed up to give it some structure, brand new cork bark piece and brand new plants..... that irradiated the little worm things, for now, although they might be the beneficial custodial worms that won't harm her but I can't be sure.

Any way, I moved her into the new one so there is no webbing or silk strands in there anywhere and she has now lost the ability to get a good grip on the sides of the enclosure. She loves to hide under the lid but now she keeps losing footing whilst roaming around the walls and has fallen a good 3-4" a few times and I'm concerned about her safety. I have already done research with not much luck but I read that when they reach pre-moult, they lose some of their grip so I'm praying that's all it is and she will moult and be back to normal afterwards?!. Any thoughts?.
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Crap pic I know but does she look like she could be in pre-moult?, she did refuse her last meal.


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wujek006

Member
3 Year Member
Messages
17
Location
NJ
Hard to say bro . Keep watching her for next few days and if it's not looks like premolt put her to some incubator . And worms don't sound too good for me but I'm just a beginner. Good luck anyway
 

Cody-Myles

Active Member
3 Year Member
Messages
126
Location
Burntwood, Staffordshire
I gave up on the mealworms cus most of my Ts and my centipede just wouldn't take them so I switched back to crickets and by-gosh, everything is back to normal with some of them. My red rump took the cricket straight away, my centipede went nuts and took 3 of the 6 I threw in and I'm about to throw one in to my zebra knee that has been refusing to eat mealworms.

Update on the vittata though. She cocooned herself into a little web hide thing yesterday and spent a whole 24-36 hours in it so I was adamant she was about to moult.... woke up this morning and she has ventured out of it and is currently sat on the wall of her enclosure.... no moult. I'm off out today to buy new hides and new substrate supplies for all of them.


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Whitelightning777

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3 Year Member
Messages
2,565
Location
Baltimore MD
I to was unsuccessful with meal worms and my pokie. I tried lowering a shot glass into the enclosure and putting mealworms in that so that they wouldn't burrow immediately.

My Striata sling totally ignored them. When feed a cricket, that mysteriously vanished within a few hours.

Her web is located in such a way that I can't drop one directly inside.
 

Cody-Myles

Active Member
3 Year Member
Messages
126
Location
Burntwood, Staffordshire
I to was unsuccessful with meal worms and my pokie. I tried lowering a shot glass into the enclosure and putting mealworms in that so that they wouldn't burrow immediately.

My Striata sling totally ignored them. When feed a cricket, that mysteriously vanished within a few hours.

Her web is located in such a way that I can't drop one directly inside.
I can't imagine why they refuse mealworms, it's still food and I thought Ts would take anything they can sink their fangs into.
I have the unfortunate task of dropping and praying cus my vittata isn't a webber, they just makes random clusters of silk around the place. She is very active ATM and divides her time between the walls and that little silk cocoon she made. Refused the cricket which I can't retrieve and is refusing to moult.
She normally takes anything I throw in (minus mealworms), does yours normally take every feed?


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Whitelightning777

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Baltimore MD
The very first cricket I threw in I caught her eating it. Since then, feeders mysteriously vanish and boluses mysteriously show up in webbing tidily spun in the upper rear back corner of the enclosure.

I move the enclosure carefully to the bathroom with the drain plugged etc just in case in order to clean it. Then the process repeats itself.
 

Cody-Myles

Active Member
3 Year Member
Messages
126
Location
Burntwood, Staffordshire
lol same, every time I feed one of my Ts, the prey goes straight for the most awkward and out-of-the-way place in the enclosure and if it isn't eaten, it's really hard to retrieve. Especially a jumping cricket that has an abhorrence to being caught.
Sometimes they will disappear without any trace and I just have to assume they've been eaten, then days later they reappear very alive [emoji20]


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Whitelightning777

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I doubt pokies will dig out food but as long as it's on the surface, it's only a matter of time. The speed and venom potency renders any cricket doomed.
 

Arachnoclown

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6,382
Location
The Oregon rain forest
I doubt pokies will dig out food but as long as it's on the surface, it's only a matter of time. The speed and venom potency renders any cricket doomed.
I had a superworm get away from a pokie a while back. I usually crush their heads but for some reason i didnt this time. I thought the T would snatch it up right away. Anyways the worm instantly burrowed itself and the pokie just sat on top of it so I couldn't retrieve it. The next day I woke up to a giant hole 3" deep in the substrate and my ornata sitting up on its cork bark chowing down on the worm.;) All my pokies love superworms...mealworms are a hit and miss for some reason. I don't understand. :confused:
 

Whitelightning777

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2,565
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Baltimore MD
I'd like to get some real small hissers or maybe even Dubai roaches for variety. My Striata only seems to eat crickets.

I've heard that removing the front pair of legs prevents them from borrowing.

She doesn't seem to be growing as fast as the others who eat more then one good type, still perfectly healthy.
 
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