Possible Problem?

On Friday I picked up my newest addition. He is an early '10 Spider Male ( not confirmed yet ) that I found on Craigslist. I am not usually one to buy animals from there, but I do browse it from time to time. He looked in 'decent' health from the photos and thought that he would make a good addition.

( excuse the poor quality pics as the 'real camera' battery was dead )
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/m...l/VID00019.jpg
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/m...l/VID00020.jpg
http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/m...l/VID00022.jpg

He seems healthy. A little thin 698g, but was only ever feed mice ( he will be put on rats on Tuesday ). No wheezing or popping, no stuck eye caps. Only a slight wobble, but that's an expected possibility really with a Spider.

I currently have him in a tub in QT away from the others. Husbandry is all good. Ambient temps are little low ( 77-80 ), but 'hot hide' temps are right where they should be. Humidity is a little high, as it is new substrate in a tub. There are plenty of holes for ventilation, so the humidity is going down slowly.

My question and possible problem is that he is soaking 90% of the time. I have looked him over and couldn't find any mites. I did order some Reptile Relief that should be here this week just in case. I have read some previous posts about this but figured I would ask and show him off at the same time :P

His previous owner had him in a 55g tank with a screen lid. I imagine that the humidity was never kept proper from the looks of things. She did mention that he had started soaking a day or so before I picked him up. His belly is 'sort of' starting to turn pink, but its really hard to say for sure.

Just wanted to get everyone's opinion on the deal. I have never had a snake with mites, but I have looked over every square centimeter of this fella to try and find one. Also looked in the water bowl where he was soaking and found nothing. The soaking just confuses me really..haha

Thanks for your help in advance. =)

I suggest picking up a can of Provent a mite. I'd change the substrate to paper towels so you can see better if he has mites or not. He's a nice looking spider :)

Hmmmm...he could just feel like soaking right now. I would stick him on paper towels if you don't have him on those already so you can see the mites better (if they do decide to pop up on you) and double check your temps to make sure they're not too hot (some will wrap bowls or soak if they feel too warm). Good luck and keep us posted!

He does have kind of a 'caramel' color to his dark spots. I know it would be crazy to think he was a caramel spider, but the pattern isn't black at all. It almost looks like every so slight blushing on it as well. Interesting either way =)

I'll swap him to paper towels tonight after work. Need to buy some anyways, as I have just used the last of them making a PB&J :rolleyes:

I am using the Accurite digital from Wal-Mart so I feel pretty confident that the temp is reading properly.

I am hoping he just 'wants' to soak right now.

Thanks for the replys.

He's definitely a typical spider, I don't see any other morph in there. But, spider being on of my favorite genes, plain or not, I think he's brilliant looking :D He looks very similar to my girl, she's a little higher white though.

Oh, forgot to ask. Is the Reptile Relief not any good? I know a lot of people tend swear by PAM just wondering if it's because the other products out there aren't as good?

yeah, figured he was a regular ( spider ), just caught me off guard a little i guess with the colors =)

Most products take much longer to work, if they do at all, causing more stress to the snake than necessary. PAM has pretty much been proven to wipe out mites and eggs quickly, and all others simply don't compare. They are a waste of money, since you'd probably have to buy a few bottles for it to start working, and use them for a longer period of time, which in the end add up to what you'd pay for PAM.

Put him on plain white paper towels last night. Checked him today and still no sign of mites even-though he has been soaking for 3 days.

I did, however, notice a popping sound which I'm assuming could be signs of an RI. He could have just had water in the way, but just to be sure, I pulled the water bowl. Going to offer it twice a day for about 30 minutes as suggested in other forums here. Once in the morning, once at night.

I also called and set up a vet appointment for this Friday. Can't be too careful. He is still in QT of course, and will obviously remain there for a while. I'm hoping it was just a little water in his airway as I haven't heard him do it before. I am expecting it to be an RI as his husbandry was nowhere near what it needed to be before.

My question now is, since I live in an apartment, my QT area is my bathroom that is 'in' my master bedroom where my other snakes are. I am keeping the door to the bathroom shut even when I am not in there, but is there anything else I need to do to make sure that it does not spread?

I know this is what the 'normal' condition for an animal off craigslist is, I was expecting a vet visit with this animal before I got him. No regrets ! I just want to make sure I do things properly to keep it from spreading to the rest of my small collection.

I would suspect this is fine as far as placement, and the popping may just be from water being in the nose from soaking .... I wouldn't think he was soaking because he was too warm as your ambient temps are a bit low and that wouldn't really make sense... I would just make sure you wash your hands really well after messing with him.


Good luck, and I hope you figure out if anything is wrong! Hope nothing is! :please:

Reptile relief does the same thing as soaking, it drowns the mites.
Water is free ;)

I'd leave the water in with the snake and look closer with the magnifying glass to confirm one way or another whether there is mites or not.

Having a can of PAM to treat every time a snake comes in isn't a bad idea.

Okay, I'll be the odd one.

He could just be soaking because he feels like it or is about to shed. They don't always soak because of mites. I'm not a huge fan of preventative treatment especially if it's chemical so I would make sure he has mites before spraying anything, but that's just me.

He also doesn't look that skinny to me. My 2010 spider male was a late 2010 and he's sitting at close to 1000g right now and looks like that. He takes all the food I give him and turns it into length over girth. :rolleyes:

Good luck with him. :)

Thanks for the help. I definitely plan on getting some PAM, I just happened to find the reptile relief first. I do have to run back to wal-mart tonight, so I'll try and pick up a magnifying glass to try and completely verify or decline the possible mite situation.

Also, if he isn't 'popping' anymore when I get home from work, I'll put the water back in there as that is most likely what it was. His belly is turning a bit pink, so I imagine that a shed is coming in the next couple weeks. I was told it was about time for him to shed again anyways.

Thanks for all the replies. I have never had an issue with a BP that I have had, so all this 'RI & Mites' stuff is new to me. I will still take him to the vet on Friday just to confirm or deny good health. Can't hurt =)

Maybe he is just a 'soaker' haha.. Thanks again, I'll keep ya updated !

The popping noise could also be loose shed inside the nose, which could also explain the soaking if there is an impending shed. PAM is always a good idea even for just a preventative, just keep a close eye for any other signs of RI, I also don't think you should remove the water dish...

He looks good. The soaking could indicate mites. I would definitely get some PAM and spray the enclosure just to play it safe.

The fella ate for me last week with no problems ( other than a few misses :P) Feeding day is tomorrow, but he is about to shed, so will prob just keep his rat alive till he does. His eyes cleared up yesterday so should be any day now.

Just got back from the vet. Had to postpone the previous appointment due to the holidays that I forgot about :rolleyes:..haha

Doc couldn't find any mites either, but he is still soaking a lot so maybe he just likes it. Will try and get some PAM on the way this week if possible. ( Tips have been pretty crappy lately )

Vet said there was a little extra saliva in the back of the mouth, but that it wasn't an RI. Said it could have been the start of one when I got him ( he was super cold when I picked him up ), but since I have been keeping the temps and such 'properly' that he was fighting it off himself. Vet said to give it another week and see what happens before he wants to go to antibiotics. Doc said that since he did eat for me last week, that it was a good sign cause they sometimes won't eat if they have an RI.

Other than that, he received a 'clean' bill of health. He will of course remain in QT for at least another 30-60 days just in case.

Thanks for all the help. Will get some good pics up in the picture forum after he sheds for me =)

Aside from the possible RI it sounds like he might be going into shed. You said that his belly was starting to turn pink? This is usually the first sign of impending shed and might explain the soaking.

Sorry! I didn't get as far as your update. I'm glad to hear there is no RI. Are you sure about his gender? I was just curious if the vet probed him for you to confirm. Good luck!:)

Vet did not probe him. I will 'pop' him to be sure after he sheds in the next day or two. I started off leaving him alone of course. Then he ate. Then Turkey Day showed up. Then he went into full blown blue. So waiting till all that is done, then will confirm.

The lady I got him from apparently received him from a vet student. So I'm hoping that he is actually a he as 'he' weighs over 700g right now ;)

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Originally Posted by Kinra

He also doesn't look that skinny to me. My 2010 spider male was a late 2010 and he's sitting at close to 1000g right now and looks like that. He takes all the food I give him and turns it into length over girth. :rolleyes:

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:gj:

That is just like our adult male spider too (2009/early 2010ish). He eats and eats and eats and just stays long and lanky. It is almost comical to look at him because he is so scrawny.