My little guy is stuck in his molt

[Kathleen Schmidt]

Hi,

This is an unfortunate first post. My Chilean Rose is stuck in his molt. He flipped over last night on his silk and I misted and put my camcorder on him. That was about 9pm. Today is is 24 hours later and his butt and head are out, but all of his legs and both his pedi's are still inside his old skin. I cleared his lungs by gently removing the rest of his old butt and misted and searched online. I have (very carefully) moved him to a smaller area on a misted paper towel and he is still on his back. He's not moving at all. I am not sure if he is dead. Please help!

D:
Kathleen

[Kathleen Schmidt]

Ok he is still alive

But he is definitely stuck in his molt. Any help? Has anyone ever cut their spider out of their old body? Any suggestions? I know he needs help. ::worry::

[Dan Kennard]

It's never an easy thing to deal with, and I'm very sorry to read of your problems. If there is no loss of haemolymph, then there could still be a chance. When it comes to stuck moults, misting is virtually useless. Your best bet would have been to significantly increase the relatiuve humditiy (people often take the spider into a bathroom and turn the shower on full with the windows and door blocked up).

The problem is, the longer the spider remains stuck, the more the new exoskeleton hardens. Your best bet at this point would be to try and manually remove the exuvium. The clear Johnson's baby oil is a good lubricant. Try carefully applying it with a very small paintbrush. Failing that, cutting the exuvium free may be the only remaining option. At this point, you've nothing tio lose.

Good luck

[Kathleen Schmidt]

The problem is, the longer the spider remains stuck, the more the new exoskeleton hardens. Your best bet at this point would be to try and manually remove the exuvium. The clear Johnson's baby oil is a good lubricant. Try carefully applying it with a very small paintbrush. Failing that, cutting the exuvium free may be the only remaining option. At this point, you've nothing tio lose.

Good luck

Thank you so much. I called the local Vivarium for advice. I have my little guy in the bathroom right now and i put him on his side. I've been carefully paint brushing water onto his legs. I plan to scope that out for a bit and then get to it with cutting him out. This is so scary, but a good learning experience.

[lynn mawdesley]

oh bless him hows things going Kathleen? have you managed to free him ..is he still with us?

[Kurt Baird]

Unfortunately this happens quite often with mature males. The fat pedi's and hooks make it difficult to pull out of the old skin.

[Kathleen Schmidt]

Thanx everyone.
Unfortunately Angel passed away in the night.

Here's a fairly recent pic. I also have vids of him digging that I will cherish.

[Dan Kennard]

I'm really sorry to hear that. I had no idea that it was a post ultimate mnoult - They are very rarely successful, and almost always end with the spider becoming stuck in the exuvium

Such a shame.

[Kathleen Schmidt]

I'm really sorry to hear that. I had no idea that it was a post ultimate mnoult - They are very rarely successful, and almost always end with the spider becoming stuck in the exuvium

Such a shame.

Thanx Dan, I kno. Hey you seem to be pretty knowledgeable about spider terminology. Could you point me to a place where I can get acquainted with the lingo? *sorry in advance if it's on this site and I haven't found it yet.
I would love to know what post ultimate moult means. Also, it would help a lot for future question asking and forum reading.

Thanx again.

[lynn mawdesley]

Awww such a shame Kathleen , i hadnt realised either ...post ultimate is when they moult again after they have matured ( ie got their hooks etc) RIP little dude xx