# cobalt blue bites



## Metallica Rules! (Jan 14, 2009)

i recently made the big step up to keeping haplopelma lividum. ive researched this spider exstensively on the net but thought it wise to ask for the advice/ past experience of bites from these spiders from fellow keepers. ( i guess finding out from more experienced keepers is preferable to sticking my hand in the tank to see what happens:lol2
basically im interested in the venoms effects/symptoms, how painful the bites are. how health endangering they are and what a bad allergic reaction is like. i realise that all this stuff varies from person to person but i think that keeping these spiders you need all the advice and help you can get. cheers.


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## Joe1507 (Aug 11, 2008)

Metalica, iron maiden, cradle of filth - fav 3 bands.


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## joeyboy (Jul 19, 2008)

I would imagine it's one of the more painful bites but as far as I am aware no Tarantula have life threatening bites unless I suppose you have allergies, I haven't heard of any deaths of any kind though. Basically I'm going to go with intense pain at the region of the bite, spreading up the limb. Likely a horrible cramping sensation to go with that. General feeling of nausea, dizziness, basically feeling pretty crap in general for a while. I think some bites can cause heart palpitations but not life threatening ones.

That's my guess but I'm no doctor and I haven't been bitten by one, hope I never will be as if I do get one by hand isn't going inside it's burrow.:lol2:


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## bmsonline (Feb 7, 2008)

The bite reports I have read generally express that a bite from a Haplopelma lividum is very painful and can last for as little as an hour to 14 days. As long as you are careful and treat it with respect there should be no reason you would receive a bite. They are fast, defensive and can be aggressive so they demand planning when doing tank maintenance and transferring. Here is a link to a forum with a few bite reports: 

Haplopelma lividum - Arachnoboards

Alex


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## Lucifus (Aug 30, 2007)

To be honest if you ever see the damned thing you will be lucky. Just dont put your fingers near the burrow and use a minimum of 12 inch metal tongs.

Majorly overrated but not something to be taken lightly.


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## joeyboy (Jul 19, 2008)

Lucifus said:


> To be honest if you ever see the damned thing you will be lucky. Just dont put your fingers near the burrow and use a minimum of 12 inch metal tongs.
> 
> Majorly overrated but not something to be taken lightly.


haha yeah lol. Just leave it in it's burrow and never change the sub unless it gets mouldy or something.:lol2::lol2::lol2:

Although I guess you do have to change the sub at some point, not sure what the rule is. Some seem to do annually, some every couple of years, some never do it.


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## garlicpickle (Jan 16, 2009)

I've never seen mine, let alone risked getting bitten by it! The only reason I know it's alive is that the cricks disappear. Am thinking of transferring it to a narrower container to force it to make its burrow against the side. A jar full of soil is pretty boring to observe :lol2:


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## matto2k (Nov 30, 2006)

mines being a noisy little digger at night at the moment no sign of the burrow coming near the side of the cage would be nice to see it again...


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## garlicpickle (Jan 16, 2009)

Just bit the bullet and rehoused mine today :2thumb: I treated it to a 6x6x12" Custom Aquaria tank. I've put an empty squash bottle in the middle just leaving a fairly narrow space all round, so it will have to build its burrow against the side. As it grows too big for the gap available, I'll replace the bottle with something smaller and eventually dispense with it altogether.

It was pretty well behaved too. I had to empty the entire jar before I found it hiding right at the bottom. I did it in the garden inside a large plastic bucket and used a wooden spoon to gently scoop the soil out of the jar. I'll post a pic of him/her later. It's looking good.


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## arachnid (Apr 14, 2009)

ive had mine about 4yrs its true they stay under ground nearly all the time i dont know about yours but my female has 6 entrance holes in her burrow and the whole of sub is covered in web ive also never found her agressive and i do put my hands in her viv to pick up her rubbish but then i dont wind her up my ornamentals now thats a differant thing altogether


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## ph0bia (Feb 21, 2009)

All I've heard on bites places them on the lower end of the 'high pain' list. That is to say, it's not as bad (in accounts to venom) as, say Poecilotheria or Pterinochilus species, but the mechanical bite is forceful and damaging alone, combined with a high volume of venom injected (Piss off a Haplopelma and you can usually see venom drip from their fangs, very few other theraphosids do this).

From the toxicology reports I've read, the venom itself is not too bad, it's more the volumes injected. Mechanical injury would be akin to being stabbed with two drawing pins (inserted to the flush) with a diameter of about 2mm. 
Venom pain ranges from mere numb tingling with sweat breaking over the body, to muscle cramping, convulsions and extreme dizziness. It's worth treating any bites immediately with a mild antiseptic and applying a bandage loosely over it (unlike a Sydney Funnelweb, a tight bandage will offer no aid) and monitor it over a period of days. If extreme reactions begin to occur, seek aid at your local toxicology department or A&E.


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## rocketrob68 (1 mo ago)

Metallica Rules! said:


> i recently made the big step up to keeping haplopelma lividum. ive researched this spider exstensively on the net but thought it wise to ask for the advice/ past experience of bites from these spiders from fellow keepers. ( i guess finding out from more experienced keepers is preferable to sticking my hand in the tank to see what happens:lol2
> basically im interested in the venoms effects/symptoms, how painful the bites are. how health endangering they are and what a bad allergic reaction is like. i realise that all this stuff varies from person to person but i think that keeping these spiders you need all the advice and help you can get. cheers.


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## rocketrob68 (1 mo ago)

Hey Metallica,
I had a haplopelma lividum about 10 years ago that bit me. I put my hand in and was trying to move it. When it bit my ring finger I didnt flinch away for fear of harming it. It's fangs were so sharp I barely noticed the bite. A slight burning pain spread through my hand and travelled halfway up my forearm. Nothing more.
Then a day later I got the worst cramp I ever had. All the muscles in my body were cramping simultaneously, and this continued sporadically for about 10 days.


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