Help!!!!! Giant Spider In Piggypen!!!!!!

[Jenni_Feathers]

Oh My Gosh!!! I think I just had a heart attack! I was getting ready to take my piggers out for some fun in their giant playpen out side and before I bring them out I always check all the fencing and make sure it has not tears or hole or gaps underneath where the piggys could slip out and I see a preying mantis and I love preying mantis' and I bent over to watch it (it was eating something and I moved Chewie's rock slab that he like to sleep on and there lies and GIANT spider!!!! eeeeeek I am not afraid of spiders but this one is no ordinary spider! Here are some pictures of it, does anyone know if it could harm the piggers, I asked my dad what it was and at first he said wolfe spider but then he said its the wrong colors. Does anyone know what the heck it is and is it poisinous and could it harm the piggies!!?!?

Oh and if it helps I live in Central Missouri between Jeff. City and St. Louis.

Here are the pics, if you are terribly afraid of spiders I suggest you look away now.

It is pretty big, like silver dollar sized, but its hard to tell in the pics since its dead in them-I killed it, sorry mr.spider but you are creepy.
It looked like it had fangs.....









Also can poisinous spiders hurt piggys, already asked this but I'm askin again because during the summer there was a black widdow on my pool filter which is about 5ft away from the piggers yard. I'm afraid to take them out now, or can spiders not hurt them???

PS: This is why I am never walking barefoot in my yard again


Please help me,

~*Jenni*~

[babybunny]

*faint* My God thats scary. I think its a tarantula though. :O

Some have been known to eat things as big as birds so I would be careful about it being anywhere near your piggies.

As for a black widow, I found one outside our house this summer after moving to Arizona, the pest man said they aren't aggressive unless they feel them or their nest is being threatened or provoked. However, if one were to bite your piggies, it wouldn't be good.

[Jenni_Feathers]

Originally Posted by babybunny

*faint* My God thats scary. I think its a tarantula though. :O.

Nah, I dont think there are tarantula's here, are there, I hope not.

[HowietheGreat]

There is a website you can go on for insect identification. They are entomologists (sp?) and if you send them a picture, they will let you know what it is. We were on it at work when a large dead moth was found. I t ended up being a beautiful Luna moth. I think I have the web address still at work. I will post it tommorrow. One of our members studies/works with insects-I just can't remember their name. Maybe they will log in and help you in the meantime. Ugh, I respect spiders but do not want them near me.

[Fluffy_Guinea]

Meep *hides under blanket* I'm terrified of spiders but only if their near me and alive in pictures I'm fine. I'm afraid I have no idea what it is but it sure is one of the biggest spiders I've seen. I haven't seen that many big spiders there's not many spiders where I live which is a relief.

[i-love-nev]

Awwww poor Mr.spider *laughs secretly* nah you shouldnt have killed it should have captured and released it (if you have any siblings, in there bed is best! ) I am afraid I cant help scary looking thing! and wow! you really had a go at it! hes missing legs!!

[WheeksUnlimited]

I am petrified of spiders, so i scrolled fairly quickly. I agree that I think it is a tarantula. Those pics made my heart beat fast, and I got chills!!

You are very brave! I would have just put a GIANT bucket over it and let my hubby deal with it.

[^dawn^]

My guess is that it's a Wolf spider..according to this it could be gray,brown, black or tan with brown or black stripes or markings. This link shows a few different spiders found in Missouri. And Terantulas are on the list, but the description of the Wolf spider seems more accurate to me..

Common Missouri Spiders - A Guide to Missouri Spiders

[Jenni_Feathers]

I think it might be a wolf spider, or possibly a trantula, but the habitat didnt match, but it is possible since I'm south of the Missouri river ,I'm not sure both venomous though. Do you think it is still safe to take the piggys out if I fence off the area where I found it, and many other spiders in the past???

[JarBax]

Sorry - I didn't look at the pictures too long - I am a recovering arachnaphobic (took me a good few hours to pluck up the courage to look at your thread!), but if this is - sorry was - a wolf spider, then I wouldn't let your pigs out, without doing a thorough spider-sweep first! This link suggests that they are poisonous to humans, with special care to be taken of a bitten child, so I can only imagine the result a bite to a piggy wouldn't be good news.

Whilst I really am not comfortable around spiders, I do catch them and release them elsewhere (far away!), rather than kill them. Whilst I really don't like them, and their presence can disturb me for days later, that is not their fault! However, the spiders over here are not venemous - when I saw your title, I was thinking of one of our house spiders (shiver), which are the type to make me shriek - but are completely harmless!

[jrmPiggies]

I'm from Illinois, near St. Louis, and that looks like a wolf spider to me. A girl at our daycare was bit by once once and the bit got really puffy. I know she went to her doctor about it. To be fair, she was poking the spider with a small stick. I know black windows can kill guinea pigs. My parents lost a guinea pig to one when I was little. They went to feed Piggers in the morning and he was dead. The spider was bit in half under him in his cage.

[attackofthebear]

That gave me the creeps. I'm not good with identifing spiders because I typically run out of the room screaming. Anyway, I would definitely do a through spider check every time the piggers are going out or move outdoors to a different location.

[samoews]

That looks like a tarantula to me!

[guineapigfan9000]

Yikes - *faints*
THAT IS BIG!
You can spray insect repellent around your run, which will deter spiders. Guinea pigs do love outdoor time, so don't give up yet. If possible, remove things from the run that could hide or attrach spiders (such as pipes, hideys, bricks etc) and only put them in when the piggies are in there.

[Ly&Pigs]

You can spray insect repellent around your run

I wouldn't do this as it could have harmful effects with your pigs. I'd do a sweep for spiders around the area and remove any that you see to another place somewhere else.

Also now that the weather is cooling down, it might be a good idea to keep the pigs indoors if the weather is under 65F outside. They need a stable temperature environment of about 65-75F.

[Jenni_Feathers]

Insect repellant wouldnt be good because it would not only harm the spiders but the piggys and any of our other animals that get into it...Its been too cold here lately to take them out. Will spiders die or hibernate or whatever after the 1st freeze like ticks do? Just curious.

[Pamela Barr]

I agree with Wheeksunlimited, throw a bucket over it and wait for hubby! We usually don't have spiders in our basement, where our pigs are kept but this week, I've killed four near their pen. About the size of a quarter, I'm totally terrified of them and went thru your pictures very FAST!! and then started looking around my desk to make sure none were around me!

[aqh88]

Trapdoor spider? They are basically mini tarantulas(same family) that live in holes in the ground and very common in the midwest There is 1 species that is mistaken for wolf spiders around here but they are a bit thicker than wolf spiders which it looks like that one is. Kinda hard to tell when it's partially squished and curled up. Since they don't normally come inside most people don't really know what they look like and most pics online are of species that aren't native to here. Both wolf spiders and trapdoor spiders aren't real poisonous and shouldn't be lethal even to pigs provided you treat their symptoms. Usually the biggest worry is swelling and infection at the bite and possibly a low fever and lethargy.

There are some basics to kill and discourage hunting spiders like wolf and tarantulas. First glue traps are the safest way to kill them. Keep them away from areas pets or children may travel or build a barrier around it. Place along walls, under low tables or desks, and amongst any areas of clutter. The spiders don't like to walk in the open. Which leads to the first way to discourage them. Clean your house. Don't leave things laying around for the spiders to run around or under. Then clean the outside of your house. Remove brush, tall grass, weeds, and other junk from around the foundation and keep bushes trimmed away from the house and if possible up off the ground more. This both eliminates spider hiding places and removes some insects. Next if you have any insects hanging around work on eliminating and discouraging those so the spiders have no food. Last these spiders dislike walking over lemon pledge (don't ask me why but it comes from good authority) so spray any nonfabric furniture or areas with lemon pledge to prevent them from crossing or climbing on those areas. There are a few other herbs and various plant seeds that supposedly spiders don't like if you do an internet search.

[ArtisticRainey]

Ayiee! I can't believe that was actually...outside...and not in a zoo! *shivers* It looks pretty nasty. Not pig-friendly. I'm not too fond of spiders, but I did see one skulking in the direction of my pigs' pen today. Completely forgot about the fear, ran across the room shouting, "Get away from them!" Bill and Ben were looking at me like I was mad...

Is there some kind of pest repellent you can use to make sure no more will come into the pigs' area, but that won't hurt the pigs? The sonic ones might hurt their ears, and anything liquid/sprayed could be poisonous to the pigs...

[Jenni_Feathers]

Originally Posted by ArtisticRainey

Ayiee! I can't believe that was actually...outside...and not in a zoo! *shivers* It looks pretty nasty. Not pig-friendly. I'm not too fond of spiders, but I did see one skulking in the direction of my pigs' pen today. Completely forgot about the fear, ran across the room shouting, "Get away from them!" Bill and Ben were looking at me like I was mad...

Is there some kind of pest repellent you can use to make sure no more will come into the pigs' area, but that won't hurt the pigs? The sonic ones might hurt their ears, and anything liquid/sprayed could be poisonous to the pigs...

I doubt it, I would just make sure that you do not have anything in there pen that may lure in spiders, such as a rock or log or something they would live under.