SPIDERS!!!!

[Peach]

So we have been trying different bedding to find out what I like best for my rabbitry...I really liked shavings for bedding, but I didn't like what it looked like when it was wet..but that was minor. My boyfriend suggested hay and told me how great it would be.....I about kicked his butt in the last few days. I believe we have had it in for a few days and it has attracted SO MANY SPIDERS! :spider:

My dear boyfriend did the research today and found out that the hay carries mites and bugs that the spiders LOVE. Go figure.

I don't mind one or two on occasion...but as soon as I saw a huge brown recluse while I was putting something on top of a cage near my hand I flipped out. Not to mention the spider web I walked into in the dark when going to give the rabbits dinner.... just about died from being terrified that I might of walked into spiders web that could be potentially harmful. There have also been tons of spiders with huge creepy butts to daddy long legs.....I've been cleaning webs non stop. I had to clean them throughout the day because it looks like I had done nothing in a matter of a few hours.

The worst feeling was that the spiders were with my rabbits. I wouldn't want the bitten.

I spent most of the day, with a friend, getting rid of all the hay and then ran and got pea pebbles from Walmart to put down in the main walking area. I feel that it won't attract any creatures for right now and I'll have good footing. I also had to spray down everything because the spiders have just taken over. I took one of my baby bunnies to Home Depot and told them my problem and I needed a solution that would not be harmful to my buns.

We found a eco friendly product...and it seems to be working alright. I also had other powerful stuff that I sprayed around the perimeter of the deck, just in case. Hopefully my spider problems will subside soon. All sorts of bugs seem to be coming out now because of the spraying I've done. My mom killed a spider on the couch a few minutes ago. Hopefully the evicted rabbitry bugs won't try to move into our home!

 

[MamaSheepdog]

I think the warm weather and flies probably have more to do with your increased spider population than the hay. I have never noticed spider swarms around our hay, and we have horses and goats to feed as well as rabbits, so we store lots of hay.

I read somewhere that the Brown Recluse feeds on dead insects so spraying as a control measure is counterproductive especially considering that the Brown Recluse prefers to hide in areas that wont be exposed to the poisons being "fogged"... so most of them will be unaffected, but they will have a bountiful supply of dead bugs to feed upon afterward.

Brown Recluse do not spin webs to catch their prey, so you don't need to worry about going through webs in your rabbitry. They are likely from common garden spiders that weave orb shaped webs. Creepy, yes... harmful, no.

 

[Peach]

It was that hay that people toss down for lawns to grow their grass....not sure what that stuff is. I just didn't have the problem until I laid it down at there was a rapid increase. Maybe it is the flies and the weather...but I'm going to wait and see what my results are. Happy to know the recluse don't spin webs. My boyfriend was bitten by one twice on his face last summer and it started to eat up his skin, first just looking like a mosquito bite. As they grew to a considerable size, he went to the doctor and received antibiotics and they went away,but it was a painful process. Lucky guy had no scaring!

I did some research on natural repellant and apparently they hate rosemary and spraying around vanilla (they said to mix with either Vodka or water??? Get the spiders drunk? lol). Thinking of growing some rosemary around the rabbitry now!

I accidentally took my dog's whiskers brushing against my legs for a spider during dinner and slapped her nose. With lots of kisses and many apologies to her I just had to take a shower. So paranoid haha

 

[ladysown]

so are you scared of spider then?

Spiders are very helpful critters. they greatly reduce the bug population.

This is the time of year (at least in Ontario) that spiders are really starting to come out of the wood work. I've never had them go into the rabbit cages, but they will go between. I leave at least three webs up all summer and it's amazing the amount of flies etc they will catch.

if the brown recluse is the concern: they are a hunting spider. meaning they come out more at night than in the day. They tend not to build webs, but they do build a scattering to hide in during the day. Stimulants make them aggressive.

 

[Peach]

I am afraid of spiders.

I can tolerate them if they are off in the corner, out of reach, but when they are too close for comfort that is when I have a problem.

I know they do great things for the environment, so if I see the occasional one in the garden or hanging out comfortably in the corner upper corner of the shower, I don't mind.I just do mind when I start walking into webs or when it looks like I've decorated for Halloween after sweeping down most of the webs.<br /><br />__________ Tue May 22, 2012 6:11 am __________<br /><br />Lizard and Snake.....perfectly fine....Spiders are another story lol

 

[Secuono]

That's weird, I have two sections in my barn full of hay and no spiders. Just a pony making a huge mess of the hay...
Do they really need bedding, can't be in wire cages?

Have you tried towels instead? All my Guinea pigs have towels, roll up, shake poo on garden, toss in washer and done. Literally takes 3min to clean both large piggie houses.

 

[Peach]

They are in wire hanhging cages. I like to have a nice looking Rabbitry when people visit.The uneven dirt floor is an eye sore to me. I'm just that way and my parents want the minimal amount of smell where they are because the are under the deck. So far I loved the shavings because it was pleasant smelling and controlled the mud beneath the deck.

 

[MaggieJ]

Rake out the hay and replace with shavings. You'll be happier not having to deal with the spiders.

Spiders gave me the creeps all my life until we moved here about ten years ago. I realized that I needed to get over it, since there are so very many spiders here. I took to watching them building their webs outside a window near a lamp. With glass between the spiders and me, I could take an interest without fear of them getting on me. It was kind of fun to watch them build their webs and grow fat on the insects attracted to the light. Gradually I became much more relaxed about them and now they don't bother me at all. I still don't like them on me... some of them have a nasty bite... but at least they don't gross me out.

 

[Basenji43]

I feel your pain. I hate hate hate spiders with a passion!!! Yucky yuck. I hope they leave you alone from now on.

 

[currituckbun]

I hate spiders too, but they are helpful and I have left mine alone. They are one of the reasons I don't have as many other pests in my barn. I have been using my organic fly spray and it has kept the flies down without killing the spiders.
Here is my spray:
2 cups white vinegar
1 cup rosemary oil- made this by grinding up fresh rosemary in a blender and combining it with vegetable oil. I waited overnight,then I poured it through a sieve.
1 cup water
1 tsp dawn dish detergent- blue unconcentrated.
This must be sprayed every day but it is working. The flies hate it and the spiders kill the rest.
PS. Hay attracts all sorts of bugs and it gets matted. I put some in my chicken coop. What a mess. It got matted and full of ants and flies almost overnight. Swift for horses seems to be working much better. It is like pine shavings only finer. If your rabbits walk on your bedding, Swift may be too fine and get in their noses but as a barn floor cover it is nice.

 

[Frosted Rabbits]

Swift for horses seems to be working much better. It is like pine shavings only finer. If your rabbits walk on your bedding, Swift may be too fine and get in their noses but as a barn floor cover it is nice.

Do you have a link for this product?

 

[Cindi Davis]

Spiders are good for fly control but I agreee spiders give me the WILLIES !!!!!!!!

 

[currituckbun]

Swift is sold at Southern States and also Tractor supply. It is like very course sawdust.
http://www.guardianhorsebedding.com/pin ... _flake.htm