[Tia Maria]

Anyone know if this is a hoax or not? Its doing the email rounds at the moment.

Its about a spider bite.

Its got quite graphic pictures, so don't look if you are squeamish!

http://bitsontheside.co.nz/2008/03/04/whitetail-spider-bites-are-so-last-year/

Cheers

Tia

[speckythecky]

I found a white spider in the bathroom yesterday. About the size of a average house spider. never seen one before and no idea what type it was. Didn't have the heart to kill it so opened the window and set it free.

[holland]

OH MY GOODNESS those pictures are awful!

We found our 5th whitetail a couple of days ago, and are now looking into getting house fumigated.

I will move this process on a bit now!

J x

[ellenmelon]

the last one looks really photoshopped to be honest.

[zardell]

Don't know if it's a hoax or not, but when I was bitten by a spider, my fingers looked a lot like picture one - maybe more red and swollen and bruised looking, but nowhere near as bad as picture 2.

Surely, doctors wouldn't let it get as bad ad pictures three and four etc would they? :uhoh

:exit

Julie

xx

[Moorf]

I'd say that looked like a pretty neglected wound.... *gross*

[Tia Maria]

the last one looks really photoshopped to be honest.

I think the photos may be genuine, whether they are all down to a spider bite (or made worse by an infection) and whether that spider is actually in NZ as the email suggests (Botany) seems less likely. :confused:

Cheers

Tia

[Familyofmonkeys]

I found a white spider in the bathroom yesterday. About the size of a average house spider. never seen one before and no idea what type it was. Didn't have the heart to kill it so opened the window and set it free.

We have found a couple of spiders recently that looked a bit like white tails (although I could be wrong) but we also threw them out the window.....couldn't bring myself to squish one.

[James 1077]

Looks a bit like a "Brown Recluse" email that did the rounds a while ago:

http://www.hoax-slayer.com/brown-recluse.html

[shakyle2906]

Oh , yuck!

They were awful. Just came across one white tail to date, thats one too much!!

Sharon

[ellenmelon]

Looks a bit like a "Brown Recluse" email that did the rounds a while ago:

http://www.hoax-slayer.com/brown-recluse.html

it has the same pictures eh...makes me think even more that its a hoax type email..why use the same photos for two different spiders?

[Moorf]

Why would you NOT kill a whitetail upon finding one? Especially with kids in the house... :confused: why risk it coming back to bite ya?

[Asli&Mark]

Hello,

As I had 9 whitetail bites in last 11 months being here I get to know lots of things about the bites.
I have seen those pictures 4-5 months ago as well and it was from another website and had nothing was mentioned about the new type of spider.
Well the other thing that GPs do not except the bites as Whitetail bites as they say they cannot proof that they are whitetails so they would only write spider bite.(I think they are trying to cover the numbers). I am positive that I got bitten by them as we seem to have many many of them at home and trying to solve the problem. Funny enough Mark does not get bitten.
Just a small warning for all of you, please do not get near to them, you might not have any reactions when get bitten but also there is a chance that you may have. And trust me if get bitten just show it to a GP and don't put it off.

Asli

[ellenmelon]

i got bitten by one on my elbow..got veeery itchy (mainly around the bite, of course) and swelled up. meant i didnt have to do school athletics :D

[Kim39]

I'll go with the consensus of it being super imposed, and go with James deduction that it is a hoax. With that said though, i make a point of killing anything that crawls as i have a big phobia regarding spiders.

Kim

[Asli&Mark]

Well I could actually post the photo of the swelling and the spider that has been killed later on after the photo but I am not so sure if that would be appropriate

[Tia Maria]

Well I could actually post the photo of the swelling and the spider that has been killed later on after the photo but I am not so sure if that would be appropriate

I'd be interested to see it. I don't know anything about spider bites/reactions etc.

Cheers

Tia

[zardell]

Well I could actually post the photo of the swelling and the spider that has been killed later on after the photo but I am not so sure if that would be appropriate


Well, I for one would be interested.

Julie

xx

[incredible hulse]

Second one looks genuine (my foot looked the same when bit in Sydney years ago) but after that a hoax I would think

[Asli&Mark]

this is a white-tail spider. the bites will follow

[Jo Jo]

Snopes has an article about the brown recluse spider bite email here (http://www.snopes.com/photos/bugs/brownrecluse.asp). They have classified the email as "undetermined", i.e. they can't determine whether or not it is true. The email almost certainly originated in the USA, though, so the version posted in the OP is a hoax: this didn't happen in NZ, and I am pretty sure we don't have those spiders here. They're not listed on Landcare Research (http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/research/biosystematics/invertebrates/invertid/listpage.asp?Ca_ID=12), nor are there any references to them on the MAF website (that I can find, anyway).

[Asli&Mark]

I got one and 2 weeks later the second one. there were others but didn't take a picture but after the last one I went to see the doctor as it was giving me a head ache and throbing badly. Prescribed antibiotics.
And in case it is covered by ACC.

[Moorf]

That's a heck of a lot of bites Asli, could you ask your landlord to have the place sprayed?

[dilanium]

OW! those look painful!

[SNK05]

Eeeeeeeeeeeew....I really, really don't do spiders...1st sign of anything even vaguely creepy, crawly and I'm :exit

Have no idea if this info is a hoax but found this on a previous thread originally posted by holland......

http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=15653&highlight=Whitetail+spider

Put it this way, clothes will not be left lying around, shoes will be checked as will the bed before sleep!!!

Sue

[Nick88]

The email is definitely a hoax, there are far too many little mistakes like calling it a white spider not a white-tailed spider. Plus the picture of the spider is wrong, admittedly the blog identifies the real name, but a pic of a white tail is easy to find and would have been used if the email were real. It is even a lazy hoax!

The worst cases of spider bites tend to be with people that have a severe reaction (allergic) to the bite, or who leave it a long time before getting medical help. Plus people that are immuno-compromised like the elderly, especially if they have poor circulation in the area of the bite tend to have worse symptoms.

Asli, did you actually see the spiders bite you? That is why most doctors will not commit themselves to a white tail description in the paperwork. Several things can give a severe reaction to people who are susceptible.

[Asli&Mark]

Although I have not seen them biting me I am sure my bites were from White-tails. as they live with us :wah
The bites were quite painfull and as a start it felt like serious burns. before the swelling (it is usually when I realise I got bitten) I get really bad headache and feeling sick.
After the 5th one (I have in total 9) we were sure they were bites from something and started finding them sneakyly hiding on the curtains, in the drawers and even one between neatly folded t-shirts in the wardrobe.
When we were sure of the white-tails we called the landlady and she told us have it sorted out and she would pay the bill (nice), however because we have a fish tank and Jack(the cat) we are still trying to find a way to get rid of them. or hopefully before get bitten one more time we will buy our own house and move:)

[Tia Maria]

Although I have not seen them biting me I am sure my bites were from White-tails. as they live with us :wah
The bites were quite painfull and as a start it felt like serious burns. before the swelling (it is usually when I realise I got bitten) I get really bad headache and feeling sick.
After the 5th one (I have in total 9) we were sure they were bites from something and started finding them sneakyly hiding on the curtains, in the drawers and even one between neatly folded t-shirts in the wardrobe.
When we were sure of the white-tails we called the landlady and she told us have it sorted out and she would pay the bill (nice), however because we have a fish tank and Jack(the cat) we are still trying to find a way to get rid of them. or hopefully before get bitten one more time we will buy our own house and move:)

We had our house sprayed for spiders/flies/bugs etc and the fish were fine. He just told us to put a tea towel over the top. He also set off some sort of bug bomb in the roof space, which kills all the things in the walls, (we live in a villa).

Oh yeah, the kids were fine too, but we did keep away for the afternoon!

Cheers

Tia

[holland]

OH MY GOODNESS>>>Asli, those bites look painful...and the close up of the spider is awful. After finding spiders in our house...I check and double check the bed ( the first one we found was attached to the underneath of my bed sheets...ughh).

We are going to have to fumigate! DEFINATELY

J x

[holland]

Asli, have you just seen white tips in your house?? White tips are the only spiders we have seen and apparently that is a classic sign that they actually are white tips as all other spiders steer clear?!?

J x

[Asli&Mark]

Hi J,

I actually posted the picture of it. (Page 2) :)

[holland]

Yes, I saw your picture, its like the ones' we have....are these the only type of spiders you have in your house?

[Asli&Mark]

no we had some more not many though.
OMG you are all going to think I am a messy person and never clean my house. Trust me we are quite clean people and vacum clean the house regularly. However we keep the garden door open as long as we are in the house just in case Jack would like to get out, and the windows are often kept open as well. So I am guessing they come for the warmth. and then white-tails come to eat them

[shakyle2906]

Oh Asli, those bites looked so painful!!

Thanks for sharing your pics with us!

We have only had 1 white tail in the house, and thats one too many.

Here hoping you dont get anymore.

Take care!

Sharon
xx

[Lara Croft]

We had our first whitetail last night, hiding under the cat plates in the kitchen... we caught it in a long plastic tube (kept specially for catching creepy-crawlys), and looked it up online, then OH took it outside and jumped on it. What scared me was how quickly it scuttled across the floor - I thought they were slow-moving!

And now having read this thread, I am imagining itching everywhere - uuurgh!!!

Somone mentioned the 'Spider Man' - can anyone give me a link / email / phone number for him? And does he work along the Kapiti Coast?

We are still submerged in boxes, with clothes and stuff everywhere - they could be hiding anywhere :uhoh

Would a 'Bug Bomb' sort them out?

Would our cats be safe from fumigation???

Heeellppppp!!!!

J

[NZ Hopeful]

The pictures that Asli has posted is exactly the same reaction I have to mosquito bites, I was told by a doctor the first time it happened that I am allergic to mosquitos and that is why I have that reaction.

Salt water really soothes and heals them :)

[Nick88]

The pictures that Asli has posted is exactly the same reaction I have to mosquito bites, I was told by a doctor the first time it happened that I am allergic to mosquitos and that is why I have that reaction.

Salt water really soothes and heals them :)

Quite a few things here can do this to you, especially if you are a bit susceptible/ allergic. You don't have to be allergic to the ones 'back home' to find you are to the species here.

As Asli said they are very painful, that is a good indication that it was likely to be white-tails. Apparently it is a very painful bite, like most haemotoxic stings.

Something like Robocan doesn't seem to be very effective against them, spiders are usually much harder to kill than flies. You need to have the house sprayed with a synthetic pyrethroid to keep them out, or at least make them want to leave if they do happen to wander in. The sprays will usually last about 6 months, but it depends on how much light reaches that area sprayed, the sprays are broken down by UV.

[Moorf]

For info - there was a big article about White-tail spiders in The Press today...

http://www.stuff.co.nz/thepress/4464812a13135.html

Will perhaps put some people's minds to rest.

[nippa&pippa]

My OH want to know, how much it is roughly to have spiderban done to three bedroom house cos our problems is flies! flies everywhere!!

[andy141]

For info - there was a big article about White-tail spiders in The Press today...

http://www.stuff.co.nz/thepress/4464812a13135.html

Will perhaps put some people's minds to rest.

I totally agree with the article.

I have a brown mark on the side of my left leg as a result of an infected insect bite I got whilst gardening last year, but it doesn't mean my garden is full of nasties!

Also, see my post in :-

http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showpost.php?p=193496&postcount=15

Dare I say 'told you so' ;)

[Nick88]

Excellent article, I did alot of reading around the subject when this thread started and it confirms all of the impressions I got from the sites I visited.

Nippa, if you don't have a Robocan, try one. It works very well for flies, I can tell when our can has run out cos the house fills up with them straight away. It won't stop them coming in completely, but they seem to leave a bit quicker (or die).

[Tia Maria]

Nippa, if you don't have a Robocan, try one. It works very well for flies, I can tell when our can has run out cos the house fills up with them straight away. It won't stop them coming in completely, but they seem to leave a bit quicker (or die).

I second that, our Robocan works well on flies and ants. Do shop around, I've found the refills selling for anything between $10 and $20.

Also the Robocan looses its efficiency if you have the windows and doors open too long.

Cheers

Tia

[nippa&pippa]

Only problem is our doors is open all day so kids can come and go whatever they like to :o as they got sandpit outside to play as well as lands to play on. With got cows and sheeps isn't any help :roll

Is Robocan suitable for people with asthma or who is sensitive to chemical?
I have tried so far "No flies safe" - rubbish and "Raid-hypoallergic" - another rubbish!!!

[Nick88]

Robocan only emits small quantities, but in an ultra-fine mist so it disperses effectively. I find that it does work with the doors and windows open, however you can't stop the flies coming in completely. There are certainly alot less of them when the can is working.

When you say the others are rubbish, how are you using them?

[nippa&pippa]

Robocan only emits small quantities, but in an ultra-fine mist so it disperses effectively. I find that it does work with the doors and windows open, however you can't stop the flies coming in completely. There are certainly alot less of them when the can is working.

When you say the others are rubbish, how are you using them?

Right, I have checked with this link (http://innovair.net/) for further informations about allergies and asthma. Brought it two days ago and had found it more effective than spary cans :clap BUT not 100% yet, maybe need to take few more days before it does. However the flies look like they have been drinking 10 pints that you can go up to flies and press them as couldn't response quick enough to escape!! :D Best of all, instead having 30plus flies around the main areas, we get just 5 or so now.
As I am very sensitive to chemical, I can smell the chemical been released but hasn't affect me and my baby's asthma has been ok in last few days, so seem that the Robocan doesn't affect people with allergies and asthma.

Your questions about spray cans, we try all different ways that kiwis telling us, like spray on walls/surface etc, spray all over the ceiling at night/days etc, spray at flies, you name it, we done it...not effective but they did pointing out that we live in lifestyles block with 6 cows, 130 sheeps and a dog isn't any help :laugh also live next to three dairy farms!!!

[Lambuel+Ruby]

:uhoh Oh goodness. In the two days since I've discovered this forum I've learned of 40% taxes, haphazard shippers, dog quarrantine rates, unfashionable shoes and no sharp cheddar cheese.

But this. Whatever will I do now that my dreams of paradise are dashed?:wah
LOL

When we visited the South Island on our honeymoon, I remember the agony of my first sandfly bite, then a swarming attack on my husband as well. We upset our picnic and went flying down the highway in our purple and lime Juicy Crib van, both hysterical with fear and pain, swatting madly. As I remember, we were also swerving and driving on the wrong side of the road as I usually didn't remember to get in the proper lane until encountering a first car after each stop.

Fortunately, I just read today's great "advise" thread so I'm going to "feel the fear and do it anyway!".:raebanana Whitetails, be warned!

[Lambuel+Ruby]

Don't you think the sandflies should be the ones who are afraid here? :laugh

[thejoz]

I daren't even look at the pictures!
I'm shocked to hear this, I thought there wasn't any poisonous spiders in NZ!
And in Hawkes bay too, where i'm hoping to take my children.

[bob_the_engineer]

Hi Mark, I think someone else mentioned this, that bite you have is a classic allergic reaction to a bite of some sort.

I’ve seen that happen before with mosquitoes (although mozi bites in the UK never caused the problem in the same person). Get yourself a packet of hay fever tablets, as soon as you feel an itch take one and keep taking them for a few days afterwards, the blister will never appear. If you show a wound like that to any doctor you’ll get put straight on a course of antibiotics, they are a preventative measure rather than a cure.

If you have any blisters that are still growing or itchy, the antihistamines will help with those too.

If you are taking any other medication (like your antibiotics) tell the pharmacist before you buy the antihistamines, pharmacists are experts when it comes to drug interaction, but be wary, I have to say I’ve seen a pharmacist misdiagnose what you have as a “bacterial infection, or a venom”, probably because a reaction as severe as yours isn’t common.

I do hope you’re feeling better soon.

Oh onto the white tail, to keep the horrid things out of your house (I had a problem with them) you can get spider spray in a red tub, it looks like an oil can. It has a pipe fitted to it and a spray gun on the end. I think it costs about $20.

You draw a ring along the wall outside your house, about 6 inches above the floor, draw a ring around any air vents too if you have a brick house. Then draw a ring around every window and door, the whitetails wont cross where you apply it so you CAN keep windows and doors open. It stinks but the smell goes after a day, oh and don’t get it on glass because it won’t come off! Repeat this annually to keep them out.

Regarding the ones you already have in the house, I have no idea what to do, personally I catch them and put them outside, I know most people think you should squash them, but I cant bring myself to kill anything.:roll

Best wishes Bob

[Asli&Mark]

Hello Bob,

Thank you for the advice. Thankfully I haven't got bitten recently so I am hoping they are all gone. When it comes to the blisters they suddenly appeared after having a horrible headache and unfortuantelly it is not that wise to have antihistamines as I suffer from headaches the other times too.

Hopefully we will be leaving this house very soon and I will make sure the new house will be done before we take the cat and the fish tank.

Again thank you very much for the advice and good wishes

Asli

[Nick88]

You have a cat?!

They could easily be flea bites that you are having a reaction to. The fleas here could differ in some way (probably a previous host being a possum) so causing a reaction that you would not have had in the old country.

Don't worry Robocan sorts them out, too.

[nippa&pippa]

Don't worry Robocan sorts them out, too.

Well my OH and I are very impressed with Robocan :nice1 I would def recommend them and now it is getting cold mean no flies now....my OH thought of switch it off till saw information about fleas and housemite etc ideal for people with allergies....so now Robocan stay on:) .