Just like any other animal, spiders are not excluded from releasing waste. Their way of releasing their poop and urine is combined through one source – from their anus. Their poop often consists of insects and waste products since those are their primary food source.
So what does spider poop look like? Spider poop, otherwise known as spider droppings, consists of a thick liquid that often drips in shades of hues of black, gray, brown, or white. Once these droppings have completely dried, they can stain on your walls, floors, and all over your home. These can be gotten rid of with the right tools and techniques, but most especially with a good pest control company.
Characteristics of Spider Poop
Spider poop has a dark profile with highly viscous liquids. They aren’t as toxic as other pests, but they can stain your furniture, walls, and floors. They resemble paint splatter with dark ink stains, squishy, and semi-liquid characteristics.
While their poop can vary depending on the spider species, they are all of a dark spot, thus the comparison to paint splatter. Its dark characteristics are primarily because of a spider’s diet, which consists of either insects or a food waste product. In comparison to other animal feces, spider poop is of liquid consistency rather than solid waste.
Do Spiders Urinate?
Spiders only have one source of releasing waste, which is through their anus. So if you’re wondering whether spiders poop and urinate, these two are combined. Pet spiders also preserve their water resources as much as they can, which is why they don’t pee. Instead, you’ll see them produce uric acid to help conserve water.
This uric acid from their kidneys is drained from their stercoral pocket into the malpighian tubules.
As a result, the uric acid is released together as waste along with the poop from the spider’s digestive system. Spider poop is made up of everything they consume in their diet, which are the insects they prey on and the remaining food waste they find around the home.
Toxicity and Safety of Spider Droppings
It’s a general fact that certain animal droppings aren’t sanitary and can carry bacteria and viruses. However, according to the Illinois Poison Center, poop is considered minimally toxic. There are usually no symptoms that follow even after accidentally consuming a small amount of either human or animal poop.
However, in rare circumstances, you can experience nausea, vomiting, fever, or diarrhea. In the case of spider poop, you need to have ingested a huge amount for it to be dangerous, but this is highly unlikely. A study was conducted on the feces of one spider, in particular, the Black Widow Spider, wherein it ingested filth flies with pathogenic bacteria.
It was concluded that no pathogenic bacteria were found despite this. Experts perceive it might be because of potential antimicrobial properties found in spider venom and blood. So is spider poop toxic? The answer to this is no. Spider poop is not toxic.
Is Spider Poop A Sign of An Infestation?
You’ll find spider poop or droppings through stains all over your home such as furniture, walls, floors, and places they’ve been in. Along with signs such as spider webs and egg sacs, then you have yourself in the presence of an infestation. While they aren’t toxic, it’s still best to clean the stains. Not to mention, having an abundance of spider poop around your home can be a sign of a spider infestation.
Even if you manage to get all the spider droppings and stains around your home, it doesn’t guarantee it won’t happen again if you don’t deal with the spiders themselves. If you get the poop immediately after spiders have just released it, then they won’t stain. Even when you get it then, it can still leave a yellowish stain. It’s also rare you catch poop droppings right away they’re excreted, which often leads to frustrating removal of stains left by spider droppings.
The bottom line is that if you notice spider droppings around your home constantly, the only way to prevent it from happening again is to get rid of spiders once and for all. Especially when more than one area is stained by spider poop, it might be a sign of a spider infestation. In this case, it’s best to leave it to professionals to deal with the matter at hand.
Effective Ways to Remove Spider Poop Stains in Your Home
Water and Bleach Solution
Using bleach has been known to remove any kind of stains around your home, including spider poop stains. Mix equal parts of water and bleach into one mixture and use that to scrub the stains around your home. However, the only downside to this is if the stain is in unreachable areas such as ceilings and rails. You can also buy commercial products with a water and bleach solution to make things more convenient for you.
Water Hose
If you’re able to catch a spider poop on time, using a water hose can help you prevent any further stains. It might leave yellowish stains as we’ve mentioned, but nothing worse than a poop stain that has been left to dry for hours. You can also try putting the bleach solution mentioned above as a replacement for regular water coming out of the water hose. You can use this method for areas that are more out of your reach such as ceilings and rails.
Commercial Stain Remover
There are several commercial poop stain removers for animals such as birds and spiders. They’re sold in markets and online, so if you want a really powerful spider poop remover and a water and bleach solution doesn’t work, then you can always purchase commercial products like a stain remover. A commercial stain removal often has the necessary chemicals needed to remove animal droppings like those from spiders.
Call Professionals
This is your best option when you’re dealing with an infestation, and the droppings are literally everywhere around your home, when bleach solutions or commercial products don’t work. There are circumstances where droppings can’t be removed by yourself, especially as spiders will continue to leave their poop if you don’t eliminate the spiders entirely. In this case, it’s always best to leave it to the professionals with the right area of expertise.
Before helping you with your spider poop stain problems, they’ll eliminate the spiders first from your home to ensure you don’t deal with any more droppings in the future. Spiders also have the recommended equipment and background needed to clear both the spiders and spider poop around your home.
Eliminate Spiders at Home with Midway Pest Management
While eliminating spiders is something you can also do on your own, it’s important to know when to seek a professional’s help. Whether it’s dealing with spider droppings or spider infestations, these are things that a licensed pest control expert can help you with. From getting rid of common household pests to dealing with structural damage, you need to call the experts right away.
Midway Pest Management can help you deal with and manage your spider problems or any kind of insect infestation, such as termites, roaches, and ants. Our team of professionals provide the best insect exterminating services: quick, safe, efficient and reliable. From residential to commercial areas, Midway Pest Management can get the job done. To know more about our services, contact us or visit our main office.
Learn More: How Do You Keep Spiders Out of Your Garage?