My Apartment Complex In Ca Has Black Widow Spiders?
All around the outside area of my apartment are black widow spiders. Me and a neighbor have brought this to the attention of management but they refuse to do anything about it, and told us to deal with it ourselves. We are both worried about the situation because we both have young daughters (2months and 6months) we have already found some in our apartments. What can we do? What if an infant gets bit? Can we take legal action if someone if bit?
Okay, for immediant safety, check anything the babies will be near. Like their clothes, their bedding, even diaper bags and espescially clean out where they sleep. Everything should be okay as long as you be careful where the children play, sleep and bathe (bathrooms are biggest problems). Shake out any clothes you will use including towels, bedding, etc.
Now for a long term solution, call health and services and a lawyer, you might be able to pass a judgement to force management to take care of them. In the meantime, you might want an exterminator to clean the house/yard. Will be costly, but depends on how worried you are. Consult a lawyer on that, you might be able to sue for the cost but lawyer will tell if that’s allowed (lease/laws might not allow it.)
Best of luck.
P.S. Kill any that you see. Don’t release them outside, they’ll just come back in. By doing this you’ll decrease their numbers and decrease the threat.
I have included a link to black widow information. They are poison, though not usually fatal to adults, but can be for children. http://www.desertusa.com/july97/du_bwind…
You have already checked with the landlord. Call the local Health Department, the city or county offices where you live, Department of Agriculture, Code Enforcement, or whoever takes care of landlord tennant issues.
If you are too impatient for government red tape (I would be), one of your TV news stations should have a “Call For Action” team or “Consumer Affairs”. You know the ones who try to help out the little guy. It is amazing what a little bad publicity will do towards justice.
Ok, first ; calm down. Before you do anything, see if you can check for sure that they are black widows. Call your extension office for pictures and alot of info. If they are widows keep an eye open for the babies. Call places for info on what to do in case they are bitten.
Second ; look in your lease, is there any mention of pest control? If it says it’s your responsibility, then you have to take care of it.
We have fiddle backs,a.k.a. brown recluses, here in KS. I don’t know if what I have done will help with the widows, but it’s worth a shot.
#1. buy an aerosol hair spray. if you spray it on them, it encases them, imobilizing, and killing them. this is good for on the spot control, and it helps lower their numbers. note; after throwing away the spider “statue”, wash the spot, the spray may damage surfaces.
#2. if you don’t have one, buy a broom. this is for the cleaning under stuff. fiddle backs love dusty, untouched, dark areas. under beds, couches, low tables, any where there is little or no activity. sweep it out, and if you see any of those buggers, squish or spray. now since you have the web spinning widows, you’d want to go after ceiling light fixtures, closets, any where a web can be.
#3. I bought spider traps, but I have wandering spiders, so it might not work with the web spinners.
#4. clean, clean, clean. dust, wipe, wash any areas that don’t see daylight often. this is something you have to keep up with. also shake out your clothes, sheets, etc. before use.
As you do these things, ask around, see if other people have spiders. You might be able to get people to sign a petition for getting rid of those widows. Well that’s about all that I know. I really hope it helps, and that you can get rid of those cursed things. Good luck!