SIX THOUSAND venomous spiders take over Missouri family's home

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Brian and Susan Trost moved into the four-bedroom home in Weldon Spring, Missouri in 2007 and quickly realized it was infested
Brown recluse spiders fell on them in the shower and crawled behind walls
They won a civil lawsuit against the previous owner for failing to disclose the problem but could not get their insurance company to pay for treatment
Eventually they moved out and the house went into foreclosure
It has now been covered in massive tarps and is being pumped full of freezing gas in one final bid to get rid of the spiders

Published: 15:50 EST, 9 October 2014 | Updated: 04:11 EST, 10 October 2014

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A family has been forced out of their country club home after 6,000 venomous spiders moved in.

Fumigators are now pumping poisonous gas into the house in the upscale neighborhood of Weldon Spring, Missouri in an attempt to kill the brown recluse spiders, which have been there for at least seven years.

After the couple, Brian and Susan Trost, moved out of the home and launched multiple lawsuits against the former owners and insurance companies, the home went into foreclosure.

The 2,400-square-foot, four-bedroom property, which has prime views across the Whitmoor Country Club, never sold - but McCarthy Pest Control believes they can finally take care of the problem.

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Final hope: Workers from McCarthy Pest Control cover a house in Dardenne Prairie, Missouri with a tarp in preparation for fumigating the home to get rid of thousands of brown recluse spiders

Extreme: They will use sulfuryl fluoride gas to try to kill the spiders that have been there for seven years

This week, workers used nine tarps measuring 15,000 square feet to cover the home before filling it with sulfuryl fluoride gas that permeated the walls to kill the spiders and their eggs.

'There'll be nothing alive in there after this,' president Tim McCarthy told the St Louis Post-Dispatch.

The Trosts, who didn't notice any spiders at the home when they looked around, bought it in October 2007 for $450,000.

But when they moved in, Mrs Trost immediately noticed large webs around lights and in the basement - but assumed the house just needed to be cleaned thoroughly, the Post-Dispatch reported.

Forced out: Susan and Brian Trost bought the home, pictured, for $450,000 in 2007 but quickly realized it had been infested with thousands of spiders. No traps or fumigating would kill the spiders

Terrifying: Denny McCarthy, whose son runs the pest control business, points out the violin design on the back of a brown recluse spider painted on the side of truck. The brown recluse spiders can bite

But as they settled into the home, they realized the home was infested. She found them in blinds, ceilings, fireplaces, lights - and one even dropped from the ceiling as she was in the shower.

'It was shortly after we moved in they started bleeding out of the walls,' Trost told KMOV of the spiders.

They captured one of the spiders, which was about half the size of a dollar, and looked it up on the internet and discovered that it was a brown recluse.

The spiders, which have a distinctive violin shape on their backs, can bite and cause pain, swelling, itching, nausea and, in extreme cases, organ failure and even death.

Experts still do not know why the spiders chose the Trosts' home, which was built in 1988, over an older home.

Luxury: The house is in a desirable spot overlooking the fourth hole at Whitmoor Country Club

Going in: A photograph shows the poison gas to be used by McCarthy Pest Control to fumigate the home

There is often no reason why they choose one place over another; neighbors near the Missouri house said they had never seen any of the spiders in their home, the Post-Dispatch reported.

After Mrs Trost found out what she was dealing with, a pest control company sprayed the home inside and out, put down traps and sprayed behind the dry wall - but nothing would get rid of them.

Determined: Company owner Tim McCarthy, seen carrying clamps, believes he can beat the spiders

One expert, a biology professor at the University of Kansas, estimated there were between 4,500 and 6,000 spiders inside the home - and that was just during winter.

In 2008, they filed a civil lawsuit against the previous owners for failing to disclose the problem, as well as a claim with their insurance company.

The previous owners said they had never seen the spiders - and their lawyer suggested the Trosts had brought them with them on their furniture - but the jury in the civil trial voted in the couple's favor and awarded them $472,110.

They have since filed a lawsuit against their insurers, State Farm, for failing to pay claims related to the spider damage.

The company claims that the spiders do not amount to physical damage in the home.

The family eventually moved out, fearing the safety of their four children. When they left, the wrapped their furniture and left it outside in freezing temperatures to kill any spiders that were hanging on. Fannie Mae now owns the home.

Tim McCarthy, the exterminator, contacted the company to rid the home of the spiders.

McCarthy's treatment costs between $5,000 and $30,000, depending on the size of the home, and have had successful results in other houses.

He explained that they need something stronger than pesticides for spiders because their feet do not absorb substances on the ground.

THE SPIDER THAT BITES: THE BROWN RECLUSE AND HOW TO RECOGNIZE IT

Venomous: The spiders can cause pain and swelling

Brown recluse spiders are one of only two potentially harmful spiders in Missouri (the other is the black widow). the venom in the brown recluse is more potent than that of a rattlesnake - although it causes less damage because it injects only small quantities. The venom is toxic to cells and tissues and can cause tissue to die.

Bites are uncommon. Instead, they usually only bite when they are pressed against for skin - for example, when they are living inside clothing that is then put on.

The bites are often not felt immediately but itching can develop within hours and they can be serious. But sometimes, they can cause lesions, as well as nausea, vomiting, joint pain and fever in young children, the elderly or the infirm. In very rare occasions, they can cause organ damage or even kill.

The spiders measure between six and 22 mm but can grow larger. They are usually light-colored brown and recognizable by a darker patch that looks like a violin, with the neck of the violin pointing down the spider's back.

They generally build their webs in dry areas that will not be disturbed, including sheds, closets and cellars, and inside houses they can be found near cardboard or inside stored clothing.

Watch the Brown Recluse spider in action as it crawls across a...