Thank you
Only spider I have owned (thus far) that readily bolted on me during rehouses. That, their rather unpredictable behavior, and their readiness to strike/be defensive turned me off. So, I sold em off and now he’s someone elses to deal with.
I agree with this.
There are greater hazards, yes. If I think of everything that can go wrong with my daughter I cramp up in anxiety.
I know you can't plan for every eventuality but if you did notice the H.mac on the lid it would never have got out and you wouldn't have had that situation. That's what I was sort of trying to get across. Secure tarantulas are perfectly safe and there are far greater risks inside the home to a child.There are greater hazards, yes. If I think of everything that can go wrong with my daughter I cramp up in anxiety.
But that is nothing compared to how I felt when my 2 cm DLS H.maculata sling escaped and disappeared. The thought of my little girl going through intense agony because of something I willingly brought into my home, a decision that didn't even included her.... I still have nightmares. I was very, very lucky the room I keep the spiders in us completely sealed off. But still, if I thought of the smallest possibility of that sling getting to my girl... I got physically sick.
Good thing I found the sling a few months later, dessicated. Not fun for the spider, but the best outcome in this scenario aside from me actually finding it alive.
I must say though, the H.maculata was not my choice but a freebie with an order. I was anxious around it and even went wailing to @cold blood about what I should do. Maybe that anxiety caused me to be less able to deal with it. I opened the tub up for watering, the spider was on the lid and I didn't see that because of the webbing, and next thing I know it makes a run for it and it disappeared behind a couple of boxes and cupboards.
If I really want to drive myself crazy I just imagine it was a moult I found and not the spider.
I seriously considered blasting my house with whatever works, but I can't do that because of my other kritters.
All's well that ends well, but after that I decided to sell my Pokies. I think I simply can't handle the 3D escape possibilities of an arboreal OW.
I'm not sure if I would be quick enough to catch it if I did notice it, but I get your point. Which is exactly why I will not get any more OW arboreals.
I can't 'tough' it out, unfortunately. The reaction to the urticating hairs became very severe to the point that I sold most NW. I only keep Avicularia and Ephebopus now, aside from some OW. I think that might have been the reason why I branched out into more demanding OW species.
This is a big fear of mine, so I take action to minimize hair exposure. @Andrea82 How long did it take to develop such a bad reaction?
I already had a mild reaction after first contact actually, when I unboxed and housed my first T.albopilosum. Some mild itching that lasted a couple of hours. From that to blistering irritated red skin, pain and severe itching for two weeks, it was about three years, I think.
Whoa, that's a crazy escalation of symptoms over such a short period. Were you handling them at all? Was this purely through passive exposure while doing tank maintenance? That sucks!I already had a mild reaction after first contact actually, when I unboxed and housed my first T.albopilosum. Some mild itching that lasted a couple of hours. From that to blistering irritated red skin, pain and severe itching for two weeks, it was about three years, I think.
So I'd say that if you're keeping NW for 6/7 years, and you didn't develop a severe reaction, you're safe.
Of course, reaction increases over timr, but if you were at risk of developing a severe reaction you would have done so by now.
I only ever handled a spider once, it was my first, I wanted to know what it felt like. After that, I knew, and never handled again.