Can tarantulas kill children?

[Truffs1178]

If Ts can kill dogs then are they able to kill small children as well?

 

[Poec54]

Who knows,people die from bee stings and ant bites. There's so many variables with the age and health of the person and the kind of spider and where it happens to bite somone. It's not a topic people are comfortable discussing here, as it's pretty much conjecture. Act responsibly with your spiders, which includes handling and escapes, and it won't be a concern.

 

[SuzukiSwift]

People have more complex nervous systems than animals

 

[Truffs1178]

People have more complex nervous systems than animals

I don't understand. Humans may be more intelligent but that doesn't mean our nervous systems are more complex than all animals does it? Different but not more complex.

 

[xkris]

There was a bite report about a obt biting a cat. it survived.
children? i don't know. its not likely to kill them, but exceptions are always possible.

 

[Pandinus97]

So far from what Ive researched, there are no recorded deaths from tarantulas. The bite is not as bad as you would think, it will sting for a while depending on teh species or it will sting for days again depending on the species. Those who are allergic to bees or wasps should be more cautious around the T's. Old world tarantulas will have a more serious bite than the new world specimens but not significant enough to kill but enough to make you feel miserable :|

 

[Keith B]

OH NOES! T's CAN KILL CHILDREN! AIEE!
By this, I mean don't overreact.. By records throughout the ages, the answer would be no. But T's shouldn't be the focus simply because "big spiders are venemous and scary". A dog can kill children.. snakes, bees, horses, cat scratch fever can be nasty, heck, even a tortoise if it chomps one in a main artery.. On Monsters Inside Me a girl lost nerve function cause she stuck her hand in a fish tank with an open wound, only because they caught it early. If they didn't she'd have lost her hand or even perished. This question comes up a lot, but the answer remains the same. Decide for yourself if you can handle the risk in the first place, and take precautions like you would with any other animal in the house, whether wild or domesticated.

 

[korg]

Who knows,people die from bee stings and ant bites. There's so many variables with the age and health of the person and the kind of spider and where it happens to bite somone. It's not a topic people are comfortable discussing here, as it's pretty much conjecture. Act responsibly with your spiders, which includes handling and escapes, and it won't be a concern.

I agree. This is just a morbid topic that invites pointless speculation and delivers minimal benefit. The actual answer (nobody knows for sure... don't let kids get bitten) has already been given multiple times just in this short thread and there isn't much more to say. If you're really desperate for more discussion of this you can search the keywords "tarantula" and "children" and find tons of similar threads.

 

[Le Wasp]

If Ts can kill dogs then are they able to kill small children as well?

Have there been cases of tarantulas killing dogs that I'm not familiar with?

 

[Poec54]

Have there been cases of tarantulas killing dogs that I'm not familiar with?

Yes, pay attention.

 

[Kazaam]

People have more complex nervous systems than animals

People are animals, humans are a member of Animalia.

 

[hearsemadam]

If Ts can kill dogs then are they able to kill small children as well?

its "possible" and if the conditions are right, yes a child could be killed by a Tarantula bite. perhaps that particular child is allergic to that particular tarantulas venom (and who would know ahead of time) and the child suffers an anaphylactic reaction and isnt treated in time. is it commonplace - no. can it happen - yes.

children really have no place handling a creature that is venomous, IMHO. and anyone who cant keep a tarantula safe and secure has no business keeping them, even if they dont have children or other pets in the home.

my $0.02

 

[Kazaam]

A better answer to this question would be another question: indirectly or directly?

All of the causes that have been mentioned in this thread are indirectly.

 

[BobGrill]

Surprised no one has mentioned this, but a child is more likely to kill a tarantula than the other way around.

 

[Truffs1178]

People are animals, humans are a member of Animalia.

I think you get what he means...

 

[hearsemadam]

A better answer to this question would be another question: indirectly or directly?

All of the causes that have been mentioned in this thread are indirectly.

this is true, however the OP was vague.

 

[The Snark]

There are two Mechanisms Of Injury, MOI, that can cause death in this case. The effects of the venom itself and one of several forms of shock. I believe the original question is, can the venom alone cause death through the interruption of the physiology of the victim? It appears there are no known cases of that alone but establishing that it has never occurred would be extremely difficult. You can't conduct LD50 tests on humans, etc.
However, shock in it's various forms by itself can cause death and it can manifest itself in conjunction with other circumstances such as foreign objects entering a body as toxins. Determining if shock was the sole cause of a death or a contributor is extremely difficult and most pathology labs don't even have the required equipment to make that determination.

So I think the answer is, the toxins of T's are very unlikely to have ever caused a human death but it is quite possible that a T bite and accompanying shock has occasionally caused human deaths. Keep in mind shock alone, the partial or complete interruption of the circulatory system, without even a body suffering any physical damage, is capable of causing death. (Psychogenic form)

 

[Truffs1178]

its "possible" and if the conditions are right, yes a child could be killed by a Tarantula bite. perhaps that particular child is allergic to that particular tarantulas venom (and who would know ahead of time) and the child suffers an anaphylactic reaction and isnt treated in time. is it commonplace - no. can it happen - yes.

children really have no place handling a creature that is venomous, IMHO. and anyone who cant keep a tarantula safe and secure has no business keeping them, even if they dont have children or other pets in the home.

my $0.02

Why assume I can't keep them secure. I'm 16, I don't have kids, I was just curious what Ts could kill. Everyone can stop posting now because I have my answer.

 

[herpguy]

I wouldn't rule out the possibility as far as a Phlogius sp. is concerned. Their venom isn't very well documented as bites rarely occur, but they are known to be able to kill dogs relatively quickly.
However, I don't want to be one of those people who overly exaggerates how dangerous Ts are. It's not what the hobby needs.

 

[hearsemadam]

Why assume I can't keep them secure. I'm 16, I don't have kids, I was just curious what Ts could kill. Everyone can stop posting now because I have my answer.

I didnt ass-U-me anything about you, I made a statement but...