I'm scared of spiders, I want to get over my fear is It a good idea to get a pet tarantula?

miss moxie

miss moxie

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The Grym Reaper said:
I think I'm unwittingly starting an army of psycho Brachypelma, I got a threat posture from my emilia yesterday :rofl:
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My B. auratum boy has stridulated at me multiple times. I guess I could be persuaded to let you borrow him when you begin your initial attack.
 
PanzoN88

PanzoN88

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Moxie, beat me to it, but me posting on this thread was inevitable as I am a former arachnophobe (I had it bad) and a worshipper of all things Euathlus Sp. red.

While I didn't start with an E. Sp. red, I do have three now.

I started with a sling, as I wasn't too fond of the idea of starting with a big, hairy tarantula right off the bat. From my experience looking back, starting with a sling is the best way for an arachnophobe to overcome the fear. You grow with the sling.

Now I am cured of the phobia 4 yrs later and now I have a small-medium sized collection of 20+ tarantulas of various temperaments.

The handling topic has already been covered so I'll say no more, since once I get started on E. Sp. red it is nearly impossible for me to stop.

From a former arachnophobe to a current arachnophobe, you will feel so much better after the fear is gone and we will be able to proceed with our scheme of pulling in another potential arachno addict.

Oops I don't think I was supposed to let that last part slip out.
 
chanda

chanda

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miss moxie said:
This is one of the only Ts I've seen climb slowly up and out of their enclosure on their own volition. I can't see how ANYONE wouldn't like a Euathlus sp. "red" because they're just great tarantulas.
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Really? I've got several others that do the same! All of my Grammostolas will do that (G. rosea, G. sp. Concepcion, G. sp. Maule, and G. pulchripes) as will my B. hamorii and my local Aphonopelma sp. They never seem to be in any hurry to get anywhere - they just casually stroll out of the enclosure while I'm cleaning it or digging out the water dish for the umpteenth time. I keep an eye on them and scoop 'em up and put 'em back when I'm done.
 
Chris LXXIX

Chris LXXIX

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The Grym Reaper said:
I don't know if it's some Arachnoboards myth or something but I swear someone mentioned that a member of the boards has/had one that would throw up threat postures and drip venom from its fangs, that'd be hilarious to see.
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spidertherapy78 said:
I have read this on here too. It is like an Arachnoboards Legend- the fierce and defensive E sp red. It is so hard to imagine, mine is such a little sweetie, which is a weird word to explain a T, but she really is a little sweetie.
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I remember that. A user that now isn't anymore active said that her specimen was a devil spawn, but in all honesty I think she was over exaggerating (in good faith, due to not too much of experience) the whole thing :)
 
miss moxie

miss moxie

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chanda said:
Really? I've got several others that do the same! All of my Grammostolas will do that (G. rosea, G. sp. Concepcion, G. sp. Maule, and G. pulchripes) as will my B. hamorii and my local Aphonopelma sp. They never seem to be in any hurry to get anywhere - they just casually stroll out of the enclosure while I'm cleaning it or digging out the water dish for the umpteenth time. I keep an eye on them and scoop 'em up and put 'em back when I'm done.
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My G. porteri tends to go straight for her hide, albeit slowly, when disrupted. My G. pulchripes is a bit quicker about going to her hide. My G. pulchra, however, she just sits there. Maybe moves a little. And then sometimes -she- will climb up and out and I let her crawl on my hand for a minute or two before putting her back. My Euathlus sp. "red" female and male both consistently came up when the top came off, like they knew it was off and -wanted- to come look around outside their enclosure. I think this trait helps them appear "sweet" to people. Always made my heart swell to see them come up to "greet" me seemingly.
 
cold blood

cold blood

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The Grym Reaper said:
I don't know if it's some Arachnoboards myth or something but I swear someone mentioned that a member of the boards has/had one that would throw up threat postures and drip venom from its fangs, that'd be hilarious to see.
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Yeah I recall this...it was a female keeper....maybe it was Cora, jeez, I wish I could remember. :banghead: I remember it was someone that was pretty fun on the boards when she was around.
=======


Anyway, op, my suggestion....first, just get handling out of your mind...handling doesn't make one a better or more successful keeper and it probably won't help you get over your fears. As mentioned, long term observation is the best way to do that and the best way to keep tarantulas. I held once when I first received it, not by choice, but to get her back home when I came home to see that the person I confiscated her from was holding her (consequently, that was the first and last time she flicked hairs).

When I got my first (I rescued it from certain death and didn't choose to own a spider), I was seriously arachnophobic...but still had an inherent love of all animals, spiders included...I kept it so it wouldn't die (that was in 1999).

I didn't, never have and never will understand the thrill or the reasons why someone would feel the need to handle. Seriously, its just not logical...its like getting fish and expecting to hold them...they're both observational pets. IMO handling is very anticlimactic, unless your t falls and gets hurt or escapes...or tags you (most bites in the hobby are directly associated with handling).



Normally, that Euthalus sp red would be the, or one of the number one choices for a beginner...however, for a beginner with an arachnophobia they are working through, I wouldn't suggest a t that's likely to stroll out when doing basic maintenance.

I would suggest a t that I normally tell beginners to avoid, and the reasons I tell interested beginners to avoid them are the same reasons why they are outstanding for an arachnophobe.

Get a rose hair.
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porteri

Their naturally sedentary nature is exactly what you need to put your mind at ease (they're known as potatoes). You won't likely ever see much fast movements from them (which are a big trigger for fear), you won't need to feed very often at all, so you can just keep the enclosure closed and observe (they don't hide). You can open the enclosure, change the water or do anything you need, and it will be a rare occurrence for the t to even flinch. This puts a person's mind at ease and you will quickly understand that its not going to come after you or bolt out or anywhere.

As mentioned, long term observation is, IME, the best way to gain a comfort level if you have an irrational fear you are working on.

Super easy to keep and extremely long lived...also females are cheap and can often be rescued from craigslist ads.

When moving a t from point A to point B, handling is never the preferred method, rather using a catch cup is. Just move the t into a deli cup, pop the top on and move it where you need and open the top and usher it back out. Takes all the drama out of moving them.
 
Chris LXXIX

Chris LXXIX

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Swoop

Swoop

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Smiley_Spiders_4x.jpg Another option is a female Phidippus audax, the 'bold' or 'daring' jumping spider. I caught dozens of these as a kid, mostly males whose personalities varied but the numerous females I caught or encountered were always sweet.

Females are maybe a bit over an inch long. Never been an arachnophobe but I don't purposely handle spiders if I can avoid it and I've handled these with no anxiety. Either to save them from people telling me to 'kill it' or had one crawl onto my arm during yard work and I'm so used to them I wasn't even surprised. My reaction to a big hairy spider appearing on my arm was about the same as when I notice I missed a button on my shirt lol.

Depending on what it is about them that bothers you, a sling or Rosie or jumping spider are all potential good choices.

https://www.google.com/search?q=dar...oid-sprint-us&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8
 
Andrea82

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The Grym Reaper said:
I don't know if it's some Arachnoboards myth or something but I swear someone mentioned that a member of the boards has/had one that would throw up threat postures and drip venom from its fangs, that'd be hilarious to see.
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There was. Sturm76 was his name iirc. He's unfortunately no longer a member here, or I'm misspelling his nickname... He had a specimen that threw quite a tantrum :D

Edit:
Oh. I was mistaken then? He has a vid of it on YouTube.
 
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darkness975

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Andrea82 said:
There was. Sturm76 was his name iirc. He's unfortunately no longer a member here, or I'm misspelling his nickname... He had a specimen that threw quite a tantrum :D

Edit:
Oh. I was mistaken then? He has a vid of it on YouTube.
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I thought @Storm76 was still active but I am not sure.

I remember @Radium. What happened to her? Did she leave the hobby? Anyone know?

@Misty Punzel You have already gotten some sound advice from others about what a better course of action for you would be. I would like to second what @cold blood said. My first Tarantula was a G. porteri (at the time I just called it a "rose hair") The lack of movement and such was a big help in getting "used" to the idea of a 6" DLS spider sharing my room. Granted I had already started my Scorpion collection prior to getting my first Tarantula so I was not a newbie to the arachnid keeping world. But it still took getting used to.

I would not have wanted to start with some of mine (like my B. hamorii) in the very beginning because she is like greased lightning and bolts in the blink of an eye when disturbed.
 
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B

Burgers

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Misty Punzel said:
I don't know why I'm scared of spiders but it's dumb and I love them and want to get into the hobby but they scare me. I want a pet tarantula to get over my fear but I know if it bites me, it will scar me for life. What should I do?
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I used to have the worst arachnophobia. Then I picked up a E. campestratus during a moment of bravery.

My heart just melted after that
 
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