Question to fellow hobbyists

[Python Patrol Exotics]

I've been keeping since 2018, I still consider myself a newbie. When I first discovered the fascination of spiders, that quite suddenly replaced my fear of them, I wanted to collect them all! Don't get me wrong that still sounds pretty cool, but alot of work(there are new species in the hobby every few months!).
Like many others before me, I fell in love with the idea of breeding. After I bought a unsexed wild caught T. Albopilosum from a reptile show, I got a general reveal when I found her holding a eggsack! This experience was absolutely amazing(I had only been keeping for about 4 months), and all I wanted to do was repeat the process. After a couple more eggsacks, and plenty of time finding where my passion lies in terms of my collection, I've changed my focus dramatically! Originally I wanted to breed everything I could! And keep every species possible!
Now I know what breeding projects I eventually want to embark on, and what genus I want as a personal collection.

My question is how many of you spent your first 6-8 months buying every spider you could afford. Realizing a little later that you aren't passionate about half of your collection.
And at that point do you sell them off? To me I struggle with the sentimental value they hold for me

 

[kingshockey]

i dont sell them off i trade em for a new sling its interesting for me to watch them grow out plus i gotta cap limit on how many ts i can keep at any one time so by trading a sub adult back for a sling i get to have a steady rotation of different ts to keep and raise . win/win i keep my word to my lady on no more spiders but still get to keep a variety of them

 

[viper69]

I sell mature males

I never purchase an animal I didn’t want, and wasn’t prepared to keep it until it dies.

We see plenty of people who start collecting Ts like Skittles, when they barely know what they are doing. Only for them to realize they are not so interested anymore. Despite our advice that there is no rush to buy so many so quickly.

I have zero respect for those people generally.

BTW the T on your hand, could hop off and then its name will be SPLAT RIP, esp with an abdomen of that size.

 

[Table]

We see plenty of people who start collecting Ts like Skittles, when they barely know what they are doing. Only for them to realize they are not so interested anymore. Despite our advice that there is no rush to buy so many so quickly.

That's why i'v limited myself to 5 T's, I need to invest more time before I get more.
Make sure I can take care of these guy's their whole life.

But I don't see anything wrong with getting rid of a couple T's to make space for more.

 

[Colorado Ts]

I research before I purchase. No regrets, thus far...

 

[Paiige]

I always research extensively prior to purchasing a new species. I've been keeping for 11 years now and my collection lacks a lot of the typical "hobby staples" because I did not find them interesting. I now have a variety of unusual/unique animals that all are intriguing to me and I have no intention of parting with.

I understand the need to "collect" when you're new though - this hobby brings out peoples' addictive tendencies. When you start out, you just want EVERYTHING - especially as you start to see other peoples' collections. But what you have to remember is that these are living animals, not "things" to collect.

Trade or sell off the ones you don't want to people who will actually appreciate and care for them, and put a little more thought into the commitment you make to these living creatures in the future.

 

[Arachnid Addicted]

I'm not a seller, this means, I never sold any animals wether it was an arachnid, an invertebrate or any other animal (like reptiles or amphibians) I have/had.

That said, arachnids are my passion, in the past, I got to the point where I got arachnids twice a month for more than a year. Lol. Surprisingly, most of them were gifts from friends, others were trades I made with slings that borned here, and a few were the ones I bought.

I've never had any regrets towards any animal I got. However, in order to focus in the arachnid world, I got rid of some reptiles and stopped keeping amphibians, did I sell them? No. I gave them to a couple of friends who really enjoy herpetology, and I'm still can see and photographed them anytime.

Besides my first tarantula, I've never create an emotional bonding with the others, I mean, at least not like the ones I had with my dog, but that doesn't mean I'll pick up 20 different spiders today, just to get rid of them in a month because I didn't like them or my anxiety to have them went away.

This is not a work, job, nor something temporary. This is a hobby, and imo, there's nothing more peaceful than spend hours in the room, taking care of them, it's kinda a therapy to me. Lol.

 

[Vanessa]

I only make purchases that I intend to keep for the duration of their natural lives. Any freebies, or gifts, are also given a permanent place in my collection. Egg sacs are traded/sold to dealers.

 

[zeeman]

I would say if you were willing to purchase them you should be willing to keep them, barring that you don't find they are outside your skill level. If you can find someone who will take them and give them a good home, then by all means do so, but the first priority should always be the care and well being of the animal. You can always own the T without plans to breed it and just focus on your other projects and animals you will breed. You said they have sentimental value, so no need to be rid of them.

 

[Reezelbeezelbug]

I started similar to you, as I got started and did more research I discovered more and more species that look cool and do cool stuff, so I had to get them all. Then later on I found that some just aren't that interesting to me (*cough* A semanni *cough). I've traded a couple and sold a couple, no regrets here.

It's really interesting to me that when you get a "normal pet" like a dog or cat, people are pretty vocal about caring for it for its entire life, however with "exotics" it seems like trading and swapping is pretty common and not a big deal. Some of the above posts are the only comments I've ever seen about keeping a tarantula for its whole life and refusing to ever let them go, which is totally cool. I'm ok with trading and selling them because they don't form any kind of bond with you as an owner. As long as the T is getting cared for appropriately and fed, they could care less who it is that's doing it.

 

[Python Patrol Exotics]

BTW the T on your hand, could hop off and then its name will be SPLAT RIP, esp with an abdomen of that size.

There is a table with a blanket right at my waist, i cut it out of the pic cause it didn't keep the aesthetic I was going for! Not to mention this is a 2.5" Caribena Versicolor.

 

[Matt Man]

I have never regretted a T purchase and never sold any of mine. I buy only what I really, really want. I have received a few in trade, and treat them as if they'd been purchased @ full price. If I wind up with a sac, I will sell or trade and maybe keep a few, give a few to close friends. And someone above is absolutely spot on, that T is one hop away from a fatality. If you must hold them, do so so the drop is A) not very far B) and onto something soft.

 

[Python Patrol Exotics]

I research before I purchase. No regrets, thus far...

Yeah i did pretty heavy research before every purchase, but what i thought was the coolest ever(and within my ability to care for), has changed with extended hands on experience.

 

[Arachnoenthusiast]

I find that a ts housing requirements play a large part in my interest in keeping them, largely because I dont want to stress on maintaining a humidity or temperature beyond where my house naturally sits. I've had no problem finding plenty of fascinating tarantulas that fit in with my climate perfectly.

 

[scooter1685]

This day last year, I had zero tarantulas. Today I have 24 tarantulas, 20 different species with a few that I bought 2 of. I don't regret any of them, and I don't really want to find new homes for any of them. Part of the reason I like them so much is precisely because of all the different colors and lifestyles. They're all a bit different. That does complicate care a little bit, but a little research here on AB can easily illuminate the requirements of any T I'm considering.

I did become a bit overwhelmed when I was breeding boas. I don't love them any less because of my experience with that, but I'm no longer eager to simply buy a boa with a nifty new genetic trait. Can't tell you how much work it was to have so many of them, with a full-time night job and young children. Not sure I'll ever breed any animals again after that experience. Certainly not any time soon.

 

[Python Patrol Exotics]

I started similar to you, as I got started and did more research I discovered more and more species that look cool and do cool stuff, so I had to get them all. Then later on I found that some just aren't that interesting to me (*cough* A semanni *cough). I've traded a couple and sold a couple, no regrets here.

It's really interesting to me that when you get a "normal pet" like a dog or cat, people are pretty vocal about caring for it for its entire life, however with "exotics" it seems like trading and swapping is pretty common and not a big deal. Some of the above posts are the only comments I've ever seen about keeping a tarantula for its whole life and refusing to ever let them go, which is totally cool. I'm ok with trading and selling them because they don't form any kind of bond with you as an owner. As long as the T is getting cared for appropriately and fed, they could care less who it is that's doing it.

Thank you for this reply!
I was asking for peoples real experience after keeping for about a year. Were there changes to what they liked vs. what they thought they would like?
And all i seemed to get was the classic "do more research" and "you've committed to their whole lifes care"
As I said I enjoy all of my collection, but with time I've realized some I'm WAY more passionate about.

 

[DomGom TheFather]

Pokemon disorder...

For a lot of people it seems there is a drive to collect them all when they start out.
It is very understandable.
Eventually, the majority tend to find their favorites and cap themselves off.

Or breed them. Lol

 

[Craig73]

I did quite a bit of reading up on a number of genus and landed on avics as most compatible for me.

Research is a critical factor though. People don’t want to hear it, and that attributes to why someone may lose interest.

Example, among many, is someone gets a cool looking T without knowing it’s a borrower. Boring if you wanted something you could see 24/7. Or get a cool looking blue and yellow T and it’s way too skittish, fast and potent and the person is not prepared. Either they bail by selling it or worse, neglect it because they are afraid and it dies. These are just a few examples of why research is critical early on and not to be discounted because it’s not what someone wants to hear.

So what are some examples of why you lost interest in some of your collection?

 

[Arachnid Addicted]

Pokemon disorder...

For a lot of people it seems there is a drive to collect them all when they start out.
It is very understandable.
Eventually, the majority tend to find their favorites and cap themselves off.

Or breed them. Lol

Pokemon Disorder, damn. Imagine if this turned out to be a real thing. I'm addicted already.

 

[Arthroverts]

I was kind of at this point once, doors were just opening up for all kinds of species and I had money to spend.
Nowadays most of my new stuff comes off of trades/freebies/collecting, and I save my money for the bigger buffalo in this hobby...

Thanks,

Arthroverts