# Most ignorant questions or comments



## Tapahtyn (Jun 6, 2009)

Even before I didn't know all of this stuff about T's I never asked questions like these or comments, probably because I just plain ole' loved biology.  What are some of the things people have said or asked that made you roll your eyes(pet stores too)?

Aren't T's poisonous?
Don't T's like jump way in the air?
What do you feed them?    (small children) LOL
What's molting mean?   Apparently, they never had science.

etc.....


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## raveinchris (Jun 6, 2009)

I ask do you know what species this is?
Pet store employee reply:I dont know and dont care to find out there just bugs.


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## Neophyte (Jun 6, 2009)

"Tarantulas never bite me *pokes juvi H. Mac with finger* I *know* for a fact that their venom doesn't do anything significant." -Reptile store sales clerk

I hope she gets bit...


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## ReMoVeR (Jun 6, 2009)

Neophyte said:


> "Tarantulas never bite me *pokes juvi H. Mac with finger* I *know* for a fact that their venom doesn't do anything significant." -Reptile store sales clerk
> 
> I hope she gets bit...


 LOL wth that is hillarious. 

To the OP: If you want some other fun search somethin like "Funny things at pet stores" and there is a pretty nice and long thread that is amazing

//Tiago


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## Autumnvicky (Jun 6, 2009)

Me: There are three types of tarantulas. Arboreal, terrestrial, and burrowing types.
Pet Store clerk: What's an arboreal? ( This being the same person that sold me my pink toe tarantula. )
Me: Tree dwelling species.
Clerk: Ah. 


Me: Where's the water dish?
Clerk: The tarantulas don't need a water dish, they just suck moisture out of the sponge!


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## Londoner (Jun 6, 2009)

I've lost count of the times people have asked if I've had my Ts de-fanged for "safety"! The blank looks you recieve when you then ask how it would catch it's food are pretty comical.


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## blix (Jun 6, 2009)

This took place last week after I had bought some crickets from a petshop:

Me: "I'll take some of those."

Store manager: "Nice, what do you use them for?"

Me: "To feed my tarantulas."

Storage manager: "Ok. Listen, you can easily just drop all 20 crickets down with the spider, because they can coexist. Then you don't have to worry about feeding the spider for some months.

Me: "... Ok, I gotta go!"


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## cityzooguy (Jun 6, 2009)

*lol*

"ok gotta go!"
thats funny.

the one question that people ask me is "can they be in the same tank?" I get this question all the time! I think it is only second to "what do they eat?"


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## GoTerps (Jun 6, 2009)

Moonkin77 said:


> Even before I didn't know all of this stuff about T's I never asked questions like these or comments, probably because I just plain ole' loved biology.  What are some of the things people have said or asked that made you roll your eyes(pet stores too)?
> 
> Aren't T's poisonous?
> Don't T's like jump way in the air?
> ...


Maybe I'm crazy, but I don't think any of those questions are terribly ignorant.  I wouldn't roll my eyes at them.

We can argue the difference between poisonous and venomous all day.. but the point of the question is the same.  What we feed them and the topic of molting are normal questions and not very ignorant IMO.

Eric


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## xhexdx (Jun 6, 2009)

Yeah, I get a lot of 'what do you keep them in?' and 'do you keep them together?', but I don't really think those are stupid questions.  And with those, or even the 'are they poisonous?' questions, I use it as an opportunity to teach them something.  Not many people know the difference between poison and venom, so to be able to explain that to them and know that you taught them something is pretty cool.

I get questions about life expectancy, egg quantity, feeding, handling, biting, etc. all the time.  I love it. 

--Joe


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## lithiumflower9 (Jun 6, 2009)

When I was buying my first T set up it was amazing how many times they tried to tell me I was wrong and every T is desert dwelling and that I needed a desert enclosure not tropical.  This is at petland where they carry Cabolts.


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## Tapahtyn (Jun 6, 2009)

GoTerps said:


> Maybe I'm crazy, but I don't think any of those questions are terribly ignorant.  I wouldn't roll my eyes at them.
> 
> We can argue the difference between poisonous and venomous all day.. but the point of the question is the same.  What we feed them and the topic of molting are normal questions and not very ignorant IMO.
> 
> Eric


I'm only thinking ignorance in the since that they truly haven't heard, read, seen, or done ANY research even out of curiosity.  Not ignorance like they are stupid.  I don't directly roll my eyes AT them only behind their backs


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## VESPidA (Jun 6, 2009)

Londoner said:


> I've lost count of the times people have asked if I've had my Ts de-fanged for "safety"!


Ahh... my poor mom asked me this.


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## Paramite (Jun 6, 2009)

I actually told my mother once how venomous my Pokies are, when she was visiting me. Basicly I had to do it, because she wouldn't listen to me when I told her to leave the enclosures alone, when she was doing the housecleaning she always finds necessary to do.


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## pouchedrat (Jun 6, 2009)

An older woman I work with keeps insisting that T's can be defanged and "poison sacks removed" (what like a skunk is descented...?).  She told me a story that happened recently at an apartment building her relative lived at, where a woman's T's got out and they fumigated the entire building because they "weren't defanged".   All I could think of was ugh....  all that time and money and energy ... and all those beautiful T's.. gone now..  

She also insists that her son's T was bought defanged but she made him return it to the pet store.  Every time I tell her it probably wasn't, she says her son wouldn't lie to her.  Yeah ok, very trusting, lol


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## xhexdx (Jun 6, 2009)

Funny thing is, you don't even need to tell her it 'probably' wasn't.  It wasn't, period.


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## Londoner (Jun 6, 2009)

pouchedrat said:


> She also insists that her son's T was bought defanged but she made him return it to the pet store.  Every time I tell her it probably wasn't, she says her son wouldn't lie to her.  Yeah ok, very trusting, lol


Bet he told her that in a futile effort to let her allow him to keep it  .


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## Jackuul (Jun 6, 2009)

Someone once told me that the deadliest spider in the world was a common cobweb spider... aka the cellar spider.  

I gave them a very blank look.  

Then they pointed to a harvestman.  

*facepalms*

As for tarantulas the folks at Petco insisted the one my brother got was a female.  I have yet to attempt to sex it since I still have that 'ITS A SPIDER!' fear thing I am working through.  To help this, I have been catching wolf spiders in jars, and keeping them and feeding them.  I had about 20 last night in total, and today I let them all go.  Except the one I though drowned in the sink, which was suddenly alive today.  

A funny thing is, I have watched the wolf spiders actually biting the small bits of wet cloth I keep in their jars, along with the cap-dish that I keep a few drops of water in.  

I still won't touch a wolf spider though.  I'm a bit more apprehensive of them than the rose.  Additionally, I was once told than wolf spiders could have a bite as bad as a brown recluse, which I already knew at the time was total bull.  However I did confirm that if you shine a flashlight at them and get the right angle, their eyes reflect the light, and I am thoroughly convinced they are plotting to take over my room.


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## Mack&Cass (Jun 6, 2009)

Cassandra works with this woman who told her that it was unhealthy of her to keep T's and scorps. Cass is a nice person, but she tore that woman a new one, that's for sure. She's only really been in the hobby for 5 months, but she cannot believe how people judge her for what she chooses to keep as pets. I don't mind answering people's questions, but the question I hate the most is "why would you keep those things". I'm sure a lot of you get that too.


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## Jackuul (Jun 6, 2009)

Oh hey, I have an ignorant question of my own for this topic.

Are there any tarantulas that can swim, or go under water?  Bubbles on the book lungs, etc.


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## xhexdx (Jun 6, 2009)

Many of them can 'run' along the top of the water to get away from predators, but I'm not aware of any that are actual swimmers.


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## blix (Jun 6, 2009)

Jackuul said:


> Oh hey, I have an ignorant question of my own for this topic.
> 
> Are there any tarantulas that can swim, or go under water?  Bubbles on the book lungs, etc.


H. gigas can stay under water, and it hunts fish by jumping into the water.


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## Stan Schultz (Jun 6, 2009)

Jackuul said:


> Oh hey, I have an ignorant question of my own for this topic.
> 
> Are there any tarantulas that can swim, or go under water?  Bubbles on the book lungs, etc.


I just read this and haven't time to do an in-depth (no pun intended) search, but several years ago someone (Lelle?) published photos of their tarantula (possibly a _Hysterocrates_ species) skinny dipping. In response to that posting we found out that several species (including at least one _Ephebopus_) also dive, presumably in an effort to escape predators. I'm not aware of any species that actively hunt underwater, however. But, I wouldn't be surprised!

Can anybody offer any specifics?

Edit: And then as I posted this I saw Blix' response. Where did you learn this? Can you prove it? (Not that I doubt you. We just need as much information as possible.)


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## blix (Jun 6, 2009)

Pikaia said:


> Edit: And then as I posted this I saw Blix' response. Where did you learn this? Can you prove it? (Not that I doubt you. We just need as much information as possible.)


I recall some years ago, maybe in 2004/2005, that someone made a setup with part land - part fishtank H. gigas inclosure, and posted the process along with the results in this forum. I forgot the thread, but I'm sure others can find it. I don't know if he ever got the H. gigas to catch some.

Also, Robc made a similar enclosure, and made some videos with the tarantula diving and hunting:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uE4bki09Z2Y&feature=channel_page

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DpJsLIxxQoY&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrZPMksC5To&feature=related

There are more videos of it on his Youtube list.

Similar there was a show on Discovery some years ago with various true spiders hunting on the surface of water, and they showed the H. gigas too.


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## Aschamne (Jun 6, 2009)

I just love when people find out that I have over 100 Ts.  The first question is "Why would you keep those things?" and that is usually followed by "Do they just roam freely around your house or are they in a big cage?".

Art


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## xhexdx (Jun 6, 2009)

Aschamne said:


> I just love when people find out that I have over 100 Ts.  The first question is "Why would you keep those things?" and that is usually followed by "Do they just roam freely around your house or are they in a big cage?".
> 
> Art


I actually had that happen to me today to the guy installing my security system.  Was pretty funny.


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## Stan Schultz (Jun 6, 2009)

Moonkin77 said:


> ... What are some of the things people have said or asked that made you roll your eyes(pet stores too)? ...


In January 1985, shortly after we'd immigrated to Canada and moved to Calgary, I was performing one of my frequent tours of the city's pet shops, looking for tarantulas. I came across a pet shop I wasn't familiar with in one of the shopping malls and immediately waltzed in for a look-see. Lo and behold! They had a tarantula!

It was in one of the classic, painted, wooden, reptile cages with the hinged door that opens outward and Astroturf carpeting on the floor, but they had put the tarantula in a smaller aquarium on chipped bark or something. The water dish had the dreaded cotton wad but was bone dry. A 40 watt aquarium light was resting on top of the screen cage cover.

The tarantula was in the far corner of its aquarium in the classic death curl.

I immediately beat a hasty path to the checkout counter to have a word with the clerk. "You have a very sick or dead tarantula back there. I suggest you at least get it out of the public eye. You might also try putting it in an ICU to try to bring it back."

Her response: "*Oh no, it's not dead. It's just cold. That's why we have the light on its cage. When they die they roll over on their backs.*" 

At that point I experienced a serious ethical conundrum. Should I explain to this pretty young thing that she was full of #$%& and tell her how the world really works? Or should I run out behind the mall and look in the pet shop's dumpster to retrieve any "dead" tarantulas?

I did both. However, she didn't believe me anyway; and in fact, the pet shop went out of business that spring. And, I did look in their dumpster but it was the wrong time of the year and there were no "dead" tarantulas.

If that young lady reads this, perhaps by now you've learned the error in your ways. If you haven't, what pet shop do you work at so some of us can regularly do a little dumpster diving?


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## Erwynn (Jun 6, 2009)

My worst from my mom who hates them:

"Can u get them defanged?"   

My sarcastic response " i guess, but I don't wanna be spoon feeding a pissed off tarantula bug applesauce for the next 20 years"


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## ZergFront (Jun 6, 2009)

*This Thread is Filled With Fail! LOL!*

OMG, I thought I've heard dumb questions and statements. - "Is Veteran's Day a day off for veterinarians?"   I kid u not!


 I could understand the "What do they eat," "Which are more aggressive," and "Are there any that swim?" I get those honest, but ameuteur questions about keeping a pet. I mean, I'd ask anyone on here about a pet they have hands-on experience with that I have non with because I know I'm getting genuine knowledge on this forum.

 I just don't get the "How can you keep those things," or "You really should get rid of your Ts - they're not good for your health." People will keep what they wish to keep.

 I thought my pet store clerks were naive until I read some of these... I'll deffinately look for that "Funny Pet Stores" thread!


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## Erwynn (Jun 6, 2009)

Jackuul said:


> Oh hey, I have an ignorant question of my own for this topic.
> 
> Are there any tarantulas that can swim, or go under water?  Bubbles on the book lungs, etc.


We have an H. gigas, and they can swim.  One of the only ones as far as I know.  We made ours a semi aquatic enclosure and she loves it, goes swimming in there and catches fish.


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## pandinus (Jun 6, 2009)

Yeah its always great to see stupid morons for sure, they have a part time job at a petshop so they can have some weekend spending money, and they dont know the biology of one out of hundreds of animals they take care of for maybe 15-20 hours a week? what a bunch of retards. i hope they all get bit for trusting what their bosses told them and assuming they are getting taken care of the way they are supposed too. sometimes i go into stores and tell them that they are keeping their animals all wrong and then they tell me that they dont know about it or have any control over it. how dare they right? its their responsibility to know the scientific name and habitat of the animal because its the one im interested in. What a bunch of cruel sadistic people.



John


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## delikorkmaz (Jun 7, 2009)

I think it's important to be kind to people.

If you go around with the attitude that most people in the world are stupid, and if you are constantly in search of the newest shocking stupidity, that's pretty much what you'll find.

Everybody is stupid sometimes.  Everybody has their areas of ignorance.

Personally, I take great pleasure in talking to people about my pets.  

Last week I had the luck to be able to substitute teach a second grade class for an entire week.  The regular teacher had a family emergency, so I ended up responsible for *all* the lesson plans.  I brought my small collection in, which burned up some major classroom time.   They definitely earned their crickets.

There was one little girl who started the week arachnophobic, and on Friday afternoon, told me, "Bolt (my a.avic) is so cute!  I just want to squeeze him!  I know you can't...of course...but you know what I mean, he's so cuuuute!"

Most people don't get to have this girl's experience at a formative age.

As for pet stores, it's their managers who should be judged more than the clerks.  No clerks in any store are adequately trained, because management doesn't want to burn money on training.  I have found this to be generally true, no matter what the industry.  The clerks are directed to perform certain tasks in a certain way.  By the time they leave work, after a day of ringing people up and straightening shelves and cleaning up dog poo, they have their own lives and families to deal with.  

It's awful for the animals not to be taken care of properly, but I'm not sure that copping a superior attitude to people who have to obey orders to earn their daily bread is the solution.  If animals are being mistreated, the people to talk to are the managers.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Neophyte (Jun 7, 2009)

Surprised I forgot about this one, but often when I tell people I keep tarantulas they're like. "OMG! You have giant spiders running free in your *house*?"  

No, retard. They're obviously in tanks just like any reptile or invert would be. With some exceptions... :<


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## Miss Bianca (Jun 7, 2009)

Yes! and there's also one on newbie mistakes... very good stuff, LOL




ReMoVeR said:


> LOL wth that is hillarious.
> 
> To the OP: If you want some other fun search somethin like "Funny things at pet stores" and there is a pretty nice and long thread that is amazing
> 
> //Tiago


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## VESPidA (Jun 7, 2009)

delikorkmaz said:


> I think it's important to be kind to people.
> 
> If you go around with the attitude that most people in the world are stupid, and if you are constantly in search of the newest shocking stupidity, that's pretty much what you'll find.
> 
> ...


Very well stated.  A haughty attitude/approach is never well received, and is almost a guaranteed way to counter what you hope to accomplish. 

That's a wonderful story about your second grader, btw.  Great job on sharing our love and knowledge of this hobby in a constructive way.


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## fartkowski (Jun 7, 2009)

I always enjoy the "defanged" comment, or when they think somebody takes the poison out


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## blix (Jun 7, 2009)

Not exactly a comment or remark, rather a semi-retarded sales pitch some old guy tried to sell me, when I was looking around in his petstore - after I had mentioned that I keep spiders.







I didn't know how to react other than I was speechless. For a second I thought he was joking - but no.


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## Jackuul (Jun 7, 2009)

blix said:


> Not exactly a comment or remark, rather a semi-retarded sales pitch some old guy tried to sell me, when I was looking around in his petstore - after I had mentioned that I keep spiders.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


He tried to sell you one of those... for a tarantula? Are you sure he wasn't doing it for the lulz?


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## ReMoVeR (Jun 7, 2009)

can u bring me another pantz plz ? OMG that was the most unexpectable thing i could hear around here!  OMG LOL

//Tiago


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## SCORPIONNOOB (Jun 7, 2009)

Its way easier to cure the ignorance or false information, than it is to laugh at the people who say it. I love to tell people all about the "Creepy crawlies". Its the people that are suppose to know stuff that newbies depend on when they get in the hobby that are the one that really need to be talked to!   Thats why they come here to the temple of all knowing :worship:


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## jameshay_1uk (Jun 7, 2009)

Some of the people that I work with have asked me if I ever put my my spiders in a cage together and make them fight to see which would "win"! They are the same sort of people that think that the Spider vs ... vidz on YouTube are "cool"! That just annoys me


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## cacoseraph (Jun 7, 2009)

i love telling ppl about bugs!  there are some many things that are positively alien to ppl who think all animals are mammals or something

i remember one time i was taking care of my bugs at the petstore i had to keep them at... and some lady came up to ask me about the camera i was using (crappy PAS nikon) and ended up talking to me for like half an hour about bugs. all of a sudden she looked at her watch and was like, "omg! i was supposed to be buying crickets!" and had to hurry off  i think one ofher kids had a leopard gecko and she started the conversation trying to keep her body away from my bugs and ended it practically bumping into containers 





to be honest, i would consider a lot of ppl on here more like, ignorant than random ppl at a petstore or whatever.  presumably if you have a pet you should know about it.... but someone who is just in a petstore doesn't really have any need to know about bugs


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## syndicate (Jun 7, 2009)

Neophyte said:


> "Tarantulas never bite me *pokes juvi H. Mac with finger* I *know* for a fact that their venom doesn't do anything significant." -Reptile store sales clerk


This kinda stuff makes me angry.Especially when you have pet stores mislabling things like seemani's as Haplopelma.People at pet stores should be required by law to know all proper care and info for everything they sell!


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## Aurelia (Jun 7, 2009)

I'm pretty patient with the common questions, because I mean, how would they know otherwise if they don't keep tarantulas themselves?

What I think is ignorant is when people insist they know things and tell you how to take care of YOUR pet when they've never even kept one themselves.

The only thing that really ever made me cringe was when I worked at Hot Topic, one of my coworkers told me about how her friend had a tarantula, and was adamant about telling me that they need to be de-fanged, and her friend's tarantula was, etc.  She was pretty obnoxious about other things too though. I didn't want to start any drama so I just let it go.


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## xhexdx (Jun 7, 2009)

Aurelia said:


> What I think is ignorant is when people insist they know things and tell you how to take care of YOUR pet when they've never even kept one themselves.


I completely agree with this.  And I don't just keep my mouth shut when someone says something that's complete garbage, as I'm sure most of you already know.   I tell them how it is.


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## Tapahtyn (Jun 7, 2009)

xhexdx said:


> I completely agree with this.  And I don't just keep my mouth shut when someone says something that's complete garbage, as I'm sure most of you already know.   I tell them how it is.


I also agree with this as well, even in the fitness center where I work I've had "older" people say things and also about my Akitas that they are dangerous dogs.   My co- workers constantly give me crap about owning T's and I usually thow it back into their face.


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## xhexdx (Jun 7, 2009)

I feel like if it's not directly affecting the way you live, what business is it of yours what I have at my house?

Anyway...


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## Matt K (Jun 7, 2009)

I have had people say all sorts of comments to me 'on the street' but the ones that I have to roll eyes to are anlmost always in a pet shop.  Example:  I was looking at a series of different T's in XYZ Shop not too far from me.  Employee said something- maybe the ubiquitous "Can I help you?" - and I mentioned quite passively while looking at them (Cobalt Blue, Avic Avic, 3" T.blondi, and a couple others I cant remember just now) "They look kinda dry." (1/2 inch of dry bark chips or eco earth, dry water dish, dust around cage, shrunken abdomen on all of them, no hides/branches or any other object in the cage)..... Employee:  "Well, we just put in a new UV bulb over them and they get that way.  Someone will water them today I think."  me:" Why a UV bulb?"  Emplyoee: "Because all tropical life needs UVA and UVB to survive, the old bulb was UVb 2.0 and now they have a UV 5.0."  me: "You know that only applies to a selection of reptiles, and even them some live in dim situations thier whole lives just fine".....
...so to make this a one page story, he goes on to *ARGUE* with me, _the customer_, about what/why life forms and inverts in particular require UVb lighting.  I was apalled....
Never mind that this is a very young guy, "maybe" out of high school, 20 at the most, no college, and I am nearly 30 years older with biology degrees...
...ALSO not to mention he did not pick up on the dry being a problem for the tarantulas or that I thought they should be fed either.....  funny thing how my Avic versicolor grew to adulthood and bred producing 70 odd healthy slings all in a dimly lit/ dark part of a room...

EEERRRRKKK !!!  Makes me cross-eyed just typing this....  :wall:


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## Twistedrayne (Jun 8, 2009)

I know what you mean as far as the "dangerous animal" posts. Pitbulls are only as mean as you make them for example. I believe it's the same with any other animal. Everything has a mean side. If you don't do anything to upset it or make it angry then you have nothing to really worry about. Animal or no animal, it deserves just as much respect as you do.


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## BrynWilliams (Jun 8, 2009)

My LPS man who sells spiders quite regularly, looked at me funny when I said:

Me: "I have just received a N. chromatus. Do you guys get many around here?"
He looked at me funnily, and then replied 
"Don't you mean P. murinus? They were reclassified you know."

Utter genius.


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## Sky`Scorcher (Jun 8, 2009)

I've had my share of many questions about me keeping T's as pets and I'm sure its all very common.  

What astounded me was my gf's mom. She asked "If you pulled off its legs will it die?" and "If you pour alchohol on them will they bubble up like snails?" and then "Can they swim?"

I just answered them as properly as I can without going that much into detail.
Seems to me though she's finding ways to kill them if she happens to find one. One thing is for sure though.. I'm not letting her in my house.

LPS employees often pass off T's as another because they would look the same. Like when this guy tried to sell me an A.Seemani as a G.Pulchripes and a Lividum as a Sing.blue.


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## mariemaria (Jun 8, 2009)

my friends and classmates are so stupid. They always ask 'aren't they poisiness though?' and i have to reiterate myself, over and over! :S
'Tarantula's are venomess, god damn it!'
i also get the 'why do u keep that' and 'what tricks do they do' questions


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## Tapahtyn (Jun 8, 2009)

xhexdx said:


> I feel like if it's not directly affecting the way you live, what business is it of yours what I have at my house?
> 
> Anyway...


thank you, that's what I'm talking about on the ignorance spectrum.  People have either been misfed, or somehow inform themselves without having facts to back them up.  As far as I'm concerned my Akitas and T's are the best pets in the world 



All in All, I think the pet store people are the most miseducated people and do not represent the animal world very well at all.  I think that's why I should just go back to school to be a zoologist.....because I love creatures!


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## jme (Jun 8, 2009)

My most recent is when i whent to the LP here and asked about there newly acuired H. Lividum and how much it was going for the younge girl responded with this answer,

well like uhm are ghost is like 180 and this one is like bigger and isnt like defanged so its like super rare and ppl like want it so ill sell it to you for like 200 k,  

I almost died i was like K wow its not D fanged omg,
 can i speak to the manager plz :wall: 

most of the time i buy these poor t's from the LP's becouse i feel sorry for them 

i have to manny of these moments to even start its quite sad really, 
Another one i witnessed same store was an P. murinus that had excaped from the enclosure and a man walking in the store saw this 5 inch orange T on the ground and put his hand out for it lmao that thing ran up his arm and onto his back so fast and whent into defensive posture i just stood there kinda like wow did you know what you were picking up, his answer was oh all tarantulas are nice and dont bite, hahahaha when i told him what was on him he stood there and turned all white none of the staff had any idea either the one younge guy whent to grab it i told him witch one it was that had gotten out and he ran away this poor guy stood there for probably 20 minuts unitill it took three of them with fish nets , big gloves and K'Ks to get it of his back haha none of the staff had any idea it was even a P.murinus, i actualy grabed on of there invert books flipped and couple pages and handed there so called manager the book

Reactions: Funny 1


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## Sathane (Jun 8, 2009)

LMAO.  That is too funny. 

The LPS around here is always hilarious whenever I go there.  I recently purchased a scorp labeled as an Emperor scorpion as another board member was looking for a mature female Emp and I thought this one fit the description although it's colouration and size were odd for an Emp.  Turns out, through a bit of research and help from other members of the board, it was a _P. cavimanus_.  I returned the specimen and explained why to the employee to which she replied, 'Yah, we thought something was wrong but we just take what is given to us and sell it as one of the approved species.'  So they knew it wasn't an Emp but are selling it as one anyway since Emps are the only scorps they are allowed to sell.  LOL.  
Aside from this, they sell Emps at $40 and _A. avicularia_s for $90.  Also, nearly every _A. avic_ I've seen them have is a MM.  Their current one has 7 legs.


Anyway, here is a link to the "Funny things heard at the pet store" thread:

http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=147154


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## Bill S (Jun 8, 2009)

Although I haven't had to deal with too many truly dumb tarantula questions (most of the people who know I have them are fellow biologists or at least are a little more wildlife-savvy), I have certainly encountered dumb questions in other arenas.  In fact, I feel pretty safe in saying that in any field of interest you will encounter amazingly dumb questions and opinions.

Let me offer a few examples.  For a couple years my wife and I have been working with cave forms of arachnids, and a local tourist attraction recently talked me into hiring on as a part time cave guide.  On my first day some of the other cave guides warned me of the types of questions I would get - and I laughed, figuring they were kidding.  They were not.  Some of the routine questions I deal with in caves:

How much of this cave is underground?

How much of this cave hasn't been discovered yet?

What was this cave originally built for?

Is the "Bottomless Pit" really bottomless?

There are many others as well, but you get the idea.  The catch is - I have to smile and give polite answers to the questions that don't make the person look stupid in front of the rest of the people.  However, once in a while the guides have fun with the answers.  (Such as: 80% of the cave is underground, 7.5 miles of passages haven't been discovered yet, it was built as a tourist attraction, and the pit really is bottomless - in fact there's a boy scout who fell in two years ago and we can still hear him falling.)


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## VidaGrey (Jun 8, 2009)

I just get the usual "are they defanged" spiel. That and people acting like my T's are going to teleport through their containers and eat them ;P


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## Scorpendra (Jun 8, 2009)

i made a sculpture of a burying beetle for school. this girl tried to talk to me about it and it skewed directly into a thing about tarantulas since spiders now have 6 legs, 3 body segments, antennae and lay their eggs in dead animals, apparantly. i don't remember exactly how the conversation went went, but the effect of it was:

"it's a tarantula, right?"
...
"oh, well, you ever see those little furry spiders that kind like tarantulas?"
...
"the ones that jump around?"

honest to god, it could have worse and it seemed like she was really trying. then after a few other exchanges, she said:

"but aren't they all basically the same thing? all bugs?"

i was stunned into silence. besides that, i get the "what do they eat? do you play with them? are they all in one big tank?" stuff. never anything about defanging, happily.


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## Nomadinexile (Jun 9, 2009)

*Defanged tarantulas--a history of tarantula keeping*

I understand how dumb the defanged tarantula question truly is.  I have had to answer many times including at least once, "I had an extra set put on", to which the reply was< "AWESOME".  But I would bet if we had super awesome history glasses, we might see someone in a jungle somewhere pulling off a tarantulas fangs before throwing it in the fryer.....That's right folks, I would bet the first tarantula "keepers" were just keeping them for dinner and reasonably pulled off the fangs.  I think this is still done some places if I remember the travel show correctly.  Then imagine Marco Polo playing telephone across Iran and you are starting to get the point.  Because the defanging was a part of the language of people somewhere, it became associated through the ignorance of humans for long after this was disproved.
While I do not have a biology doctorate, or any doctorate for that matter, I consider myself intelligent enough, yet there was a time I thought Bird eaters were so called because they jumped in the air to intercept the pigeons or whatever, fanging them while dropping to the ground, where it would continue to kick its tail end in!  While some questions/decisions/ignorance coinciding with action, (selling a Pokie as a Rose), are completely appalling and unacceptable, keep in mind that not every person wants to study tarantulas.  They don't really care.  And that obviously goes for some lps employees from what I see on here.   But for someone to be interested in T's is a good thing, particularly if genuine.  They have to start somewhere.  And I can guarantee that start didn't come from Biology 1 in most high schools, or colleges for that matter.  Even those who know we don't defang them, should still be able to ask whether they swim without being ridiculed.  
I would hope we all take situations as they come and adjust for circumstances.  I was at an elementary school a week ago with two classes of kids, and there were no dumb questions.  Not because some of the questions weren't a little silly, but because they are 8.  How much can they really know?  Now if a 20 year old pet smart employee wants to lecture me on defanging one of my new tarantulas, I am going to scream until they cry.  
But you have to take people with good intentions, and open mind, in the right direction.  Most people, once they realize you know a thing or two, will listen more intently and believe you more than others.  It may not always work.  But one T keeper will inform how many non-keepers in a year of some seemingly basic information?  Many times.  So eventually the dark ages will end.  Just be patient.  Except with the pompous.  Give them an earful.  :O)   PEACE, ryan


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## whitewolf (Jun 9, 2009)

Twistedrayne said:


> I know what you mean as far as the "dangerous animal" posts. Pitbulls are only as mean as you make them for example. I believe it's the same with any other animal. Everything has a mean side. If you don't do anything to upset it or make it angry then you have nothing to really worry about. Animal or no animal, it deserves just as much respect as you do.


I have to total agree. Used to argue this all the time as a groomer when I owned a pitbull and also argue this with recent Ex. Fact yes some breeds were orgianal breed for aggression. However before you say all and point to mine or to a current breed better check breed makeups background and what made her. Fluffy used to be bigger. Inbreeding and puppy mills have ruined many tempers in dog breeds. As a former AKC handler, trainer, breeder, and groomer I've got more bite mark scars from little pee fart. Use to tell people all the time its in good breeding, knowledge of the breed, care, handeling, proper training (and not well I take my dog to such and such and have it trained). Honey if you don't know how to handel the breed and be the dominet one fluffy will eat you too. Their gribbing about my killer dog who is laying in the middle of the floor in a grooming shop with open doors relaxing not bothering a thing while a toddler son is playing next to him and loving on him kinda ruff. Whats fluffy doing tearing up the kennel, blood dripping off my finger, fluffy had to be muzzeled to be groomed, a catch poll to get it out of the crates, fluffy has no current vacinations oh and did i mention when came in looked like someone mowed the yard and went "oh look i found a dog". True story nasty witch only brought her stupid poodle in just before christmas every year for about six years to be groomed cause the familys coming over. Stupid thing had to be muzzeled everytime, every year had to down right demand proof of current rabbies vacinations, has actually bit a kid before, came in a tangled up matted up black poolie but left a sparkling white poodle. But fluffy is such a perfict dog and my pitbull is going to one day eat a kid. On a side note she stopped coming after we again gave her our cradintials in dog care and made her get that little monster out herself after I was bit with it just standing on the table waiting to give it time to relax and settle in which as I recall took you about an hour of just standing there next to it. Plenty of stories like this. Leason learned I dont groom anymore. OMG and customers only got worse after Dog Whisperer. Lord people leave it to that man. You are by no means an expert because you watch Cesear Chavez do it. He has way more experiance and knowledge than you do.

On a side note if we ordered something we knew since we were small, may be awhile having these, we tried to get care sheets and at least read about them before they arrived. And tried to stick with things like Rosies and strip knees.

We used to git all kinds of just great questions on T's too. 
Rosies Them: "Oh thats one of dem der bird eater thingys." Us: "No sir its a rose hair." Them: "Dunt look no rose I ever seed." Thinking: Bet not sir.

Scorpions: Them: "you know if the sting you, you'll die." Us: "Sir thats an Emp might hurt like heck but you prob wont die" Thinking: Unfortunently. Wait really want ta be the first? Maybe lessen the population of the short bus.

Them: "You know they have to be on sand." Us: "No mam those belong on mosit dirt." Them: "They come from the dessert. Theres no dirt in the dessert." US: "No mam this is a diffrent type of scorp. Diffrent types all have diffrent requirements" Thinking: Isn't sand dry dirt.

Kid one time and I mean all of maybe 13-14: "I want a deadly one." Me: "Good go find one. I won't buy em' dont ask." Brat: "Well I'll come back with my mom." Mom upon return from shopping "He wants one thats more posionus." "May I suggest another pet store. I' do not sell Scorps other than Emps. Expecially to kids." Talks to manager who is basically adopted grandfather. He tells her same. They storm out. Hope the little torp got stung too.


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## Tapahtyn (Jun 9, 2009)

whitewolf said:


> I have to total agree. Used to argue this all the time as a groomer when I owned a pitbull and also argue this with recent Ex. Fact yes some breeds were orgianal breed for aggression. However before you say all and point to mine or to a current breed better check breed makeups background and what made her. Fluffy used to be bigger. Inbreeding and puppy mills have ruined many tempers in dog breeds. As a former AKC handler, trainer, breeder, and groomer I've got more bite mark scars from little pee fart. Use to tell people all the time its in good breeding, knowledge of the breed, care, handeling, proper training (and not well I take my dog to such and such and have it trained). Honey if you don't know how to handel the breed and be the dominet one fluffy will eat you too. Their gribbing about my killer dog who is laying in the middle of the floor in a grooming shop with open doors relaxing not bothering a thing while a toddler son is playing next to him and loving on him kinda ruff. Whats fluffy doing tearing up the kennel, blood dripping off my finger, fluffy had to be muzzeled to be groomed, a catch poll to get it out of the crates, fluffy has no current vacinations oh and did i mention when came in looked like someone mowed the yard and went "oh look i found a dog". True story nasty witch only brought her stupid poodle in just before christmas every year for about six years to be groomed cause the familys coming over. Stupid thing had to be muzzeled everytime, every year had to down right demand proof of current rabbies vacinations, has actually bit a kid before, came in a tangled up matted up black poolie but left a sparkling white poodle. But fluffy is such a perfict dog and my pitbull is going to one day eat a kid. On a side note she stopped coming after we again gave her our cradintials in dog care and made her get that little monster out herself after I was bit with it just standing on the table waiting to give it time to relax and settle in which as I recall took you about an hour of just standing there next to it. Plenty of stories like this. Leason learned I dont groom anymore. OMG and customers only got worse after Dog Whisperer. Lord people leave it to that man. You are by no means an expert because you watch Cesear Chavez do it. He has way more experiance and knowledge than you do.
> 
> On a side note if we ordered something we knew since we were small, may be awhile having these, we tried to get care sheets and at least read about them before they arrived. And tried to stick with things like Rosies and strip knees.
> 
> ...


That's pretty good.  I agree with the whole dog whisperer thing and the hillbilly remarks sound a lot like here in Missouri.  country bumpkins!!   My husband worked with a young guy that had never seen a gallon of milk nor knew what a pharmacy was!!!  NO he wasn't amish


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## fandip (Jun 9, 2009)

So I'm brand new to the T world however I've been reading alot on here until it shows up.  I was at Petsmart today to pickup a tiny cage for my sling thats showing up this week and the girl said I should get it a 10 gallon tank now so I don't have to buy another later, and I want all these heat lamps.  I said  ooookay... and walked away.  Thank god I've been reading up otherwise I'd have either a split open, or cooked T very shortly


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## tjmi2000 (Jun 9, 2009)

Wait I got one.  It's not about spiders but it is an excellent example of stupidity.  Bill S. you cracked me up with those cave questions.  They remind me of people that come to my work.  I work as a manager in a restaurant at a major resort and one of the most common questions I here is, "How big is the nine inch pizza?"  I just wish I could show them what nine inches looks like!


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## Bill S (Jun 9, 2009)

xhexdx said:


> I feel like if it's not directly affecting the way you live, what business is it of yours what I have at my house?


I agree completely.  Unfortunately there are always those people in the world who feel they are interfering for your own good, and they're convinced it's their job to protect you from yourself whether you like it or not.

There's an old quotation from Thoreau that goes something like "If you see someone coming your way with the obvious intent of doing you good, run for your life."  He must have had this type of person in mind when he said that.


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## blix (Jun 26, 2009)

This thread deserved a bump, since I was - once again - visiting my local pet shop to buy some small mealworms.

The conversation went like this, after I had bought them:

Me: "Thanks, just what I needed!"

Owner: "So how are your spiders doing?"

Me: "Great, thanks, although some of them barely eat at the moment"

Owner: "Well, usually they are like that for many months due to hibernation when they sleep - like bears do"

Me: "Ehh, right, have a good weekend"


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## BigDaddyJ (Jun 26, 2009)

Although some of these are rather funny because we are all informed about Ts dosent mean that these people need to be belittled due to thier lack of knowledge about them. Instead of saying "I have to go" or "thanks goodbye". Take 5 min from your day and inform someone about Ts. This is why most people have a fear of them and the crazy laws that are trying to be passed to take your hobby away.Due to uninformed people. Education is key to make this hobby grow and flurish.


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## Sathane (Jun 26, 2009)

I don't think it is our responsibility to educate people who are in the industry on their 'product'.  If I took 5 minutes to set the record straight every time I heard some retardation being spewed at a LPS I'd spend days there.  I've heard associates telling customers that their new Ts required heat lamps and UVB lighting.  In those cases, where there is the potential to harm the animal and send off a new hobbyist in the wrong direction, I do make a point to correct the situation.

You are right though.  It's not nice to belittle and make fun of the uninformed in these threads.  
It should be put in your sig, were it belongs. 




BigDaddyJ said:


> Although some of these are rather funny because we are all informed about Ts dosent mean that these people need to be belittled due to thier lack of knowledge about them. Instead of saying "I have to go" or "thanks goodbye". Take 5 min from your day and inform someone about Ts. This is why most people have a fear of them and the crazy laws that are trying to be passed to take your hobby away.Due to uninformed people. Education is key to make this hobby grow and flurish.


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## Scorpendra (Jun 27, 2009)

my sister asked me if my tarantulas were having babies. i said no, and she asked why. i tried explaining simply that they were different species, but it went right over her head, as did my analogy of a cat and dog (even though it's not an even parallel). after a minute or two, she got frustrated and left, claiming that she doesn't know anything about spiders...even though the problem was understanding basic biology.

if she pushed the issue, i would have mentioned that almost all of them are adult females.


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## Sathane (Jun 27, 2009)

Is she 4         ?



Molitor said:


> my sister asked me if my tarantulas were having babies. i said no, and she asked why. i tried explaining simply that they were different species, but it went right over her head, as did my analogy of a cat and dog (even though it's not an even parallel). after a minute or two, she got frustrated and left, claiming that she doesn't know anything about spiders...even though the problem was understanding basic biology.
> 
> if she pushed the issue, i would have mentioned that almost all of them are adult females.


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## Scorpendra (Jun 27, 2009)

she's 21. awkward, huh?

it's not that she doesn't understand the concept of taxonomy, it's just that she doesn't think actual boundaries go deeper than "dog", "snake", "monkey", "tarantula", etc. and that anything that does go deeper is along the lines of a breed. there's really nothing i can be expected to do at that point.


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## KoffinKat138 (Jun 27, 2009)

I went In to a LPS, to buy a coast rican tiger rump( Cyclosternum fasciatum) that they just got in,,and i saw in a KK they had a OBT,,but just to make sure i asked "what kind of Baboon tarantula is that?" 
and the guy replied "oh its not a baboon, its the "Golden" phase Tiger Rump.,,its just a Lil more aggressive.


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## Radamanthys (Jun 27, 2009)

Molitor said:


> she's 21. awkward, huh?
> 
> it's not that she doesn't understand the concept of taxonomy, it's just that she doesn't think actual boundaries go deeper than "dog", "snake", "monkey", "tarantula", etc. and that anything that does go deeper is along the lines of a breed. there's really nothing i can be expected to do at that point.


people are used to cats and dogs that breed with anything similar to their form lol


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## Lennie Collins (Jun 27, 2009)

1) What if they get out of their cages and bite you?
2) Do you let them out and roam around your apartment?
3) Do they come when you call their names?
4) Are they mean (aggressive)?
5) Are they poisionous?
6) Do they get along with other pets?
7) Can you put them (different species tarantulas) all in a cage together?
8) Can they kill you/Are they dangerous?
9) Do you bathe them?
10) Can you pet them? 


These are some of the ones I have been asked since I have been collecting? I would not say they are ignorant BUT like not knowing!


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## Chilobrachys (Jun 27, 2009)

Not really something someone said, but i was at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo today and noticed the old sponge in the water bowl in the GGB enclosure.  The rest of the Ts there had bone dry water bowls.  Other than that they have a pretty cool collection. I just think a zoo would know better.


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## OxDionysus (Jun 27, 2009)

When I first moved back to MI from Vegas I found a LPS and they had a few T's that were WAY over priced. They had Rose hairs and Pink toes for $60, Red Knee's for $300, Cobalt blue $90 and I asked why the prices were so high and he said that these were normal prices for these T's. 

I told him I just came from Vegas and the prices were like 1/4 of his and he told me that's because they can just catch them wild there. Here in MI we have to have them imported and shipped ect..

I just shook my head and walked out.


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## Steve Calceatum (Jun 28, 2009)

It's no secret to anyone here that keeping our beloved "Monsters" attracts a crap-ton of attention from those around you. Since I started, I've had to indulge every one of my friends and family in alot of spider-related crap. Alot of questions asked, and they're always wanting to see the lil buggers...even the so-called "arachnophobes!!" And I think we all agree that, when given the chance, we just love to show off our collections!!!  
Nothing asked in the interest of learning or just plain curiosity is unwelcome. I enjoy being able to educate and instill passion in people. When the intent is to judge or demean, I just call them on their s#!t right there.....completely bypassing the educational approach (they're not gonna listen anyway:wall: ), and inform them that X-behavior is asinine, ignorant, and completely out of line for Y-reasons, and if X & Y continue, then I gotta go....

On a lighter side:
My ex-wife came to pick up the kids, and brought her new boyfriend in to see the Creepies. When dropping them off the following week, this guy (a lovable, but highly ignorant type) was asking me how he could get hold of an "African Birdeater." (I couldn't help but smile at this point) After a few minutes, I assertained that he was referring to a T. blondi...and that he had this burning desire to fit-in and keep the biggest freakin' eight-legged thing he could find!!! Lo, and behold, it just so happened that the Discovery Channel showed him the light to his first T. Well, I had just started to get out the phrase "That is the most absurd thing I've ever h......." when my 5-year old son interrupted me and said "Pokies are better!!!!"


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## LeilaNami (Jun 28, 2009)

xsyorra said:


> It's no secret to anyone here that keeping our beloved "Monsters" attracts a crap-ton of attention from those around you. Since I started, I've had to indulge every one of my friends and family in alot of spider-related crap. Alot of questions asked, and they're always wanting to see the lil buggers...even the so-called *"arachnophobes!!*" And I think we all agree that, when given the chance, we just love to show off our collections!!!
> Nothing asked in the interest of learning or just plain curiosity is unwelcome. I enjoy being able to educate and instill passion in people. When the intent is to judge or demean, I just call them on their s#!t right there.....completely bypassing the educational approach (they're not gonna listen anyway:wall: ), and inform them that X-behavior is asinine, ignorant, and completely out of line for Y-reasons, and if X & Y continue, then I gotta go....
> 
> On a lighter side:
> My ex-wife came to pick up the kids, and brought her new boyfriend in to see the Creepies. When dropping them off the following week, this guy (a lovable, but highly ignorant type) was asking me how he could get hold of an "African Birdeater." (I couldn't help but smile at this point) After a few minutes, I assertained that he was referring to a T. blondi...and that he had this burning desire to fit-in and keep the biggest freakin' eight-legged thing he could find!!! Lo, and behold, it just so happened that the Discovery Channel showed him the light to his first T. Well, I had just started to get out the phrase "That is the most absurd thing I've ever h......." when my 5-year old son interrupted me and said "Pokies are better!!!!"


Yes I love how absolutely everyone who is afraid of spiders calls themselves an arachnophobe.  True arachnophobia is uncommon.  Fear of something does not make it a true phobia!


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## Jackuul (Jun 28, 2009)

LeilaNami said:


> Yes I love how absolutely everyone who is afraid of spiders calls themselves an arachnophobe.  True arachnophobia is uncommon.  Fear of something does not make it a true phobia!


I was one of those folks who was actually really afraid of spiders.  A phopbia I had nightmares about, constantly on my mind, and always out the corner of my eye anything dark and small would elicit a violent reaction of recoil, even if it turned out to not be a spider - just because I was a afraid it might be one. 

I would yelp and run away.  I couldn't even handle them myself.  Here I was, 22, 5'10, afraid of a tiny spider to the point of just running to get a hammer or something to use against it.  I regarded them as my greatest foe in life, just as heights still are (I cannot stand on a chair competently enough to save my life) and I pretty much lived in fear of them.  As in, real nightmarish fear.  I looked them up, I read about them, I did everything on the educational front when it comes to the basics of spiders - and that did not change me.  

However, two years later, and I have baby Ts.  I changed after, instead of killing a gigantic wolf spider that was obviously female and possibly gravid (it was huge compared to the small ones with the club-like pedipalps) I trapped it in a jar.  My much younger brother insisted he keep it as a pet, and we ended up getting it an aquarium, and crickets to eat - which it devoured one after the other after the other.  

Then he wanted a Rose Tarantula.  I was tasked with the research on proper care and such, and eventually got to the point - without thinking - of managing it and making sure it was cared for correctly.  I have held his spider, any my own, whereas not more than a year ago I would flee in terror.  Now I have gone from wanting just one spider of my own, to a specific set of spiders.  

Every single species in the genus Grammostola, and I have even started a site dedicated to arachnids... 

It wasn't so much education as it was exposure and actually seeing them right up close (and finally handling them) without either running away or attacking with a blunt object that would doom anything.


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## xhexdx (Jun 28, 2009)

There was a dealer at Repticon here who had S. calceatum labeled as P. regalis.

I tried to explain to him that it was labeled wrong, but he got it from someone (he told me his name but I have no idea who it is) who supposedly supplies everyone their spiders and breeds everything and has been doing so for the past 25 years, so he can't possibly have it labeled wrong.

So I clarified with him that I wasn't trying to start an argument or create a problem, but the spider was definitely labeled wrong.  We kind of left it at that and I walked away.

I sent him an e-mail today with links to both spiders and pointed out two of the main (there are plenty!) differences between them, and he responded positively and said he would forward the information to his wholesaler as well.

Hopefully he's actually doing it, but at least I proved my point.  That's why I don't buy anything that's too small to properly identify from reptile shows.  Too questionable.


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## Julia (Jun 28, 2009)

xhexdx said:


> There was a dealer at Repticon here who had S. calceatum labeled as P. regalis.
> 
> I tried to explain to him that it was labeled wrong, but he got it from someone (he told me his name but I have no idea who it is) who supposedly supplies everyone their spiders and breeds everything and has been doing so for the past 25 years, so he can't possibly have it labeled wrong.
> 
> ...


Yup yup.  Been there.  Done that.  Heard the whole, "I get these from a guy who breeds them so he knows what he's talking about and has been doing this for many years" spiel.  Only in my case, it was an adult female labeled as "O. gadgili" that I immediately recognized as a Haplopelma.  I questioned that it was CB and totally questioned the genus/species name.  The dealer swore it was all correct because that's what his guy told him.  Bought her anyway ($15....couldn't pass it up).  Still don't know exactly what she is.   

In your case there, S. calceatum labeled as P. regalis, at LEAST both are arboreal and both have nasty bites.  I mean, It's not like the S. calceatum was labeled an an A. avic or anything.


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## Jackuul (Jun 28, 2009)

Well, here's one new that I just read about today... and it is something perpetuated even here.  Mor of a rumor or urban legend though.

Superglue was "meant" for sealing up wounds = False.



> Cyanoacrylates were invented in 1942 by Dr. Harry Coover and Fred Joyner of Kodak Laboratories during experiments to make a special extra-clear plastic suitable for gun sights. Although not appropriate for the gun sights, they did find that cyanoacrylates would glue together many materials with incredible strength and quick action. Seeing possibilities for a new adhesive, Kodak developed "Eastman #910" (later "Eastman 910") a few years later as the first true "super glue." Others have followed, including Super Glue and Krazy Glue.
> 
> There are urban legends about the first usages of Cyanoacrylates being on the battle fields to close soldiers' wounds.



I finally got the gumption to look that up after I read it here so many times.


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## HcUnderoath (Jul 1, 2009)

i usually get the normal questions but ultimately i get the same comment which is "you need help"

also yall should quit hatin on pet stores, not all of them are like that, i am an employee at an independent pet store, we are all knowledgeable, if we dont know much about a specific animal we send em to someone who does, main thing we tell ppl to do before buying anything is to do research, we have no problem saying i dont know if we are not positive, we are against impulse buying, our prices are tons better then any chain store, we carry tons of tarantulas with prices the same as reputable breeders or better, we are totally honest with customers and so is the owner.


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## Tapahtyn (Jul 1, 2009)

HcUnderoath said:


> i usually get the normal questions but ultimately i get the same comment which is "you need help"
> 
> also yall should quit hatin on pet stores, not all of them are like that, i am an employee at an independent pet store, we are all knowledgeable, if we dont know much about a specific animal we send em to someone who does, main thing we tell ppl to do before buying anything is to do research, we have no problem saying i dont know if we are not positive, we are against impulse buying, our prices are tons better then any chain store, we carry tons of tarantulas with prices the same as reputable breeders or better, we are totally honest with customers and so is the owner.


I understand where you are coming from and if I were in your shoes, I would get a little frustrated.  Unfortunately there are more pet stores that do not know enough about what they keep than do, and sadly it gives petstores a bad name.  There is a great store that keeps all kinds of chiclids and that is where I go for real info about my fish.  I wish more places were like that but it's not, ya know just about the all mighty dollar.


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## T_DORKUS (Jul 1, 2009)

HcUnderoath said:


> also yall should quit hatin on pet stores, not all of them are like that...


Yeah, I'm surprised at some of the comments by some usually pretty smart people here concerning pet store employees (considering there's got to be quite a few members here such as yourself that do work/have worked at pet stores).  I do agree that there are many pet store employees that do say some pretty amazing(to be polite) things but to make blanket statements that all of them are lacking in the IQ department is just rude/offensive/insensitive to those that aren't.


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## ZergFront (Jul 18, 2009)

xsyorra said:


> Lo, and behold, it just so happened that the Discovery Channel showed him the light to his first T. Well, I had just started to get out the phrase "That is the most absurd thing I've ever h......." when my 5-year old son interrupted me and said "Pokies are better!!!!"





bgbT said:


> I went In to a LPS, to buy a coast rican tiger rump( Cyclosternum fasciatum) that they just got in,,and i saw in a KK they had a OBT,,but just to make sure i asked "what kind of Baboon tarantula is that?"
> and the guy replied "oh its not a baboon, its the "Golden" phase Tiger Rump.,,its just a Lil more aggressive.


 *Currently in stitches*  

 Is your son passive-aggressive or what?




xhexdx said:


> I feel like if it's not directly affecting the way you live, what business is it of yours what I have at my house?


 I agree. None of us here need "saving." Unless you start going in debt from buying too many. I would not tell any of my neighbors what I had when I get my tarantulas. A girl my sister's friends with had seen our chinchilla and asked her mom for one. The mother replied, "No, they're illegal here." :wall: 




Erwynn said:


> We have an H. gigas, and they can swim.  One of the only ones as far as I know.  We made ours a semi aquatic enclosure and she loves it, goes swimming in there and catches fish.


 I know. That's one on my list. But first I have to get the top 2 that are on there. Plus, I want to get a terrarium to make a little pond for a H. gigas.


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## Aurelia (Aug 9, 2010)

Yesterday my friend, her bf and I were talking about my tarantulas. She goes "did you know that tarantulas aren't arachnids?" I said "no, they are, but they're not true spiders." then she goes "yeah, they're not spiders" I said "yes, they are spiders, but not true spiders." then her boyfriend goes "oh, because they don't spin web right?" :wall:  At least in the end they listened to my correct information. It's funny that people will tell you what they know about a subject, even though it's completely wrong, instead of asking questions. 



(bumping this thread because I don't want to start a new one)


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## Chris_Skeleton (Aug 9, 2010)

Me: That pink toe is a mature male and doesn't have long to live. It won't make it through it's next molt. 
Petco employee: I'll check into it
Me: Are you gonna label it as a male?
Petco employee: We don't sell them as males or females, we sell them as tarantulas. 

This was after I had told that guy 3 or 4 times over the span of three weeks.


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## Stan Schultz (Aug 10, 2010)

Chris_Skeleton said:


> Me: That pink toe is a mature male and doesn't have long to live. It won't make it through it's next molt.
> Petco employee: I'll check into it
> Me: Are you gonna label it as a male?
> Petco employee: We don't sell them as males or females, we sell them as tarantulas.
> ...


What could possibly be said about this beyond "_Ignorance is bliss! Stupidity is bovine!_"


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## Hobo (Aug 10, 2010)

"Aren't you afraid that if there's an earthquake, all the tarantula cages will fall and break, and they'll all escape and attack you??!"


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## BCscorp (Aug 10, 2010)

Hobo said:


> "Aren't you afraid that if there's an earthquake, all the tarantula cages will fall and break, and they'll all escape and attack you??!"


 haha koh...who asked you that?
I only worry that during an earthquake they may get rocked off the shelf and be injured/killed in heavy glass aquariums.

Mine
"Don't lots of people get killed each year from those things?"
and
"If I come to your house I'll step on all of them"
or my fave which I've got from more than one person...
"Hey, I found a spider in my bathroom this morning...and I killed it!" said as though it'll push my buttons. Like when meat eaters loudly proclaim their love for bacon if they find out you dont eat meat. It's lame.


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## Musicwolf (Aug 10, 2010)

Conversation moments ago with my co-worker:

Coworker: Aw, that looks like a nice one, my cousin lets me hold that kind when I go to his house.
Me: She's as nasty as they come.
Coworker: Why, she looks sweet?
Me: That's an H. lividum, and she's stereotypical of her species.
Coworker: Oh really? I thought it was a widow.
Me: I doubt your cousin lets you hold his widow.
Coworker: Well, it's some kind of spider that looks like yours. Maybe it was a tarantula.
Me: There's over 900 species of tarantulas, I still doubt it was an H. lividum.
Coworker: Oh, so the species is mean, but not your spider 'cause she looks to cute to be mean.


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## Terry D (Aug 10, 2010)

Quote from one heckuva superstitious "old-school" neighbor awhile back- "Terreh, why you beez playin wit da debba chirrens an lookin at dem booidz an stuff!?" 

Terry


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## J.huff23 (Aug 10, 2010)

Im so glad this thread got bumped, lol.

So once this girl asked me:

"When a tarantula falls they shatter like glass right?"

She was being 100% serious. All I could do was stare and shake my head.


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## Helix (Aug 10, 2010)

BCscorp said:


> "If I come to your house I'll step on all of them"


This statement is just infuriating..and arrogant..
People usually say to me a milder version of this when I talk about tarantulas, that they would step on Ts if they saw them somewhere outside..
So I ask those people, do they maybe want me to step on them right now.
I hate such ignorant people...




J.huff23 said:


> "When a tarantula falls they shatter like glass right?"


Yeah...and if you get them warm enough, then they pull back together just like terminator...

Some of mine..
"What are you doing with them?"
"Do you make them fight each other?"


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## Musicwolf (Aug 10, 2010)

Helix said:


> This statement is just infuriating..and arrogant..
> People usually say to me a milder version of this when I talk about tarantulas, that they would step on Ts if they saw them somewhere outside..
> So I ask those people, do they maybe want me to step on them right now.
> I hate such ignorant people...


Tell them that you'll kick their cat if you see it outside - - - same thing.


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## thumpersalley (Aug 10, 2010)

My husband & I do presentations with our Ts, scorpions & snakes (sometimes birds too) & we get alot of know it alls. Its so entertaining to have them do their talk to us & others around them & then present them with the facts to each of their myths they just told us about. "When I was in the war, there were tarantulas 2 feet wide" & so on. Whatever.......


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## Kirsten (Aug 10, 2010)

delikorkmaz said:


> I think it's important to be kind to people.
> 
> If you go around with the attitude that most people in the world are stupid, and if you are constantly in search of the newest shocking stupidity, that's pretty much what you'll find.
> 
> ...


^I like this, especially the first paragraph.



blix said:


> Not exactly a comment or remark, rather a semi-retarded sales pitch some old guy tried to sell me, when I was looking around in his petstore - after I had mentioned that I keep spiders.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Why don't yours have one?  Mine all *LOVE* theirs;sometimes they spin 2 or 3 at a time, holding each others' feet



syndicate said:


> This kinda stuff makes me angry.Especially when you have pet stores mislabling things like seemani's as Haplopelma.People at pet stores should be required by law to know all proper care and info for everything they sell!


Better than the other way around, dontcha think?


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## Koh_ (Aug 10, 2010)

BCscorp said:


> haha koh...who asked you that?
> I only worry that during an earthquake they may get rocked off the shelf and be injured/killed in heavy glass aquariums.
> 
> Mine
> ...


hi bcscorp
are you talking to me? or is hobo's name Koh? lol


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## Hobo (Aug 10, 2010)

Koh_ said:


> hi bcscorp
> are you talking to me? or is hobo's name Koh? lol


HAha.. Bcscorp's got his Canadians crossed!


Also, yeah, I get a lot of "You know, X people die every year from tarantula bites, I saw it on the news/internet/TV/discovery channel"
I'm all for educating, but it infuriates me when people think they know so much that they feel the need to teach others these little gems.

I think stuff like this video here, for example, are to blame. While quite informative and interesting, it pulls something really stupid at the very end, which I can totally see as spawning more "tarantulas are deadly" nonesense.


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## LuvRottweilers (Aug 10, 2010)

I have the all time dumb 1 winner-I sold a baby teratoscincus karselingi to a guy-took deposit-then he asked when it would be finished breast feeding so he could take it home!! And he had to ask just as I took a drag off a cigarette-thought I was gonna choke to death


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## neubii18 (Aug 10, 2010)

this isn't about a tarantula,but i was talking to my assosiate pastor,and she told me that her friend had a rosy boa that was 9 feet long,and when they were cleaning the cage,they put it in the bath tub.then when they came back,it had gone down the toilet.i was like "ok...".it was pretty funny.i don't exactly love my assosiate pastor,so that made it even funnier!

also,at this past expo,there was a guy handling a t.blondi.the conversation went like this.

*i walk up to guy holding T.Blondi*
me:"that's a cool T.Blondi!"
wierd guy at expo:*says the following like it's obvious and he's smarter than me*"this isn't a T.Blondi,it's a goliath bird eater..."
me:"oh..."


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## Chris_Skeleton (Aug 10, 2010)

Ah another Petco quote.

After telling them about my pink toe.

Petco employee (a different one this time): You have a pink toe? Does it ever like freak out? The ones we get always freak out and one time we had a birdeater and that was the meanest thing I have ever seen. 
Me: Not really

Of course I can't say anything too bad about this Petco because I've talked to a couple of the employees and one of them was one of the ones in charge of the reptiles, and after they find out I have so many Ts, they actually ask questions. So now I'm educating them about how to care for the ones in the store and they let me mess around with the Ts and do what needs to be done whenever I want. I even helped with rehousing an avic the day after they got it.


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## Anubis77 (Aug 11, 2010)

A couple years ago, I was talking with a group of people and they got on the subject of spiders. Don't really remember the specifics, but one girl mentioned that spiders aren't animals. After correcting her, she kept insisting that they weren't animals. I asked her what she thought they were, because we're pretty limited in kingdoms to choose from. I'm not so sure she understood the concept of a kingdom though. She kind of dropped it, giving me the typical, "What a nerd..." expression.

I still want to know what her concept of "animal" was. I'm thinking it was synonymous to mammal. This was back in highschool, where biology wasn't requisite apparently.


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## J.huff23 (Aug 11, 2010)

Another,

"Do you keep them all in one big cage? Or do you let them roam free in the room?"


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## NikiP (Aug 11, 2010)

Glad someone brought this back up! I've been enjoying reading through some of the comments, 

I've had numerous people all say they'll never come to visit me again because of my tarantulas. Doesn't matter how many times I say that my critters are all securely locked up. 

My aunt won't even step through the door  

And i've also been asked numerous times how can they all live together, lol.


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## popcangenie (Aug 11, 2010)

*green earth exotics in Windsor Ontario*

there are 2 pet stores in my town
(green earth exotics and the vivarium)

green earth is clueless it has huge animals in small tanks like it has a kaman(sorry for my spelling but its the smaller size gators)
in a 55 gallon tank! like it can't turn around!

also one of my friend went in to that store one day and the lady asked him if he wanted to hold the spider

this is how it went down

girl: would you like to hold one?

friend: no thank im just looking

(she takes out a big rosie )

and when she is holding it she gets scared and spooks it it jumps and lands on the floor so now its dead. she picks it up and puts it back in the tank... and said she fine and went back to doing her desk work...

thats when i switched to the viv there not stupid. and every one there knows there stuff.

i think pet shops should have to know what they buy before they buy it


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## Redneck (Aug 11, 2010)

My favorite...

From my grandma... She said this after she looked in & saw my 7" LP.. She then turned to me & said..
"What the hell is wrong with you?!"


Then.. At Petco.. There was a girl wanting to hold a G. rosea.... The guy working there seemed like he knew what he was talking about to a small point..
Then he says something like.. "Spiders wont bite you if you dont show fear.."


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## NikiP (Aug 11, 2010)

Redneck said:


> From my grandma... She said this after she looked in & saw my 7" LP.. She then turned to me & said..
> "What the hell is wrong with you?!"


I forgot that comment. I get asked that about every other day.

Infact my ex said it to me today! All because I posted pics of a new enclosure


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## malevolentrobot (Aug 11, 2010)

Redneck said:


> My favorite...
> 
> From my grandma... She said this after she looked in & saw my 7" LP.. She then turned to me & said..
> "What the hell is wrong with you?!"
> ...


haha, that was pretty much my mother's reaction when she found out about my dubias. the Ts she kind of understood, but trying to explain the difference between dubias and regular roaches (especially since i was struggling to explain having gotten suprise babies from an unmunched momma) was asking too much.

also, looks like someone spent to much time in the bird section. i've also seen someone try to say the same about a hamster, right before it gave the inside of their thumb and forefinger an nice chomp and they dropped it. sometimes overconfidence is just as bad.

poor hammie


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## ikarus_black (Aug 11, 2010)

*...at Petco!*

ME: What specie is it?
Girl: A Rose Hair.....
Me: (Rolling eyes)
  ...
Me: Male or Female?
Girl: -Picks up the T, a slight look at the spinnerets and say ...-mmmh looks like female to me...

i thought: jesus christ!!! 

and i ended buyin the poor G. rosea from that evil petstore 1 year later the G. rosea molted into a mature male!!!


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## KoriTamashii (Aug 11, 2010)

Love this thread.

I get a lot of the standard "THEY STILL HAVE FANGS?!?!?!".

An LPS is selling an A. brocklehursti, probably less than an inch, for $60. I point out that they are readily available for a third of that price at that size, and the man informs me that everyone selling them at that price is ripping themselves off. :wall:

I hate when people who CLEARLY do not know what they are talking about talk to me like I'm some kind of neanderthal. It makes me so angry, sometimes I just start babbling off all the things I know and it blows their minds.


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## Crows Arachnids (Aug 11, 2010)

KoriTamashii said:


> Love this thread.
> 
> I get a lot of the standard "THEY STILL HAVE FANGS?!?!?!".
> 
> ...


Not that the employee was correct in the 'ripping off' statement, but retail pet stores have a huge amount of overhead. Should someone come into my store telling me something like what you told him, I wouldn't think much of you either. I do not have a LPS, but I work very closely with many of them, there is ABSOLUTELY NO comparison between our online hobby and a retail pet store, the dynamics are entirely contrasting. Remember shipping folks, remember shipping.


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## Fran (Aug 11, 2010)

Not to pick on anybody, but yeah...Its pointless to point out any hobby prices to a retail store vendor. You might get a "well, then dont buy it.Period"...But you wont get it cheaper, so it will annoy the vendor.


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## KoriTamashii (Aug 11, 2010)

Crows Arachnids said:


> Not that the employee was correct in the 'ripping off' statement, but retail pet stores have a huge amount of overhead. Should someone come into my store telling me something like what you told him, I wouldn't think much of you either. I do not have a LPS, but I work very closely with many of them, there is ABSOLUTELY NO comparison between our online hobby and a retail pet store, the dynamics are entirely contrasting. Remember shipping folks, remember shipping.


Oh, I know. I should have clarified. He was trying to convince me to buy that particular one, and I kept telling him no, I could get one much cheaper from a reputable vendor/dealer. He wouldn't come off it, so I told him one last time, no thank you, and left. :wall:


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## Hobo (Aug 11, 2010)

Another one just this morning that I get fairly often and I've completely forgot about:

"You paid X for a spider?! You can come down to my basement/attic/yard and you can have whatever spiders you find for free!"

I usually answer with a "ok! That'll be great!" but usually they never follow through


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## xhexdx (Aug 11, 2010)

You can't really expect people working at pet shops to know scientific names of spiders, birds, snakes, fish, or anything else, for that matter.  I can't remember the last time I went to a pet shop and asked them about spiders.


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## Scorpionking20 (Aug 11, 2010)

Got a T blondi (burgandy most likely) from a store and warned the little girl of U hairs.  She didn't seem to think it was a big deal though, and after making my T bald by chasing it with her hands around and around the cage, had the brightest red hands BEFORE I even left the store!  Priceless...haven't seen her since.  I am just guessing that it hurt pretty bad for a few weeks.


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## Assassin (Aug 12, 2010)

Well...We have a pet shop 2km from where i live, and they have a ''spider expert'' employed..So...I said that i need a high enclosure for a large arboreal T, and he asked me if i had a G. rosea  Some expert......


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## Musicwolf (Aug 12, 2010)

Assassin said:


> Well...We have a pet shop 2km from where i live, and they have a ''spider expert'' employed..So...I said that i need a high enclosure for a large arboreal T, and he asked me if i had a G. rosea  Some expert......


Heh, sounds like they spared no expense training their "expert."


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## CAK (Aug 12, 2010)

I have so many of those stories it's sad....

The one by my place got a bunch of slings to stock their shelf.  They had a nice selection of 3/4" B.smithi, N.chromatus, L.parahybana, A.hentzi and A.paysoni....     The problem is the slings ranged in price from $65.00 to $125.00 each        What makes it even funnier....    I hosted a local spider meeting with the NTEC folks in Nebraska and one of the members needed crickets...   I sent them to my LPS and even called them to let them know to take care of "my boys!" and the guys I sent even brought them 3 or 4 P.irminia slings as a gift.   The pet store not only charged him full price for the crickets (ok, understandable since I wasn't there) but they took the spiders, hardly said thanks, and guess what????   Popped them on the shelf for $60.00 each!

:barf:

They also had a P.pederseni hanging out there forever for $100 because it was a bit smaller than the other one they had for $120.  I started looking and sure thing...  the pederseni was a MM that was 6 months or so post molt.  I let the big dog know.  He said Cool, added the male insignia on the front and left the price.   Could you imagine getting home with your spider that you love not knowing it's a MM and going to die soon and a month later it's dead?   I've tried talking to them, but they don't care.


J


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## briarpatch10 (Aug 12, 2010)

*why*



xhexdx said:


> You can't really expect people working at pet shops to know scientific names of spiders, birds, snakes, fish, or anything else, for that matter.
> 
> 
> why cant we? I think if we go into a pet shop the people we buy from should know what they are selling. we expect our car salesman to know about the car we want to buy so why shouldnt the pet salesman know about the pet we buy.
> not expecting them to know anything is why they dont know anything if we hold them to higher standards the have to meet them. If we complain enough to "home office" eventually they will have to listen!:?


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## sean-820 (Aug 13, 2010)

The most common things I hear are:

defanged, can they jump, Why dont i just keep them together and just why do i keep them. i don't usually bring up i have t's unless i think the person has some knowledge and wont just be totally ignorant.

I dont think lps employees need to know names, but at least one of them should know the proper care and all lfs employees should at least personally keep something and not just be some kid that knows nothing that needed a job.


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## flamesbane (Aug 13, 2010)

briarpatch10 said:


> why cant we? I think if we go into a pet shop the people we buy from should know what they are selling. we expect our car salesman to know about the car we want to buy so why shouldnt the pet salesman know about the pet we buy.
> not expecting them to know anything is why they dont know anything if we hold them to higher standards the have to meet them. If we complain enough to "home office" eventually they will have to listen!:?


Do YOU know the binomial name for every animal the average petstore carries? Can you spell them and pronounce them properly? Do you know the common names as well? Because 80%+ of the people that come in a petstore won't even know what a binomial name is. You really can't expect every empolyee of every store to know the binomial name for every species when only a small percentage of people will even care. Further, how many people here on these boards even support their local petstore? Why would they learn information for people who won't even support their business?


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## CAK (Aug 13, 2010)

flamesbane said:


> Do YOU know the binomial name for every animal the average petstore carries? Can you spell them and pronounce them properly? Do you know the common names as well? Because 80%+ of the people that come in a petstore won't even know what a binomial name is. You really can't expect every empolyee of every store to know the binomial name for every species when only a small percentage of people will even care. Further, how many people here on these boards even support their local petstore? Why would they learn information for people who won't even support their business?


and another ruined thread.....     I unsubscribed!


Added:

Sorry flame, I didn't mean to point it directly to you.  It's just this is how every one of these threads ends up ruined.


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## briarpatch10 (Aug 13, 2010)

flamesbane said:


> Do YOU know the binomial name for every animal the average petstore carries? Can you spell them and pronounce them properly? Do you know the common names as well? Because 80%+ of the people that come in a petstore won't even know what a binomial name is. You really can't expect every empolyee of every store to know the binomial name for every species when only a small percentage of people will even care. Further, how many people here on these boards even support their local petstore? Why would they learn information for people who won't even support their business?


Do I work at a pet store? No... When I have a job selling something I make It my buisness to know  what I am selling as should everyone else. Stupidity is not an excuse ! ignorance is not an excuse. If pet store employees knew what they were selling maybe we as a group would be more willing to support the local pet store that sold tarantulas. You missed the point ! If pet store employees cared more about their job then we would care more about the pet store.....:?

Petco carries what 1 type of tarantula... too much to ask that they know about it...I dont think so


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## flamesbane (Aug 13, 2010)

briarpatch10 said:


> Do I work at a pet store? No... When I have a job selling something I make It my buisness to know  what I am selling as should everyone else. Stupidity is not an excuse ! ignorance is not an excuse. If pet store employees knew what they were selling maybe we as a group would be more willing to support the local pet store that sold tarantulas. You missed the point ! If pet store employees cared more about their job then we would care more about the pet store.....:?
> 
> Petco carries what 1 type of tarantula... too much to ask that they know about it...I dont think so


PM sent, now back to the topic at hand.

"Does that one bite?" says my visiting mother while pointing at an OBT...


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## joshuai (Aug 13, 2010)

briarpatch10 said:


> xhexdx said:
> 
> 
> > You can't really expect people working at pet shops to know scientific names of spiders, birds, snakes, fish, or anything else, for that matter.
> ...


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## malevolentrobot (Aug 13, 2010)

briarpatch10 said:


> if you hold them to higher standards you will have to pay better than minimum wage most are not willing to learn for 8 bucks an hour, and i would not expect them to know more than they are spiders for 8 bucks an hour!


this is exactly where the problem lies. petstores hire college students and pay them scarcely better than minimum wage, most of these positions are "dead end jobs". they have absolutely no reason to learn about the animals above and beyond what their employer deems necessary, unless it is a personal interest to them.

i don't get paid jack, and i've worked at my job four years and have actually learned above and beyond what i should know (especially as far an inverts and aquatics go, which aren't even sold at my store) , but thats the way the buisness works, it's about money making (not the animals) when you get to the heart of it. which is really sad, and often creates ethical dilemmas (at least, in my experience).

trust me, i work at a pet store. i see this around me every day, all the time... :wall::wall::wall:


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## BCscorp (Aug 13, 2010)

Hey Koh and Hobo...I did get my fellow Canadians mixed up...:? Probably cause I was looking at picture threads first...haha.

I know a guy (who I dont talk spiders with), because he is in the pest control business. But his van has a giant "black widow" looking spider on it. Which of course pisses me off due to the fact there are other "pests" that he deals with much more often ie rats, mice, hornets. But I think they use the spider image to induce fear...that bothers me, not just because its a spider, but it misrepresents what he actually does most of the time.


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## xhexdx (Aug 13, 2010)

briarpatch10 said:


> why cant we? I think if we go into a pet shop the people we buy from should know what they are selling. we expect our car salesman to know about the car we want to buy so why shouldnt the pet salesman know about the pet we buy.
> not expecting them to know anything is why they dont know anything if we hold them to higher standards the have to meet them. If we complain enough to "home office" eventually they will have to listen!:?


Does the pet shop guy work on commission?

Does the car lot hire teenagers and pay them minimum wage?

There are clear and obvious differences between those two jobs, and the comparison doesn't make any sense to me.  Pet shops aren't specialty shops - go to a specialty shop and they can tell you scientific names and give accurate information.


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## malevolentrobot (Aug 13, 2010)

xhexdx said:


> Does the pet shop guy work on commission?


slightly offtopic, the store i worked at tried commissioned bonuses here. it backfired, some people we had working here were more willing to dish misinfo to make sales and in the end we had some really unhappy customers.

i've seen some appaling things here, but the blatant lies (some that were occasionally dangerous)  i heard during that period definitely took the cake.


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## Scorpendra (Aug 13, 2010)

"Do you race them?"

I asked her to rephrase because she might have said "raise" and I misheard, but no. Race. The girl who asked was pretty slow in general, though. Besides that, my sister asked if I was going to mate them and that conversation led to the revelation that she has embarassingly little knowledge about biology. Much like the girl Anubis77 mentioned.


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## popcangenie (Aug 13, 2010)

xhexdx said:


> Does the pet shop guy work on commission?
> 
> Does the car lot hire teenagers and pay them minimum wage?
> 
> There are clear and obvious differences between those two jobs, and the comparison doesn't make any sense to me.  Pet shops aren't specialty shops - go to a specialty shop and they can tell you scientific names and give accurate information.




see im lucky where i live i have store that ONLY SELLS EXOTICS and the people there need to know there animals or they will work in the back scooping crickets


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## B8709 (Aug 13, 2010)

When I went into a pet store once to look at Ts and scorps a guy decided to show me a scorpion. He got it out and it stung him which caused him to drop it about 5 foot. Then he put it back in the tank, knocking the lid off, which fell down and hit the scorpion. It thrashed around a little...He said "guess this one's gonna be on discount". 
Then another time when I was just starting out someone who "knew what they were talking about" sold me a Haplopelma sp. as an A. Seemani.


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## QuantumGears (Aug 13, 2010)

*Misinformed individuals*

I've had to explain to quite a few people that tarantulas aren't "defanged". I had to argue with one of my roommates friends(Math major) who insisted that all tarantulas were "defanged" by U.S. law. 

I usually like to answer and correct people as it spreads knowledge about the hobby and makes people realize that tarantulas aren't evil dangerous creatures. I do it in a nice way though. Like with the above situation in the preceding paragraph I would say "Actually whats interesting is...xyzxx" just so I don't sound snobby or stuck up.


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## Radamanthys (Aug 15, 2010)

"What if they have babies, then you'll have hundreds of spiders around your house that you can't control!!!"

All i answer is:

"What if you have babies, all by yourself too?"

Jesus!


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## harmroelf (Aug 15, 2010)

- Wow do they walk around ur house (seriously how can one be stupid enough to think this????????)

- Ehr are they all together in one cage???

- What if the escape and go in ur bed....

-  - I don't get what u like about them!
   * shall i tell u?
   - nah, they are stupid......

- I won't let my husband have a spider, because we have not enough space (yeah right)


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## GPulchra (Aug 20, 2010)

I'm extremely worried about Petco nowadays. One T was in a death curl. It was under this REALLY hot lamp that kept the whole area around the tank warm. The water was almost empty but had a cotton ball in it. Even worse, instead of using coco fiber, they used husk >_>. To myself, I just thought, "_YOU @#$S! JUST WALK # STEPS AND TAKE A BRICK OF ECO-EARTH!!!" Anyways, I told the guy, "Shouldn't you put that thing in an ICU?" Then, this is what he said-
"Don't worry. It's able to see perfectly fine. Right now, it's molting." 
"No, man, that thing's dead. It's in a death curl."
"When they're dead, they're on their backs. I know because it happens to our tarantulas all the time."
"Why do you have it under that light?"
"Oh, this tarantula lives in the desert. It needs to be very hot."
It was a G. Rosea.

I don't really blame people that don't know something and admit it, but when they think they know things and can fool someone that's probably dumber than they are for believing them (that wasn't the case this time), that's when I get ticked off._


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## xhexdx (Aug 20, 2010)

BurntSnow said:


> "No, man, that thing's dead. It's in a death curl."
> "When they're dead, they're on their backs. I know because it happens to our tarantulas all the time."


Did you explain to the guy that he was wrong and ask him to leave the next one that flips to prove that it's molting and not dead?

If you don't want to deal with it, PM me the guy's name and the phone number of the store and I'll call them.


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## GPulchra (Aug 20, 2010)

xhexdx said:


> Did you explain to the guy that he was wrong and ask him to leave the next one that flips to prove that it's molting and not dead?
> 
> If you don't want to deal with it, PM me the guy's name and the phone number of the store and I'll call them.


No, I'll deal with it. I'm going back there to tell that guy straight.


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## Scorpendra (Sep 23, 2010)

"14? Isn't that a little excessive?"

This is from my sister about my _entire collection_, shortly after me having to explain that animals can, in fact, be shipped in the mail. To be fair, though, you can't expect too much from her about...anything.


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## starlight_kitsune (Sep 23, 2010)

Petco - "If it flips on it's back it's dead. We;ve had problems with customers coming complaining their tarantulas burst."

Me-"..." <At  a loss for words (or at least any that are nice enough to  say out loud)


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## endoflove (Sep 24, 2010)

my fav. a guy i know tries to 1 up me in front of some girls. he says "yes we have breed some tarantulas to be non venomous ( he learned the diffrence only moments ago): im like "o how come i have never herd of this tarantula?! (sarcasticly) he says " i think its pink something?" : immediate i start listing of tarantula scientific and common names with pink in them hahahaha the girls loved me ! (well for the moment)


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## TerribleGrizz (Sep 24, 2010)

I had a guy last week ask me, "Are tarantulas hairy?"  I honestly didn't know how to respond to that.


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## Suzjohnson (Sep 24, 2010)

I used to think people's response to my tarantulas was interesting and provided me an opportunity to shred some myths.  However, their response to my roach colony is off the charts!  I do the best I can but they usually don't stick around long enough to be enlightened.


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## Scorpendra (Sep 24, 2010)

I'm lucky since I don't really get that many questions. Once, I went to class wearing a _B. smithi_ shirt and nothing happened. Maybe people are afraid I'll get mad?


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## Chris_Skeleton (Sep 24, 2010)

I was at my lps a few weeks ago with my girlfriend to get crickets and there was a guy with his little daughter there and they started to look at a G. rosea. Here's how it went. 

Father: "You want to hold the big scary spider?"
Daughter: "Eww no"

(Father turns to me and says something about asking me if I were gonna hold it, or something, I can't really remember)

Me: We have 11 Ts. 
Father: 11?! Wow?

So I started to inform him about Ts and that roseas and avics aren't prone to biting. Then I told him the kinds I had. He then asked if I kept them all together in the same enclosure. I told him no, they would kill and eat each other. Anyway, I talked to this guy and educated him
for a little while. I can't figure out why everyone thinks you can keep all different types of Ts together.


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## sn95 (Sep 24, 2010)

The worst thing I get is people ask me why I keep them and I will start to explain why I keep them. Then they just out of random they say "I would step on them all"...


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## Vespula (Sep 24, 2010)

sn95 said:


> The worst thing I get is people ask me why I keep them and I will start to explain why I keep them. Then they just out of random they say "I would step on them all"...


I've had that same problem! I've gotten sooo mad at some of my classmates for telling me that.


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## Nepenthe56 (Jul 19, 2011)

I've come to see that tarantulas are one of the most misunderstood creatures on the planet.  The amount of misinformation out there is just astounding, and most of it carries a negative connotation with it.  Even with all of our efforts, it probably won't change any time soon.


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## BobGrill (Jul 19, 2011)

Someone once asked me if my Rose Hair was a black widow. Another person asked me if I let them crawl out around my house.


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## TrentinG (Jul 19, 2011)

haha "how often do you have to give them baths?"  :wall:


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## Nepenthe56 (Jul 19, 2011)

Okay, the two best (worst) ones I've gotten were:
"So are you raising them to eat them?" 
"Tarantulas are like a cross between a mammal and a spider right?  Because they're bigger than regular spiders and they grow hair." :wall:


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## LV-426 (Jul 19, 2011)

Nepenthe56 said:


> Okay, the two best (worst) ones I've gotten were:
> "So are you raising them to eat them?"
> "Tarantulas are like a cross between a mammal and a spider right?  Because they're bigger than regular spiders and they grow hair." :wall:


awsome dude


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## Verneph (Jul 19, 2011)

I don't think questions like "Are they defanged?" and "Do you keep them together?" are all that stupid.  I think a few people have said this before, but I'll say it again:  We can't really expect people who aren't a part of the hobby to really know anything about raising T's other than what popular culture tells them.  Really, just the fact they bothered to ask a question at least shows willingness to learn and to be informed about the subject. 

Then you have people like my little sister, who expressed this gem a long while ago:

"OH. MY. GAWD.  Great, now whenever I have MY sleep overs I have to worry about your spiders getting out and biting my friends!"  

What I wanted to say:  "Yes sis, that's right.  My T's are specifically lying in wait for the next time you have friends over just so they can escape and inflict wrathful terror upon them."

I actually said:  "You do realize that there is not one single documented case of a person dying from a Tarantula bite, right?"

Needless to say, she's a bit more accepting of my T's now.


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## gromgrom (Jul 19, 2011)

anything i've said


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## JadeWilliamson (Jul 19, 2011)

Any time I'm with my girlfriend's family and they see a bug they say "Why don't you go feed it to your creepy crawlies?"  STFU!! It wasn't even funny the first time..
People are very unaccepting of my Ts and downright nonreceptive to my responses to their questions which they have asked repeatedly.
The most common question I get is about what I keep them in, and whether they live together, and "WUT IF U WAKE UP AND ITS ON UR FAYCE!?"
It gets old fast, but I realize that we can't expect them to know if they haven't tried learning.  A year ago, I wasn't even interested in Ts, and therefore knew absolutely nothing.


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## fenhawk1 (Jul 19, 2011)

not about T's, but i was once talking to someone about my boa constrictor imperator, and they said that if i were to get bored of having a pet snake would i kill it?, like cut off his head
i replied, would u lop of a puppies head?


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## Collin Clary (Jul 19, 2011)

My 4th grade teacher--"Oh my god you have tarantulas! Be careful! they are almost as deadly as daddy-long-legs, and daddy-long-legs are the most poisonous spiders on earth!"  

I brought my tarantula to school a week later

My teacher-"Your not allowed to bring dangerous animals to school!"

My reply- "Tell that to my sisters teacher." 
[My sisters teacher had a G. rosea in her classroom (the classroom was right below mine).  
"And FYI I brought it to school last year" (needless to say she hated me---- and now I laugh at her stupidity )


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## loreleisg (Jul 19, 2011)

My roommate: So you bought some tarantulas?
Me: Yep! They're just babies right now. -shows pill bottle with sling in it- Isn't it cute?
My roommate: You're creepy for having that.

The spider isn't creepy. I'm the creepy one. 

At PetCo buying crickets:

Me: I need about 10 of the smallest crickets you can give me.
Employee: What are you feeding them to?
Me: My tarantulas.
Employee: Oh, a spider that big should only eat mice.
Me: ........................................


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## killy (Jul 19, 2011)

I was at a gathering of friends and acquaintances a couple of weeks ago, and I had my camera with me - I proudly showed a couple of recent shots of my B. vagans, and it became known that I'm a tarantula keeper.  One of the group said, out loud, "I would never enter the home of a person who had a tarantula in the house." .... Ahem ... Well, I recovered from that one quick enough to reply, "Thank goodness, that spares me from every having to invite you." ;P


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