Poec54
Arachnoemperor
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2013
- Messages
- 4,745
- I would have been happy that people are helping me with keeping a P.metallica. But, even if one adverse Incident happened, it would have put me off (or any other newbie for that matter), since no one had mentioned that it would have been better to start with a harmless NW terrestrial (or an Avic for that matter).
- My point is that, most of us newbies don't know much about what we are getting into. Maybe at first we might not be happy with the correct advice that we're being offered (e.g. start with a boring NW terrestrial etc).but if faced with an adverse situation, we'll be inherently thankful that someone offered us an advice that was needed( and not the advice that we were looking for at that time).
Why I'm saying this is, because IMHO, the hobby itself (and the safety of those involved) is more important that any individual one of us. We have to do all that is required to promote it ( and in a good way).
This is just 2 cents worth of opinion from a newbie...
Thank you. It's always inspiring to see someone who 'gets it'; who can set their ego aside and listen, absorb, and process. Beginners come here to ask questions and learn from people who've been doing this for years. Regardless of how much 'research' they've done, we often see that they're at square one knowledge-wise, and if their selections are based on pretty colors alone, they're probably oblivious to the huge difference in species behavior, speed, and venom. This doesn't apply to every beginner, but it's common. If we don't talk to them about it when they've chosen a OW early on, then what credibility do we have, when they come here looking up to us to advise them? "Oh, sorry about that nasty bite, but you seem to have made up your mind before you came here and we didn't want to risk hurting your feelings, so we let you walk into that situation with blinders on. It's what we do!"
I'd much prefer that we ask questions in return, inform them, & make them aware of what their getting into, than to simply rubber stamp whatever wild things they come up with. We should want it to be a good fit for them. We've had some members proclaim that every species is a good choice for a first tarantula! Some specifically have mentioned OBT's and Stromatopelma as great first choices, as long as 'they've done some research' (and we've seen much bad info is out there). With recommendations like that, why would anyone ask us more questions?