docile without urticating hairs?

kreuz

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jun 12, 2007
Messages
29
hi again!
yesterday a very good friend of my wife came to visit and she was quite blown away by all my tarantulas. the only problem was that she has quite serious asthma and got a bit of a bout when she even just entered my NW room. (I keep NW and OW tarantulas in different rooms).
But neverteheless she was extremely excited and fascinated by the Ts and wanted to know if there are any species I could suggest since she also wanted to get a T.
I felt quite bad when I had to tell her that due to her asthma this whole thing is a bit difficult. Because all species without urticting hairs are quite aggressive or fast and not really suitable for a beginner. I metioned Psalmopoeus, Tapinauchenius and Holothele since they do not posses urticating hairs. But all of them are quite agressive.(I do not really know about Holothele since I do not possess one, but one can often read that they are damn fast and aggressive).
Do you have any suggestions or has anyone a similar problem with asthma and give some advice. Personally I would nevertheless suggest those NW species without urticating hair rather than any OW species (not only due to the venom).
Any suggestions? Any quite "docile" ones without urticating hair?
 

Becky

Arachnolord
Old Timer
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Sep 17, 2006
Messages
641
Would she want to handle it?

Hmmm tricky. See i know avics are NW but i've only had one avic flick hair at me... The rest are docile.. and that T only did it once and hasnt again since.

Does she definately want a spider? She could try something like a praying mantis? They're not hairy! :D lol

Hmmmmmm... I've not found my Psalmo's to be aggressive.. only had a threat posture from my cambridgei once.. the others are fine..

TBH I dont really know what to suggest.. i'll have a think on it hehe
 

kreuz

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jun 12, 2007
Messages
29
well, she definitely wants to have a T now...which I think is a good thing! :)

I thought about Avics too, but since she really has problems with those hairs I thought that also contact hair like those of a. metallica can pose a problem! and I have also read that some people that got sensitive over the years to urticating hairs gave away all their NWs even avics...

and lucky you with your Psalmo's...mine are sometimes really aggressive even if I just open the lid to feed them :embarrassed:
 

Becky

Arachnolord
Old Timer
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Sep 17, 2006
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641
lol awww bless them! Mine are in hiding in tubes of web most of the time, and if move the tank they scarper. Doing maintenance though if my cambridgei is hungry she does fly out and tag my tweezers if she thinks its food haha bless her!

I guess havin a burrower asian or african wouldn't be much fun for someone who wants a display species... And they're nasty aswell.. Hmmm.. tricky!

What about a GBB? These don't kick much? I've never seen a bald one actually lol
 

Walter

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
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Jul 14, 2003
Messages
215
GBB would be a good choice - mine has never flick hairs at me.
How about G.rosea or G.pulchra?
G.rosea practically is a pet rock (unless you happen to get a psycho one, which is pretty rare). :D
 

GailC

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
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Sep 19, 2005
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1,402
my GBB kicked hair like a bracy, got in my eyes once. I think a avic would be best.

It possible that her asthma was triggered by the substrate not the T hair? I know I have problems with peat and have to be careful not to breath any in.
 

Talkenlate04

ArachnoGod
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Feb 13, 2006
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8,656
I may be mistaken, but I don't think asthma can be caused from the T itself or it's hairs. Like waldo said maybe it has more to do with the substrate or another factor in the room. Ill have to look into it more, but her just standing in the room and reacting I dont think was the fault of the Ts.
Now if she had her head right there when one kicked and breathed in deeply...... that might be a different story.
 

P. Novak

ArachnoGod
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The only New world Ts I would reccomend that should be docile enough would be Avicularia avicularia and Grammostola pulchra.
 

pitbulllady

Arachnoking
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May 1, 2004
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2,290
I've got severe asthma, but it's never been triggered by a T, and I've been "haired" by some of the best in the business! It's more likely that something in the substrate, or even cricket frass(which will do it for me, asthma-wise)is the culprit, not the spiders.

pitbulllady
 

AlainL

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
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Jul 14, 2006
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Hi!

Holothele are not aggresive.they are skittish a bit.

To my knowledge for OW, the Heterothele villosela and P.pachypus are not known to be aggresive, just skittish.
 

JMoran1097

Arachnoangel
Old Timer
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May 14, 2007
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924
A.Avic is the first one that comes to mind whenever I'm confronted with this question.
 

Gesticulator

Arachnoangel
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Jun 8, 2005
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Hmmm tricky. See i know avics are NW but i've only had one avic flick hair at me... The rest are docile.. and that T only did it once and hasnt again since.
Avicularia do not kick hairs. They have a different type of urticating hair that has to be pressed into you.

GBB would be a good choice - mine has never flick hairs at me.
IME C cyaneopubescens are notorious kickers. I would not recommend a Grammostola either.


I do think that urticating hairs can trigger asthmatic reactions. Whether its the substrate or not, handling would not be recommended, so then why not a New World species?
 

Jonathan Rice

Arachnosquire
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Joined
Apr 4, 2006
Messages
149
I may be mistaken, but I don't think asthma can be caused from the T itself or it's hairs. Like waldo said maybe it has more to do with the substrate or another factor in the room. Ill have to look into it more, but her just standing in the room and reacting I dont think was the fault of the Ts.
Now if she had her head right there when one kicked and breathed in deeply...... that might be a different story.
I agree.

G.pulchra are not only gorgeous tarantulas but they have very sweet dispositions as well. I know people (who absoluetly hate spiders) smile at the sight of my pulchra. They call it a "little furry stuff animal." No comment to that. I agree it's awesome and nod. These are quite rare and more on the expensive side but they are fairly easy to keep. If she has a full-time job, why not splurge on a pulchra?
 
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