Ethics of selling T's

[GailC]

I have quite a few people interested in buying some of my P. cambridgie slings which is great but some of them have never owned a T before. Is it ethical to sell a species like this to them? Some want to try and handle them even though I recommended against it, others just don't get it when I say they are fast and defensive.
I guess it's not my fault if someone gets bit because they are stupid but I would feel bad.

 

[P. Novak]

If they tell you the stupid stuff they're gonna do with them, I wouldn't sell to them. Others that aren't so stupid I would sell to.

This species isn't medically significant so there wouldn't be much of a problem if they got bit, especially since they are slings.

Only sell to the people you have a good feeling about. You have the right to refuse sale to anyone.

 

[GailC]

Thats kinda what I figured.
I would just hate it if a year down the road I get a email about how that big nasty green spider bit me when I tried to hold it LOL.
I'm getting alot of people on a lizard forum interested in T's which is great but some don't understand what keeping a T really means. I suppose I better write up a simple care sheet and point them to here just to make sure.

 

[P. Novak]

Thats kinda what I figured.
I would just hate it if a year down the road I get a email about how that big nasty green spider bit me when I tried to hold it LOL.
I'm getting alot of people on a lizard forum interested in T's which is great but some don't understand what keeping a T really means. I suppose I better write up a simple care sheet and point them to here just to make sure.

Ya send them this way, let them read up before they buy. That's probably the best thing to do.

Haha, that would be hilarious, if someone were to actually write you a year or so later saying they were bit. Lol, I'd be like and.. what do you want me to do about it?

 

[Hamburglar]

I don't sell T's and I am no expert, but most of the dealers that I have delt with have some sort of disclaimer that they use. I'm not sure how much actual protection it provides but it might not be a bad idea. Some people are completely surprised when they hear the word "venom"...

 

[tacomadiver]

I used to be a part owner in a Marine Aquarium shop and we would deal with potentially deadly fish, and inverts. When a person was interested in it I would just talk to them about the animal in question and see what they were interested in. Did they want it out of respect for the animal it was, or was it a badge of "badness"...look what I got. I turned away alot of customers for the latter.

 

[Talkenlate04]

The fact of the matter is when we sell Ts there is no easy way to proove how old or how much experience the person you are selling to has.
For all I know I sold to a 5th grader with daddies credit card..... lol..

No no just joking. You won't have to worry much, they are not dangerous..... a bit on the fast and defensive side, but thats about it. So long as it was not their first T I would feel comfortable selling to anyone else.
The good part about slings, the new owner gets to get used to them as the get bigger. Starts to learn what to expect. So its really not to much to worry about.

 

[GailC]

Not worried about any one getting hurt. I don't know, I guess I worry too much. I'll write up a disclaimer just incase.
Thanks for the advice.

 

[spider_fan]

Personally I'd be more worried about the slings getting proper care than some genius who thinks he knows all about T's getting bit. He'd deserve the bite, but the slings don't deserve to die from lack of proper care.

 

[ballpython2]

When botar ships out his t's to those that buy them over the internet at the bottom of the slip it says a disclaimer about how he isn't responsible for anything that happens to anyone when they purchase any of his tarantulas.

imo I think you should get give all something like this with each sale and a reciept just in case they don't want it or something else happens where they have to give it back.

 

[Cirith Ungol]

Add a caresheet, up the price. If they cost a lot people will think twice before they do anything stupid with them (mistakes can always happen ofcourse). Upping the price seems to me a reasonable way of making them understand that it's a commitment.

 

[NixHexDude]

I think the caresheet is a good idea. As far as ethics go, it isn't your responsibility to keep these people from being bitten. Just sell them to the buyers you believe will not let them die from improper care.

 

[Masurai]

As someone else pointed out i would be more worried about the slings, then someone getting bit

 

[ballpython2]

As someone else pointed out i would be more worried about the slings, then someone getting bit

But slings do grow up..so this would also include when the spiders become juveniles / adults.

 

[tacomadiver]

Two things to remember. If they are getting them because they kill things and are cool...then it might just be a fad to them and you end up with a neglected animal. If they are scared, and their first T is a fast and sometimes defensive sp. they may be to nervous to properly take care of them.
I totally agree with the care sheet etc. I also understand that doing business over the net you don't know who you are selling to. But he is asking about people he knows. So really truly just ask yourself if the T is going to a decent home. If deep down you feel that it would be neglected...then do what your conscience dictates.

 

[Hedorah99]

Two things to remember. If they are getting them because they kill things and are cool...then it might just be a fad to them and you end up with a neglected animal. If they are scared, and their first T is a fast and sometimes defensive sp. they may be to nervous to properly take care of them.
I totally agree with the care sheet etc. I also understand that doing business over the net you don't know who you are selling to. But he is asking about people he knows. So really truly just ask yourself if the T is going to a decent home. If deep down you feel that it would be neglected...then do what your conscience dictates.

I just started getting slings from some breeding projects and I have been thinking about this greatly. If I sell a group to a dealer, it's out of my hands. I would only sellt o a reputable dealer anyway. But when I start selling them to individuals, I am more concerned with them getting a good home rather than any type of monetary compensation. By this I mean, a permanent home, a knowledgable hobbyist, and a desire to breed them later in life. I know this is asking A LOT of the casual hobbyist, but I would prefer 2/3 of these criteria be met. I can see me being very picky when I start selling my broods.

 

[phil jones]

I have quite a few people interested in buying some of my P. cambridgie slings which is great but some of them have never owned a T before. Is it ethical to sell a species like this to them? Some want to try and handle them even though I recommended against it, others just don't get it when I say they are fast and defensive.
I guess it's not my fault if someone gets bit because they are stupid but I would feel bad.

i think if you sell just tell them all about the - t - and then its up to the buyer to get books ect and look after it when you sell it then its not your problem if they are prats and get bit or it dies on them let them waste there $$$$ not your problem

 

[tacomadiver]

But when I start selling them to individuals, I am more concerned with them getting a good home rather than any type of monetary compensation

This is why I got out of the business. My business partner was about making money (I am not saying this is a bad thing, I am saying that I have a different point of view), I was more about finding good homes for the animals, and educating prospective owners. I just got burned out seeing beautiful animals brought back killed due to neglect, or improper care.

i think if you sell just tell them all about the - t - and then its up to the buyer to get books ect and look after it when you sell it then its not your problem if they are prats and get bit or it dies on them let them waste there $$$$ not your problem

That is why it's an ethics question.

 

[Vermis]

If they are getting them because they... are cool...

Isn't that why most of us here have T's?

No, I know what you mean. I don't agree with owning a tarantula because it's supposedly creepy, edgy, vicious and makes the owner look hard or subversive. Spare the spider and get a tattoo instead.*
It's harder to pin down the 'better' reasons to own a tarantula, for me at least, beyond "they're cool."

For the record, my first T's were a pair of P. cambridgei. I didn't have too many problems with them at all. I didn't handle them much though, and stopped completely when they grew bigger than a couple of inches.

*Of course, now I'm on the case of the tattooed. But you know what I mean. Er...right?

 

[phil jones]

This is why I got out of the business. My business partner was about making money (I am not saying this is a bad thing, I am saying that I have a different point of view), I was more about finding good homes for the animals, and educating prospective owners. I just got burned out seeing beautiful animals brought back killed due to neglect, or improper care.

That is why it's an ethics question.

you are not responsible for a - t - you have sold on its the new owner if they can not keep them the right way they should not buy it i would not get a burmese python as i know i could not keep one