FAQ from non-hobbyists

Rigor Mortis

Arachnobaron
Joined
Nov 7, 2018
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498
I found a thread like this from several years ago and I didn't feel like resurrecting another years-old thread this week, felt wrong. Mods if you wanna you can merge them I guess.

What are your most commonly asked questions from people who are not in the hobby when they find out you keep arachnids? I get the same ones over and over and somehow I continue to smile and answer them. Mine are:

"So do you keep them in the same cage?"
"Do you like, take them out and let them crawl all over your face?!!"
"Where do you even BUY a tarantula?"
"Aren't you afraid they'll escape and bite you?"
 

Smotzer

ArachnoGod
Arachnosupporter +
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Jan 17, 2020
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I think one I get from time to time commonly
is “But like why? Spiders are gross”

My background on the computer at work is a macro photo of a tarantula, and once I got “ew why would want to look at that?”
I responded, “because it’s a beautiful creature!!!’” (enthusiastically)
...utter silence..they walked away... LOL non hobbyists

I’ve also gotten
“Have you ever been bitten?”
“Aren’t you worried you could die?”
(Loved that one)

I’m sure there have been more good ones but that’s just what comes to mind when I think about some stuff somewhat recently. I’ll add if they come back to me.
 

Rigor Mortis

Arachnobaron
Joined
Nov 7, 2018
Messages
498
I think one I get from time to time commonly
is “But like why? Spiders are gross”

My background on the computer at work is a macro photo of a tarantula, and once I got “ew why would want to look at that?”
I responded, “because it’s a beautiful creature!!!’” (enthusiastically)
...utter silence..they walked away... LOL non hobbyists

I’ve also gotten
“Have you ever been bitten?”
“Aren’t you worried you could die?”
(Loved that one)

I’m sure there have been more good ones but that’s just what comes to mind when I think about some stuff somewhat recently. I’ll add if they come back to me.
I also get "But....why?" to which I respond "Why not? They're gorgeous!" and I am met with glares and silence.

"Aren't you worried you could die?" Yeah man. My G. porteri is vicious. Has green venom dripping from her fangs and murderous intent in 5 of her 8 eyes.
 

Smotzer

ArachnoGod
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"Aren't you worried you could die?" Yeah man. My G. porteri is vicious. Has green venom dripping from her fangs and murderous intent in 5 of her 8 eyes.
Yeah especially given they roam free in my house. I never know when I might die. I live on the edge. Lol
and I am met with glares and silence.
Yes especially the silence, with non-verbal judgement that there indeed must be something wrong with me, if I’m into spiders, and have them in my house LOL
 

arachnidgill

Arachnoknight
Joined
Apr 24, 2018
Messages
180
These are the ones I usually get.

"Do you keep them in the same cage?"
"Why do you need so many?"
"Can I hold one of them?"
 

DomGom TheFather

Arachnoprince
Arachnosupporter
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Why?
What do you do with them?
What do they eat?

Then, I try to explain that I breed roaches... if it goes that far.

I try not to bring it up. Lol
 

Smotzer

ArachnoGod
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Then, I try to explain that I breed roaches... if it goes that far.

I try not to bring it up. Lol
Oh yeah, people are even more puzzled and sometimes usually disgusted by keeping and breeding roaches lol
“I’m like but they’re not the house roaches” usually still doesn’t matter to outsiders, hahaha
 

DomGom TheFather

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Oh yeah, people are even more puzzled and sometimes usually disgusted by keeping and breeding roaches lol
“I’m like but they’re not the house roaches” usually still doesn’t matter to outsiders, hahaha
I have Bins.!
I keep Four species.!
I still don’t understand why I can't impress the mother in-law.
 
Last edited:

MintyWood826

Arachnobaron
Joined
Jun 16, 2018
Messages
401
The most common is the one I will never understand, "do you keep them in the same cage?" Why? Just why?

Besides that there is asking if I hold them, where I get them, what they eat, and if I'm scared about being bitten. These make sense to me to be asked if I try to think from the perspective of someone who doesn't know much of anything about T's.

"Do you like, take them out and let them crawl all over your face?!!"
I don't even know what to say about that one :rofl:
 

kingshockey

Arachnoangel
Joined
Sep 4, 2017
Messages
826
mine usually1. do you take them out to hold?
2. arent they poisonous?
3. how does your girlfriend sleep at night??then i get this statement from my women friends "your lucky i would never let my man keep those inside" :rofl:
 

Craig73

Arachnoangel
Joined
Jun 2, 2016
Messages
790
I haven’t gotten any questions. But when I told my team at work I got awkward silence in return. I felt like all the hard earned money the company put into training people on spotting potential queues for workplace violence and spotting changes in people’s behaviors I was a poster child to be reported to security. One of my team members later told me how cool it was because she used to play with tarantulas in the desert as kid.
 

vicareux

A. geniculata worship cult member
Joined
Mar 14, 2020
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496
"Can it jump out?"
"Isnt that cage too small?"
"Can you pet it?"
"Why do you need more than one?"
Are the usual ones
But for some reason people are much scared of preserved exuviae than the actual spider.
When i want to show them the anatomy without actually touching the animal i usually bring out exuviae,and they always jump back "Put that away it looks like an alien" :lol:
 

EtienneN

Arachno-enigma
Joined
Jul 15, 2017
Messages
1,038
Let's not forget the ever popular, 'have you defanged all of them?' Smh. People never cease to amaze.
 

RezonantVoid

Hollow Knight
Joined
Jan 7, 2018
Messages
1,354
The most common one I receive is "aren't they all deadly?". Particularly with trapdoors, everyone has this idea that just because something looks like a funnelweb, it must be able to kill you
 

EtienneN

Arachno-enigma
Joined
Jul 15, 2017
Messages
1,038
Okay, I should probably also share that whilst I LOVE my therapist and wouldn't want the hassle of starting all over again with a new psychologist, I shared that I received a tarantula in the post this morning and their response was "Ew, really?" Like if a client obviously enjoys something and shares about that something, maybe try your best to be supportive?
 

justanotherTkeeper

Arachnosquire
Joined
Feb 26, 2020
Messages
96
When I decided to take the plunge into the hobby, I told my (arachnophobic) husband I wanted to get two tarantulas, and he says, "................. why two??"
 

DomGom TheFather

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Okay, I should probably also share that whilst I LOVE my therapist and wouldn't want the hassle of starting all over again with a new psychologist, I shared that I received a tarantula in the post this morning and their response was "Ew, really?" Like if a client obviously enjoys something and shares about that something, maybe try your best to be supportive?
Your therapist is messed up.

When I decided to take the plunge into the hobby, I told my (arachnophobic) husband I wanted to get two tarantulas, and he says, "................. why two??"
Your husband is messed up.
 

CommanderBacon

Arachnobaron
Joined
May 21, 2018
Messages
498
The question I most often get is “do you keep them all together?” for some reason. As someone who assumed that spiders would eat each other if they could from the beginning, this question totally boggles my mind.

The second question I get, mainly from people I don’t know well, is, “Why?” I tell them that I find caring for tarantulas super relaxing for some reason.

I can’t even make the number sound reasonable anymore, because 77 pet spiders sounds like a lot no matter what, so I mostly stopped mentioning how many Ts I have. My friends just ask “How many do you have now?” when I talk to them and act astonished, bu they liked to look at them all when they came over.

Whatever. I’m trading a friend a curly hair sling for a weird plant here in a few weeks because I am sucking everyone I know into my depraved lifestyle muah
 
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