fighting spiders: this you gotta see

[chaset]

Those crazy people over in Japan have taken the Spider hobby places
that only crazy people over in japan could take it.
its a 15meg download but well worth it, you have to see this.
its Spider wrestling.

http://mirukashihime.cool.ne.jp/image/kajik2.mpg

Not exactly Tarantula related, but its a kinda neat take on
how the hobby is going in Japan Browse through here lots
of nice pictures in these pages.
http://mirukashihime.cool.ne.jp/kajik02.htm

This is kinda related to vys reply in this thread
http://www.arachnopets.com/arachnoboards/showthread.php?threadid=2061&pagenumber=2

Originally posted by Vys
Lol

Hmmm.. 2 inch difference between the two.
The slightly excited feeling accompanied by thoughts like 'I wonder who'd win between..' must be why some people arrange and let animals partake in things like rooster fighting. Good thing we can keep it in check.

and don't worry about the spiders they have highly trained referee's on hand so no one gets munched.

 

[King_Looey]

I have just downloaded it, and i think its very sad. They get amusement from animals trying to kill each other. *Sigh*

Im glad the referee got bitten though. lol.

 

[Code Monkey]

No spiders are harmed in the competition. Plus, they raise these guys for this, and they're only doing what comes natural.
Sad is people who think that a spider getting treated like a championship Sumo wrestler for 99.9% of its life so it can try and knock another spider off a stick for 60 seconds out of that life is sad.

 

[King_Looey]

I am against all killing for sport, i believe things should only be killed in self defense or for food. These spiders dont have to fight, but they are being forced to.

 

[Code Monkey]

Nothing is killed in this sport/exhibition/competition/call it whatever you want. There is a difference between training animals for violent sport, and letting animals do *exactly* what comes naturally to them.

Here, people raise these argiope up from little guys to the biggest, power fed monsters they can. Then ALL they're expected to do is knock the other spider off the stick first. No one is bit, no one has limbs torn off, nada. After the competition, they go right back to being spoiled, powerfed spiders. Terribly sad, I can't believe I'm not weeping in sympathy.

 

[chaset]

Some things to realize

I found this website off some Tarantula site in South Africa, I can't remember the address, it said that they have been Captive breeding these Agripopes for over 400 years.

400 years ago our ancestors in Europe were trying to eraticate spiders out of fear thinking they were hell spawns of satan,
and the Japaneese were figuring out how to Captive Breed,
how to grow bigger spiders, this was long before any species were described or studyed. I think they have more experience.
In the Japaneese hobby it is more important to breed bigger
specimen then to collect lots. Nothing wrong with that, just a choice of values.

It kinda makes are hobby look like its in its infancy,

As for the barbaricness, im more concerned about spiders being
treated bad in pet shops or spiders being encased in lucite for
Paper holders like the ones sold in ebay,
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=728147064
If you want somthing to get made about, thats what should make you
angry.

Its more barbaric whenyou fail to divide your aquarium properly, and one escapes and eats another one. North America has along way to go.

Personally i would not mind importing one of those Bulked up CB Japaneese Agripopes, they are handsome spiders.

 

[Wade]

There's a lot of intrest in inverts in Japan. I once heard the statistic that one in ten Japanese men is a serious butterfly collector. There's also a very popular beetle rearing hobby as well, where they raise various massive stag beetles. Some grocery stores even cary prepared beetle food!

I had not heard of the spider sumo, but it doesn't surprise me a bit!

Wade

 

[Tranz]

What bothers me about it is the little loin cloths they make the spiders wear. You'd think they'd have more modesty.

 

[veronyka]

As for the barbaricness, im more concerned about spiders being
treated bad in pet shops or spiders being encased in lucite for
Paper holders like the ones sold in ebay,
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...&item=728147064
If you want somthing to get made about, thats what should make you angry.

I can't believe someone would do that to a tarantula! That is just sick! I really hope those poor T's were dead already when they got made into paperweights. I like to collect tarantula-related things but I would NEVER get something like that!
As for the tarantulas fighting, I agree, at least those tarantulas aren't being killed, unlike those paperweights. That's just wrong!

 

[Vys]

I wish I could judge that site in some way, lol, but I can't read japanese and I can't download pictures, or , SCU forbid, movies.
Is it really more a rule than anything else that those spids aren't hurt ?
Sometimes we don't need much to justify for what we do to animals. Sometimes that's because we are cold blooded bastards, sometimes because we see that what we do isn't so cruel compared to what nature can do and does. Sometimes we look at the 'greater picture' and sometimes we care.