Freebies. Like em or hate em tell me why! Do you think they're good practice?

[spideyspinneret78]

yeah I try and avoid Asian species of T’s, just my preference mainly keep baboon old worlds (ceratogyrus and I have a harpactira) which in my experience of the ones I own are more shy and would rather retreat into their burrow if disturbed. If this little sling turns out female I will more than likely give her to my friend or sell her to someone who has experience with these

I just got my first Asian fossorial (C. huahini) and even though it's tiny, that little sling is fearless. It runs TOWARDS disturbances. They're definitely gorgeous and fascinating but I'm glad I didn't get one of these until I had more experience. If I had gotten one of these as a freebie when I had just started out it would've been a steep learning curve at first.

 

[Jess S]

I've got a couple of New Worlds that rush towards disturbances! Lol Also have an LP sling (well I suppose more of a juvenile now) who just before rehousing, as it had outgrown it's enclosure, sort of jumped up and scraped it's fangs on the lid a couple of times haha.

 

[spideyspinneret78]

When I first picked out my A. seemani at the pet shop he tried to bite me through the plastic when I picked up the container and I immediately thought "well, that's the one!" even though there was a confirmed female available and I knew that he was male. I really like the ones with a dose of attitude. Not aggressive necessarily, but just have some personality. He's since been one of the most chill Ts that I have once he settled in. It's amazing how much each individual's temperament can vary even if they're of the same species.

 

[octanejunkie]

I think freebies are a nice and thoughtful practice on the part of the seller, it's like a baker's dozen before the 13th item was "expected"

Personally I have gotten a few freebies, and it if were a sp I had several of and didn't want another, I would just gift it forward to another hobbyist and not complain

Now, during the covid-19 pandemic, we may have all gotten "freebies" with our mail order purchases... just wash your hands and disinfect if you don't want it

 

[CJJon]

I like the way they do it at Fear Not. They have various freebies listed on the site that you can add to your order based on how much you are spending. They have several species and the more you spend, the more interesting the freebie. I dig that. Although it also might make you spend more trying to level up!

 

[DomGom TheFather]

Free is for me. If I like something you coul give me all of it.

I like the way they do it at Fear Not. They have various freebies listed on the site that you can add to your order based on how much you are spending. They have several species and the more you spend, the more interesting the freebie. I dig that. Although it also might make you spend more trying to level up!

I think that is the way to do it. I ordered from them and spent more than I wanted to just for the freebie. I have also received freebies that I would never have ordered and they ended up being my favorite spiders. Either way...

 

[SonsofArachne]

Count me as pro-freebie. The few unwanted ones I've gotten were far outweighed by the many nice ones I've received. This is because I tend to make larger orders - most dealers give better freebies when you spend more. I do generally prefer when they let me pick, but I have had some nice surprises. The best thing about buyer's choice freebies for me is that I can get species I was on the fence about. I recently got a free Grammostola actaeon, a species had been thinking about getting but hadn't since I already had a Grammostola iheringi, a similar looking species.

 

[Rhino1]

My 2 cents is Pro freebie. I always gave something with decent invert orders, and I almost always gave a free tub of pinhead crickets with any sling orders, crickets breed like crazy and it costs me $0
Ive never agreed with the mystery box thing, can't help but feel it's irresponsible to send surprise species randomly which the buyer might not be prepared for, seems to be setting up new hobbyists to fail.
Ppl that feel upset or hard done by that they have received a free T? well this really aggravates me for some reason, I don't get it.

 

[spideyspinneret78]

My 2 cents is Pro freebie. I always gave something with decent invert orders, and I almost always gave a free tub of pinhead crickets with any sling orders, crickets breed like crazy and it costs me $0
Ive never agreed with the mystery box thing, can't help but feel it's irresponsible to send surprise species randomly which the buyer might not be prepared for, seems to be setting up new hobbyists to fail.
Ppl that feel upset or hard done by that they have received a free T? well this really aggravates me for some reason, I don't get it.

I think that the mystery boxes are good for experienced keepers. Also some places let you narrow it down to OW, NW, arboreal, terrestrial, etc. so that you'll have an enclosure prepared. I personally really enjoy that element of mystery/ surprise but I definitely don't think that someone who's just starting out should get one.

 

[Insects Glorify God]

So title basically says it. I'm curious about other people's feelings on freebie slings that are often thrown in large orders of T's. I've personally only gotten one freebie and it's also the T I hate most in my collection. They're an aggressive turd that will run backwards booty ready for hair flicking just because I am around. It's not a species I wanted for my collection but I have it now.

I know some places let you pick your freebie which to me seems like a better option instead since you can select/prepare for another. The other gripe I had was I had only planned for 3 additions not 4. One was doa and they threw in a container so I avoided a container incident but had I not had a container generously added I would have been short a container. The ones I ordered were 1/4 to 1/2 and the freebie was 1 inch. The doa container would have worked for a bit but I'd have to rehouse and like I said aggressive turd T so wasn't thrilled with that.

I don't want people to think I'm talking bad about where I sourced them though. I think they made an honest effort in adding to the collection and guessing most people are thrilled to unbox a mystery surprise but I wanted to ask.

I have ordered other inverts from online vendors in the past and hoped to get a freebie but didn't. I guess I can see your point. If I got something that I wasn't excited about, that could be a bummer but I would still appreciate their effort to make me happy. Most of my purchases are from Reptile Shows so freebies aren't as much of a "given" but then I know exactly what I am getting too! Sorry to hear about your DOA.

 

[FinalBlue]

I have ordered other inverts from online vendors in the past and hoped to get a freebie but didn't. I guess I can see your point. If I got something that I wasn't excited about, that could be a bummer but I would still appreciate their effort to make me happy. Most of my purchases are from Reptile Shows so freebies aren't as much of a "given" but then I know exactly what I am getting too! Sorry to hear about your DOA.

I did make sure to thank them. I truly think they tried to make the freebie a positive experience so I hold absolutely nothing against the vendor. I'd happily order again and just know to include a note to exclude extra T's from my order. The DOA was sad but accidents do happen so I'm thankful it wasn't worse. The vagans might not be my flavor but someone local to me will probably be pretty excited to have it or my nephew might get it as a surprise pet when he moves. (Parent approved of course. They know it can be a bit spicy.)

 

[cold blood]

If I got something that I wasn't excited about

I gotta say, ive gotten a few freebies i didnt want....most of them, however, turned out to be species i ended up really liking.

My experiences are that we can think we know what we like and dont like, but only by keeping them can we know this for certain. So im never upset, as freebies are often the only way one finds out just how great one of these lesser desired species can actually be.

 

[Insects Glorify God]

I gotta say, ive gotten a few freebies i didnt want....most of them, however, turned out to be species i ended up really liking.

My experiences are that we can think we know what we like and dont like, but only by keeping them can we know this for certain. So im never upset, as freebies are often the only way one finds out just how great one of these lesser desired species can actually be.

Yep. I hope I get a freebie someday to test out your point! ;-)

 

[Seekeroftruth]

I like getting freebies. If you dont want certain freebies, or any freebies then just let the seller know.

 

[l4nsky]

Echoing others, I really like <edit> freebie system as I can choose what I want AND I know I'll need to have another enclosure ready. Typically, I'll try to get a sling of a species I already own (as I prefer to get new species in quantities of 3) or I'll let a friend choose one that they want.

 

[0311usmc]

Also pro feebie. It's how i got my P.cam and its becoming one of my favorites. I dont care for mystery boxes. I would be flippin lividid if got a box of grammys, brachys and tilocats tarantulas.

 

[Emi248]

Freebies are cool, however, to a new keeper they can be a pain, picture this, someone orders a T, only has 1 enclosure and stuff for just 1 T, he gets 1 freebie along his order, It can be a problem.

 

[Craig73]

I’m always up for a freebie and if there comes a day that I’m not I’d let the seller know up front.

I’ve been fortunate enough to deal with people who know what I keep and my taste. I’ve purchased enough to expect, or not expect one. It’s unfortunate for new comers keeping T’s to receive a surprise if it’s something that is clearly out of their league and scrambling to put together an enclosure and understand what it is their dealing with.

I‘ve always said that if a H. lividum ends up in my doorstep that it’s going straight back to wherever it came from. I’d add H. mac and S. calceatum to that list as well. Nope…not my jam, tea, or pb&j.

 

[Metallattorney]

I don't dislike freebies, but I don't love them either. I have not had bad luck with them, but for the most part they have not been species I would have gotten on my own. With one exception. I did once buy a kind of rare species of baboon from a seller and he gave me a free one of the same species to increase my chances of getting a female. That one I did really appreciate.

 

[Insects Glorify God]

I am always open to freebies! I have never had one "thrown in" at a Reptile Show when buying a T and most online sellers don't seem to (at least from my observation) offer the option of selecting one until you hit a certain price point.

Personally, I usually have a few spare enclosures (sling size at least) on hand and if I got a "crazy T", I would continue the Tom Moran approach and carefully & respectfully put it into something that it could never escape from. I have an OBT sling and so far, my GBB sling has been the feistyist T I have!

Yes, for the beginner, getting more Ts than expected or a T you haven't read up on first could be a bit stressful so I can see that perspective.

With that said, I am still excited by the "gift" and love that this is a possibility when buying more for my collection.