hobby and collections?

[AudreyElizabeth]

When I get home in the evening, my two cats, Peanut and Lillian, seek me out for attention and companionship...... They sit in my lap, rub all over me, meow and entice me to play and whatnot....

On the other hand, my tarantulas do nothing, except the B. albo, which might retreat into her burrow, or not, when I flick on the light. They don't seek me out, they don't want me to open the cage and hold them, the only time they look 'excited' is when I drop food in the tank.

I consider all of them pets, but my cats are not a hobby because the are interactive companions.

Any animal that is referred to as a 'hobby' by my own definition, is a look but don't touch sort of pet...... When you keep undomesticated animals such as tarantulas, the challenge is to simulate an environment that they can thrive in. The reward? A healthy active pet that is a joy to watch and look at!! The knowledge that you gain is also a huge plus.

I don't know, the word hobby seems to fit for these types of animals, and the tarantula 'hobby' is usually pretty easy once you nail the basics down.... I suppose there are exceptions, but I haven't kept a species that is considered hard to maintain.

 

[onewasjo]

As a newbie T keeper, I understand where shox is coming from. I am fully cognizant of the fact that my T's do not really care about my existence the way I care about theirs LOL, but I still can't help personifying them. I think its just one way to understand these amazing creatures. We understand lots of things as narratives and characters are the most important element of stories. Whether T's actually have personalities or not seems irrelevant IMHO.

Some folks seem to approach them more scientifically. In this context, I understand why some folks would collect 100's of T's. I also don't see anything wrong with calling them collections either- when you start organizing them by family and wanting to observe first-hand every specimen, it is essentially a collection. It doesn't make it more inhumane to call it that.

In fact, some would say, (ok, shooting myself in the foot by saying this on a Tarantula board LOL) the keeping of tarantulas itself is fundamentally wrong as these are not domesticated creatures. (I read an interview of tarantula expert Rick West, who expressed this opinion). As a newbie, this is something that I feel a bit guilty about now and then.

Anyways, when i first got into T's, I was equally intrigued by the keeper community I found online. I also find myself struggling between just devoting more time to the 2 I have and this weird insatiable hunger for more T's. I still like to read molt stories because I don't have any friends who are more than mildly curious about my T's. I like to know that other folks obsess about their T's and their well-being the way I do LOL!

Wow. I've really been rambling! Anyways, glad shox brought this up, b/c this topic intrigues me.

 

[Rabies_Kitten]

Personally I think that pets are family members. Or atleast mine are for me. Hobby is more like.. I don't know how to explain.. in my opinion it's something what you could just stop if you're not interested anymore. And I think you can't do that with your pets, or you can but then it just reminds me that you never were really interested or the specie wasn't suitable for you. And if it would be your very first dog, tarantula or whatever... it would be alot painful to give it away than stopping playing football. (ok I don't know if that makes sense..)

As for shockers, I don't know if I could be considered as a shocker. I mean, I like shock colours, cartoon, tattoos, piercings, metal music etc. and most of all exotic/rare pets. But I would never take one because I would just be cool to have one. I mean, everyone that I know, even my friends, don't consider me being scary or cool if having tarantula. More like ''EEUUGGGH! DISGUSTING! I WON'T COME EVER NEAR BY YOU AAAAAAGH!'' bla bla bla

I love tarantulas just the way they are. And I wish to have one in the near future.

 

[krtrman]

those that like to use their t's as shock value generally do not care about the welfare of their t's and just like to get reactions out of people by shoving a t in someones face.

Rabies Kitten: if you are not this type then you are not a shocker. piercings (i have six) and loud music and bright colors dont count in this category.

 

[belewfripp]

No tarantula requires or desires large amounts of attention or care, therefore it is in fact very easy to devote the same amount of time per T in a large collection as would be devoted to a single T. If you find yourself doting on your spider for half an hour every other day, well that's great for you if it makes you feel better, but the T couldn't care less.

Adrian

 

[Rabies_Kitten]

then I am far away from shocker.

 

[darkeye]

If I may...

I have had a life-long interest in the animals living alongside us on our little blue marble. It is very easy to find people to support an interest in dogs, cats, birds (even exotic ones), fish (also, even very exotic ones), small furry things, and all those wacky reptiles. But there are obvious gaps...

For instance, the entire "New Age / Metaphysical / Wiccan" community raise their flags high and say "All life is sacred. All creatures are equal", but ask most their opinion about ticks, mites, lice, and pest roaches... Anyone taking bets on what the answers will be?

Keeping tarantulas and other inverts allows me a chance to understand the habits of other creatures found in our world. Keeping one gives me insight into the habits of that particular creature. If one human was studied for 30 years, what would the watcher learn? The habits of ONE individual. Since we are social creatures, we require interaction with other humans. T's are not so inclined (although some may rightly argue that we do not yet UNDERSTAND the true needs of any of the amazing cretures...), but by keeping several of the same species, and by interchanging our observations about their behavior and survival needs, we will be better able to define their needs (and wants, if that is possible).

A group of individuals interacting and sharing knowledge, data, and observations is often termed a "community". And this is one community I am proud to be a part of.

Do i call myself a hobbyist? Do I have a "collection" of T's? Yep. I have several other hobbies...all supported by other hobbyist-based communities: Tropical fish, Volkswagens, Scale-Modeling, Anime features and collectables, and computing. I have a "collection" of tropical fish, a "collection" of anime, etc.

Use whatever term you want, but my tarantulas are pets...each one unique, each one respected and loved as part of my family. Whether they need it or not.

Boy, that was long, wasn't it?

 

[BBlack]

I agree.

To my mind a hobby is doing something you enjoy. People paint pictures because they enjoy the aesthetics of it, they like to look at interesting images. Other people play Chess because it stimulates their mind, this is their buzz.

T's can do both. T’s are fascinating to look at, and to learn about.

I'm new to this subject, but haven't found anything I've wanted to know more about.

Some probably don’t like to think of their T’s as a hobby, it may seem to lessen the value of it somehow, but I don’t. I like to think that nobody forced any of us to care about T’s but all of us in this forum have that in common.

I would consider my interest in T’s a hobby because anything else would be just research and that seem to clinical and sterile, and would retract from the experience.

 

[pelo]

Hobby:a pursuit outside of one's regular occupation,especially for relaxation purposes.
I consider it to be a hobby..whether it is a collection of one or hundreds.I consider myself a tarantula hobbyist/enthusiast.I consider a hobby something which involves research,time, hands on and enjoyment with your free time.Tarantula collecting does them all...for me anyways...peace..

 

[DR zuum]

On the recognition thing in T's i have to agree with one exception, i have a 15 yr old B.smithi female that comes to the front of her tank whenever you enter the room and begins tapping on the glass.

She wants to come out and hang with us, i mean she will cruise the couch and sit down and chill with you its crazy, ive never seen that in a T, maybe thats why she and a couple of others are the only ones i am really attached to on a emotional level.

Her previous owner handled her daily and had her with her almost nonstop from a sling until she died, she gave her to me right before she passed away. Would this be considered recognition or a conditioned response to people?

 

[Rabies_Kitten]

DR zuum, I'm rather amazed about your T. It seems to me that she is just like an ordinary pet in an ordinary house. More like behaving like a dog. It would be very interesting to hear that has anyone else noticed this kind of behaviour? Or is this T just a very rare case?


Later

- Rabies Kitten -

 

[abstract]

My rosie used to pace around it's cage when I came home - until I'd let it roam my stairwell for an hour or two....

This only happened when it was my only spider - once I got more, I didn't notice the behavior. I also used to handle it a lot when it was my only spider; it's been months now.

Perhaps they get conditioned to be handled, or at least let out of their enclosure if the frequency is often enough..... :?

 

[DnKslr]

Wow, there are so many good replies that mine isn't going to matter all that much. Oh well, here's my 2 cents.

If I ran into someone with 25 cats I'd say they were a cat enthusiast. Especially if they had cat books, researched cat behaviour, read cat trivia, posted on cat forums and so on. If you are enthusiastic about something rather than "here's my pet Reggie he lives in a tank and he is cool" then it tends to be thought of as a hobby or interest rather than just a house pet.

For many years, I have been fascinated with parrots and their ability to speak, do tricks, be affectionate, etc. My love for parrots grew so much that I collected parrot stuff like pictures, posters, figures, toys and yes, tons of books! It's like I was thirsting for as much information as I could get my little hands on. I wanted to learn as much as possible about them before I made my first purchase. Once I had in mind what kind of parrot I wanted, off I went to find a breeder. Of course I ended up getting a totally different parrot than the one I planned on but hey, I love him to death! If I had the money and space, I would have an entire aviary of them! Unfortunately, parrots are VERY expensive. I would consider this a hobby since it involves something that I love to do on my free time, which is care for my parrot. I take pride in keeping his cage clean, giving him new toys, giving him new challenges, and teaching him new words.
This is the same way I view my T's. I love to watch them grow, eat, walk, spin their webs, ect. I did a ton of reading, asking questions, and sending emails for weeks before I decided that I was going to have more than one. Although I don't collect things with T's on them or books or other stuff; not much T stuff around here and too many parrot things around. I guess you could call it a hobby, but I like to say it's a passion for what you love and what fascinates you.

 

[Dragoon]

Hey, and if a T dies, can you feed it to your parrot? Do they eat bugs?

Whoo hoo, household recycling! I keep lizards that would relish a passed on T pet. My T's can live on through my other pets!
Hmmmm, now who will eat the lizard....:?
D.

 

[DnKslr]

No, he's a vegitarian. My fish would love it though! LOL!