How Long you have been in this hobby. and personal wisdom you have gained in it?

[Arachninja]

I wanted to get a feel for some of the users here at arachnoboards, also learn a thing or two. So here goes, give us all your time in the hobby? Any important facts or ideas you personally think are under-talked about, and should be shared, maybe what you started with (eight legged addictions) and what spiders have done well or failed for you(either physically, mentally, or even financially or because of time constraints; such as food sources, humididty requirments, or lifestyle) i feel this will help newbies to arachnogenius's, and be a nice read for all to get to know more about our fellow keepers, as well as the Tarantulas they steward. Also maybe include a background of what (if not T's drew you to the hobby).

This is not to just ramble about myself but an idea as what to share.

Me: started as a twelve year old working in mom and pops exotic animal wholesale company(diverse anamalia), was able to have my pick of 200$ worth of pets, as long as I traded in ones I had to get something else at cost( cornsnakes were seven bucks, feel me), after it closed for moral reasons, (to much smuggling came to our attention, I continued on to freshwater then salt water reef tanks, now I am working on a bachelours of horticultural and Agricultural Science at Texas Tech, and especially like xeriscape plants( Cacti, yuccas, etc..) Someohow I found an add on craigslist and got some P. irminias, and now I am up to fifty T's in just a few months(11 species), but as it seems I go fro one living thing to another. Though Tarantulas seem my unknown passion(so interesting compared to many herps), and some in small part destiny, (as almost all the supplies I need fall int my lap randomly). M favoriate T is the Peclitharia. miranda male I have( think it is as it is growing so much faster than the other two), though like the potato chip sayinig I am sure something will change this soon. I have allways aquired no less than three to six of all the slings I buy as I wish to breed them for personnal satisfaction( my snakes have never had more than fifteen eggs, I want a few hundred, that is cool). So how about you all, how did you get here to the forum, and what led you to get an Eight legged Perfection to begin with?

 

[Sharno]

I'll take a slightly different angle in case anyone else wants to discuss their childhood with spiders. As a very young girl, it was unusual to be feminine and in dresses but playing with bugs instead of barbies. My parents didn't discourage me and I was classifying and studying insects and arachnids at a very young age. Spiders were my absolute favorite. I read everything I could on them. At around age 6 or 8 I was locating male house spiders (cob weavers?) and depositing them into female webs to observe mating habits. I knew the males as being the smaller, reddish brown ones with the skinny legs. I didn't know anything other than that the pulling on the web strings between the male and female was interesting and then sometimes she'd let him stay and they would appear to "kiss" and other times she'd eat him. Sometimes he'd end up living there for a few days. Sometimes an egg would appear a long time later.

I also loved the big garden spiders but they only came out at night, so I would take a flashlight and have collected flies, pull off one wing, and toss them into the web. I knew where each big garden spider made their web each night. I liked wolf spiders, jumping spiders and trap door spiders also but I don't really remember collecting any of them, I just tracked them in the yard and fed them. I begged my parents to let me get a tarantula for years, and for my 12th bday I got a b. smithi. This was back in around 1980 so people were still spraying with spray bottle, putting sponges in tanks, and all that other stuff. I loved that t to death, but I was soon dating and getting ready for college etc and gave it up to a teacher after I graduated high school although my passion for arachnids didn't go away.

I got tarantulas again after college for a few years that I kept in my office - more B. smithis and a few Cobalt Blue's that were a pain in the butt. Now I am getting back into it and enjoying all the new exotics. Just had a P. metallica molt today, and both received and "lost" (somewhere in the house, sigh) a M. Balfouri today. Must be bad karma for putting all those males in the female webs when I was a kid. I was just curious! Did anyone else do that kind of stuff?

 

[Zeph]

Although I received my first of many tarantulas at the age of 6 (so, 17-18 years ago?), I pretty much neglected my roseas/henzis as a child and don't remember much about their care except the occasional cricket and the very occasional molt. I hate to admit this.

I started collecting tarantulas only ~3 months ago (pretty much, my join date) and I now own so many! The best thing I've learned is to freeze instead of panicking. If you freeze, your T might stop stop running instead of taking off across the carpet. They have short memories and most NW's will stop moving once they cease to sense danger. Then you have time to gather your thoughts. The best thing that's saved my butt is the staying still like a statue when something goes wrong. I've been able to sense a tiny Avic crawling across my back and a geniculata that was crawling into a quilt I was making. As long as I pause and try to think rationally (like a tarantula!), I'm able to locate/trap my spider without tearing a room apart or accidentally harming it.

Also, I'm getting good at maintaining humidity and know how to maim an insect so that its movement attracts tarantulas but it doesn't die or get away quickly. But mostly importantly, I trust my spiders!. I've learned not to intervene and I trust the little guys instead of digging them up or immediately tossing them in an ICU because I'm paranoid.

I wonder what lessons I'll be learning in the future.

 

[Kodi]

I have been in the hobby for a whole 14 days. 2 weeks ago I received my first Tarantula in the mail from Jamies Tarantulas. It is a half inch Avicularia Versicolor sling that came with an enclosure. Just 3 weeks ago I was terrified of spiders and any time I use to walk into a pet shop and see a Tarantula in a tiny cage just sitting there it would creep me out, but then... I started watching videos about Tarantulas. They still freaked me out but it interested me to watch anything about them. After I watched a ton of feeding, handling, and general videos I started researching. I found out Tarantulas arent at all dangerous and their bites are no worse than a wasp sting. I havent been stung by a wasp since I was like 5, but I think I can imagine the pain.

So I guess that proves that fear is ignorance. I looked at a bunch of different sites selling Tarantulas and discovered there are two different kinds. Old world and New world. One with more potent venom and the other with harmless venom and urticating hairs. I came across a rather cheap, blue species and my favorite color being blue I thought that was awesome. I researched more about the species and found the cheapest deal I could find and finally decided I would like to get a tarantula. I found them interesting and mysterious overgrown (Compared to the spiders in Pennsylvania) creatures that I could easily obtain and care for.

Ive learned that humidity and temperature arent the death bringing most important things to maintain a T and that worrying isnt necessary with these extremely leniant and easy to care for pets.

 

[James501]

I've kept inverts for around 8 years and tarantulas for 5 of those. I currently have 7 T's and 2 amblypygi.
It was a school friend that started my interest in keeping inverts. I've converted some arachnophobic family members too along the way. Now I have my own house and my collection is growing I think they only visit to see my tarantulas and not me. Ha ha.
I've learnt many, many things over the years and am still learning new things. One of my favourite aspects of the hobby is that there's always something new...
Short but sweet.

James.

 

[Stan Schultz]

I wanted to get a feel for some of the users here at arachnoboards, also learn a thing or two. ...

My wife Marguerite (now deceased) and I have been keeping, selling and breeding tarantulas more or less constantly since February 1968, 44+ years. I think it is safe to say that we are among the elite of arachnoculturists, if for no other reason than that I tend to be rather outspoken about my hypotheses, theories, and biases concerning tarantula care. In all fairness though, I need to stress that I almost always have some logical or factual rationale for my stances. I try to never merely parrot what someone else says out of pure faith or ignorance, or if I do I try hard to admit to the fact. Usually.

We wrote The Tarantula Keeper's Guide, and it's now in its third edition. Recently I've been collecting data for a potential edition four. If it materializes at all it probably won't be on the market until 2018 or 2020.

I've been an active member of Internet arachnid mailing lists and forums since the early 1990s. That, and my long experience in the hobby has allowed me to keep my finger on the pulse of the hobby, noting changes and drifts, and often associations that most others simply don't have the history to appreciate. That experience, my personal wisdom, and my occasional screw-ups are scattered profusely in postings throughout this and several other Internet forums so I won't belabor you with the details here. Merely perform a search for either Pikaia or Schultz.

I'm now retired, living in a motorhome, and traveling around North America as a full time snowbird. I'm currently camped in an RV park a little north of Vernon, British Columbia, Canada, for instance. (Click or right-click on the thumbnails to see a larger image.)





Because I cross the Canadian/US border more or less frequently, I don't have any tarantulas now in order to avoid serious entanglements with the border officials. However, I am still active in the hobby, and enjoy visiting with hobbyist groups around the country in my travels. The good news is that I get to meet lots of tarantula people and fondle lots of tarantulas without ever having to feed them or clean their cages! I also occasionally make reports of my travels on some of these forums. During the winter months I usually stay in tarantula country and in the future I intend do a lot of scientific collecting and the making of field observations about the N. American species.

I'm hoping to be able to afford some international travel to tarantula country on other continents as well.

If all the rest of you manage to enjoy your tarantulas even one-tenth as much as Marguerite and I have and do, you will indeed be very lucky people! Enjoy your little 8-legged wonders!

 

[tjrd83]

Stan you are an inspiration. In no way am I talking about ANYONE on this forum but people I personally know who keep tarantulas seem to do it for all the wrong reasons. Kind of like an ego boost, my spider is so scary isn't it. And they couldn't care less about the correct care for them at all. I have learned so much from you and appreciate the genuine love you have for this hobby and for showing people like me how great these creatures can be. Thanks.

 

[Formerphobe]

I've always like 'bugs' but, developed severe arachnophobia as a very young child after multiple repeated adverse interactions over a several year period with a myriad of true spiders. One encounter involved the sniffing of a crab spider up my nose while smelling a rose from my mother's garden when I was about 2 - 3 years old. Fifty plus years later I can still feel it crawling around in my nasal passages... GACK!

As a young adult I decided to face my fears head on and educate myself. "What we don't know we fear..." What better educational and familiarization tool than one of the largest 'spiders'? Though still not overly fond of trues, I have no problem living in close proximity to them, and have kept tarantulas off and on since 1978. I'm currently sharing my bedroom with somewhere between 50 - 60 tarantulas.

For me, tarantula keeping is a long term continuing education program in patience, learning about the environments that the species I keep hale from, and appreciating the differences in individuals even within a species.

 

[Stan Schultz]

Stan you are an inspiration. In no way am I talking about ANYONE on this forum but people I personally know who keep tarantulas seem to do it for all the wrong reasons. Kind of like an ego boost, my spider is so scary isn't it. And they couldn't care less about the correct care for them at all. I have learned so much from you and appreciate the genuine love you have for this hobby and for showing people like me how great these creatures can be. Thanks.

Wow! Well, thanks! We aims to please.

(Really folks, I didn't pay tjrd anything for that testimonial! Honest!)

 

[iaminside]

i had always been interested but, about 10 years ago on a whim i decided to buy a G. rosea while visiting a local pet shop. It was more of a display pet than anything else, and it worked out great with my lifestyle at the time. i was working on the road doing construction and didnt make it home until the weekends during the summer,then in the winter time when i was layed off i would travel around playing in a band. at that time i never thought i would ever have more than one. 9 years later 2 kids and a career change, that T passed shortly after i bought my first house. Around that same time i became friends with one of my customers who also kept T's. He graciously gave me an Lp sling. since then it has been down hill. :biggrin: With the introduction of a different species i found myself looking for info online. Every time i googled anything regarding tarantulas AB came up in the top searches, and i found myself spending more time researching and dreaming (yes Stan i read your book, thank you for all you have done for the hobby:biggrin what to get next. After a few months i decided to become a member (sorry about that guys). I now have 9 T's (with a P.irminia on the way) and 6 scorpions. Nearly everyone in my personal life encourages my interest and asks questions, which makes it harder to set a limit on how many and how much. i recently remodeled my basement, and im in the process of making a T room. that is how addictive this hobby is "may cause you to cut down walls and remodel your home". thank you fellow AB members for bearing with me and for letting me weasel my way into your community.

 

[goodoldneon]

Stan you are an inspiration. In no way am I talking about ANYONE on this forum but people I personally know who keep tarantulas seem to do it for all the wrong reasons. Kind of like an ego boost, my spider is so scary isn't it. And they couldn't care less about the correct care for them at all. I have learned so much from you and appreciate the genuine love you have for this hobby and for showing people like me how great these creatures can be. Thanks.

Seconded. I’ve been in the hobby for close to a year now - prior to purchasing my first tarantula, I read the Tarantula Keeper’s Guide front to back and back to front and sideways – often to my wife’s annoyance – “Hey babe did you know that….” I’m fortunate in that I spent most of my youth outdoors, exploring and playing in nature. I recall seeing my first B. smithi back at a local pet shot back in the early eighties and thinking, “Cool, I’m going to own one of those beauties some day.” And last year, I finally made good on that pledge – I purchased a sub-adult female smithi. Which led to the acquisition of several G. pulchripes slings (one of which, I’m happy to report, is a female) which led to the acquisition of an A. metallica with led to the acquisition of a P. irminia which led to the acquisition of an H. maculata which led to the acquisition of an Euathlus sp. “red” which led to, well, we’ll see what’s next – I have my eye on a few C. elegans and everyone has to own at least one Poecilotheria, right?

All are considered pets, and they’ve all deepened my appreciation for the untold number of creatures with which we share this planet - an appreciation my wife and I have fostered in our six year old daughter. Whether they’re constructing a borrow, webbing their enclosure, exploring their surroundings, sitting still for hours on end, or, trying their best to give me a heart attack (my H. mac the escape artist), I find them endlessly fascinating. Most are kept in our bedroom (on my side of the bed), and rather than read, I often fall asleep to their goings on – alright, I’m beginning to ramble.

And Stan, I want to thank you and Marguerite for serving as such wonderful ambassadors to the hobby, and for all the fascinating insights you’ve shared with us all - your fellow travelers.

 

[SuzukiSwift]

I've been at it for about 2 months now. I'll admit that at first it was for the wrong reasons, I bought a T for a friend's birthday as a joke, I wanted to frighten him. However, after I got her (my Chilean Rosie, Genevieve) I just didn't want to give her away cause I loved her so much! I can just sit and watch her for ages, she is an AMAZING creation! Now I've got another Rosie, and tomorrow I"m going to get an Avic avic, I don't think I'm ever gonna stop! lol

And to anyone reading this who has bought a T for the wrong reason like I did at first, just watch it moving around and doing its thing and appreciate what an amazing creature you have the privilege to care for; take care of and love him or her!

I used to get frustrated at how they're 'pet rocks' and just sit there, but the truth is that it just makes it more wonderful to observe them when they actually decide to do something haha! The main thing I've learned from keeping Ts (particularly since they're Rosies) is patience, in fact, I didn't learn it from keeping them, THEY taught it to me! lol And I'm really grateful to them for that =)

 

[Storm76]

I've been at it for about 2 months now. I'll admit that at first it was for the wrong reasons, I bought a T for a friend's birthday as a joke, I wanted to frighten him. However, after I got her (my Chilean Rosie, Genevieve) I just didn't want to give her away cause I loved her so much! I can just sit and watch her for ages, she is an AMAZING creation! Now I've got another Rosie, and tomorrow I"m going to get an Avic avic, I don't think I'm ever gonna stop! lol

And to anyone reading this who has bought a T for the wrong reason like I did at first, just watch it moving around and doing its thing and appreciate what an amazing creature you have the privilege to care for; take care of and love him or her!

I used to get frustrated at how they're 'pet rocks' and just sit there, but the truth is that it just makes it more wonderful to observe them when they actually decide to do something haha! The main thing I've learned from keeping Ts (particularly since they're Rosies) is patience, in fact, I didn't learn it from keeping them, THEY taught it to me! lol And I'm really grateful to them for that =)

Never -ever- scare people frightened about T's with the same...it's the worst thing to do and just furthers the bad feelings about them...just as a sidenote.

 

[S2000]

Been in he hobby for 4 years. Personal wisdom....hmm. Well, one thing I learned is that Nietzsche didn't understand them very well :sarcasm:

 

[LucN]

I've been in the hobby for rougly 3 years and a half now. Started with a typical WC pet shop G. rosea, then moved on to the Brachypelma genus starting with a gorgoeus boehmei juvie which eventually turned out to be female ! Since then I've acquired a B. smithi and a B. emilia. There are many other Ts that I would like, but I lack the space to own more.

If anything, tarantulas have taught me the meaning of patience. I've also learned how adaptable these creatures really are and I am consistently amazed about everything I see them do. Be it eating, sitting still, grooming, drinking, etc... They are truly remarkable creatures and I'm thankful to share my life with these living jewels. I'm hoping to have at least one of them still with me by the time I retire in 25+ years from now, which is fairly likely given their long lifespan potential. I also like the fact that they require very little maintenance compared to a typical pet, which suits my extremely busy work schedule perfectly. They are the first things I look up to as I wake up in the morning and are the last things I see before going to bed. They make my life much more interesting and give me a reason to keep on going. They are basically my "children", which I give the necessary care in order to have them life a long and hopefully pleasant life.

 

[Arachninja]

LucN, if people would only sit down and watch the supposed, "inferior lifeforms", a little more it is amazing what we can learn. I have to say I believe these things were put here in order to guide us in the ways of; offense, defense, and basically every concept known, it is sad more cant sit as us here and share; past present and future. From us newbies, to arachnogeniuses all have their part in this big show. Good show and keep those peepers open, never know what we could learn from a T next.