Just gave a mini presentation

PanzoN88

Arachnodemon
Joined
Sep 15, 2014
Messages
713
I was called by my grandmother to give a small presentation to my cousins (not sure how it goes in the family pecking order, but my grandmothers niece is the mother). I showed off my B. albopilosum, male E. Sp. red, A. Geniculata and G. rosea. I even fed both my geniculata and albopilosum for the presentation. Instead of letting them touch the physical tarantulas, I passed around the most recent molt from my P. cancerides. One of the kids happened to be an arachnophobe, but seeing the E. Sp. red just sit on my hand (he just crawled out like all Sp. red seem to do, therefore I ended up in a handling situation I did not want to be in) he was not scared of them. All of the kids were very interested, I may have just created future hobbyists.

It was a very rewarding experience for me as well, as I got to educate others about this great hobby. I would definitely love to do this again but for larger crowds.
 

chanda

Arachnoking
Old Timer
Joined
Jun 27, 2010
Messages
2,229
If you are seriously interested in doing presentations, you could contact your local elementary school, YMCA, or girl scout/boy scout troops. Teachers and troop leaders are frequently looking for new and exciting presentations to share with the kids. I just gave a bug presentation to a girl scout troop a few weeks ago and it was a lot of fun. The girls all earned their "bug" badges, learned a few things about our multi-legged friends, and even got to hold a few. (Not the tarantulas, of course! The kids get to hold the hissing cockroaches, beetles, etc.)
 

PanzoN88

Arachnodemon
Joined
Sep 15, 2014
Messages
713
If you are seriously interested in doing presentations, you could contact your local elementary school, YMCA, or girl scout/boy scout troops. Teachers and troop leaders are frequently looking for new and exciting presentations to share with the kids. I just gave a bug presentation to a girl scout troop a few weeks ago and it was a lot of fun. The girls all earned their "bug" badges, learned a few things about our multi-legged friends, and even got to hold a few. (Not the tarantulas, of course! The kids get to hold the hissing cockroaches, beetles, etc.)
Exactly what I am planning to do. I figure I will start with the public library since all the schools in the area are on summer vacation, then work my way up.
 

chanda

Arachnoking
Old Timer
Joined
Jun 27, 2010
Messages
2,229
Exactly what I am planning to do. I figure I will start with the public library since all the schools in the area are on summer vacation, then work my way up.
One thing to be aware of is that some places may require you to have some sort of proof of insurance if you are bringing in live animals. I did a presentation on South American tarantulas for a Geography Day event at my local library, and they required proof of $1 million liability coverage in case the (caged) tarantulas decided to run amok, burn books, demolish buildings, or devour the patrons. Stupid, I know - but as they say, you can't fight city hall. Some organizations are completely inflexible when it comes to their rules. Fortunately, it was a relatively simple thing to add on an umbrella policy to my homeowner's insurance policy, so I would meet their coverage requirements. (Because I don't get paid to do the bug presentations, I was able to convince my insurance agent that the tarantulas are pets and would fall under the same homeowner's coverage as my dog, if he were to bite somebody. Otherwise I would have had to get the much more expensive business liability policy.)
 

PanzoN88

Arachnodemon
Joined
Sep 15, 2014
Messages
713
One thing to be aware of is that some places may require you to have some sort of proof of insurance if you are bringing in live animals. I did a presentation on South American tarantulas for a Geography Day event at my local library, and they required proof of $1 million liability coverage in case the (caged) tarantulas decided to run amok, burn books, demolish buildings, or devour the patrons. Stupid, I know - but as they say, you can't fight city hall. Some organizations are completely inflexible when it comes to their rules. Fortunately, it was a relatively simple thing to add on an umbrella policy to my homeowner's insurance policy, so I would meet their coverage requirements. (Because I don't get paid to do the bug presentations, I was able to convince my insurance agent that the tarantulas are pets and would fall under the same homeowner's coverage as my dog, if he were to bite somebody. Otherwise I would have had to get the much more expensive business liability policy.)
I planned for that a long time ago. I have multiple alternatives in mind if that is the case, but hopefully since I know some of the employees (they know of my little hobby) that can be avoided.
 
Top