Misunderstood tarantulas???

[sparticus]

I'm at the point where I just don't tell people that I have tarantulas. It's not worth the inevitable "EWW I'm never going to your house!"

This is a bonus feature for me. I already don't want people visiting our house, so if having spiders makes them stay away, awesome!!!

 

[Mirandarachnid]

What annoys me more than people asking stupid questions or getting scared/grossed out are the people who like to play know it all and say stuff like, “Oh you should get a cobalt blue, those are really pretty.” As if wall of tarantulas in front of them are not impressive enough, and also not realizing that the box of dirt which is literally in front of their face HAS A COBALT BLUE IN IT because they don’t know scientific names.

 

[SpookySpooder]

"kill it with fire!!!" is about the only thing these idiots know to say . I’m not really sure where the term came from.

I believe the statement originated sometime in the late 80's or early 90's in reference to all the horror monsters/aliens/baddies in movies being dealt with by fire. Essentially a meme that says "anything scary can and should be killed with fire."

 

[SpiderEspresso]

I just compare them to houseplants that move sometimes. People tend to understand comparison pretty quickly.

As far as the biting goes, I say getting bit by a hamster is always worse. Usually ends up with the other person talking about how they had the cutest hamster in the world and trying their best to not say they hate it.

 

[Requiem4aSpleen]

People either get it or they don't. I've had far more people wanting to see pictures of my T's than those who are like "ew, gross" Just tell the haters to feed some flakes to their boring goldfish lol

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Another interesting read on this topic ,

Tarantulas As Pets – The Good, Bad, and the Misunderstood

When I was around 6, my father took me with him when he visited a local pet store. While my dad spoke to the clerk, I wandered around the small shop checking out the many animals offered for sale. …

tomsbigspiders.com

pop culture and movies didn’t exactly help with Ts used as props for fear.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

More on this topic.

The Best (and Most Ridiculous!) Tarantula Myths

There is something just so fascinating about a giant, hairy spider. Whether you love them or hate them, tarantulas have the uncanny ability to capture our imaginations, pique our curiosity, and ill…

tomsbigspiders.com

 

[bonewax]

I just don't get it. You see a cool bird and everyone loves it, fair enough. But you see an arachnid and it is "kill it with fire!!!" Smh

I was having a spirited discussion regarding solifugidae, camel spiders with someone. They were trying to convince me that they have anesthetic venom in order to take chunks out of large prey. I checked numerous papers and they all say solifugids do not possess venom at all and they only prey on smaller organisms than themselves. Even after explaining this they sent me a bogus site suggesting they can and do attack people willingly.

I still feel it is worth it to argue for proper information. All the myths and misinformation is actually endangering these unique creatures. I of course mean arthropods, especially arachnids.

I have seen people sharing social media posts with warnings about animals like copperheads or brown recluse spiders. Usually calling them deadly and warning people to be on he lookout for them. It's frustrating that people intentionally perpetuate those misconceptions resulting people harming or killing them (which actually puts people at more risk). While it is true that bites can be serious and warrant medical attention, there are very few documented deaths from either of those animals. Sometimes I'm tempted to respond to try to educate people, but I just assume it's futile and ignore it.

 

[Smotzer]

And here’s my purely fossorial, and probably most laid back tarantula I’ve ever owned, and it’s a Pterinochilus murinus “Usumbara Mountain Variant”. Have never received a threat display from her. If I were to get bitten by her I would have to physically try to do so, she’s the furthest from a “orange bitey thing”.