The difference between a newb and a NEWB.

[JimM]

Good thread, though I think the use of "newb" vs. "NEWB" is a little weird.

I wasn't trying to coin a term, just did for emphasis.

 

[BrynWilliams]

i think with a little weeding this thread raises some very good points and should probably be included in one of the reference stickies.

What say you?

 

[venomous.com]

Here's the thing, if you've been keeping other kinds of exotic animals, snakes, lizards...things that take some management, a certain skill set, and can possibly hurt you if you make a mistake, or grew up messing with spiders and scorpions, I submit that when you keep your first T, you're not really a newb in the classic sense. Very far from! You come out of the box with a skill set that might enable you to deal with a pokie as your first T.

Great post. This totally makes sense to me since my background was tree vipers and rattlesnakes....pokies don't scare me one bit. I always get a giggle out of 'medically significant' when talking about a T.

Getting a bite from an Atheris, for which there is no antivenin, or a nice Western DB IS medically significant.....a T, well, not so much

That said, I don't find pokies to be even remotely difficult to keep or work with and I've kept 4 species and currently have about 20 of them. I guess if you are the kind of person who wants to hold your T's they could be problematic, but I don't (or rarely) handle my animals.

 

[Exo]

I don't reall consider myself a newb anymore, I have read so much and studied so many different Ts that I know the answer to most T related questions. I don't have hands-on experience with very many species though, which is why I would now consider myself an "amateur".

 

[DMBizeau]

great post btw

I have less issue with people who ask silly questions then the thousands of others who buy T's and assume they know what to do without any research whatsoever. It may be annoying but at least they care enough to ask experienced people for advice.

 

[MIC]

IMO, tarantulas belongs to the easiest animals for someone to keep.

They are big and poisonous, but not enough to consider them as a menage to our safety.
They are fast (some species) but also very easily catch-able, after the first two-three seconds of their dash for the freedom.
They do need care, but much much less, than our dogs or cats.

For me the only risk comes from the confidence in them. I do not have any bad experience, till now, but i read that there are much more accidents with 'calm' roseas than with 'ferocious' pokies.

So, considering the relation human - tarantula, from the human point of view, there is not much difference what kind of tarantula someone keeps.

I would worry, however, about just the opposite: What kind of human has a tarantula to deal with. So i would suggest the JimM starter post as a very useful reading for any tarantula.

 

[JimM]

IMO, tarantulas belongs to the easiest animals for someone to keep.

They are big and poisonous, but not enough to consider them as a menage to our safety.
They are fast (some species) but also very easily catch-able, after the first two-three seconds of their dash for the freedom.

But here again, especially with the "easily catch-able" statement, you're using your own point of reference to make the statement. You're not freaked out by a Pokie dashing up your wall, and seemingly you don't remember a time when it would have made you soil your shorts, or when even the thought of a large spider made you uncomfortable...maybe you never fit into this category. For some however, this is well beyond what they're equipped to deal with, even if it was a versicolor dashing up their arm, yet they're interested in dipping their toes into the hobby and need our advice.

Am I making sense?
I hear you though, I just think we forget what it's like to be a newb in the purest sense.

I make this mistake with fish keepers or beginning reefers if I'm not careful, I find myself giving advice, forgetting what it's like to be overwhelmed, and totally without any point of reference whatsoever. It's not easy to go back there, to put yourself in those shoes, it takes an effort really. I just think if any assumptions are to be made, it's safer to assume the latter of the above two categories.

 

[paul fleming]

The worst thing I found was when people told me what I should or should not get because I was thought of as a newb.Irrespective of all the other animals I kept or how much research I carried out.
I say,give people the facts and not opinions and let them make their own mind up.

 

[MIC]

But here again, especially with the "easily catch-able" statement, you're using your own point of reference to make the statement. You're not freaked out by a Pokie dashing up your wall, and seemingly you don't remember a time when it would have made you soil your shorts, or when even the thought of a large spider made you uncomfortable...maybe you never fit into this category. For some however, this is well beyond what they're equipped to deal with, even if it was a versicolor dashing up their arm, yet they're interested in dipping their toes into the hobby and need our advice.

Am I making sense?
I hear you though, I just think we forget what it's like to be a newb in the purest sense.

I make this mistake with fish keepers or beginning reefers if I'm not careful, I find myself giving advice, forgetting what it's like to be overwhelmed, and totally without any point of reference whatsoever. It's not easy to go back there, to put yourself in those shoes, it takes an effort really. I just think if any assumptions are to be made, it's safer to assume the latter of the above two categories.

May be it wasn't so clear that i fully agree with you. I wanted only to highlight that for all animals, including tarantulas, we must proceed with respect. That means we read, learn, be informed and act very cautiously.

This is what a newb or ... NEWB has to do, independently of the kind of the tarantula he/she has.

 

[JimM]

May be it wasn't so clear that i fully agree with you. I wanted only to highlight that for all animals, including tarantulas, we must proceed with respect. That means we read, learn, be informed and act very cautiously.

This is what a newb or ... NEWB has to do, independently of the kind of the tarantula he/she has.

No worries, I was just clarifying, but I understand where you're coming from.
I didn't want the potential effect of a run-away P. ornata minimized...

I'd be hard pressed to maintain my cool with that one.

 

[scottyk]

Good original post Jim. Couldn't agree more....

Scott

 

[Mad Hatter]

Our Formulas:

Doing research > Feeling confident

Doing research = Feeling confident

..... but......

Feeling confident < Experience

Doing research doesn't always mean you're going to feel confident about getting the spider. It might do just the opposite...change your mind.

Translated:

Doing research ≠ Feeling confident

But sometimes:

Doing research = Feeling confident

Doing research = (Feeling confident)x0

feeling confident < experience, but you can't gain experience if you don't feel confident enough to do your research and get a spider. :}

So confidence and experience are correlated coefficients.

Research never made me confident. I mean, how can you develop confidence by reading some words or watching some videos? Confidence builds up from experience.. But one must be knowledgable before beginning to attempt to gain experience.

All my research before getting my pokies just made me EXTREMELY cautious. Probably a little more than necessary but, hey, better safe than sorry!!!

Translated:

Research ≠ Confidence

(Confidence)x(Experience) + Research = Well prepared hobbyist

I agree with xhedx but i think instead of confidence it should be knowledge and understanding..nothing prepares for the real thing except THE REAL THING but a bit of knowledge goes a long way

Translated:

Confidence = Knowledge + Understanding

research + confidence = happy days

For me the only risk comes from the confidence in them. I do not have any bad experience, till now, but i read that there are much more accidents with 'calm' roseas than with 'ferocious' pokies.

Roughly translated:

Confidence = Lack of Caution (?)

May be it wasn't so clear that i fully agree with you. I wanted only to highlight that for all animals, including tarantulas, we must proceed with respect. That means we read, learn, be informed and act very cautiously.

This is what a newb or ... NEWB has to do, independently of the kind of the tarantula he/she has.

Translated:

(Animals) + Respect + Research + Caution = Happy Hobbyists + Well Cared for (Animals)

 

[Fran]

Lol Hannah!
That look like a mathematic problem

 

[Fran]

(Animals) + Respect + Research + Caution = Happy Hobbyists + Well Cared for (Animals)

(Animals) + Respect + Research + Caution+Hygrometer = Happy Hobbyists + Well Cared for (Animals)


Now thats more like it (Go ahead JimM)

 

[xhexdx]

From my coding experience, saying something is not equal to something else is represented by !=.

Anyway...

Oh, and ROFL Fran!

 

[JimM]

Math

 

[Mad Hatter]

(Animals) + Respect + Research + Caution+Hygrometer = Happy Hobbyists + Well Cared for (Animals)


Now thats more like it (Go ahead JimM)

LOL!

From my coding experience, saying something is not equal to something else is represented by !=.

Ahh, that's news to me. I was used to the "=" with a slash through it as the symbol for "not equal to" and I used the substitute of: "=/=" to represent that.

 

[maitre]

haha that was awesome!

 

[JimM]

(Animals) + Respect + Research + Caution+Hygrometer = Happy Hobbyists + Well Cared for (Animals)


Now thats more like it (Go ahead JimM)

I'm more interested in the quantum ramifications of your post, and the state of your hygrometer in N dimensional space.

By observing your hygrometer, you change the outcome.

 

[xhexdx]

Ahh, that's news to me. I was used to the "=" with a slash through it as the symbol for "not equal to" and I used the substitute of: "=/=" to represent that.

Well, my experience is C++ programming...

Mathematically, you're correct. I'm gonna see if I can find that actual symbol though...

Ah, here we are: ≠