Update!

[Linds]

Put on your sunglasses (hehehe never realized how much my tan faded away :o ) for a picture update on conquering my phobia!

<img src="http://www.ssnakess.com/photopost/data/513/22linds_wgrosea_small-med.jpg">

Super huge thanks goes out to Aidan, SkinheadDave, and Arachnophyliacs for enabling me to handle tarantulas for the first time! The above picture was taken by Dave, when I was holding a rose hair, provided by Arachnophyliacs, for the first time :)

I feel confident enough that I would be able to handle caring for one now :)

[Matt_K]

You better be able to care for one!!! :D

[Dragoon]

Wow, Linds, I am impressed! You don't let much stop you, it seems.
Fear of spiders is a tough one, since it is believed to be instinctive in us mammals. Way to go!
D.

[Linds]

Your little Rose Hair will be in good hands, Matt! I promise! :D:D:D:D:D:D:D

Thanks Emily! :D

[SaIiLdVaEnR]

No problem Linds, anytime you need something like that just give me a message! I was glad to have helped.

Aidan

[Invictus]

Looks like you're curing your phobia the same way I am. Good for you. :) I'm just about at the point where I may be thinking of picking up my own little 8-legged friend myself... not quite there yet though.

[Yness]

Heh. I just got my brother to remove his "limit" on my snake friend count...the odds of him letting me get an 8 legged freak are slim to none....Tho I held my first one at the feb show I really want one now...oh well....congrats on overcoming said phobia

[Stockwell]

Congrats Linds!
I love spiders, but my wife has a real problem with them, otherwise I'd be breeding them too
I must admit that scorpions are what freak me out a little.
I can't imagine holding one of those things.
That tail just hovering there ready to sting, kinda plays on the old psychy
I used to freak my cousin out by holding bees, but scorpions are something esle.LOL

[skinheaddave]

Linds,

You are most welcome, though I may have done you a huge disfavour. Life really is easier when you are only obsessed by one taxon -- and getting over arachnophobia just opens up an entirely different world to you.

Stockwell,

Your take on scorpions is interesting given that Dr. Scott Stockwell is a prominent figure in the world of arachnology, particularily when it comes to scorpions. He has published many papers and coauthored at least one book on scorpions and is (in)famous for having been stung by just about everything at least once.

Cheers,
Dave

[drewlowe]

Congrats Linds for being able to look your fear right in the eyes, and now the addiction will soon begin. LOL

[Yve]

watch out Linds!...the look in your eye says you've been bitten by the bug bug!lol thats what happened to me when I held my first T at the winter expo. I have 4 T's 2 scorps and 6 millis now!:D
Uncle Roy, the feeling of a scorp on the hand is not quite as nice as a tarantula..lol...T's are soft and tread lightly...scorps are miniature mechanical monsters!lol....they feel very strange and are clumsy. The veering tail makes me nervous too even though my scorps are mildly venomous...heh
Dave! you're a crazy man!lol

[skinheaddave]

Originally posted by Yve
Dave! you're a crazy man!lol [/B]

Awwww. That's sweet of you to say, Yve. :)

I would have to agree with your assessment, though. Scorpions definitely feel akward as compared to spiders. Still, some can hold on surprisingly well to vertical surfaces, provided they have some texture. Even something as clumsy as P.imperator can surprise you when put to the test.


Cheers,
Dave

[Dragoon]

I just LOVE how scorps will cuddle down in your hand when you partially close your fingers. I found if I cup my other hand on top, to make it dark, they tuck in their legs and pincers and snuggle down. Makes me just hate to oust them from their warm cave!
D.

Edit: Had to add...No, I WON'T be trying this with my new B.jacksonii...

[skinheaddave]

Originally posted by Dragoon
Edit: Had to add...No, I WON'T be trying this with my new B.jacksonii...

Wise move. I have handled some of my Buthids -- but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

Cheers,
Dave

[Linds]

LOL I won't be going over the top with these guys. One for now, maybe one or two more once I move ;)

Yve,
LOL that look in my eye is nothing short of nerves :p I'm lucky I didn't get bitten, I was so nervous holding that T that when my phone went off in my pocket I jumped :eek: :o

[skinheaddave]

Originally posted by Linds
LOL I won't be going over the top with these guys. One for now, maybe one or two more once I move ;)

I'll quote you on this when your collection rivals mine. :) The thing with inverts is you will find that they need very little care -- they make my snakes look quite high maintenance. Thus, you can have quite a lot without it becoming a burden.

Not that I'm suggesting you need more Ts. Scorpions are where it is at, no matter what Tarcan says (Aidan will back me up on this one.)

Cheers,
Dave

[Tarcan]

Dave, you just deeply hurt my feelings!

Linds, do not listen to the bald man!

[Tarcan]

Oh, and congrats for overcoming this fear... enjoy your spider!

[bubba]

looks like I'm gonna have to start working on my arachnaphobia (sp.) Sweaty palms just thinking about it.

[skinheaddave]

bubba,

Well, based on your location, you have an advantage in that you have all sorts of local critters. Phobias are actually generally quite cureable. A friend of mine specializes in them and she says the success rate is actually quite amazing (despite the fact that everyone thinks that their phobia is much worse than everyone else's and is far from cureable).

Send me an email and I can definitely point you in the right direction to get over your fear. Don't know that I'll be able to go so far as to personally put a spider in your hands, though I will be in Arizona in June looking for some scorpions.

Martin,

I am so sorry to have hurt your feelings. Maybe I should send you a scorpion to make up for my callouse remarks? :D

Cheers,
Dave

[SaIiLdVaEnR]

Dave,

I'm sure Martin would not appreciate it, but I know of a certain keeper by the name of Aidan who surely would :D:P


Aidan

[Linds]

Hehehe I was actually looking in to getting a few scorps a few years back, but never actually did. I'm definitely not new to the world of keeping inverts though, in fact some of my all-time favourite pets are inverts. I'm mostly a reptile girl though... have been since I was a baby :cool:

[skinheaddave]

Originally posted by Linds
in fact some of my all-time favourite pets are inverts.

Do tell .....

Cheers,
Dave

[TheRedDragon]

Good for you Linds! Invictus even managed to cure his phobia by handling my inverts a few times. Now he has purchased one of his own. They do tend to grow on you. :) I absolutely adore my inverts, and wouldn't give them up for anything else in this world. :)

[bubba]

Spiders and tornadoes. These 2 things cause me nightmares that actually bring me up out of the bed! Phobias are weird.

[reptile boi]

lol, bubba, once you get a pet tarantula, ull want more...i used to be terrified or tarantulas until i was about 12 years old and saw some goliath birdeaters and roses at the petstore and that made me want 1. After i got 1 i got another after 3 months, and another, and another....well, u get my point.


Thanks,
Ben

[skinheaddave]

Originally posted by bubba
Spiders and tornadoes.

I was considering getting a pet tornado once, but I don't really have the room for it.

Cheers,
Dave