Arachnophobia anyone?

[idril]

Originally Posted by pitbulllady

Why would it be "normal" and "perfectly acceptable" to dislike the presence of something that could not hurt you? Would it be normal to dislike the presence of a bunny rabbit, or a butterfly? Bunnies can hurt you worse than most spiders can, take it from me. Out of some 34,000 known species of spider, only 12, worldwide, pose any threat to humans in terms of having venom that is medically significant to us. That's not a lot, not really a justification for disliking them, nor enough to validate fear of spiders in general. Spiders devour 60 times more insects that all other insect-eating animals combined, which is significant considering how many insect species compete with US for food resources, or carry diseases that can sicken and kill us, and that benefit far, far outweighs any threat that a tiny minority of spiders actually pose to humans. Far from disliking their presence, I encourage and enjoy the presence of anything that will eat mosquitoes, flies and Fire Ants, without posing any threat to me at all. I do have to admit, though, that I can better accept people who run screaming like Eduardo from things that scare them, rather than feeling compelled to kill everything that scares them to try to prove they're not scared, and then boast about it later as though they've saved the world, or worse yet, post pics of the dead animal they just bravely vanquished on the internet, as though seeking a reward.

pitbulllady

Well, yeah, spiders could hurt you. Google spider bite (I would advise most of those people in the pictures to go to the doctor sooner buuut whatever). I think it's just normal human instinct to avoid spiders rather than gladly accept their presence, and that normal human instinct should not be mocked. My dogs will get spooked at toads and large beetles. They don't know if they can or can't hurt you, all they know is that they should stay away and they approach very cautiously. Are they just 'stupid dogs' for avoiding something that is pretty much harmless, according to statistics? Course not! Just like I think you mentioned in a post a long time ago, there were people from another country (I'll hazard a guess at Mexico or somewhere thereabouts but I'm not sure) who were afraid of spiders. That instinct and knowledge that spiders can be harmful is what keeps them and their kids safe and I sure as heck wouldn't tell them they're wrong for doing that.

I think it's a little silly to be afraid of something only if it can cause a huge amount of damage or kill you. I'm not only cautious about horses because they can kill you, in fact they hurt people a lot more than they kill. They can still bruise you, break bones, crush you, break the skin...and I don't want that to happen. I also don't know much about horses, just like I don't know much about spiders so I would rather stay away with a little fear rather than learn all about all of them and which ones to fear and which ones are safe. There are a lot more concerns in my life, and I'm sure other peoples lives, than spiders, so a safe alternative would be just to avoid them alltogether. Like I said, I don't think it's right to smash them or torment them or kill them just for being in your house, I'll escort them outside with a handy dandy piece of paper and a cup or magazine, and bid them farewell and good luck finding a home or reuniting with the kids, but I don't think fear of spiders should be seen as an act of stupidity.

Spider bites suck, too. I get nasty reactions to a lot of other bites of the crawly, 6+ legged variety.

ETA: I'm with you with the people posting pictures/videos of stuff like that, it's pretty disgusting and I really don't know what people do it for, such as the person throwing a puppy off of a cliff or videos of people tormenting snakes and using shovels to kill them, etc.

[pitbulllady]

Originally Posted by idril

Well, yeah, spiders could hurt you. Google spider bite (I would advise most of those people in the pictures to go to the doctor sooner buuut whatever). I think it's just normal human instinct to avoid spiders rather than gladly accept their presence, and that normal human instinct should not be mocked. My dogs will get spooked at toads and large beetles. They don't know if they can or can't hurt you, all they know is that they should stay away and they approach very cautiously. Are they just 'stupid dogs' for avoiding something that is pretty much harmless, according to statistics? Course not! Just like I think you mentioned in a post a long time ago, there were people from another country (I'll hazard a guess at Mexico or somewhere thereabouts but I'm not sure) who were afraid of spiders. That instinct and knowledge that spiders can be harmful is what keeps them and their kids safe and I sure as heck wouldn't tell them they're wrong for doing that.

I think it's a little silly to be afraid of something only if it can cause a huge amount of damage or kill you. I'm not only cautious about horses because they can kill you, in fact they hurt people a lot more than they kill. They can still bruise you, break bones, crush you, break the skin...and I don't want that to happen. I also don't know much about horses, just like I don't know much about spiders so I would rather stay away with a little fear rather than learn all about all of them and which ones to fear and which ones are safe. There are a lot more concerns in my life, and I'm sure other peoples lives, than spiders, so a safe alternative would be just to avoid them alltogether. Like I said, I don't think it's right to smash them or torment them or kill them just for being in your house, I'll escort them outside with a handy dandy piece of paper and a cup or magazine, and bid them farewell and good luck finding a home or reuniting with the kids, but I don't think fear of spiders should be seen as an act of stupidity.

Spider bites suck, too. I get nasty reactions to a lot of other bites of the crawly, 6+ legged variety.

ETA: I'm with you with the people posting pictures/videos of stuff like that, it's pretty disgusting and I really don't know what people do it for, such as the person throwing a puppy off of a cliff or videos of people tormenting snakes and using shovels to kill them, etc.

Googling "spider bite" is NOT a very accurate way to determine if spiders in general are or are not harmful. UNLESS you actually SEE and feel a spider bite you, and then experience an obvious reaction at the exact same spot where the bite occurred, it's impossible to make a determination of "spider bite" for a skin lesion/sore. "Spider bite" has become a medical euphemism for "I have no idea what's really wrong with you, what caused that wound, or how to treat it, so I'm going to blame a spider". Doctors are notorious for making that determination, even blaming spider species which aren't found anywhere NEAR where the alleged victim lives, when in fact, many, many different factors, most of them not animal-related, can result in some pretty horrific skin lesions, including MRSA, ingrown hairs, or embedded small foreign objects or even materials like fibers from clothing that the body reacts to. Many of the so-called "spider bite" pics circulating all over the internet are actually bites from venomous snakes, not spiders. Like I said, out of 34,000 known species of spider, only 12 are known to have any medical significance at all, which is a very tiny minority, therefore the chances of encountering one that actually is capable of hurting a person is rather slim, and slimmer still are the chances of actually being bitten. I keep and have caught several Black Widows, which ARE medically-significant, yet I've never been bitten or had one even try to bite. Given the sheer numbers of spiders, and the relative few cases of verifiable human envenomations, the fear of spiders is still far, far out of proportion to the actual risk. Spiders cannot be compared to biting insects since such insects DO intentionally "go after" people to bite them, since such insects feed on blood and see us as part of their food supply, whereas spider bites are 100% defensive and are delivered as a last resort, because the spider's life is in imminent danger.

pitbulllady

[Imaginary Light]

You know, I still haven't been able to totally conquer my fear of spiders, but I held a rose hair tarantula on Tuesday while I was at work (I work at a pet store), and I have to say...I'm totally in love. I had the same rose hair out with me for a while today while I was at work, and she's such a little sweetie! I want to buy her so much! I may just have to get her.

[iluvBlooQKazoo]

You actully handle a spider? I'm dead afraid of those, I'll NEVER touch one.

Peace and Love: J.M Manucy aka iluvBlooQKazoo

[Imaginary Light]

Tarantula's really aren't that bad. I'll tell the truth, I was dead afraid to even touch her. But after holding her, she didnt even feel like a spider. More like a fuzzy little...something, I don't know.

[jekylljuice]

Oh man - I was going through my kitchen cupboard today and I discovered that a couple of spiders had taken up residence in this packet of curly straws for god knows how long. I think one of them may have been dead - it was kind of hard to decipher whether it was actually moving or just being knocked around my movement of the straws when I picked up the packet. After I'd emptied the spiders outside, I kind of had to get rid of the straws, though this had less to do with the spiders than it did the fact that they appeared to be going mouldy anyway. Something tells me that they hadn't been properly washed in a long time.

[pitbulllady]

Originally Posted by iluvBlooQKazoo

You actully handle a spider? I'm dead afraid of those, I'll NEVER touch one.

Peace and Love: J.M Manucy aka iluvBlooQKazoo

I handle both tarantulas and "true" spiders on a regular basis. I've got a greater risk of being mauled by one of my house cats than being seriously injured by one of my spiders. Even Black Widows are not aggressive, and yes, I've got several of those, too. It's when people put the spider in a situation, often unknowingly, where the animal has to bite to avoid being squashed, that people wind up being envenomated, but few spiders are capable of really causing a serious reaction, anyway.

Tarantulas are very soft and furry. They don't feel like any other furry, aka mammalian, animal, though, but more like a stuffed plush toy. Other spiders can feel pretty neat, too; Golden Argiopes feel like velvet.

pitbulllady

[iluvBlooQKazoo]

I'll still never touch a spider of any kind even if you try to pay me, I still won't, but you know thats just me, I'm actully afraid of more then one thing. Like, for instants, the dark, I've no clue what's in it and I don't EVER want to know.

Peace and Love: J.M Manucy aka iluvBlooQKazoo

[Fomalhaut]

Tarantulas are really cute. I loved holding the one I posted a few pages ago; it was like velvet, but it had some weight, too - I'm still afraid of Black Widows and those long-legged thingies, though I have no idea why about the latter.