# Spiders, Insects, and More!



## MissSix (Jul 8, 2014)

*WARNING! If you are easily triggered by images of spiders, centipedes, roaches or other arthropods, then you may want to turn back now!*




I've seen a few people that also have spiders and other arthropods. 
I adore my rosehair Amalthea, she's the first pet I got entirely on my own, and I've had her for five years. I tell people she's like an 8 legged kitten, and most people don't believe me. She really is a gentle animal, she's very comfortable with being held, and was my constant subject for my photography class. I spoil her rotten. 


























A year ago I had a beautiful centipede (subspinipes subspinipes, there's a million common names...) who passed away from a complication during her molt. 
She was given to me as a gift, after I went on and on about how much I love _millipedes_. The gift giver mixed up the two different myriapods, but I still love her, in fact she completely changed my perception of centipedes and inspired a powerful love for them. 





















I hope to get another centipede soon, and definitely more tarantulas. 

I'd love to see photos of other people's beauties!


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## Vegn (Jan 2, 2014)

Uh uh. Nope. Mexican red knees and millipedes please. I hate centipedes. They freak me out. Their legs move weird. Millipedes are quite cute though and their legs move in a cool and pretty way, under them not to the side is the big difference for me. Mexican red knees are my favorite tarantula, of course since my sister hates all insects and my mom doesn't like them "not until you get your own place" is the answer although we do a spider on the porch right now who is my buddy but if I see a moth or lady bug struggling in his web, I can't help but get them out. He's very smart putting a web right by he porch light though) rosehairs are.....IDK, just kinda bulky and big for my taste. Although I'd prefer any tarantula to a roach any day. When I told the leader at zoo camp a few years back that I'd rather hold a tarantula than a hissing roach, she got so confused and almost angry but really ones fuzzy, "furry", and doesn't make freaky noises, the other is wearing armor and could survive a nuclear disaster so who was the crazy one there?


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## gotchea (May 4, 2013)

I LOVE millipedes! Here is a wild spider I found and helped cross the road. I see a ton of them around here. MY mom kept honking in the car so the spider would bite me. She doesn't like when I pick up the wild animals all the time.


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## MissSix (Jul 8, 2014)

Vegn, centipedes are actually really cool once you get to know them. Bernadette would be looking for her food, come across her own back end and start grooming herself until she remembered that she was hungry. 
Also, if it's not Insects, then technically you could get a millipede or a tarantula! Tarantulas are arachnids and millidpedes are Myriapods! Arthropod is the cover all term for any animal with an exoskeleton. 
In truth I prefer holding spiders to roaches. Roach feet are a bit scratchy (Most hexapods really). Tarantula feet are very soft, and very much like little kitten paws (in my opinion).


Gotchea that's so cute!
Hmmm, desert brown maybe? They are really very docile.


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## MissSix (Jul 8, 2014)

Also thought I would add to this conversation: Why do you keep, or want to keep, these animals? 

A lot of people ask me why I would want a big spider in my home. For me, I love observing their behavior. Tarantulas are responsive to different kinds of music, so it's interesting to watch Ama run over to the side of the tank when I put on violin solos (she loves to stand on my speakers when I have music on). People do not have to cuddle an animal to develop a relationship with it, I deeply love Amalthea, and grieved Bernadette's passing for a long time. I firmly believe they have personalities, they may not be as pronounced or as varied as other animals, but my dad has two tarantulas and they are complete polar opposites of each other- Lash is unflappable, and Audrey (who is a species known for being docile) is irritable and a bit vindictive. To some degree I know I anthropomorphize their actions, but there is still a noticeable difference.


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

I love big spiders...ones that I can't keep track of, not so much >.< I also grew up in an area where there a lot of large centipedes, I mean like 6 inches was a small one and I've always hated them. I'm sure if I owned one, I would love watching it, but taking it out to clean and whatnot would not go so well. I'm really not afraid of many "bugs" (except the ones that you should have a rational fear of for the harm they can do) but centipedes just never made it onto my "like" list. I do own a millipede which is rather dull lol we caught him outside and he's just been living in a tank feasting on all kinds of goodies for 6 months now. Sometimes the only way that I know it's still alive though is that it will be in a different spot than it was when I went to bed, so not the most exciting pet; I do like watching it though on the rare occasions when I catch it moving. I'd love to get some tarantulas and scorpions once I move and have more space, those are two that I can never get enough of! I sometimes wonder if it'd be difficult to keep a praying mantis or walking stick, just haven't looked into it yet.


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## Jessiferatu (Apr 30, 2014)

I ignored your warning because I'm just weird like that. I'll admit I am terrified of spiders, but for some reason pet tarantulas don't bother me *as much*. I do think they're beautiful and interesting to watch. But you won't catch me doing what Gotchea is doing in that picture. Lol!


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## ksaxton (Apr 20, 2014)

More power to you if you love spiders and millipedes and the like, but these creatures just freak me out. Really it's the legs.....but I like seeing other peoples, I just couldn't keep them myself. They are fascinating though!


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## gotchea (May 4, 2013)

I have no clue what kind of spiders are around here. I'd love to own a milli one day! I think they are the cutest. I have a question!did the name Amalthea come from the movie the last unicorn???


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## Vegn (Jan 2, 2014)

It's the big stand out legs of centipedes that freak me out, and the flat pancake look. And house centipedes are just blech. It's why I prefer and like millipedes. I love daddy long legs and the gangly-er spiders. Thee little jumpy ones, not so much. Snakes I'm fine with but I don't want to think about the food source. I do like worm snakes though. We have some around here. Very cute little guys. And I love frogs and lizards.


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## MissSix (Jul 8, 2014)

gotchea said:


> I have no clue what kind of spiders are around here. I'd love to own a milli one day! I think they are the cutest. I have a question!did the name Amalthea come from the movie the last unicorn???


It means "to soothe", so I thought it was an appropriate name because her presence comforts me (also because I like out there names).


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## gotchea (May 4, 2013)

MissSix said:


> It means "to soothe", so I thought it was an appropriate name because her presence comforts me (also because I like out there names).


 I am not sure why it made that face I just posted a ? Hahah but that's cool I never knew what it meant.


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## bluenova_11 (Jul 21, 2014)

Wow there amazing I was thinking of getting one myself but are they loving and easy to care for?


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## BlackAce (Apr 18, 2013)

Do crustaceans count? Before I got into the small furry pets, I had 10 hermit crabs in a huge tank. They're awesome pets! As long as you don't listen to anything anyone at a "crab shack" tells you, I don't see them much now but they were sensationalized when I was younger. I got really attached to them though, they also have individual temperaments. Some were shy, some were crazy lol 

I have a slight spider phobia but tarantulas have always fascinated me. We had a fifth grade class pet tarantula called Thumbelina, I remember I liked holding her  Lovely pictures though!


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## Lita (Jul 10, 2014)

I am a mild arachnaphobe, occationally moderate depending on the size and type of spider, but i have thought about a tarantula before. I saw that show Extreme animal phobias or something and a severe arachnaphobe ended up with one and I am not super terrified of them so I've always thought it might be a neat way to get over my issues. But I hve no clue the level of care they need. Or how to tell diffrent species apart and what would be the best. XD they look so soft. I didn't know people kept centipedes. I thought they were super dangerous?


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## Morpheus (Aug 28, 2014)

I love your rosehair!  Spiders in common actually. But my fiancé hates them as much as he hates snakes too lol.
i had a few meican red knees and rosehairs to care for on my old school where i studied animalcare. But after 3 years i gratuated and had to leave them 
Hopefully in our new home, i coud have an own room for my weirder pets, haha.


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## MissSix (Jul 8, 2014)

bluenova_11 said:


> Wow there amazing I was thinking of getting one myself but are they loving and easy to care for?





> am a mild arachnaphobe, occationally moderate depending on the size and type of spider, but i have thought about a tarantula before. I saw that show Extreme animal phobias or something and a severe arachnaphobe ended up with one and I am not super terrified of them so I've always thought it might be a neat way to get over my issues. But I hve no clue the level of care they need. Or how to tell diffrent species apart and what would be the best. XD they look so soft. I didn't know people kept centipedes. I thought they were super dangerous?



I'm just going to answer these two together.
Tarantulas take very little care (they can actually survive over a year without food or water, though I do not suggest withholding those). Each species has a few mild differences in their needs. For example, rosehairs and Mexican redknees come from a more arid climate and are just fine with low humidity, with an occasional spritzing, while more tropical species need their humidity kept around 80% with daily sprays. Each tarantula seems to have a different appetite, Ama will only eat about every month to a month and a half, and won't take food in between these times. Also, most Ts only need half a dozen crickets to be satisfied, but you can also feed them roaches or mealworms, but don't feed them wild caught roaches, as they may have come into contact with a pesticide.
Over feeding is a problem that many people don't realize about. Excessive weight can cause complications with he molt. This actually caused my centipede to turn some of her hind gut out and she lost part of her back legs (turns out centipedes only need to eat once every month, and not every 2 weeks like the caresheets recommend). Some tarantulas (and most centipedes) are prone to over eating just because of instinct. 
Excess calcium is also a huge problem. Most crickets and roaches are gut loaded (meaning fed nutrients for the benefit of the animal eating them) with calcium for reptiles. This is GREAT for reptiles but HORRIBLE for arthropods!!! The calcium hardens their body and makes it extremely difficult for them to molt- this killed my dad's tarantula. 
I personally recommend "Tarantulas and Other Arachnids" from Barrons for more info; it's a reasonably inexpensive book with good info. 
TLDR: Just worry about molting!
As to telling different species apart... that is not always easy! If you get your tarantula from a breeder (you can find them at reptile conventions) they will be able to tell you exactly what you are getting. Most common starters are rosehairs and redknees because they have good temperaments; typically docile, very tolerant of being held however 1 in every 1000 will be aggressive. An easy temperament/mood test, is to gently tap their back leg with a pencil, if they walk on they are calm, if they turn around and strike you don't want to put your hand in there. 

And centipedes are technically dangerous. So are dogs, in that sense. Bernadette's venom could dissolve some of my flesh if she ever bit me, but I didn't handle her because she was a very skittish centipede. Some people can pick theirs up and let it crawl on them. Most centipede venom will cause a bit of mild necrosis, swelling, and possibly effect the heart, but we're much bigger than their intended prey so they are not built to kill us. They also inject serotonin, which is specifically meant to cause pain in defense (yes, in the brain that is the feel-good chemical, but when administered subcutaneously it causes pain...because nature hates us). Also a centipede is more likely to strike with their longer back legs because venom is "expensive" to produce, so they would rather run away than fight. Centipedes definitely require a tank with tall sides... Bernadette once flipped herself out of her tank, but thankfully landed in a hat and I just dumped her back in.


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