Small collections vs. Large collections

Hey everybody!

Was just thinking about this last night while looking at my T collection, which is around 25 now. A couple of years ago when I first started the hobby I only had a few Ts, and they meant so much to me. I would worry about them constantly, making sure they were healthy, checking their water bowls every day etc. I was very attached to them and to those Ts I still am attached

However I have noticed that as I have added more and more Ts to my collection they have started to mean less to me on a personal level. I still care about my Ts but I dont check them constantly etc. I'm curious if anyone else has noticed what I have, the larger your collection becomes they more detached you are from each T on a personal level. I'm still very attached to my originals (G.rosea, A.avic, A.genic, B.smithi, B.auratum and A.versi) however the rest I dont have the same attachment

I was considering in the back of my mind actually forgoing adding any more Ts to my collection and leave it at the amount I have now for fear that if my collection becomes even larger I will lose all personal attachment altogether, I'm not sure whether I want an even larger collection with most Ts meaning little to me personally or have a smaller collection where I have a stronger personal attachment to my Ts, what do you guys think? Anyone else ever had these feelings about your collection growing larger?

Just to note: When I say I dont have a strong personal attachment to them I am not saying that I neglect them in their care, those of you who know me know I go the 'extra mile' to give my Ts a comfortable habitat

Not every person can keep 700 tarantulas. I feel you should keep no more than you have adequate funds and space for.

BobGrill said:

Not every person can keep 700 tarantulas. I feel you should keep no more than you have adequate funds and space for.

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Yes but I'm not referring to funds or space here, I'm referring to how personally attached to them you feel depending on how many you own

Well I definitely am less attached to mine now than when I had less.

SuzukiSwift said:

Yes but I'm not referring to funds or space here, I'm referring to how personally attached to them you feel depending on how many you own

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Totally agree, still like observing my big girls though and still love setting up natural enclosures but the early days I got them you would swear I was looking after a human baby.

25 is a good number of Ts if you have a large house & well funded though I suppose you could handle a lot more

I liked having Less Ts better, Less feeding.

My little ole collection is at about 270 now, I still check in on them morning, noon and night, plus a few times in between.

I doubt I'll lose interest when my collection reaches "Large" status :sarcasm:

i after wed ill have 18. i dont think i have less emotion the more i get.. tho i will say my avic when i first got it. sense it was only live arival and i thought it would be tricky to keep.. i checked on it every hour on the hour for first 3 months lmao but everyone has their own personality and thats what keeps me in love. i suppose if i had 30 or so i may feel otherwise as they can only be so different lol... i try to name all mine when i sex them. some even have names lined up based off their personality. nothing quite like "hello quin/steve how are you?" lol i mean there is a few i dont pay as much attention to, but you can only give a pet hole so much more attention, if i catch it out during the night or when i water them i catch myself admiring them for a good 20-30 mins at all angles XD

tho i dont feel this with T's i did notice it with my herps my first 2 or 3 was my life then as i added they loss emotional bond. and eventually they was just a tote to be watered and fed

I have a simple routine of naming each one of my spiders, if I can't come up with a good name for them then I know that I have too many. This is primarily due to the fact that the name must somehow reflect the personality of the spider and I obviously must have the time to observe and get to know the spider. I'm at 20 which I feel is a good number, I may get a few more once I move and become financially stable there. I'm just going to wait the winter out to wait for some males to mature so I can free up some space. I also think I have a some what diverse collection of spiders from different regions of the world and with different personalities so that helps keep me interested. But there are people like skippy who can have hundreds of T's and still fell like they know each one of them. I am I one of those people? Probably not, so I think 20-30 will be the number for me for now.

I am at 14 right now and I consider that a "small" collection. However I do have a nice combination of terrestrial and arboreal, old worlds and new worlds. I check on each of them everyday for new molts, new webbing/digging, or just to admire them out and about. I just started a dubia colony and if it starts to get out of hand I will get more Ts to keep my colony at bay. Or at least that's my excuse to myself! Lol

I did make a "dream list" and it consisted of only about 30 Ts. I don't think I would want to have more than that, as space becomes a real issue. I can't imagine having hundreds or even thousands. Yikes!

I'm in the mid 40s currently and if I had to chose there are certain ones that I just -have- to keep. Some I could part with if need be, but unless I wasn't looking for them long-time to acquire one, the "attachment" only happens over time of raising them. Some behavioral trait, adult coloration or whatnot might persuade me to cherish a certain specimen more than another. As for collection size, not everyone can keep or want to keep 700+. I'm only getting what I can afford, keep, feel comfortable with and appeals to me in the first place. I'm not in it for breeding mainly, I'm mainly enjoying the animals themself and observing them.

My collection currently stands at 22, and I don't think I'll be going above 30. I have a few repeats in species (P. regalis [3], B. albopilosum [4]), so I may end up either giving them away or trading them for something else.

I guess it's all a matter of how much money, space, & time you have to devote to them.