Growing a collection - thoughts and reflections

[TechnoGeek]

Did you start out with a particular number of species in mind or did your collection grow organically?

I started with one G pulchra, grew my collection quickly until I had 30 then I went back to 15. I now only keep the species that I'm most interested in and I'm quite picky.

Do you have any regrets about adding to your collection too quickly (for whatever reason)?

That depends. If you go from 1 tarantula to 30 too quickly then yeah you might regret it. But 8 is very manageable even for a compete noob. Tarantulas don't need much to thrive.

What (if anything!) will limit the size of your collection?

As I said, I'm a very picky keeper. I don't want just about any T or spider, in order for me to want a species it has to meet a certain set of conditions, and even then I might not get it if I already have something that's very close.

The requirements are: bold and doesn't hide often, has interesting looks (colors, size etc), isn't a dwarf, isn't overly shy or defensive, isn't a terrible eater. If you think about it, this only leaves me with a couple dozen new world Ts. I already have most of them.

 

[l4nsky]

Did you start out with a particular number of species in mind or did your collection grow organically?

Organically and rather exponentially once I started breeding.

Did you end up with more than you initially expected? If so, why?

No.

Do you have any regrets about adding to your collection too quickly (for whatever reason)?

No.

Have you downsized at all? If so, why?

I "downsize" after every eggsack by selling/trading the slings, when I sex the holdbacks to sell off, and when MM's get sent on.

What (if anything!) will limit the size of your collection?

Physical space and time. I can and have optimized the latter, but the former continues to be a constraint (hence why my collection is temporarily capped until I can sex out and sell some holdbacks and other projects). It's also important to note that I judge the space needed by the eventual adult enclosure size, not their current sizes.

 

[catboyeuthanasia]

Did you start out with a particular number of species in mind or did your collection grow organically?

I got into the hobby because of a few species I wanted to keep. I started with a few cheap, easy Slings right after college to get experience for my tougher to keep, dream species. So far, I've only been slowly growing my collection, but I would love to start a breeding pool I'm the near future

Did you end up with more than you initially expected? If so, why?

After I bought my first two, I realized how addictive getting new Ts can be, so I've limited myself to species on my "hit list". My velvet worm colony exploded, however, so I definitely have a lot more pets than I started with.

Do you have any regrets about adding to your collection too quickly (for whatever reason)?

My job has me travel a lot, so I do regret adding species without setting up a good automated system. Now that I've gotten automatic waterers and lights up, things are a lot smoother.

Have you downsized at all? If so, why?

Not yet, I did downsize my fish tanks a little to make room for Ts, since I enjoy this hobby more than tropical fish.

What (if anything!) will limit the size of your collection?

Mostly time for me. I know it will be very rewarding to delve deep into this hobby, but personally, I would rather have some experience in a lot of pet hobbies than get in deep with one. Theres just so many cool critters out there, from corals, to frogs, to slugs. This is just my oppinion, and I have a lot of respect for people who dedicate their lives to T keeping and research. (This also applies to my work, since my research topics are all over the place)

 

[Scoot]

Some insightful, considered, humourous and at times rather touching responses to this topic. Thank you for all contributions.

@SpookySpooder @Tentacle Toast - We'll see how my restraint works out in the long term

 

[HappyLittleDaydream]

As a new keeper (I got my first T earlier this year), I'm interested in the dynamics of growing a collection.

I can envisage, at some point in the future, keeping a modest number of around 6-8 species I'm particularly interested in and feel capable of keeping well. I expect this to be a slow process; I want to make sure my current T is healthy for a while longer and that she moults again successfully in my care before I scratch the itch for the next acquisition.

With my current expectations in mind, I'd be interested to hear from more experienced keepers with larger collections:

• Did you start out with a particular number of species in mind or did your collection grow organically?
• Did you end up with more than you initially expected? If so, why?
• Do you have any regrets about adding to your collection too quickly (for whatever reason)?
• Have you downsized at all? If so, why?
• What (if anything!) will limit the size of your collection?

To be clear, I'm certainly not making any judgements about the respective merits of larger vs smaller collections; I'm fascinated by Ts in any number and so long as they're cared for, folks can do as they please I'm just interested in how and why hobbyists build up such large collections collections from scratch and the experiences of doing so.

I got my first T in August and I am now up to ~20-25 with my delivery today. All but one of them are slings. I am hoping to breed in the future, but for now, this is my main hobby. I have ALWAYS planned on having animals as a hobby and before I got over my fear of spiders, I was expecting it to be a collection of herps. But upon getting that first T, everything clicked. Plus my SO is not afraid of spiders, but they are afraid of some reptiles (its not an intentional fear and I have a rule that someone shouldn't be afraid of something in their home). I have all new world species and a number of them are a multiple of the same species so that I can increase my chances of getting a female, or if its a male (since I am assuming they are all from the same clutch to be safe), figuring out something to do with him as a MM whether selling or sending out or what have you. I am far enough in my life to be able to make this commitment and I am so enjoying the process of watching them grow. I had TWO molt yesterday alone! And this gives me time to compile cage decor for their adult cages. I pride myself on trying to keep the highest of care standards and this gives me the ability to size up and rehouse as they all grow.

 

[Matt Man]

I got in to the hobby because my 5 year old daughter said "Daddy I want a spider" and who am I to say no? My brother had had them and I had always liked them.
So I started looking, and then a friend said "Hey a co worker left a tarantula in his old office, you want it?" again, who am I to say no?
Welcome to the hobby NEWB

Aggie Pre 2

• Matt Man
• Aug 14, 2017

When we rescued her, her substrate was wrong so we had to redo her enclosure. This was pretty...

AF OBT on bad substrate and cranky about it
So brand new to the hobby and had to rehouse an "Orange Bitey Thing" I started here as a lurker and gleaned everything I could
She was much happier in her new digs. She died of old age. Agnes, how I miss thee.

Aggie Post 1

• Matt Man
• Aug 14, 2017
• 5

This was my (our) first T. (???) It was a rescue, and even though I was a newb and this was an...

 

[Scoot]

Revisiting this topic with an update...

So, as many of you predicted, my resistance has broken

I have just ordered my second T, a rather lovely-looking B. emilia , who should be here next week. I'm enormously excited and will be sharing images soon, no doubt.

Still, 2 Ts in just under a year is rather restrained compared to some, I think, though I am also finding myself being inexorably drawn towards the sacred cult of Genic...

 

[IntermittentSygnal]

Revisiting this topic with an update...

So, as many of you predicted, my resistance has broken

I have just ordered my second T, a rather lovely-looking B. emilia , who should be here next week. I'm enormously excited and will be sharing images soon, no doubt.

Still, 2 Ts in just under a year is rather restrained compared to some, I think, though I am also finding myself being inexorably drawn towards the sacred cult of Genic...

Join us..

 

[I am Raf]

I started with one tarantula, and I was quite content for approx 4 years. After being fed up with feeders going to waste, I got a couple more inverts - another tarantula, a scorpion and a centipede and things were fine for about a year.

Then I started going to invert shows and fell in the trap of mystery boxes. Was keeping more than 100 inverts at one point.

I've recently started downsizing, trying to limit my collection to the inverts I really enjoy keeping. Will probably continue this process and end up with loads of individuals from a couple of species. I'm somewhere at 70 inverts at the moment.

I don't regret expanding the collection, because it allowed me to figure out the inverts I genuinely enjoy, and the ones I'm not so keen on. Plus, I gained a lot of experience in raising slings, and now I tend to buy them instead of adults/juvies because I enjoy the aspect of watching them 'grow up'

The only limiter is space

 

[invertinverts]

I did not start out with any number in mind, but did create a sort of "wish list" of tons of species I wanted. I knew I would never be able to get all of them but it was a sort of guide so I never ended up with tons of species I wasn't particularly interested in. Luckily I lived close to an awesome exotics shop that sells tons of cool species of tarantulas so I was able to go in and peruse and buy one at a time.

I got my first t because I thought "it would be so fun to have a little spider that can sit on my desk". I quickly realized there was going to be more than that just because they are so cool and that first one really ignited a passion for exotic pets but specifically tarantulas and other inverts.

No regrets. This hobby has made me a better and more conscientious human through lots of ups and downs in my personal life and if I went back in time, I'd do things almost exactly the same.

I hope to never have to downsize. I am a strong believer in that if I take in an animal, it's wellbeing is now my responsibility and if it's too much for me that is a me problem that I need to fix. I've made some significant life changes because of my animals (like moving into a bigger house) and each gets the care and respect it deserves regardless of if I am busy or tired. They don't know or care that I had a busy day, but they do care that they don't have fresh water and they can't get it themselves. I think my strict standard of care has stopped me from getting in over my head.

The only thing that limits my collection is space. I'm very aware of how much space I have, how much space each animal will take at its full size, and what animals I'd like to keep in the future and how big their enclosures will need to be.

 

[Scoot]

Resistance broken - but just look at her! How could I resist?!

As seems to be the case with many Ts, photos don't do this species justice - nothing beats seeing them in the flesh.

 

[Westicles]

Resistance broken - but just look at her! How could I resist?!

As seems to be the case with many Ts, photos don't do this species justice - nothing beats seeing them in the flesh. View attachment 471950 View attachment 471951

Can't go wrong with B. emilia or joining the A. geniculata cult. On another note, going back to your original question. You'll get lots of different answers, but that's just something you have to figure out on your own. Some folks are content with keeping 4 or 5, some are content with 80 or 90. My advice is don't impulse buy and don't keep more than you have the space and time for.