GG80
Arachnoknight
- Joined
- Nov 26, 2013
- Messages
- 268
Before I start, I just want to say for the record that I know looking after a sling as a first T might not be seen as an ideal start into the hobby.
I was having a discussion with a colleague who is afraid of spiders and while she seemed a little interested in my Ts she said she could never keep them as they terrify her. This got me thinking about arachnophobes confronting their fear and I believe that if an arachnophobe took on the responsibility of raising a sling, then over time they would not only lose their fear but would come to love their little guy or girl.
With minimal help and maximum advise from a friend or family member with experience of slings to start things off for a certain period of time, they can get introduced and used to the idea of looking after a spider. An advantage for this would obviously be that they begin with a small spider and not the big bad hairy monster which they think of. Also over time they can become familiar with the sudden 'irratic' movement of a spider and take it in their stride. But most importantly, I think their human nature of not wanting to see any living creature suffer would kick in and they would want to do their best to do the right thing. This is the point where I believe the arachnophobe will learn that the spider is no threat, and even a little cute, and begin to see how facinating the spider is. As the spider grows, I think there would be a sense of achievement and perhaps even a little pride at the fact that an animal, although a spider, is thriving due to their care. As time goes by the fear will be diminished and there would be one less arachnophobe in the world.
I know some people get adult Ts to combat their fear but there are some individuals out there who couldn't bring themselves to even look at a large spider and this experiment would be for them.
Maybe I'm talking rubbish but I think it could work in some cases.
Any thoughts?
I was having a discussion with a colleague who is afraid of spiders and while she seemed a little interested in my Ts she said she could never keep them as they terrify her. This got me thinking about arachnophobes confronting their fear and I believe that if an arachnophobe took on the responsibility of raising a sling, then over time they would not only lose their fear but would come to love their little guy or girl.
With minimal help and maximum advise from a friend or family member with experience of slings to start things off for a certain period of time, they can get introduced and used to the idea of looking after a spider. An advantage for this would obviously be that they begin with a small spider and not the big bad hairy monster which they think of. Also over time they can become familiar with the sudden 'irratic' movement of a spider and take it in their stride. But most importantly, I think their human nature of not wanting to see any living creature suffer would kick in and they would want to do their best to do the right thing. This is the point where I believe the arachnophobe will learn that the spider is no threat, and even a little cute, and begin to see how facinating the spider is. As the spider grows, I think there would be a sense of achievement and perhaps even a little pride at the fact that an animal, although a spider, is thriving due to their care. As time goes by the fear will be diminished and there would be one less arachnophobe in the world.
I know some people get adult Ts to combat their fear but there are some individuals out there who couldn't bring themselves to even look at a large spider and this experiment would be for them.
Maybe I'm talking rubbish but I think it could work in some cases.
Any thoughts?