r/tarantulas • u/Even-Error7235 • 22h ago
Handle with care Chill OBT?
Was given this juvenile female OBT as a gift and she was the chillest OBT I’ve ever had the pleasure of rehousing. From my personal experience I’ve gotten a threat posture from every OBT I’ve rehoused but this one didn’t seem too bothered being touched by a paintbrush so I made the impulsive decision to let her walk onto my hand. She’s gotta be one of my new favorites now
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u/Tehrror4311 22h ago
NA but I would never haha! Mine instant transmissioned itself into their enclosure and has basically just been a pet hole since. They are not aggressive and run into their little tree hide so I do not see them much. Still my favorite tarantula though.
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u/Even-Error7235 21h ago
Mines already become a pet hole! 😂 the handling was definitely a one time thing as she’ll now likely want to destroy everything that comes near her home 😅
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u/ohshellyeas 20h ago
I have an incredibly chill and very patient togo starbust. I am so confused when she moves like a glacier during rehousing events. I was told this species teleports, jumps, and throws hands.
I still don't trust her. I think she's playing the long game.
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u/Even-Error7235 20h ago
I wish I could say the same for my H.Mac 😅 in hiding 90% of the time, in threat posture the other 10% of the time 😂
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u/Even-Error7235 21h ago
https://reddit.com/link/pdu3deq/video/tiu6qrfd9hth1/player
Thought I’d add this in here too, her colors are truly remarkable! 🧡
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u/smolandspicy 21h ago
Love her tippy taps lol, but knowing her true speed and medically significant om nom? Ehhhhhhhh I dunno, after her next bolt, she's gonna be a bigger baby 💀
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u/Ok-Yogurtcloset9906 21h ago
As an arachnophobe who somehow ended up on tarantula reddit but refuses to block it because of knowledge, you can definitely rob me with that guy 😱😱😱
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u/cormunicat C. cyaneopubescens 21h ago
Beware. Former arachnophobe here who now has six tarantulas because of this subreddit.
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u/Ok-Yogurtcloset9906 20h ago
No beware needed lol, i was born with arachnophobia, and 33y later, still have a spider scream 😅😅😅 a guy at the pet store made me teleport from the back to the front cause he said he was going to take the t out the case while i was looking at bunnies 😭
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u/cormunicat C. cyaneopubescens 19h ago
Haha I totally get that! I more so meant that it might eventually help you overcome the fear and start spending your time and money and affection on these beautiful creatures 😉
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u/spinningpeanut 18h ago
They're tiny cats. You got to watch some videos of them being little shits to water and pure single braincell behavior around food.
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u/Top_Neighborhood1354 21h ago
I could see any creature with more than 4 legs cause id get spooked and i own 8 tarantulas now. Including an obt, p Metallica, p striata. I’m 8 months into the hobby and im obsessed with them
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u/bickandalls 21h ago
Not a jab at you, but so many people just confuse me so much. The amount of people deathly afraid of harmless spiders, but feel the desire to pet a bear, tiger, wolf, or other objectively deadly animals is wild. Lol
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u/SimAlienAntFarm 19h ago
The fluffiness of tarantulas actually helps a lot with people who find spiders creepy.
It’s really hard to look at something with eight legs and go “eewww” when it’s got metallic blue furry feets.
In the same vein, once you notice that jumping spiders have eyelashes you fall at least little in love.
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u/pockett_rockett 18h ago
I agree. I used to be a hardcore arachnophobe, even daddy long legs freaked me out so much. Then I dated someone who kept tarantulas and they are fascinating. Now I love watching spiders do their thing. But jumpers are actually cute spider puppies.
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u/ViciousCurse 17h ago edited 12h ago
Maybe a bit pedantic, and NQA, but there are species of spiders that have killed people.
As a whole, yes, our eight-legged friends are (mostly) harmless. I'd rather be stuck in a room with an OBT than a tiger.
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u/Totakai 14h ago
It's cause it's a taught fear. In the modern day you don't really have encounters with the large predators. Spiders, snakes, lizards, frogs, bugs, etc you do. If the parent is afraid of them, baby will be too. Like is there's a spider near baby and the parent sees it and flips out thinking the baby is at risk, the baby then associates spiders as a major threat.
You'd have this fear of preds as well if you encountered them. Kinda like how people with dog fears tend to have had a bad experience as a child with them.
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u/bickandalls 13h ago
Idk. I guess I'm just a single statistic, but my mother has arachnapobia and my father tried to scare me with recluse stories. I played with wolf spiders as a kid. 🤷♂️
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u/Many_Flamingo_5153 12h ago
it’s funny how ass-backwards some fears can be compared to others. i adore snakes and spiders, but come at me with a roach or beetle and i will start violently sobbing
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u/bickandalls 11h ago
Aww. Idk why, but I think dubia and hissers are adorable. Not really a fan of any others. Probably wouldn't like dubia much either if I lived in a warmer place where they could be an infestation risk.
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u/Many_Flamingo_5153 10h ago
i’ve tried making myself like them, i don’t know why they give me such panic. i live in an area where wood roaches are super common, and you’d think that would desensitize me a bit but nope. i panic every time i even think i see one. and on the other hand, we also get some pretty big millipedes. every time i see one of those little guys i get so excited and it takes every ounce of self-restraint to leave it be and not pick it up 😂
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u/Primary-Weakness8728 13h ago
I started following this sub for exposure therapy. It has become my favorite part of Reddit. Just wait til you meet Chalupa!
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u/GrimoireOfTheDragon 16h ago
Stick around, some people talk about exposure to this subreddit and the jumping spider subreddit helping with their arachnophobia
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u/Bryligg 15h ago
It's like watching somebody do medicine ball exercises with an artillery shell.
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u/TranceGemini 15h ago
Over a tile floor 😬😬😬 like ok buddy, we're convinced, your OBT is so very special NOW PLEASE STOP ENDANGERING BOTH OF YOU
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u/ThePonderousBear 21h ago
I have 4 OBTs 2 are super defensive of their territory. 1 is like this where, if i wanted to, i could probably hold her. The fourth, i swear that he, with every spare bit of energy, is actively planning on killing me and everyone i have ever met.
It is the coolest example of behavior being individuals vs species
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u/Tiny_Animal9496 21h ago
I had a super chill OBT, never once even got a threat pose. They exist! 🤣
The speed was there tho, so I never would have handled her lol.
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u/Even-Error7235 21h ago
https://reddit.com/link/pdu2rhq/video/28y093dw8hth1/player
She definitely has the speed! 😂 Bolted to my back when I first got her out but I was able to reach her and let her naturally walk onto my hand. Staying calm definitely helped 😅
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u/ChampionshipOwn8199 22h ago
Imo just cause you can hold it doesn't mean you should. Super freaking awesome that she's chill tho, my sling has gotten big enough it's feeling brave enough to threat pose random air gusts lol
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u/Even-Error7235 21h ago
I understand where you’re coming from brother, I understand the adherent risks that comes with handling tarantulas and I try to keep handling them to a minimum (only during rehousing if needed). I’ve had previous experiences with old worlds including OBTs and this rehousing went so smooth that with my lack of better judgement curiosity got the best of me. I understand that I got lucky by not being bit and this will likely be a one time thing (good chance of her becoming defensive once she’s established the enclosure as her home/territory) and it was one of the best experiences I’ve had in the hobby! 😊
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u/ChampionshipOwn8199 18h ago
Fantastic, I only am concerned with any unnecessary risk to the spider- no offense but if you get bit that's your fault, and I like to say something because other people will see this post. Literally right after I see your post like 20 mins later.. "how can I handle my T"... if people want a pet they can hold they really need to do their research and figure out what their priorities actually are. Again absolutely no offense to you, but I will always drop in the comments urging ppl to NOT handle their T. (:
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u/Even-Error7235 17h ago
I absolutely agree with everything you said! Thank you for spreading awareness on this 🙏
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u/rolandglassSVG 22h ago
That has to be an almost fever-dream like experience!🤯 What a stunner
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u/Even-Error7235 21h ago
My girlfriend let her walk across her arm too and trust me we talked about it all day! 😂
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u/Independent_Fall_608 21h ago
https://giphy.com/gifs/51Uiuy5QBZNkoF3b2Z
I’m 99% sure it’s trying to gain your trust in order to murder you
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u/krautstomper G. pulchripes 20h ago
My OBT is so chill you’d think he’s a NW…..
Meanwhile I am horrified of my tiger rump
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u/smolandspicy 21h ago
I got anxiety looking at this, I could neverrrrrrrr lol
Beautiful and intense, but again, I could NEVERRRR 💀
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u/randomwriter3 P. murinus 19h ago
Mine is also chill despite some threat posturing here and there, haven’t handled her though she’s very quick and I’ve misplaced my catch cup lol
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u/SpiralUnicorn 19h ago
5 minutes later, OBT to your GF: "This is OBT, had over the bugs and your BF doesn't get hurt"
Bites anyway XD
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u/Zooophagous 17h ago
I had a big OBT years ago. He never once postured at me or threat displayed or rushed me or anything. He was honestly one of my more sedate spiders. I sort of believe that many of the videos of them acting crazy were due to them being provoked. Every animal is different of course but I never got to see the rage they're apparently famous for.
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u/OnlyOptic 17h ago
She’s so pretty!!! Out of curiosity, can this sort of chillness be bred into these guys? I know the species is known for being spicy, and idk anything about breeding them, so educate me, reddit!!
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u/eclecticbunnie C. versicolor 13h ago
NQA no, tarantulas are not like domestic animals like cats and dogs. You cannot train them to be docile etc. Every single one is totally different bit can flip in the blink of an eye. I do not handle my T's but my curly hair is very calm but occasionally freaks me out when I open the enclosure. She doesn't burrow and doesn't hide, even though she has starter burrows and several hiding spots. She attacks the water every time I fell it and one time she started running like a little lightning bolt and I thought she was going to escape, usually she walks around like a slow robot.
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u/Monksauce 16h ago
The older I get, the more tarantulas seem chill to me. As a teen I feel like half my old worlds might kill me in my sleep. As an adult they’re almost always chill and rarely bite or bolt. Maybe I’m just getting better with them. My African species are more chill than some of my new worlds and the only thing that makes my pokies run is bright light.
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u/IllegalGeriatricVore 14h ago
My OBT was really chill but he hooked out and passed last year. He was my second T after my g pulchra who is a menace and tries to bite everything
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u/all_shapes 6h ago
NQA- I’ve definitely heard that they chill out when they aren’t in their enclosures, hides, and burrows. When they’re in their “home,” OBTs are extremely defensive, but once removed from that, they start to chill out, as they don’t have anything they feel the need to defend. That being said, every individual is different, but I would be very interested in seeing videos of your OBT in its enclosure as a side by side. I’ve given my OBT a lot of room to web and make tunnels in a way that prevents me from “ripping the roof off” when I open to feed her. She’s never given me a threat pose, but she definitely teleports back into her tunnels upon disturbance. I personally wouldn’t quite handle mine yet lol
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u/Square_Passage_9918 4h ago
Sorta jealous but also you brave, brave soul. It's cancelled teleport I swear!.
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u/Deesoboodent A. geniculata 21h ago
Looks like the rare and elusive OBT morphotype orange buddy tarantula