Our New Barn Guest! (Warning: Spider)

Texas Brown Tarantula

This gal has been hanging out on the top plate of the wall behind some cages for a few days. I haven't been able to catch her yet, because if I move the cages, she runs back into the wall under the insulation. She may be going down inside the wall through the hole for the electrical access because I can't find her when she hides. Hubby doesn't want to go in the barn if she is out and my teen boy wants to blow torch the whole barn. Pre-teen girl is out of town with the grandparents, but she freaks out over even the brown wolf spiders, so she may not even come home when she finds out about our guest.

Then there is the 8 YO girl wants me to catch it so she can keep it as a pet! :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

I think she is kind of cute!!

Ahhhhh! :runhills:

That is one impressive spider!

I used to have a strong aversion to spiders, but since moving out of the city in 2001, I've worked hard to desensitize myself. It's a lot more comfortable being able to view them with interest than to react with shudders.

Snakes now . . . I positively enjoy snakes.

That is awesome! I would love to have a tarantula (outside of course).

I've been working on my spider tolerance as well. I used to despise them. When I was a teen I was riding horses through the woods and rode through a web and a big fat spider dropped down on me. Lets just say it was very fortunate my mare was well broke. I think my screaming and flapping would have caused a run away with most of horses.

Years later, after I was married, we lived in an apartment that had a ton of brown recluse. Pretty sure hubby was bitten although it was never diagnosed and he eventually healed fine with just a scar. He did have a half dollar sized hole in his leg for a while. It healed after he dug it out. He pulled out a filament of what looked like spider silk and then it healed fine. I read somewhere that wolf spiders and other spiders eat brown recluse so now I let spiders be so long as they are not poisonous. I still get a bit nervous if a spider actually gets on me but I am much better than I was.

The last several years I have had a large garden spider make a web outside my kitchen windows. It's been nice watching her through the window. I hope I get another one this year. She made a nice bit nest sac in the window and I've left it so maybe I will have several.

Wow! How big is it???

We don't have anything nearly that impressive here, but I have seen some black widows in the yard a time or two. I like to play with the daddy longlegs... we have some others that look almost like they have a spiny armor on them, those are kinda freaky looking. One has decided to string itself across my walkway to the chickens... I HATE the feeling of spider web stuck all over me!

I have a guest in my barn too, not such a actually nice spider (I have quite a phobia there, but "normal" spiders are worse), but an Aeskulapian snake . Saw it these days, but didn't get a good picture. The piece of shed skin I found in the barn is more than 3ft long .

I had to read your story to my hubby... his response was to smile and say "that would be our boy too!"

He would be TICKLED PINK if we had a spider like that running around...

I have only one thing to say about that huge spider.
:runhills:

I am terrified of spiders and an egg sac hatched in my bedroom. Probably around 100 tiny baby spiders everywhere! It was so creepy. I slept on the couch and sprayed my whole bedroom with indoor/outdoor bug spray. Smells awful but spider free.

I love how all you adults are freaking out!!

I'd love to have a tarantula (inside or out) but I'm sure I'd get myself kicked out of the neighborhood. I don't believe anyone in this city has anything more exotic than a dog. :lol:

We have a MASSIVE wolf spider in our goat room and it has a nest sack bigger than my thumb. The spider itself legs and all from one side to the other was 3.5 inches *If I remember right it's been a few days since I saw it*

LovinTheFarmLife":biw5dq95 said:

Ahhhhh! :runhills:

Click to expand...

Ditto!

I second the motion to torch the barn but I would add in anything within a two mile radius just to be sure. Then I would contact the military to offer use of the former barn site as artillery target practice just to be super sure. Then I would get a nuclear bomb dropped on it just to be super super sure! That is so NOT COOL! Blech! Did I mention I hate spiders?

I will admit I opened this thread despite the warning...lol

That is pretty cool! I don't like spiders when they are on me or when they build their webs across my path. Other than that, they are pretty amazing creatures! I enjoy watching them catch and wrap up their prey and build their nests. I am glad that I don't live where there are any poisonous spiders though. :x A spider of that size seems more of a pest like a rodent (though a beneficial one) than a spider.

Truckinguy":1pxr6o8k said:

LovinTheFarmLife":1pxr6o8k said:

Ahhhhh! :runhills:

Click to expand...

Ditto!

I second the motion to torch the barn but I would add in anything within a two mile radius just to be sure. Then I would contact the military to offer use of the former barn site as artillery target practice just to be super sure. Then I would get a nuclear bomb dropped on it just to be super super sure! That is so NOT COOL! Blech! Did I mention I hate spiders?

I will admit I opened this thread despite the warning...lol

Click to expand...

SMH, Truckin... not that big of a deal.