My Spider Journal: Doug Meets A Tarantula

Time for the final step in my fear-confronting spider journey: Meeting a tarantula.

Janet and I arrived at the Vancouver Aquarium, meeting up with photographer Maxine Bulloch (who took all of the photos you’ll see here!). I was only planning to do this once, so I thought I’d better bring a photographer to capture the moment. I joked with friends that, if I passed out from fear immediately, then I’d just end up with a lot of photos of me lying on the floor. Part of me did think that I might pass out. But part of me felt ready for this. After a year of spider desensitization, I felt as ready as I could be for this final challenge.

Bring in the Spider

We went inside and found our way to the new Monsters of the Abyss exhibit, where I had arranged to meet up with Joaquin Marquez, the aquarium’s spider-wrangler. (I don’t know if that’s his real job title, but he will forever be a “spider-wrangler” in my mind.) Joaquin led us to one of the aquarium’s wet labs, where they often host school kids who get a chance to interact with sea creatures like anemones. We found a nice quiet table by the window, and then Joaquin said, “I’ll go get the spider.”

This was the scariest moment for me. Knowing that the tarantula was on its way. I couldn’t really get out of this now.

Meeting the Spider

Joaquin returned with a small container filled with dirt and bits of bark, and set it gently on the table. There she was: Penny the Chilean rose tarantula.

Joaquin knows his spiders, but he also clearly knows how to handle arachnophobes. He very gradually introduced me to Penny. First, Penny stayed in her container, so I could sit and look at her while Joaquin talked about her.

He described all of Penny’s defence mechanisms: running away, covering her face with her arms, pooping herself (apparently spiders have VERY smelly poop and use it as a defence mechanism), and apparently they will do all of these things before attacking somebody and biting them. They avoid conflict as much possible. Knowing what a stressed-out spider would look like really helped me not be afraid. I felt strangely calm.

First Contact

Joaquin picked up the piece of bark that Penny was sitting on and lifted her out of the container. My heart raced a little. I didn’t know if I would be allowed to touch or hold the spider, because they’re quite fragile, but when Joaquin lifted the spider towards me, I thought, “Oh okay this is happening!”

First, we touched fingers.

And then Joaquin got me to lay my hands as flat as possible. (Cupping them too much would make Penny feel trapped.) And he gently lifted Penny into my hands. I couldn’t believe it. I was holding a tarantula!! And she felt extremely light. I could feel her pointy “toes” sticking into my hand. It felt like she was holding on, just keeping herself steady. I held her for a good ten minutes while Joaquin told me more interesting spider facts. Looking at her in my hands, she was actually a beautiful little creature. Delicate. Not scary at all!

The Fear is Gone!

As we left, I felt amazing. I had confronted my greatest fear! And I had an overwhelming sense that I was no longer afraid of spiders. I still feel it now, this strong sense that I’m not afraid of spiders anymore. Maybe that feeling will pass when I run into another wolf spider near my desk, but for now I feel like I accomplished my spider mission. And just in time, because I need to write about it in my new book!

Thanks!

A huge thank-you to Todd Hauptman from the Vancouver Aquarium, for making this happen. And thanks to our spider expert Joaquin, who was fantastic! Thanks to Maxine Bulloch for all these great pictures. And thanks to Janet for moral support and for being there for every step of this spider adventure.

For more about my year-long journey into the world of spiders, see My Spider Journal posts.