Yes, I’m joking. I’m also joking about the cats. At least I think I am…
No, you’ve pretty much got cats down.
And don’t be fooled, lynne-42 is really a spider trying to put you off your guard. It’s the eyes they love to nibble.
HFS!!! :eek::eek::eek:
and i thought wolf spiders here in the mid of west (indiana) were ginormous…
even the famed maggie, one of the superkitties and my resident huntrix and defender of the realm against all things eight-legged and six-legged, probably wouldn’t take on a huntsman. fellow superkitty turk couldn’t be bothered to get off the couch, but i’ve seen her stalk and kill her fair share of beasties in the three years i’ve had her.
our biggest pest and the more dangerous spider in the states is definitely the brown recluse, and maggie does a great job of keeping them under control. i’ve only had one black widow in the house that i can ever remember from years back, and that one i reduced to a greasy spot in a right big hurry, then tore the house apart looking for more. surprisingly, i didn’t find any.
only occasionally do i have wolf spiders as house guests and i pretty much leave them alone because they’re shy, not poisonous and do a great job of keeping the bug population down in the summer.
they don’t end up on my computer monitor, either. 
The beast is back. He suddenly turned up on my TV cabinet and now he’s jockeying for a spot on my second couch, the one I thankfully don’t sit on too often.
I don’t think he ever left, and has just been in dark corners out of view for the past week.
I would just burn down my house and find a new one that was free of spiders…
Does he bring his own snacks or is he looking for munchies also?
I’ve always noticed that when Huntsmen come into the house they are extremely lethargic and generally curl up and die pretty quickly…sort of like finding a cosy place to cease to be.
Lynne, you being the spider-lady here, what’s your take on this? I love my spiders (at an arms-distance at least) but have found that once a huntsman comes inside, they’re not long for this world. I don’t do surface-spray thingies or anything nasty to deter them, but they wander around the walls for a day or too (veeeery sloooowly) and then drop off the radar, only to be found by the vacuum cleaner a week (or maybe three) later.
Now redbacks on the other hand…
Well, he’s now in my kitchen. That’s certainly where I find food.
Presumably he’s indoors to get out of this ridiculous weather we’ve been having. But I suspect he’s also hoping to locate a source of creepy-crawly-type food to satiate his hunger.
So he was very active last night, exploring the kitchen quite vigorously, and then found a wall corner to sit in when I finally went to bed.
This morning, can’t see him anywhere. Until after a little bit of searching I have found a desiccated husk next to the window. Its legs are all folded up, so I can’t make a positive ID, but judging by the scale of its body it may be him.
Why would he be dead so suddenly? Is it a moulted exoskeleton, perhaps?
Possibly. Now there’s a larger, more disagreeable spider stalking around your house.
Why more disagreeable, exactly?
There’s more of him, for one.
It’s not a moult, he moved. Just a twitch, but I’m confident it was the last vestiges of his life.
For handling spiders, if you want an approach that balances decisiveness with moderation, I suggest ratshot.
My spiders aren’t big enough to warrant it, but I will keep that in mind…
KILL. IT. WITH. FIRE.
Jesus, what is wrong with you people!? I have been living in Australia for approaching 2 years now and fortunately i’ve only ever seen 1 huntsman in the basement of the apartment building during the heavy rain. If one of those badboys ever made its way into the apartment it would certainly not be long for this world, death to all who enter here!!
Isn’t that what I said?
My comment was directed towards those people who are happy to co-habit with such a legged demon. You are sane, and I congratulate you for it. 
Well, I thought he was dead. He was only sleeping.
I took advantage of his dormant state, and his being on the floor, to cover him with a tub, slide some card under, and drop him outside. He is now at the mercy of nature again. A part of me hopes an opportunistic bird gobbles him up.
Any spider is big enough to warrant it. Ratshot is my entry-level spider load.