# Is doing this with a spider really safe? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 12, 2009, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-doing-this-with-a-spider-really-safe/489239 "2009-03-12T18:52:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 2\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Taenia\_spp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5e925/32.png) [@Taenia\_spp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taenia_spp)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2009, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-doing-this-with-a-spider-really-safe/489239/41 "2009-03-14T17:17:31Z")
> [@Telperien](#): > > I finally looked at the picture. I did emit one “Eeee!” out of pure reflex (spider on human= me going, “Eeee!”) but it actually wasn’t that bad. I’m off to look up **MacTech’s** thread now. I also did an “Eeee!”, but this was more of a squeal of cuteness than terror. Seriously though, spiders are pretty amazing creatures. To all those that have never handled a tarantula, I highly encourage you to do so. Though they don’t look it, they are actually quite fuzzy. Having one walk on your hands and arms literally feels like there’s a moving teddy bear there. There’s currently a spider that lives in my windowsill. I’m envying David Sedaris, who captures flies and then feeds them to his spider, because flying insects are wily creatures to capture. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2009, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-doing-this-with-a-spider-really-safe/489239/42 "2009-03-14T18:05:35Z")
> [@Telperien](#): > > If it were one of those kinds with the shooting hairs, I think it might be bad, but other than that, no. Most tarantulas will kick hairs in order to discourage predators and other perceived enemies. Actually though, I think you have it backwards. The more prone a tarantula is to kicking its hairs, the less likely it is to bite. As a general rule, the more aggressive a species is, the more likely it is to bite without provocation. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-doing-this-with-a-spider-really-safe/489239.md?page=2)