Would the Tarantula Keeper's Guide be worth getting?

[TarantulaHawk687]

Would the Tarantula Keeper's Guide by Stanley A. Schultz be worth getting? I'm more interested in scorpions at this point than I am tarantulas (I know, sue me ) and own two books on the subject of scorpion keeping I bought off Amazon. The one is Scorpions + Other Popular Inverts by Jerry G. Walls & the other is Scorpions - A Complete Pet Owner's Manual by Manny Rubio. I think I may have owned the Tarantula Keeper's Guide in the past and read through it, but it's been a very long time and I no longer own the book. Would it be worth getting or can I find pretty much all that information on here & Arachnoboards? I should add I wanna get a few scorps first, but still wanna get a T somewhere down the line. Probably a Genic, an LP, or a GBB.

 

[Enn49]

It's a good standby but sadly out of date. Schultz was supposed to be working on a new edition about 10 years ago but I don't think that ever happened.
Many species have been reclassified and husbandry has been updated since the last edition.

 

[TarantulaHawk687]

It's a good standby but sadly out of date. Schultz was supposed to be working on a new edition about 10 years ago but I don't think that ever happened.
Many species have been reclassified and husbandry has been updated since the last edition.

Yeah, and it's like $20 or so for used copies. The new ones can actually be pretty expensive. I'm not sure if it's still in print or not even. I kinda want it, and can afford it, I just don't know if it's really worth it or not. I'd definitely get it if scorpions weren't my primary interest at the moment.

 

[mrsoul1974]

For that price, I'd pick it up.

Who knows... if it goes out of print it you may not be able to get it at all later on, or pay an arm and a leg (that you can't regenerate, lol!) for it.

 

[TarantulaHawk687]

For that price, I'd pick it up.

Who knows... if it goes out of print it you may not be able to get it at all later on, or pay an arm and a leg (that you can't regenerate, lol!) for it.

Perhaps. I will say it at the very least doesn't look like there's as many new copies in circulation as there used to be.

 

[m0lsx]

I have two copies, neither of which I brought. Both copies coming with tarantulas & complete setups.

Unlike something like a historical car maintenance book. The out of date information now serves no relevance to older tarantulas. The information is useless & more likely to confuse than help.

 

[PanzoN88]

It's a good standby but sadly out of date. Schultz was supposed to be working on a new edition about 10 years ago but I don't think that ever happened.
Many species have been reclassified and husbandry has been updated since the last edition.

It has been a while, but I interviewed Stan for a college composition essay in 2015 and he stated that he was still in the process of writing, there is a lot more work and even more time that goes into the writing of each edition then many (including myself) never knew about. (Got a 98% on that essay in case anyone was curious).

That said, it’s good reading material to have on hand it is outdated as already stated in above posts.

 

[Blackdog]

I had a snakes of the world book many years ago. It was heavy and tons of pictures, but I don't keep snakes. If you like it get it. As a guide for care it may be very out of date so use caution.

 

[TarantulaHawk687]

It has been a while, but I interviewed Stan for a college composition essay in 2015 and he stated that he was still in the process of writing, there is a lot more work and even more time that goes into the writing of each edition then many (including myself) never knew about. (Got a 98% on that essay in case anyone was curious).

That said, it’s good reading material to have on hand it is outdated as already stated in above posts.

So you think he's still probably in the process of having it updated? Not very many new copies circulating around at this point in time it seems, and like you and others have said the ones currently in circulation are a bit outdated.

 

[TarantulaHawk687]

I'm thinking I might just get the digital edition and see if I can't read it on my phone. Would be a lot cheaper that way.

 

[tarantulas118]

I’ve heard many people say that it is outdated, BUT, there is another tarantula guide out there. For 12 bucks only too! It’s from this person on YouTube who Goes by the name of tarantula heaven, I haven’t boughT the book yet, but I really want to.

The Ultimate Guide To Tarantulas

The best in tarantula care. The Ultimate Guide To Tarantulas is the only guide you will ever need in your journey to become a great tarantula owner.

www.tarantulaheaven.com

 

[TarantulaHawk687]

I’ve heard many people say that it is outdated, BUT, there is another tarantula guide out there. For 12 bucks only too! It’s from this person on YouTube who Goes by the name of tarantula heaven, I haven’t boughT the book yet, but I really want to.

The Ultimate Guide To Tarantulas

The best in tarantula care. The Ultimate Guide To Tarantulas is the only guide you will ever need in your journey to become a great tarantula owner.

www.tarantulaheaven.com

I'll definitely consider that. Thank you.

 

[DustyD]

Stan Schultz used to post on this forum, but was on last in late May 2022. At the time he had been looking for information/anecdotal evidence of tarantula intelligence.

I think that was going to be part of his update to his book. I thought he wintered in the US southwest, but don’t know for sure.

Hopefully he is doing well.

 

[PanzoN88]

So you think he's still probably in the process of having it updated? Not very many new copies circulating around at this point in time it seems, and like you and others have said the ones currently in circulation are a bit outdated.

Yes, he did say at the time that he was working on it,However I’m certain that things such as the pandemic have caused delays. People have to realize that he is getting up there in years (no offense if you’re reading this Stan) and he deserves to take a break if necessary.

 

[plessey]

Just buy the book. A lot of it is still relevant. The only real issue I remember is that he thinks a lot of species can be kept drier than they should be.

 

[Blackdog]

EBAY-https://www.ebay.com/itm/394353589560?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=pgOJDsFKQ7-&sssrc=2047675&ssuid=41cvRJ1JR4O&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

At that price with free shipping its a good buy if only for the photos!

 

[TarantulaHawk687]

EBAY-https://www.ebay.com/itm/394353589560?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=pgOJDsFKQ7-&sssrc=2047675&ssuid=41cvRJ1JR4O&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

At that price with free shipping its a good buy if only for the photos!

I decided to pull the trigger on the very one you linked me through eBay. Thank you.

 

[Blackdog]

I decided to pull the trigger on the very one you linked me through eBay. Thank you.

You are most welcome and enjoy!!!

 

[tarantulas118]

Just buy the book. A lot of it is still relevant. The only real issue I remember is that he thinks a lot of species can be kept drier than they should be.

He also says to keep Theraphosa a lot more wetter than it should be

 

[TarantulaHawk687]

He also says to keep Theraphosa a lot more wetter than it should be

I vaguely remember having read it when I had it, and I think he mentioned that he thought the T. stirmi was more "forgiving" to keeper mistakes than the T. blondi and T. apophysis. Is that true?