Advice on Spiders Please : Do Not read if they bother you

[Ben551]

*** IF YOU ARE SCARED OF SPIDERS I ADVISE AGAINST READING THIS THREAD***

Dear all,

I have a bit of an issue that I would like some advice on please.

My wife and I are still new at this and, although we seem to be handling all manner of problems as they come up, there is one that has us a bit stumped.  Our place is set against the New Zealand bush and contains all manner of insects, including spiders.  Unlike our Australian cousins across the ocean, we are lucky in NZ and don't have very many poisonous spiders (the few that are poisonous are very rare and hardly seen). We also don't have snakes in NZ, or any major preditors, so hey... it could be worse right?

The problem is, when we do get spiders they are... a little bit bigger than people are used to. 

After getting some horrified reactions, we added a warning to our listing in the best way we could think of, added it to our guest book, and started telling people at check-in of the dangers of leaving the windows open.  But honestly, people are STILL surprised when they find a spider and seem to approach it with genuine terror!  Each time this happens, we feel a bit guilty.  I don't want guests to feel horrified, but... I can't change it.  It's hot here right now and people want to leave windows open.  When they do that, spiders come in... simple as that. 

I know we're not responsible for the insects of New Zealand... and there is no point laying awake a night worring if guests are going to find any... but I just wonder if we should be doing something else?

Here is the warning we have on our listing, which we also include in our guest book:

◉ Trees, bees, birds and more! ◉
Please note that the cottage is located in the forest and is surrounded by trees, nature and natural wildlife. There are flowers, birds, bees and insects in the forest. This can mean a small amount of pollen or insects may enter the cottage during your stay. This is very rare, however it can happen if windows are left open for long periods. If finding a spider would bother you, or if you are severly allergic to pollen or bees, we recommend you reconsider your stay with us. Although we are meticulous and thorough, we cannot promise the space will be entirely free of these things. Living in New Zealand is both wild and beautiful so we accept these small things as part of the wonderful life we have.

How does that sound?  I thought it sounded ok.  The problem is that I don't know if this is a warning is suitably proportionate to the "size" of the spiders I'm talking about here.  I also don't think there is any way to illustrate this without sharing a picture.... I hate to do it, but I'm going to post a link to one that our guests caught and photographed... we caught another this morning about 2/3 the size of this one, but still very large.  I dunno, they just seem to get fat and healthy in our bush... Bundle the cat likes to eat them (weirdo). These certainly aren't the biggest NZ has either, they can be dinner plate or toilet seat sized up in Auckland, so frankly I'd take Wellington spiders any day...

Link to picture of our average spider invader:

https://spiderid.com/picture/52075/

Feel free to not follow the above link and just give me general advice based on whatever size of insect you imagine would bother you.  Bear in mind, most of our guests are not New Zealanders, they are British, European, American, Chinese.... etc.  Actually, I've lost track of the countries...

~ Ben

[Sarah977]

@Maree25  Go right ahead. Personally, I'd rather squash or rehome the few "bad" insects that might find their way into the house, live and let live for the rest, than spray toxic, possibly carcinogenic chemicals around. And where I live, we have these small lizards, known as geckos, that run around on the walls at night eating all the bugs they can find. Fumigating also kills the sweet little lizards who are doing their part in the balance of nature and cause no harm to anyone. 

[Ben551]

@Sarah977  totally agree. We pride ourselves on being kind to the environment, so I wouldn’t be comfortable with spraying chemicals around. Natural oils and home remedies are far more our thing.

[Roseanne0]

Oh Ben, I hear you. My first guests ever in my Airbnb left 30 min after I left them due to the usual 'house spiders' appearing. They are massive here in the country. Often bigger than the Australian ones. I'm Australian. They aren't dangerous or aggressive though. The Japanese guests are ok. They understand there is literally nothing that you can do to stop them. I have fly screens and all that but i have an old house with lots of gaps and it's not through the windows that they get in. I drop bombs at the beginning of the season and half way through, which i hate doing and I now regularly spray all around the house with peppermint oil. I don't know if it works but I do it. 

I haven't a wonderful blurb like you do. I have to do one. Here in Japan, they are viewed by the locals as being a friend. They are at the top of the food chain in terms of insects and so they are actuall helpful to have around. They eat cockroaches and mukade (the devils pet) and only appear at certain times like at dusk when they are feeling a little amorous. There is even an approach that because of the good that they do, they bring good luck. Personally my hair stands on end every time I see them, give me a snake anyday. I kill them all but I was wondering if there is something in NZs culture or history that can put a positive spin on them like they do here in Japan. 

Ganbatte!

[Sarah977]

Puerto Vallarta, which is the closest big city to me, about an hour away, went from being a little fishing town to being a destination tourist resort due to the Richard Burton/Elizabeth Taylor film Night of the Iguana. 

It all looked so romantic, them talking on the porch at night in a tropical setting. You never saw them swatting mosquitos, saying "OMG, we have to go inside, I'm getting bit to s**t,"or "Don't even think  about touching me, it's way to hot and sweaty for that."

People's impressions of places they've never been to are by and large formed by pretty magazine pictures and movies. Almost no one actually does any real research on the places they've figured are paradise.

[Lisa723]

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2019/02/tarantula-kills-opossum-first-time-photos-video

@Ben551 @Sarah977 @Roseanne0 @Maree25 @Huma0 

[Ben551]

@Lisa723... my dear... THAT.. is the stuff of nightmares... 😮

[Roseanne0]

"A tarantula the size of a dinner plate preying upon a small mouse opossum."

Now I'm thanking my lucky stars that I don't do Airbnb in the Amazon. 

[Huma0]

@Lisa723 

Oh dear. Throughout the six months I spent in Mexico and Guatemala, the locals told me that tarantulas were not deadly. Maybe they lied!

[Sarah977]

@Huma0   I don't think they're deadly to humans. We're likely too big to look like prey.

[Huma0]

@Sarah977 

Lol, no I wasn't expecting one to drag me around like that! However, there is definitely a perception amongst us Europeans that if you get bitten by a tarantula or scorpion, it's a very dangerous thing. However, the locals told me it would hurt, but it's not that serious. I still have no idea which is true as. luckily, I was never stung or bitten in Mexico/Guatemala, just eaten alive by the meanist mosquitos.

[Sarah977]

@Huma0  Definitely dangerous to get stung by a scorpion. We have 2 differnt types in my area- a larger, dark brown one, and a smaller, almost transparent one. The smaller ones pack a much bigger whallop. I've had to drive a couple people to the hospital over the years for anti-venom IV, as their throats started closing up. I've been stung about 4 times, but haven't gone for help. It hurts like the devil, and the last time it took 4 months to get the feeling back in my thumb (they actually damage the nerves, which have to grow back), but I didn't experience breathing problems or anything truly scary. It's just their defense mechanism- they don't run around looking for people to sting. I had one plop onto my arm once- I just stayed perfectly still, and it wandered down my arm, the sofa and onto the floor. Then I grabbed a shoe and smushed it.

[Huma0]

@Sarah977 

Yes the one that climbed up my leg in South Africa didn't sting me. My boyfriend just told me to sit still and removed it.

When I met people who had been stung by scorpions, it was always one that had climbed into a bag or shoe or something and the person got stung while reaching into their bag etc.

[Jo13]

@Huma0 

@Sarah977 

I once brought a scorpion home by accident.

My husband and I often visit nature reserves for weekends. I am particular about keeping our bags zipped all the time unless we are taking something out or putting something away, just because we have lots of potentially venomous creatures here. Snakes, spiders, scorpions, insects, etc. An acquaintance of mine, on holiday in the bush, was bitten by a snake when he rummaged in his bag for something, so now I am even more careful.*

On this occasion we were on holiday for a few days. I unpacked into the cupboard when we got there, used my clothes during the holiday, and packed up to go home again. On unpacking at home, after two flights, I discovered a small scorpion in my bag! I felt heartsore that the poor thing was so far from home, and amazed that it wasn't picked up by airport scanners.

*The snake had found a comfortable place in his bag, and it just so happened that he upset it, so it reacted in self-defence. Fortunately the rangers were trained for such a situation, and the guy was okay.

[Huma0]

@Jo13 

Oh no! Was the scorpion still alive when you got home?!!

[Jo13]

@Huma0 

So sorry for the belated response-I haven't been on the forums in an age!

Yes, it was, poor thing. I put it in the garden. I didn't know what else to do! We do have scorpions around here. For all I know it could be the same type... I'm hoping so.