So....how accepting are your spouses/family about your hobby?

[The Banana]

If i ask her to, my mother can turn off the lights in some tanks when i am out on some party or something like that.

So Janusz is at some party... "hold up, hold up... gotta call my mother to tell her to turn off the lights on my salamander tank".

Nawww.

 

[Minniechild]

I love some of the things coming up in this post!
Have had comments that my axie/tank collection is now "bigger than Ben Hur", and dad had the gall to say they were fish, and had the emotional capacity of fish (WRONG!!!!)

 

[Niels D]

Sometimes I need to tell my girlfriend that we've allready got enough pets, so I'm not complaining...

 

[Azhael]

Just tell him to stand in a nice flower pot in the corner and water him once a day or so with a beverage of his choice....

That sounds good, can i sign up for that? I´ll need a pot with internet access, though...

 

[xMIDNIGHTx]

When I first started caring for newts a few years ago my wife thought it was cool. But as my collection has continued to grow and my involvement increases, the feeling has changed.

I have been limited to a certain amount of tanks (although I keep on upgrading).

All in all she still has been very supportive and understanding of my hobby and on the rare occasion picks up the turkey baster and "plays" (she calls cleaning the tanks with the turkey baster playing) or goes out herping with me.

In the end, this is all I can ask for as it is not necessarily the number of newts/tanks I have but the time I spend caring for them. Ultimately this takes time away from spending with her.

Balance is the key.

Mitch

 

[wang82]

My son absolutely loves them and really enjoys helping out and my girlfriend really likes looking at them just does not like me talking to much about them and telling her what i am going to do next with them she thinks i spend to much time with them lol she was the same when i had tropical fish.

 

[Nowicki418]

I know this is a Caudata forum but I am big on all the reptiles and amphibians. Squamates and Caudates being my favorites. I have a two tiger salamanders and a Bearded dragon right now. Its strange that my mom adores the dragon but doesn't really hold any position for the salamanders. My parents are against me getting any more animals because college is comming up and it looks like they will have to care for what I have. But I feel it is far worse that I have to go a year without my animals than it is that they have to care for them for a little while.
My family thinks the hobby is great, just not in their house. Eventually I want get some larger herps like a snake, tegu and axolotl.

 

[ellenc]

My husband was not a critter person when I first brought my salamander interest home from my lab. The major barrier was live crickets when I started to keep land dwelling salamanders in addition to axolotls. Now he feeds them when I'm away and even socializes with my very tame tiger salamanders. He even took it calmly when I dropped the cricket container recently and a particularly noisy one took up residence on top of the refrigerator.

 

[Francesca]

Well, my boyfriend brought me my two for my birthday. I wanted a puppy? But now I love them so much! Much better than a puppy, even with the teething problems I have had with the water quality, had an ammonia spike!! Anyway, back to the subject; everyone is really happy I didn't get a puppy. They also think they are cute! Yet when it comes to the actual problems, feeding, & cleaning.... I am the one left holding the bucket, in more ways than one.. But I wouldn't have it any other way! :happy:

 

[horsyqueen]

Well my family i am not aloud to talk about any of my hobbies otherwise i am left alone in the room. I can not leave any of the tank cleaning stuff out. No drips on the carpet no puddles outside. Any dead pond fish that the cat got i have to hide otherwise i may get all my pond fish given away.

every month i get pratical fishkeeping but when i wanted to get pratical reptilekeeping i was not aloud.
the tanks have to have no algie or green stuff which i hard to do a compleate cleanout when i have hard GCSEs.
christmas.
I was told my limit for tanks was 2 but then when i found a spare tank and i bought a sponge filter and aquastart the next day. My mum was not inpressed when she found a fishtank in my desk my dad was not bothered. Then i got some newts from the pond my mum said the newts will have to go but they have been there for weeks.


I supose my family is on the border line. They dont like frogs because of the noice.

I am going to the aqautics live i supose so thats ok.

 

[rethgar]

Our main argument seems to revolve around space for tanks. Not if anymore can go in. Its whose go where! I'm pretty lucky I guess as my girlfriend is as into it as I am. It also makes for excellent present buying opportunities...

 

[melfly]

I actually met my boyfriend when he came to pick two of my babies up from me

He helps look after all my others and clean the tanks out etc..

He now wants a turtle too....If your reading this Kyle....WE HAVE NO ROOM!

Mel

 

[iSuzie]

My hubby loves all our axies just as much as me, he hand feeds each one daily {all 7} and for the baby's he cuts up the bloodworm's and frozen daphina for them into tiny bits everyday and helps me with every water change, in fact i think he does more work for them than i do! he is great, no matter what has to be done he does it with me, he does so much for the axies and the turtles its really why i love him haha
he even comes home with new stuff for them to surprise me <3

 

[rasputin]

I pointed out the Axies to my girlfriend and within a couple of weeks we had our first 2. I think she may be into it more than me as we now have 3 FBN and she is having 2 in her classroom at school. Very lucky to have all of them (and the cat I guess).

 

[davybobmacca]

My partner always wanted fish and i did when i was younger so we bought a tiny tank and worked up. Now on a 200l tank and wanting another smaller one for an axolotl or 2.

So really we're as bad as each other!

 

[erin24]

My parents are animal nerds especially fish and reptiles so more than encourage it!

 

[cordylus]

My girlfriend and me started together keeping reptiles, almost 8 years ago. By now we are living together with 73 lizards, 6 snakes, 4 crawdads, 6 land hermit crabs and 8 frogs. And it is all a growing fun for both of us!

 

[Kribby]

I thought my SO was just tolerating my skellies until she saw the eggs and declared that we would be raising the babies...

Then I realised she was more into the newts then I was!

 

[Little Nessie]

My boyfriend was actually the one who introduced me to my Salamander. He went out to get pizza after work and when he got back I was asleep and he woke me up and said babe! You have to see this you're gonna love him. Apparently he had found a tiger Salamander on the front door step. He let me keep it and now he builds the coolest stuff in his 90 gallon tank for my monster. We both love it so I'm pretty lucky!

Sent from my PG06100 using Tapatalk

 

[Niels D]

I really like this thread. My gf and me share this hobby. When our parents visit us it's a diffirent story though, especially our mothers. We constantly have to secure them by telling that we're done getting more animals. There's only 1 specie we're gonna get though.