Memories Of Mauritius

I'm getting back into the swing of things after my holiday in the sun. The tan is fading but I've got lots of photos to help me remember (see below). I have emailed the Mauritius animal welfare organisation twice now but I haven't received a reply so I guess that's it for rescuing my doggy friend.

I have bought in lots of new stock during the last week, land hermit crabs, scorpions, millipedes, praying mantids etc. I hope my hubby will get time at the weekend to photograph the new millipedes. I have some giant pill millipedes from Madagascar, they are really beautiful. Next week I have more scorpions, millipedes and spiders coming in. I'm pleased to say that I have also sold quite a few things this week, especially spiders.

It is really dawning on me that some spiders are far more popular than others. The most popular pet tarantula is still the Mexican Red Knee. They are beautiful spiders, long lived, docile - yes, it's easy to see why. Some tarantulas are beautiful but extremely aggressive like the Cobalt Blue and others are aggressive and build so much webbing that they are hard to see, like the Golden Starburst Baboon. I intend to be far more selective this year when buying in new spiders. I have been keeping much better records of the spiders that I have sold over the last 18 months or so. I think, large, brightly coloured and fairly docile is what most people seem to want. I have set up a section for clearance spiders this week. I have to admit that the spiders in this section have just not sold and I have spent way too much time and money keeping them. They have been greatly reduced for a quick sale, most have at least 25% off. I cannot bear to discount the Natal Brown or Paulo Fiery Red Rump spiders, I have had them for ages and they are now almost fully grown. I think both species are lovely, although I must admit that the Paulo Fiery Red Rump are certainly 'fiery', they are very aggressive for such a large, heavy tarantula.

The weather seems to have picked up a bit this week. I have ventured out into the garden but I just hate the cold. I was away when there was thick snow but it has certainly flattened my plants and I think quite a few of my less hardy plants probably won't recover. Roll on Spring, I noticed the first frog spawn in my pond this morning!

1) Giant tortoises in the hotel grounds

2) Mauritian hedgehogs (mum & babies)

3) A colony of termites

4) Me & my doggy friend

5) Cocktails in the evening

6) Giant African snail

Comments

A surreal week indeed!

A surreal week indeed! I sent off my last orders on Monday and the remainder of my bugs will be leaving me on Friday. So many people are congratulating me on my retirement but I prefer the good luck messages. I didn’t think I would ever retire but it all became too much, not just for me but my family too. Our home was taken over by my work. The bug room was my domain but the rest of the house had gradually filled up with ‘stuff’, plastic boxes, cardboard boxes, tanks etc. and I never ever had any time. Whatever task I was doing, I was always thinking of the next job on the list. People keep asking what I am going to do with my time now. In the short term I will be clearing everything out, especially the loft which is full to the brim. I’m a bit of a hoarder so that really doesn’t help 😄 Lack of time was indeed the main factor for finishing my business but there was also the constant “I only want a female tarantula” 😤, leaving Europe was a big blow, Covid, the animal welfare licensin...

My biggest announcement ever!

My biggest announcement ever! It is with a heavy heart that I am informing everyone of my impending retirement as “The Bug Lady”. I have been running my business for approximately 45 years so it has been pretty good J Things change over the years, I was one of the only bug dealers in the early days and possibly the only woman but these days, every man and his dog is selling tarantulas and “proper bugs” seem to have fallen out of favour. I have been cutting down on stock for some time and had hoped to keep going without the tarantulas but it hasn’t worked out. I expect to fully retire by the end of this year but a lot depends on my wonderful customers (you!) as I need to sell off a large number of little creatures. I still have 24 species of tarantula (multiple numbers of most), millipedes, cockroaches, isopods, scorpions, slugs etc. Do take a look on my website, once they are gone, they are gone! If you want to help me, please spread the word to all your bug mad friends. I have lots of...

Getting there!

Getting there! My plans for retirement are going pretty well, I cannot believe all the wonderful messages that I have received over the last few weeks, many of them have had me in tears. It is very emotional to give up my little friends after a lifetime of keeping them and my human friends too but the time is right so I will keep plodding on until everything has gone. I won’t be changing my phone number and I hope to keep my email address, therefore, those who want to, can stay in touch. I had planned for a big sale on September 1st but orders are still going strong so an all-out clearance sale doesn’t sound such a great idea. I have decided instead to reduce items individually but I do keep changing my mind J It is really difficult to retire over a period of time, I couldn’t make the decision and then stop, like most people are able to. I can’t set a date in the future because I simply don’t know when sales will dry up. The idea of an open day sadly became unworkable, I just don’t hav...

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