im getting one and i want to know if they bond with their owners or not and if they smell fear in a way?
Invertebrates are animals that work purely on instinct.
If something is seen as a threat they will defend themselves.
If something is seen as prey they will attack it.
If something is seen as nothing (ie. a tree or rock) they will go about their business.
You are most likely to be seen as a perch like a rock or tree once yout tarantula realisies that you are not going to hurt it.
They cannot smell fear, no, but you still need to act calmly with the spider.
Jump and flinch and you will startle the tarantula, possibly causing it to bite or flick.
Danger pretty much summed it up. There are a few recorded instances where people claim their spider bonds with them. One of my favorites is someone who claimed to have a rosehair that would walk over to their hand when they put it in the cage without any encouragement. Unfortunately, this probably isn't bonding. It's probably that the person's hand was warm, and the spider detected it, and decided to go hang out on the mysterious warm object simply because it's a cold blooded animal.
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Basically, your spider won't bond with you at all.
As for smelling fear, Danger is a bit off on this one. They don't "smell" fear, so to speak, but they can recognize when something isn't right. It's true, when you are holding your tarantula, chances are it thinks you are a tree/rock or something. When you are nervous, you may shake or breathe heavy, etc. Basically, as you're moving/shaking, the tarantula probably will recognize it's not on stable ground. That's why when they are in a cage, they sit and move very little ... but when you hold them, they will walk constantly ... they are trying to get off of you ... the unstable object. Now ... if you are afraid, you're hands will get clammy (cold/sweaty) and you tend to shake a lot. Eventually, your spider might figure out that you're not a tree or a rock ... but you're something that's alive. This is when they may become defensive, and flick hairs or bite. So in a way ... the spider isn't really sensing fear, but your fear may alert the spider that you are a living, breathing object, and it may not care for that so much.
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As a side note ... I don't recommend handling in any way. I used to handle my rosehair a lot, and eventually discovered that I appreciated her for more than just "shock value" or being a giant spider, and after that I left her alone. Great pets, and I hope you appreciate yours .... always be very careful and low to the ground any time you handle your spider.
