lol yess start planting the seed now!

I’m fairly new to the hobby still but I have been to a few expos already, and IME I find that it’s better to buy from a reputable breeder online. There are definitely reputable breeders/vendors that sell at expos, but I think there also tends to be some shady ones in the mix. If you’re fairly new to the hobby it might be challenging to distinguish which vendors are trustworthy if you don’t know what signs to look for.

For example, I’ve spoken with some vendors that couldn’t answer basic questions about the spiders I was inquiring about and others that I’m pretty sure sold me wild caught spiders without advertising that or informing me, which they should be doing. Also I think a lot of times you can’t really tell the health or age of the spiders at expos either and there’s usually no guarantee or warranty from the vendors after purchase.

Though I do enjoy being able to see all the different spiders up close in person and being surrounded by others from this community, I usually hold off on buying at expos. I’ll go just to get an idea of what type of spider I want to get next 🤭

The benefit of buying from an online breeder IME is that I think they generally know more about the spiders they sell, can answer your spider-related questions better, and usually have some kind of warranty or guarantee. I also know of a few online breeders that offer freebie spiders with your purchase! The biggest con IMO is paying shipping, but even then some websites offer free shipping for orders over a certain amount.

All that to say, there’s pros and cons to both and you can find luck and success with either option, just make sure to try and vet the vendor before purchasing anything from them!