TEXTS FOR READING

TAMMY, THE PET TARANTULA

Martin Old, aged thirteen, from Manchester, has a very strange pet. He owns a two-year-old South American red-kneed tarantula called Tammy.

How expensive are tarantulas to keep?

They are certainly not the cheapest pets in the world! Martin says he paid Ј30 for Tammy, Ј10 for the aquarium and Ј10 for the heater. That’s more than you expect to pay for such a small pet!

Does Tammy have to eat special food?

Martin feeds Tammy on worms from the garden but in the winter he has to buy them from a fishing shop. She eats about two worms a day Martin loves watching Tammy eat them. Adult tarantulas in the wild eat small birds but Martin is going to feed Tammy on dog food when she’s older. (She could grow to be 25 cm across - about the same size as a tortoise!)

Is Tammy poisonous?

Because she is still young. Tammy’s poison isn’t very strong. But when she is older, she could hurt somebody. Tarantulas inject: poison into their prey through their fangs. A tarantula’s ‘bite’ can be painful to a human but it isn’t dangerous.

How long do tarantulas live?

Female tarantulas usually live about twenty-five years. Martin’s parents want to know what Martin is going to do with Tammy when she’s fully grown. He isn’t sure yet but he says his wildest dream is to take her back to South America and let her go!

Answer True, False or Don’t Know.

1. Tammy lives in an aquarium.
2. Tarantulas like to be warm.
3. Tammy likes dog food.
4. Tarantulas are not poisonous when they are young.
5. A tarantula’s poison can kill a human.
6. Tammy is going to live to be ten years old.

Use the notes about Tammy to write a summary.

Martin Old has a pet....
Keeping a tarantula is quite expensive at first because ....
Tammy eats ....
She is still young so ....
A bite from an adult tarantula can be ... but ...
Female tarantulas live ....
Martin would really like to ... when Tammy is older.

Roleplay

In groups, roleplay a conversation between you and your parents. You want to have a monkey as a pet. Your parents have some questions to ask.
They want to know:

where you are going to keep it.
what you are going to give it to eat and drink.
how you are going to exercise it.
who is going to look after it when you’re at school.
where you are going to find the money to buy it.