Opinions on WC

Wild caught and proud! How could you leave this on the road? For the record, I've released more snakes that I've produced than I've removed from the wild. Not a thing wrong with that, IMHO.

Thats a good looking w/c chip, i love the checkering.

Sure if you release them elrojo IMO.

I never re-release wild caught adults back into the wild. They have been handled and "tamed" and switched to a diet of only frozen thawed mice. They are capive breeders for the rest of their lives. I will, however bring hatchlings to the Hunt Club area and turn them loose. I'm still not sure I understand your opposition to collecting. While there are an awful lot of cornsnakes in the Eastern part of the country; no one in their right mind would hunt for snakes all day in the Okeetee area to sell them or save money! Ha! Besides likely tresspassing; you will encounter rattlesnakes, fire ants, mosquitos, chiggers, thorns, barbed wire, and hard work all hoping you will catch a cornsnake or two worthy of adding to your collection. And what dollar value would one place on this snake? The person who posted about saving ten bucks for beer earlier has obviously never spent a day field herping.

Originally Posted by Itsnowingcorns

OK, I have heard many people say this about WC, not having to compete for food, no danger of being ran over etc. But the way I think of it is this:
Imagine if you were taken from your everyday life and put in a room. The room has a heater that keeps it at a constant temperature that is comfortable for you. There is a bed for you to sleep in. There is a chair for you to sit on. Every day you will be fed cereal in the morning, sandwiches at midday and a chicken dinner in the evening. .

Hmm, good food, clean room, nice bed and chair. Oh! Let's not forget that they get to breed whenever they want, too! I think that sweetens the deal some!

It's not whether there are plenty of corns around or not that bothers me.

Originally Posted by elrojo

Hmm, good food, clean room, nice bed and chair. Oh! Let's not forget that they get to breed whenever they want, too! I think that sweetens the deal some!

LOL, but no more long walks on the beach, basketball games or bungee jumping, or in their case, slithering about (as much as they want).

"It's not whether there are plenty of corns around or not that bothers me."
What is it then? I get that you don't support collecting. I understand that it has little to do with wild populations. Is your rationale that the snakes are less "happy" when removed from the wild? That's certainly something I can't prove. When asked if my animals are happy, I've always just said "they eat and reproduce." A reptile that doesn't adapt to captivity will likely do neither and definitely will not reproduce.

It was born in the wild, it should stay in the wild IMO, you don't KNOW that they are as happy in captivity than in the wild, much as I don't know that they're not. Plus there's the stress of being tamed.

Originally Posted by Itsnowingcorns

It was born in the wild, it should stay in the wild IMO, you don't KNOW that they are as happy in captivity than in the wild, much as I don't know that they're not. Plus there's the stress of being tamed.

Man, you had me until that last sentence! It's not like breaking a horse or something! You just GENTLY remove and handle the animal when cage cleaning and so forth until it backs off it's rattlesnake impersonation. Then you handle it a little more frequently.