Dealing with non-snake people

Recently, I began to mention that I had planned to breed my snow to a non-snake person. At which point, the person quickly turned up their nose and said, "I hate snakes." In return, I smiled and said that each of us has an interest that we enjoy and let the issue drop.

Here's what I need for all you snake people:

Humorous/Wise answers to educate and deal with non snake people:

Mind you, I don't want to change the world into snake loving people...(might mean more competition for finding "the right" snake)

I just want to stir things up a bit. It's the puck in me...Methinks.

Well, it's not humorous, and it probably won't make a snake-hater into a snake-lover, but it might help the person see the value of a snake... Snakes are clean animals who are great at keeping the rodent population down. Stress on those dirty, pesky rodents, and the clean, non-disease carrying snake... :-)
But the same sort of argument hasn't done much for spiders' reputations. And more people have mosquitos and blackflies than mice and rats.

And of course, our corns are beautiful. Looking at lots of pics of pretty corns should, in my opinion, change anyone's mind. But that's just my opinion.

heck just let them hold a baby corn...It worked for my daughter (who is 5) and my hubby. They fell in love instantly!

I could never understand how a person could "hate snakes". That is such a strong word! I don't care for spiders-they give me the eb-gb's, but I don't hate them! I think your position is admirable, getting someone who is a snake hater to turn around is not easy. My wife can curl up on the couch with our 3.5' Savanah Monitor, but she is terrified of snakes. I just don't understand it. The monitor is capable of inflicting a much more serious bite than one of the cornsnakes. I have about 4 demonstrations a year with local schools, working with students grades k-12. I think education and interaction will help alot of people to get over there phobias. never give up! never give in!

I hate brussel sprouts..but its a good thing, no one ever tried to chop the head off a brussel sprout with a shovel.

Thanks for the comments. For those of you who are reading keep 'em coming...

Matt, you should make the brussel sprouts your signature. ;p Course, there would be many confused people....

Well, what happened with me was that in my head I thought "I hate snakes" but what it actually was is "I am very scared of snakes." Turns out that wasn't exactly true either...it was more like "I haven't been exposed to snakes so I am not familiar with them." I think this is true for a lot of people but they just don't realize it right away.
Oh gosh, spiders, don't get me started. (but I'll talk anyway) I have a thick pad of post-it's which I use to crush spiders against the wall or floor and then I just peel off the sheet and throw it out and the spider-crusher is fresh and ready for the next little bugger. Or I whip out the vacuum (we have a central vacuum system where you just plug in the big pipe into the socket things in the walls) and the spiders and their webs and egg sacs get sucked up into the big container in the basement.

LoL The most poisones spider in the US (I have heard) is the dady long leg but they can not bite a human. I was never scared of spiders untill i saw Aracniphobia sp? anyways every sense then i have kittens when i see one. and beleave it or not

I have seen the end result of a black widdow bite on a man who out of the blue lifted his hospital gown to show me. (OMG) and a lil spoider bite did a heck of a lot worse to him then any (Surviving) poisiones snake bite (i have seen in many photograps. The funny thing is you are never....and youc an go research this if you want to prove me wrong...But you are never more then 3' from a spider ever. Hope you sleep comfy tonight because that man who lifted his gown was bitten by this black widdow in his bed.

But a note
Black widdows are very common and so are brown recluses in Texas. I do know whow about anywhwere else. There are only 4 poisiones type spiders in the US.....(correct me if i am wrong on that)

I've seen and heard of both brown recluse and hobo spiders in LOTS of places the experts insist they don't live. Knowing I'm never more than 3' from a spider does NOT make me feel very comfy

I was jumped by a huge momma spider in my doorway the other day (full of eggs, by the size of her.) I swear she was more than 1" long, but then my imagination might be influencing my memory a bit.... <shudder>

OMGosh!! Thanks Lisa I'll never ever sleep again!! LOL
As for the snake haters.. I can completely relate to Iris. Thats how it was with me too! Now I have my entire family to convert!My Mom, Gram ect. but I think that really it's just fear of the unknown. The guy we got our girl from told my son to always remember that he is now an embassador(sp.) for snakes. I just hope that they come here for Thanksgiving dinner or we will be eating leftovers for a year!



Colleen

as for getting people to change their opinion of snakes, in my experience exposure to them is the best way, especially when the snakes are small and harmless looking. I kept a baby amel cornsnake and a kenyan sand boa in my ecology classroom for a semester. About 50% of the class didn't like snakes, with a few people who were absolutely terrified of them. But there's just no way to make a kenyan sand boa or a bright pink little snake look threatening, and by the end of the semester even the people who had been deathly afraid of them were asking to hold them.