HELP! My dad thinks he know everything about snakes!!

Oh my god! I tell him we need to feed Edward frozen pinkies and mice because the live ones could hurt him! Then My dad goes "Snakes dont have there food pre killed for them. Edward isnt going to eat them. I know what im talking about because I have owned snakes scince I was 13 blah blah blah" Well the place we got him at said they fed them frozen pinkies. Then dad said "Did you see them eat? DID you SEE them EAT?" so a little later I tell him that I want to get Eddie pop/probed cause I would like to know what gender he is (I want to breed when eddie gets older but i didnt tell dad this hehehe) So anyway Dad yells at me saying that he dosnt want to spend the money finding out. he didnt even know how you found out if it was a boy or a girl! he siad they take blood out of the snake and run it through a machine. >.< then I told him I want to get another once I show him im doing good with Edward but by then I would want to know what gender he is so I dont want to get another male. Then my dad yelled at me again saying that he could care less about the gender and says just call it what ever I want!

HELP ME! :awcrap:

Gee I don't know about the kind of keeper your dad was....but ALL 29 of my snakes eat thawed food. And I'm no Kathy Love, but I have been keeping snakes for 12 years now. Thawed food is better in MANY ways, and thawed is what most educated keepers feed these days. When your dad was 13 things were not the same as they are now...but popping and probing really are the ONLY reliable methods of sexing snakes. I have NEVER heard of running a snakes blood through a machine,I think he's pulling your leg...he must be!

Huh, I'm sorry to say this, and it is a lesson you may not want to learn as a lad, but here goes: Some people will continue to believe whatever they think is the way to think regardless of what you say, and no matter how many people you have saying "he's wrong you are right" these people don't change their mind. These people tend to be the ones who claim they know everything about something--most real experts in most areas will admit that they do not and cannot possibly know everything. It just isn't possible, there are so many snakes and so many variables.

So, you need to figure out a way to do what is best for the snake. I'd go with the "let's see if he eats pinkies and then worry about live animals, kay?" Tell him it is cheaper, easier, and less unpleasent.

As for the sexing--see if you can find someone in your area to figure that out--or wait until you are more comfortable and figure out how to do it yourself. Same thing with the angling for a new snake--get this one figured out, and then move to the next one!

All of my snakes are own frozen/thawed mice, and they've never had live. Never.

As for gender, since it sounds like your dad is pretty wound-up as it is, just drop the issue for now. If you don't plan on breeding your snake any time soon (and your snake should be at least 300 g prior to that), it's not that big of a deal -- call your snake whatever you like. It sounds like your dad is getting frustrated (you mentioned before that you'd *begged* your dad for a snake & he finally gave in, and now more questions that it sounds like he's not sure of the answers to, so he's frustrated...), so here's my advice:

*get some books: two books I always recommend are by Kathy Love & Don Soderberg; both are available via their respective websites, or you can find them on amazon.com -- do your own research, and *casually* leave the books out on the couch after some late-night reading where your dad could ever-so-casually find them, and maybe after some casual reading on his part, he'll calm down because you've calmed down & you'll both be all the smarter for it from the books...

FYI: By the way, when you do have your snake sexed, have an experienced person do it (whether by probing or popping) as you could damage the snake's internal organs. You don't need a blood sample to sex a snake.

Your dad sounds like my aunt. She STILL insists that snakes grow to the size of their tanks and that I know nothing because THIS website is filled with 'children who don't know how to REALLY care for snakes'.

...augh.

Anyway, follow the advice above.

Ah, I've known a few people in the 'I know best and am the final authority in blablabla' department...:awcrap: Not in the area of snakes, however *thank God*.

Rather than just telling your dad to shove off, even though it might be nice to (heheh), maybe politely say you'd like to give a few different options a try though you aren't totally ruling out his 'suggestions'. That's always what I've done with pushy folks, anyway, and it seems to work. *shrug*

As far as feeding my snakes, they've been on f/t from day one. It's the way to go if you don't want a terrified rodent taking a chunk out of your snakes. Good luck!

lol Nozomi thats what my dad said XD he went on saying that the people here know anything about taking care of snakes. thanks for the advice guys!

P.S Im a girl btw :3

My advice would be to ease back on your Dad - sounds like he's way stressed about other things and I'm guessing a baby pet snake might not be too high on his priority list (especially as it sounds like he's been hearing a lot about it recently).

It's time for you to take responsibility for this pet you wanted so badly. If you don't like your Dad's advice, stop asking for it. Do your research - here and from the books already recommended - and do what you think is best. Give your Pop a break!

You also need to consider how Daddy feels. It sounds like he has only a limited amount of snake knowledge, but he can't appear that way to his little girl. In his mind, he has to be the omnipotent father for you. Get a book or two and make sure you leave them in places where he can readily find them when you're not around. I'll give odds that he starts to read them in order for him to be able to live up to his mind's standards for himself. Ease up on him for awhile. He is your father.

F/T is the best way to go. Freezing wipes out most of the bad bacteria, and ensures that your snake doesn't sustain feeding injuries. Some snakes can be picky about it, and some aren't. But, if it ate F/T before, there shouldn't be a problem. As far as sexing, you have plenty of time to figure it out. Like everyone else said, just let your dad chill and casually leave books around.