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How many is to many

sycorn26

sycorn26

New member
I was playing with my pets the other day and even with only owning 4 had a thought of how much time they take up (playing, cleaning, feeding, shopping,ect) . I see so many people on here with large amounts of pets and was wondering when the line is crossed to being too many and the happiness and welfare of the animal is put to risk?

To those with many pets how do you find the time to give each the attention needed? (not talking about breeders) Also what are your reasons for having so many? (other than so many different kinds but many people have same kind for instance 20cs diff morphs but still same kind of pet).
 
There's no one answer to this question. Everyone's individual situation is unique, so you can't really put a ballpark number to it.

The pets I have now are just thoroughly integrated into the family. Our cats, our dog, and our bird hang out with us whenever we're relaxing at home. They are anything but starved for attention. If my cockatiel doesn't get his head rubbed for a good 10-15 minutes shortly after I wake up and/or get home, he is quick to remind me about it. I shop for them when I grocery shop for myself - especially the bird, he gets more fruits and veggies than I do.

The snakes don't come out every day, but it's a morning ritual to spot check their tanks and make sure everyone has clean, fresh water. When you have so many, I think you just have to get a schedule set, and then it becomes routine. They get taken out every few days or so, depending on who feels like coming out. As long as their needs are met though, even as "pets" they don't feel bad if I don't spend time with them every day. It's a lot easier with animals that do not have a true emotional attachment to you. The geckos are in a more active room, one of them likes watching television I swear. They come out and explore more often than the snakes, but aside from not fearing us I really don't think they give two licks about spending time with me. I don't have to spend much time "shopping" for the herps... I place an order every few months for frozen feeders and occasionally stop by the local pet shop on my way home for mealworms and supplies.

Anyway, no one is better equipped than yourself to know how many is too many. Whether or not you're honest with yourself about it is another thing. What I have right now would be way too much for some people, and others have far more pets and do great. It just depends.
 
Yeah I have quite a few but they get fed once a week (the dog, fish and leo geckos get fed more often of course) and we try to hold all the snakes once a week for a while. They all have nice vivs with hides and decor. so I think ours are rather spoiled even the hatchlings lol At some point I will say I can't have anymore but I'm not there yet ;) I love them all and I can't imagine ever giving anyone up.
 
I have 14 snakes, and combined, they're less bother to look after than my one small cat was! The snakes don't go out and fight/catch illnesses from other snakes then need vet treatment, claw the furniture, honk up furballs behind the sofa or poop in my slippers!

Also, snakes need cleaning/feeding once or twice a week. Not several times a day.
 
Snakes are not like mammals, they do not need the human interaction like dogs & cats. They are easier to handle if they have regular interaction, but they do not need it. Some people feel that less interaction is better for the snakes well-being, because they're not like dogs & cats.

I have several snakes. Above all, they're my pets. Some will be used for breeding, some will not. I will not take in anymore than I can care for by myself. I think if I were to get to the point where I needed help (on a regular basis), then I would have too many animals at that point. *There may be times in someones life where something happens & they need help caring for their animals. That is an exception. I'm talking about someone that has so many, that they end up needing at least one other person to help them care for the animals.
Another side note, is big breeders, who breed for their income, who have several snakes & have volunteers or paid staff to help, that is different as well.

One person may not even be able to properly care for more than one animal, while someone else, can successfully care for numerous animals.
You cannot really pick a number & say, "anything above this number is too many".
 
Once you have one, you need one more.
Once you have two, you really want four.
Once you have 4, why not get four more.
And once you have eight, eight more would be great. and so on and so forth.lol. I think if you have the means to take care of them, and love animals, then have as many as you want. Just dont hoarde and be unable to feed or care for them.
 
The snakes I can understand as they dont need the interaction that mammals do. Its seeing 5 cats, 5 dogs, bunnies, and a list that goes on for just one person that makes me wonder. My one cat is a little trouble maker who loves attention constantly and even with having been home most of the time in the past cant imagine that having 10+ animals (meaning animals who need companionship) and them getting the attention or as much love from there owners as someone who has fewer pets. Of course there are people who do a wonderfully job at it and i truly admire there dedication to there pets. I only bring it up from seeing people around me with so many pets who do not necessarily neglected but dont seem to appreciate the ones they have before wanting more.
 
For me, the most time is spent on my 3 dogs. They are like my kids and get a couple hours of my time daily. I also have 2 cats. One thinks he's a dog and is with them nonstop, unless they are outside being walked. The other is a normal boring cat who only comes around when she's hungry. At one point, I was rescuing cats and had either 10 or 11 in my house including a litter of kittens. I'm a clean freak, so I was literally scooping crap out of boxes at least 5 times a day. Although I was ok with doing it, now that I don't have to do all that work, I really don't think I'd want to go back to that again. My snakes get handled at least once a week, some more than others. Most of them prefer to just be nosey and watch everything I do while remaining in their tubs. I'm with Heather, I wouldn't want more than I could care for on my own without help. I do know that in the event of an emergency, my mom could come over to feed/water all of the snakes but I don't want to depend on anyone, boyfriend included, to care for any of the pets.
 
sycorn26 said:
I only bring it up from seeing people around me with so many pets who do not necessarily neglected but dont seem to appreciate the ones they have before wanting more.
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I can see your concern, but I don't really believe that proves a relationship between having a lot of pets and not caring for them. Someone who doesn't appreciate their pets is someone who doesn't appreciate their pets. I know tons of people with just a cat or dog or two that see their one or two pets as commodities more than as companions. I also know just as many people who have several non-reptile pets that love and thoroughly care for each and every one of them.

So I guess my question is, what specific behavior are you seeing in those people around you that leads you to believe their pets are not appreciated? If someone had so many pets without having the appropriate time, environment, or standard of care - that would be a problem, especially if they are continuously collecting more.
 
sycorn26 said:
The snakes I can understand as they dont need the interaction that mammals do. Its seeing 5 cats, 5 dogs, bunnies, and a list that goes on for just one person that makes me wonder. My one cat is a little trouble maker who loves attention constantly and even with having been home most of the time in the past cant imagine that having 10+ animals (meaning animals who need companionship) and them getting the attention or as much love from there owners as someone who has fewer pets. Of course there are people who do a wonderfully job at it and i truly admire there dedication to there pets. I only bring it up from seeing people around me with so many pets who do not necessarily neglected but dont seem to appreciate the ones they have before wanting more.
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You don't know how many people are in that household, that share the care for the animals, so you can't really make any judgements based on seeing numbers.
Maybe they have 5 little dogs, which does make a huge difference, as compared to having 5 big dogs.
I'm not picking on you, just making a statement that we cannot really make judgements without knowing the whole story.
 
One person's too many is another person's just right. It depends how much time you have as well. A person with a really busy life is going to have less time to take care of a large number of snakes. I work full time, I can see how someone that stays at home would be able to care for more snakes than I can.
I sometimes feel a bit of concern when I see new owners go overboard and buy a whole bunch of snakes the first or second year, so you see a new pickup posted in photo gallery every other day by the same person. Many go through this "collection building" phase or make a ton of breeding plans their first or second year, which can result in more snakes than you really have time to care for. It is easy to get carried away by enthusiasm and want every nice snake you see for sale, but taking care of a large number of animals is time consuming, and you should never have so many that they end up getting minimal care. Minimal interaction is OK, but clean water and aspen, regular feedings, these are the things they still need if you have 1 or 100.
Most people I know who have kept reptiles for a while know their limits, though.
 
As far as dogs and cats go, i think it is almost easier to have more than one. There isn't the loneliness factor that you would have with only one home alone when you are gone. I have four little dogs, which most (non-pet) people think are a lot, but we are in such a routine that they just fit right in with the family and are no problem. When we are relaxing, watching tv, they just pile on the couch with us. I'm a multi-tasker and brush hair or trim nails during that time.

I agree with everyone else though. It just depends on your personal circumstances. There will always be people who neglect their pets, or children for that matter, no matter how many they have and there will always be those who don't.
 
According to My wife and I, 10 is not enough and 1000 is too many. Yes, we have a zoo, but they are all taken care of because they're our kids.
 
For me snakes are a passion an hobby. After I got my first corn snake I was hooked on snakes! Now I have 10 (not all corns) an waiting for a corn clutch to hatch. :) Might even keep them if I can properly house an take care of them. I just LOVE snakes an to me they are my babies. I handle them when they are babies so they grow up being used to that.

My 2 dogs don't care at all about them. 1 of my 3 cats is fasinated with them an watches them a lot. My dart frogs an little bumble bee walking toads are no trouble at all. I can't imagine life with out pets. When they are part of your life you just make it work.
 
"You don't know how many people are in that household, that share the care for the animals, so you can't really make any judgements based on seeing numbers."

not sure how to quote sorry

I am speaking about homes i have been in, experience not only numbers on forums.
 
To each their own. I couldn't take care of more than 2 dogs without other people in the house, yet there are people who could handle several dogs and still give them all the attention and care they need. On the flip side of that, I have no problems handling a 75 gallon turtle tank, a few tortoises, a few snakes, and a couple bearded dragons, where many other people are daunted by the care of a single reptile of any kind.

When it comes to the point that your animals are getting neglected, or that, as has been stated already, you need consistent help to take care of them all, then you have too many. I've been at the former point before, back when I went through my, as Jen put it, "collection building phase," and learned there that 30 snakes and a bearded dragon was way over my limit. On the flip side of that, I was a high school student, no income of my own, and a much less than ideal "set up" (and the naivety, or is it denial, not to notice that until much later), which all had their effect on my "limit"... So I guess the point there is, there's several factors at play when talking about how many animals a person can care for.
 
sycorn26 said:
"You don't know how many people are in that household, that share the care for the animals, so you can't really make any judgements based on seeing numbers."

not sure how to quote sorry

I am speaking about homes i have been in, experience not only numbers on forums.
Click to expand...

Hit the "quote" button at the bottom right of the post you want to quote.

Since you mentioned your concern after seeing "lists" of pets, people probably thought you were talking about the things you see on here... myself included, especially since this thread coincided with a new thread everyone is listing their non-snake pets in. But if you're talking about people you know and see, then I'll ask again: besides the number of pets, what specifically leads you to believe their pets are not appreciated? It's a hard thing to see someone you know giving substandard care to animals, because it's not an easy subject to broach. But if you see something specific, like they ignore their animals, their husbandry isn't up to par, or something like that, it might be a little easier to diplomatically address the primary issue. The pets they have now need to get the proper care before they should even consider taking on more.
 
I tend to get a bit suspicious when people keep buying and buying corns but then you don't hear much about the ones they already have. In that case I almost feel like what they are after is the thrill and novelty of having another new animal. But how would you even bring the subject up with somebody? It's a touchy area for a lot of people. In the past I may have suspected a person might have "too many" but unless that person is comfortable enough to let me into their house and I can see first hand the condition the animals are kept in, it's just a feeling.
 
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