nicolefowler2005
New member
Axis1 do you ever use your snakes as a therapy tool?
Nicole
Nicole
-
Hello!
Either you have not registered on this site yet, or you are registered but have not logged in. In either case, you will not be able to use the full functionality of this site until you have registered, and then logged in after your registration has been approved.
Registration is FREE, so please register so you can participate instead of remaining a lurker....
Please be certain that the location field is correctly filled out when you register. All registrations that appear to be bogus will be rejected. Which means that if your location field does NOT match the actual location of your registration IP address, then your registration will be rejected.
Sorry about the strictness of this requirement, but it is necessary to block spammers and scammers at the door as much as possible.
Fed up the the negativity towards my pet snakes
- Thread starter DollysMom
- Start date
albertagirl
Sharan
Aw. For a rant thread, this is sure giving me warm fuzzies. LOL.
DLena, that's horrible, I can't believe that people would treat you differently without even asking you about it openly.
Dragonling, I would honestly complain to Fedex. No one should ever say that to you, period. And the fact that he said it about a living being that he was responsible for getting to you safely... firable offense in my opinion. Inexcusable.
DollysMom, you cheer me up all the time, I hope you are feeling better than you were this morning.
LOL. Support group meeting. Next week, same time? LOL
DLena, that's horrible, I can't believe that people would treat you differently without even asking you about it openly.
Dragonling, I would honestly complain to Fedex. No one should ever say that to you, period. And the fact that he said it about a living being that he was responsible for getting to you safely... firable offense in my opinion. Inexcusable.
DollysMom, you cheer me up all the time, I hope you are feeling better than you were this morning.
LOL. Support group meeting. Next week, same time? LOL
axis1
Fuhgeddaboudit!!!!
No, but what a great idea!!!
Ha ha!! Only kidding, since the people I work with live under a lot of state and federal oversight, trying to institute something creative & new is sorta like trying to book a reggae band at a ku klux klan rally!! Lol!! Just getting live animals for a "3 Kings" celebration on January 6th, I had to conduct a staff development (fancy speak for in-service training) on Infection Control since the waste from farm animals and even cats can cause toxoplasmosis in people with compromised immune systems! I can just imagine the response if I suggested using snakes as pet therapy, though is does sound like a great idea! I once conducted a "humor therapy" group with schizophrenics and I remember it was like an act of congress getting it approved because of potential miscommunications on the part of individuals with thinking disorders!! (In retrospect, I did learn a harsh lesson when one client threw a chair at another when the first insulted the second in a "snap contest!" Not the best topic with people that included one who thought the king of Sweden was using his penis as a radio transmitter to send anti-Semitic, lesbian meatloaf recipes to Soupy Sales & Marvin Hamlisch!! See the type of stuff I'm up against?).
One good thing about my profession, there are relatively few boring days!! LOL!!!
axis1
Fuhgeddaboudit!!!!
OK Albertagirl!! See ya then! And don't forget, group hug followed by coffee & donuts afterwards!!
Jupiter
New member
I wasn't gonna post here, I thought you all had wrapped this post up very nicely, and I felt 1000x better after reading all the stories. Count me in on the group meetings!
But as I read all the posts, I noticed that all of your examples of negativity were HORRIBLE, so I decided to add my two cents. I do have to warn though, the following post will be long, and full of graphic text.
I live in the south. Well, southern WV. Tri-state area of WV/KY/OH. Typical stereotypes jump to mind, inbreeding/moonshine making/no education beyond the 4th grade/racist etc etc. But if you knew how hostile 99.99% of people are towards snakes, you would be astounded-ly disgusted.
Before I give some examples, I have to share my guess at why most of them are so ignorant. First and foremost, religion. I don't know if people _actually_ think that snakes are the devil around here, or if that's just the most viable excuse their brains can muster. I'm religious, and grew up 100% surrounded by these people, and I've always had an attraction towards snakes, and reptiles in general. So that's the main reason, the one that makes 0 sense and is used as their 'mask' reason, if you will. I think though, the main reason is that (TO AN EXTENT) there is actual danger in certain snakes in certain situations, as an example:
There are a few HUGE things that people do around here as hobbies to make extra money and a lot of them include going deep into the woods (hours away from any sort of help/cell phone reception) so far out that not all the buddy-system help in the world could save you if you get bitten by a timber rattler/EDB. Some examples include digging various roots to sale/collecting mushrooms/tapping trees/hunting or fishing tending to privately owned land I could go on. Now, I know that it's ridiculous to think you should be hostile towards all snakes because you fear 1 or 2, and that if you're careful it's a fear you never have to worry about.... but speaking from personal experience.. It can be a very scary thing. To be hours away from anything/anyone where 1 miss step, 1 lightning flash strike could mean that you die. Whenever that has been a real fear that has been taught and passed down for generations... I can sort of see where their coming from, but not really. I simply avoid those situations where I could die if bitten, and they do things like THIS (or their fear drives them to do things like this, I should say):
A couple weeks ago I'm walking from my brothers house to mine and as I pass some neighbor folk they tell me to come over there and look at something. I go over and they flip a piece of corrugated steel and I see 2 dead eastern milk snakes and a dead black rat snake. I've seen things like this literally several times per year throughout my entire life. Only by reading posts on this forum have I found out that this SHOULD be a very shocking sight... but after so many times of seeing it, you really do become... not immune, but.. numbed to what you're seeing. I (like always) ask why they killed them (this is my first time talking to these specific people about snakes). They reply with "BY GOD BOY, that there is wunnadem black snake/copperhead hybrids, and them there is its copperhead babies!" .... I literally could not make this stuff up.... I'm at a complete loss, I don't know how to even respond, so I respond with silence and shake my head. They ask what, and I explain to them how it was a regular black rat snake, and 2 regular, completely harmless milk snakes. I explain that it is fully impossible to have 'black snake/copperhead' hybrids because their two totally different kinds of animal. Idk if they believed me, idk if my calm, level headed talking helped at all. But I tried, and continue to almost every other few weeks/months when things like this happen.
One more example, just to let off some more of this eternally build up rant-fuel.
I know a guy who is deathly afraid of snakes, and last summer he did something that made me actually lol right in front of him. (DISCLAIMER: I do not find the murder of snakes funny AT ALL. The humor I find in this is his reaction to the harmless snakes, NOT to the death of the animals.) Me and my friend were walking down the road and here is this medium sized black rat snake dead in the road, but it hasn't been hit by a car, instead it's head is missing. A few days later there is another, and this time the guy, we'll call him Joe, is sitting on the steps of his small camper. He asks if I see the dead snake on the road, and goes on to tell me how they got there. He had come back from being in town for a while and upon opening his dresser drawer inside the camper he found a black rat snake in amongst the cloths. He promptly gets his gun, a 9mm pistol, and shoots the snake in the head (the bullet going clean through the dresser and out the bottom of the camper), cuts its head off and throws the body in the road. The same night, he finds another in a different location in the camper and does the same thing, and the next day, again, a 3rd snake that he shoots and decapitates and throws in the ditch this time. I ask why on earth he did it (I figured the camper was no good for some reason and he planned on getting rid of it or something). He explains the same reason as the other neighbors, that it was a black rat snake/copperhead hybrid, and he wasn't going to risk his life trying to take it out with its head still attached. (Enter face palm/laughing emoji here). I tried to explain to him the same thing but he was having none of it. He was older than me and therefore knew more about animals. Joe still uses that camper. He's actually gone with it right now. Fear (or stupidity or whatever you want to call it) lead him to shoot 3 holes in a perfectly functioning camper.
So there we go, I feel way better and I'm so glad I have people to talk to about things like this. Were y'all joking about the group meetings? Because I'm dead serious about them, lol [emoji23][emoji106]. I guess there is a little bit of a happy ending here, I've convinced my direct family that snakes are great pets and they have been wayyyyyy more lenient about them. My dad (who I'm pretty sure has some sort of actual phobia going on) actually avoids killing them now while out ridge riding. My mom holds Sir Blinky from time to time, and my brother has actually been inspired to potentially get a snake of his own soon.
P.s. If those stories were too much/sounded insensitive towards the snakes lives, I am truly sorry. I am honestly the biggest animal advocate in the world.
On the off chance they weren't too much, there are plenty more (a 21 year life's worth) where that came from.
Have a good one CS.com, until next time.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
But as I read all the posts, I noticed that all of your examples of negativity were HORRIBLE, so I decided to add my two cents. I do have to warn though, the following post will be long, and full of graphic text.
I live in the south. Well, southern WV. Tri-state area of WV/KY/OH. Typical stereotypes jump to mind, inbreeding/moonshine making/no education beyond the 4th grade/racist etc etc. But if you knew how hostile 99.99% of people are towards snakes, you would be astounded-ly disgusted.
Before I give some examples, I have to share my guess at why most of them are so ignorant. First and foremost, religion. I don't know if people _actually_ think that snakes are the devil around here, or if that's just the most viable excuse their brains can muster. I'm religious, and grew up 100% surrounded by these people, and I've always had an attraction towards snakes, and reptiles in general. So that's the main reason, the one that makes 0 sense and is used as their 'mask' reason, if you will. I think though, the main reason is that (TO AN EXTENT) there is actual danger in certain snakes in certain situations, as an example:
There are a few HUGE things that people do around here as hobbies to make extra money and a lot of them include going deep into the woods (hours away from any sort of help/cell phone reception) so far out that not all the buddy-system help in the world could save you if you get bitten by a timber rattler/EDB. Some examples include digging various roots to sale/collecting mushrooms/tapping trees/hunting or fishing tending to privately owned land I could go on. Now, I know that it's ridiculous to think you should be hostile towards all snakes because you fear 1 or 2, and that if you're careful it's a fear you never have to worry about.... but speaking from personal experience.. It can be a very scary thing. To be hours away from anything/anyone where 1 miss step, 1 lightning flash strike could mean that you die. Whenever that has been a real fear that has been taught and passed down for generations... I can sort of see where their coming from, but not really. I simply avoid those situations where I could die if bitten, and they do things like THIS (or their fear drives them to do things like this, I should say):
A couple weeks ago I'm walking from my brothers house to mine and as I pass some neighbor folk they tell me to come over there and look at something. I go over and they flip a piece of corrugated steel and I see 2 dead eastern milk snakes and a dead black rat snake. I've seen things like this literally several times per year throughout my entire life. Only by reading posts on this forum have I found out that this SHOULD be a very shocking sight... but after so many times of seeing it, you really do become... not immune, but.. numbed to what you're seeing. I (like always) ask why they killed them (this is my first time talking to these specific people about snakes). They reply with "BY GOD BOY, that there is wunnadem black snake/copperhead hybrids, and them there is its copperhead babies!" .... I literally could not make this stuff up.... I'm at a complete loss, I don't know how to even respond, so I respond with silence and shake my head. They ask what, and I explain to them how it was a regular black rat snake, and 2 regular, completely harmless milk snakes. I explain that it is fully impossible to have 'black snake/copperhead' hybrids because their two totally different kinds of animal. Idk if they believed me, idk if my calm, level headed talking helped at all. But I tried, and continue to almost every other few weeks/months when things like this happen.
One more example, just to let off some more of this eternally build up rant-fuel.
I know a guy who is deathly afraid of snakes, and last summer he did something that made me actually lol right in front of him. (DISCLAIMER: I do not find the murder of snakes funny AT ALL. The humor I find in this is his reaction to the harmless snakes, NOT to the death of the animals.) Me and my friend were walking down the road and here is this medium sized black rat snake dead in the road, but it hasn't been hit by a car, instead it's head is missing. A few days later there is another, and this time the guy, we'll call him Joe, is sitting on the steps of his small camper. He asks if I see the dead snake on the road, and goes on to tell me how they got there. He had come back from being in town for a while and upon opening his dresser drawer inside the camper he found a black rat snake in amongst the cloths. He promptly gets his gun, a 9mm pistol, and shoots the snake in the head (the bullet going clean through the dresser and out the bottom of the camper), cuts its head off and throws the body in the road. The same night, he finds another in a different location in the camper and does the same thing, and the next day, again, a 3rd snake that he shoots and decapitates and throws in the ditch this time. I ask why on earth he did it (I figured the camper was no good for some reason and he planned on getting rid of it or something). He explains the same reason as the other neighbors, that it was a black rat snake/copperhead hybrid, and he wasn't going to risk his life trying to take it out with its head still attached. (Enter face palm/laughing emoji here). I tried to explain to him the same thing but he was having none of it. He was older than me and therefore knew more about animals. Joe still uses that camper. He's actually gone with it right now. Fear (or stupidity or whatever you want to call it) lead him to shoot 3 holes in a perfectly functioning camper.
So there we go, I feel way better and I'm so glad I have people to talk to about things like this. Were y'all joking about the group meetings? Because I'm dead serious about them, lol [emoji23][emoji106]. I guess there is a little bit of a happy ending here, I've convinced my direct family that snakes are great pets and they have been wayyyyyy more lenient about them. My dad (who I'm pretty sure has some sort of actual phobia going on) actually avoids killing them now while out ridge riding. My mom holds Sir Blinky from time to time, and my brother has actually been inspired to potentially get a snake of his own soon.
P.s. If those stories were too much/sounded insensitive towards the snakes lives, I am truly sorry. I am honestly the biggest animal advocate in the world.
On the off chance they weren't too much, there are plenty more (a 21 year life's worth) where that came from.
Have a good one CS.com, until next time.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
albertagirl
Sharan
You know, this gives me guilt about killing spiders. I'm not killing them because they're harming me, or even could harm me if they wanted to, I'm killing them because I'm afraid of them. I guess it's the same thing, when you get right down to it. Those are really good examples, Jupiter, of how a little bit of education could do SO much for those poor snakes. I think I am going to take my own advice and start looking up the types of spiders that live in my own area and see if I can find a better way to deal with them.
As a sidenote, I got told yesterday that all women who have snakes are strippers. And the way the guy said it was like "everybody knows that, duh". I guess when it comes to educating the world, we have our work cut out for us!!
As a sidenote, I got told yesterday that all women who have snakes are strippers. And the way the guy said it was like "everybody knows that, duh". I guess when it comes to educating the world, we have our work cut out for us!!
Jupiter
New member
That's an amazing step, trying to learn about spiders (something you're deeply afraid of) and learn of a better way to deal with them. I wish just a small fraction of people around here would take on the same task about snakes.... I just don't know how to get them to. I've tried every trick in the book.
I think no matter what with the copperheads/rattlesnakes they're not going to change... I almost can't blame them way out here in the sticks. If there is a rattle snake curled up under you're porch steps there isn't a lot you can do about it here. Animal control is upwards of 1 hour 45 mins away, the snake isn't likely to stay that long, nor would people feel comfortable with it being there that long. Trying to catch it would be very unwise, and likely lead to a bite. The nearest hospital is about an hour and a half away, so getting bitten wouldn't necessarily be a death sentence, but still not a good situation to be in at all. Letting it be (which most of the time is the choice I make when dealing with deadly snakes around here), isn't really an option for most, having kids running around everywhere and animals/livestock on the farm (not to say a rattlesnake would attack a farm animal, but accidents do happen). So really your options are slim, and I (unlike them towards my views) can understand that.
But as far as non venomous, totally harmless, actually BENEFICIAL snakes go.... I have literally tried everything. I've played the 'helps with vermin' card, the 'potentially takes territory that could be taken up by venomous species' card. I've caught wild black snakes/green snakes/garter snakes and literally showed them that there is nothing to be afraid of. Told them that even if bitten the worst that could possibly happen is an infection if the wound isn't tended to. Literally cats and dogs could do 10x the amount of damage to someone than a garter snake could.
So I have no idea, maybe next time one of my uncles are cleaning around their houses I'll join in and if we stumble upon a sneaky I'll jump to action before they can cut it in half and pick it up and show them some cool details (the same ones that I saw in them when I was little) about the snakes and maybe they'll see something different.
As far as every women who own snakes being a stripper goes..... WOW I thought living in the south I had heard everything there was to hear about snakes... but that's a new one for sure [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23].
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
I think no matter what with the copperheads/rattlesnakes they're not going to change... I almost can't blame them way out here in the sticks. If there is a rattle snake curled up under you're porch steps there isn't a lot you can do about it here. Animal control is upwards of 1 hour 45 mins away, the snake isn't likely to stay that long, nor would people feel comfortable with it being there that long. Trying to catch it would be very unwise, and likely lead to a bite. The nearest hospital is about an hour and a half away, so getting bitten wouldn't necessarily be a death sentence, but still not a good situation to be in at all. Letting it be (which most of the time is the choice I make when dealing with deadly snakes around here), isn't really an option for most, having kids running around everywhere and animals/livestock on the farm (not to say a rattlesnake would attack a farm animal, but accidents do happen). So really your options are slim, and I (unlike them towards my views) can understand that.
But as far as non venomous, totally harmless, actually BENEFICIAL snakes go.... I have literally tried everything. I've played the 'helps with vermin' card, the 'potentially takes territory that could be taken up by venomous species' card. I've caught wild black snakes/green snakes/garter snakes and literally showed them that there is nothing to be afraid of. Told them that even if bitten the worst that could possibly happen is an infection if the wound isn't tended to. Literally cats and dogs could do 10x the amount of damage to someone than a garter snake could.
So I have no idea, maybe next time one of my uncles are cleaning around their houses I'll join in and if we stumble upon a sneaky I'll jump to action before they can cut it in half and pick it up and show them some cool details (the same ones that I saw in them when I was little) about the snakes and maybe they'll see something different.
As far as every women who own snakes being a stripper goes..... WOW I thought living in the south I had heard everything there was to hear about snakes... but that's a new one for sure [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23].
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
DollysMom
It never gets old!
Thanks Jupiter. Ignorance in and of itself is nothing shameful, but an unwillingness to think critically and to learn is. Very sad stories. Glad you have a safe place here to share them.
Wow, Albertagirl, <sarcasm> we've been promoted from crazy snake ladies to strippers! </sarcasm>
Wow, Albertagirl, <sarcasm> we've been promoted from crazy snake ladies to strippers! </sarcasm>
cinnabunbun
New member
When I first posted a picture of Levi, a friend said "hmm makes sense since you have the slight allergy to cats/fur" ): I love animals and would love to have a cat or a dog or a rabbit someday.
I find it hard to really spread my enthusiasm and joy of having a snake companion and feeling really proud of myself of being able to take care of him well. After I had not much of a good experience with me trying to care for a chihuahua who mostly lived in a gated backyard all her life and a cat who has severe overgrooming problems. Often times people would forbid against the idea of having or living with a snake. Most of the time I think people are just overwhelmed by the fear and portrayal of em.
Me? I don't like spiders/arachnids, centipedes, millipedes. Their legs just downright gives me the shivers. But I'm pretty sure all living things just want to live, they're not going just walk up and hurt you because they feel like it. That's what I try to tell people.
I find it hard to really spread my enthusiasm and joy of having a snake companion and feeling really proud of myself of being able to take care of him well. After I had not much of a good experience with me trying to care for a chihuahua who mostly lived in a gated backyard all her life and a cat who has severe overgrooming problems. Often times people would forbid against the idea of having or living with a snake. Most of the time I think people are just overwhelmed by the fear and portrayal of em.
Me? I don't like spiders/arachnids, centipedes, millipedes. Their legs just downright gives me the shivers. But I'm pretty sure all living things just want to live, they're not going just walk up and hurt you because they feel like it. That's what I try to tell people.
axis1
Fuhgeddaboudit!!!!
I'm with you on the centipedes, I just really get weirded out and if we didn't have to share a place, I'm ok with them living - somewhere else! But that's how I can empathize with people who truly fear snakes. But for people to just come out and be judgmental is where I have a problem. That's when I turn into kind of a dick and I show people a picture of my former cat (GiGi) being introduced to one of my corns (Chili-Pepper). It's just a playful pic in one of my albums where they came face-to-face under close supervision and no one got hurt, but when someone is unduly negative towards snakes, I lie and show them that picture and tell them that it was right before the both of them got tangled up and bloodied and that it took two of us to get them separated and that GiGi lost an eye in that fight!!
(I know, I got kind of an evil streak in me also, but HEY, I didn't start it and besides, it was kinda fun!!)
(I know, I got kind of an evil streak in me also, but HEY, I didn't start it and besides, it was kinda fun!!)
DLena
Corns are goram shiny!
:crazy02: Axis would have to provide a year's worth of therapy to anyone who saw me strip. :crazy02:
I try to be fair across the board, so with bugs and insects, here're my "rules" for co-existence:
If it's someone's pet, I stretch and grow. Just like us with our snakes, no one would introduce a pet that was going to show badly or hurt someone.
If it's a wild creature and out in nature, that's his space not mine.
If it's in my yard, I move it, ignore it, or come back later based on the situation. (When I was planting a hosta and dug into a whole bunch of reddish centipede things, and I mean a swarm of them, I didn't go back for DAYS.)
If it's in the house, I make a real effort to move it outside.
If it's in the shower with me, first I shriek, then I scream out the F word, then I kill it dead.
There is only so much stretching and growing I can do. :laugh01:
I try to be fair across the board, so with bugs and insects, here're my "rules" for co-existence:
If it's someone's pet, I stretch and grow. Just like us with our snakes, no one would introduce a pet that was going to show badly or hurt someone.
If it's a wild creature and out in nature, that's his space not mine.
If it's in my yard, I move it, ignore it, or come back later based on the situation. (When I was planting a hosta and dug into a whole bunch of reddish centipede things, and I mean a swarm of them, I didn't go back for DAYS.)
If it's in the house, I make a real effort to move it outside.
If it's in the shower with me, first I shriek, then I scream out the F word, then I kill it dead.
There is only so much stretching and growing I can do. :laugh01:
DollysMom
It never gets old!
I hear you. Great point.
Personally, I can't look at my little snake's sweet face looking up at me out of her log and feel anything for this gentle creature except total love. My question is not how can you hate them, but how can you not love them? I guess that's the price some people pay for having closed minds. It's especially sad when that translates to the loss of a snake's life.
DollysMom
It never gets old!
:laugh01:
I've been guilty of killing a bug or two in my house as well. Frankly, many of the spiders are there to eat something worse than it. Even when I was in CA I only ever killed one black widow.
Now if we ever get snake mites all bets on killing small crawlies are off. :smash: I do have a can of PAM, which I understand has a shelf life of about 15 years, that I keep on hand just in case, but I've never used it.
DollysMom
It never gets old!
Kills snake mites. It needs to be used exactly as instructed and never sprayed directly on a snake or in their water. It is one of the safest and most effective products on the market today.
http://pro-products.com/provent-a-mite/
https://www3.epa.gov/pesticides/chem_search/ppls/073617-00001-20040505.pdf
DollysMom
It never gets old!
Sorry about that. I forget that some folks don't know about it. Among snake folks PAM is entirely different than among cooking folks, lol.
albertagirl
Sharan
These are great rules, I think I will make this my goal to work towards. And I laughed really hard on the shower part. :rofl:
I agree! Snake mites, ticks and fleas would not be considered harmless in my house. Nobody hurts my babies!!