I'm totally new to snakes as a pet. So I've asked some dumb questions, hopefully I'll learn more about them as the kind members answer.
But, I'm curious, how did you decide to have snakes as pets? Were you young and just really liked them, or did you get them after becoming an adult? I've been reading that temperatures make a difference to them due to being reptiles. And I've seen comments about baby rats for food for them? Am I getting this right?
So, tell me how you got started. Please.
Hi Python,
I first developed an interest in reptiles way back in 1967 when no licenses were required and the collecting and keeping of reptiles was pretty much free for all to engage in.
I had a friend that lived around the corner from my house in Belmore in Sydney's western Suburbs who had a Blue Tongue Lizard and a Long-necked Turtle and I became completely fascinated with them to a point where I bought a Blue tongue from our local pet shop. That same shop had all sorts of reptiles for sale including Blue Tongues, Shinglebacks, Bearded Dragons, both Short and Long-necked Turtles, Carpet and Diamond Pythons and occasionally Green Tree Snakes that were all kept together in the front window of the shop and my friend and I would often go to the shop and spend an hour or so just looking at all the snakes, lizards and turtles.
It wasn't long after that we both started exploring our local areas for lizards and would ride our bikes to various bushland, farming areas and National Parks where we'd spend the day catching all types and species and keep them to add to our collections.
My first experience with a snake was in bushland adjacent to Bardwell Park near Earlwood in Sydney. I was out with a group of friends when we came across a rather large Red Bellied Black Snake sunning itself in front of a rock. I grabbed it by the tail as I had seen George Cann Jnr do at the La Peruse Snake Pit and as I lifted it up it became evident that it was longer than I was tall so I stood atop the rock to keep it off the ground while one of my friends attempted to bag it. There were no such things as hoop bags in those days and after many attempts and a few near bites we were able to bag it in a pillow case which we used for bagging lizards.
I took it home and placed it in a spare outdoor cage that had previously held a couple of Blue Tongues and couldn't stop myself from sitting there at the cage watching it, sometimes for hours at a time. I have to admit that although they encouraged my interest and allowed me to keep the snake my aunt and uncle, who I lived with, weren't too keen on me having a Red Bellied Black at 12 years old. So after a couple of weeks my uncle proposed that if I let it go he would buy me a Carpet Python. An agreement was reached and a couple of weeks later I was less one Red Bellied Black but the proud owner of not 1 but 2 very nice Carpet Pythons and a Green Tree Snake.
A month or so after that my friend purchased a Swamp Snake from a gentleman named Graham Settle who worked with Hal Cogger at the Australian Museum in Sydney and Graham introduced us both to the Australian Herpetological Society that met once a month in the bowels of the Australian Museum. That was the real start of my reptile journey and where I became friends with people like Richard Wells (of Wells and Wellington fame), Peter Rankin, Gerry Swan, Brian Lazell and many more of the fledgling herpers of that era.
From there, when I wasn't playing or training for rugby league I spent nearly all my spare time either at home looking after my collection or engaging with adults, buying, borrowing and reading as many books as I could to gain as much knowledge as possible or out in the scrub with friends collecting reptiles including a wide variety of venomous snakes. As my interest grew and I got older I would swap all species of reptiles with friends interstate including Steve Wilson and Mike Swan and also send reptiles to Brian Barnett who operated the now defunct Marbuk Reptile Park at Port Macquarie.
Eventually, at around 15 years of age my main interest settled on the Broad-headed Snake (Hoplocephalus bungaroides) and that's where I placed most of my energy and interest.
Things changed drastically in the early 70's whereby NSW NPWS decided to outlaw the keeping of almost all species of reptiles except for a limited few of the common species and as such the number of keepers diminished drastically while other just dropped of the scene. Some complied with the new legislation and were content to keep the designated number of 12 animal (which could consist of all the same species or a selection of those allowed to be kept but, what ever the case may be, no one except licensed zoos/wildlife parks etc could keep more than 12 individual animals).
So as it turned out Broad Heads were classified as endangered and were definitely not on the list of permitted species. I had no choice but to release my animals back into the locations where they were first collected.
The new laws didn't perturb me from maintaining my interest so I, like may others, simply went underground as as a means to pursue our interest. I also moved away from the city to live in Bellingen Shire on the NSW Mid North Coast. I didn't keep much but over the next couple of decades I spent a lot of time in the scrub all over the state and occasionally interstate locating, catching and even just observing and recording activities of species and their environment .
Then in the early 90's I returned to live in Sydney for a period of time where I reacquainted myself with the local herp scene, attended meetings of the AHS where I even had the privilege of spending 12 months as President and Field Trip Coordinator and had a spell working as a keeper/demonstrator with the Australian Reptile Park. During my time in Sydney I also authored several species profiles for NSW NPWS and was provided with a permit to hold specimens of venomous species on their behalf which included those classed as endangered or threatened that had either been handed in or confiscated. I was also engaged by Rich Shine to assist Dr John Webb with his PhD on the Broad-Headed Snake. I also, at the bequest of Harold Ehmann, undertook, contributed to and successfully completed the Advanced Herpetology Course at the University of Technology Sydney.
I eventually returned to Bellingen a couple of years later and in 1998 established a very popular mobile live reptile display called Unreal Reptiles performing live demonstrations and educating the public about a wide variety of reptiles including highly venomous species of snakes at major shopping centers, agricultural shows and similar events as well as private functions and schools. Due to the time required to operate as a sole trader, time away from home and family reasons I closed the business in 2004 and returned to my previous employment as a Private Investigator.
My interest has never waned and I have previously been granted Scientific Licenses to collect, hold, etc any species of reptile in NSW and still hold a class 4 NSW keepers license which basically allows me to acquire and keep any and all species of Australian reptiles other than crocs.
Other than occasionally visiting here and for a number of reasons, I don't engage much with the herp community in general these days and mainly just tend to stick with my old associates. I consider myself very lucky, as the area I live provides a wide and diverse range of species of reptiles that I encounter on a regular basis. I currently maintain a small collection of snakes including a dozen pure Coastal Carpets, Olive Pythons, Red Bellied Blacks. Tigers and Colletts Black Snakes as well as provide information to the general public and remove venomous snakes from local properties, private residents, businesses and schools as a community service totally free of charge simple as a means of concern for the welfare of the said snake.
Cheers,
George.
I try to be helpful but sometimes a dose of reality is the most helpful thing 
