New to Reptiles...

[Rotten]

Hi to every one,

I am 23 I live in the copper triangle South Australia, For those who have no idea what I'm on about the copper triangle is 3 Towns (Kadina, Wallaroo, Moonta) bout 2 hrs north west of Adelaide.

I've had an interest in Snakes since I was around 15 and Reptile city in Christies Beach opened up. I lived with my parents up until 3 years ago and I haven't been settled until recently to be able to buy a reptile and not have it moved all the time...

I have a 3 year old son who I took into the local petshop around 4 months ago and got a snake taken out and he loved it, let him crawl (slither) up his arm and all he did was smile and get excited so I took that as the green light to getting a snake because I didn't want my lil champion to be scared of my animal...

I have decided to build my first vivarium instead of buying one in a store. I've decided to get a second hand Corner T.V unit. For a solid pine one on gumtree they're around $50 - $100. Put in a small UVB fluro, I do know they do not need it but I only want it for display purposes.

My house mate really loved the colouring on jungle pythons but mainly the B&W she said the B&Y/G looked scary lol and she would be interested in getting one in the future...I myself have made the decision to get a Roughie I have been doing research on them and talked to a few people who have owned one about what the animal is like. I also do love the idea of having an animal that isn't as common as other pythons but still a decent price all round

I hope to one day get into the breeding side of things mainly for the love of the hobby, Snakes are an amazing pet to keep...And It would be great to help spread the love of the hobby and show the world how amazing these animals are. I couldn't think of a better pet for children to grow up with either, they live for 20 - 25 years even up to 30 I've been told. Yes they bite but I rather my child be bitten but a snake than a dog or mauled by a cat. But most of all EVERYONE is curious about them, even those with a fear of them just want to have a looky loo...

I hope I can really learn and grow and share my experiences with you all and hopefully learn a few thing along the way

 

[grannieannie]

Welcome to the site... personally...and this is only my opinion...I don't think a child as young as 3 yrs should have much to do with handling snakes because they don't know their own strengths....and reptiles are wild, even if you have them in captivity. You can't hold on to them and say....don't go this way or that way snakey....they move where they want to, unlike a dog or a cat which can be controlled. I have friends who have children around 6 yrs old and even those children find it hard to understand how careful they have to be when holding a snake. 3 yr olds will like any animal and like to cuddle and pat things....snakes aren't like that. Get a snake by all means, but don't think of it as a pet for your 3 yr old. 3yr olds can even be very rough on puppies and kittens......

 

[Vincey]

Welcome to the site... personally...and this is only my opinion...I don't think a child as young as 3 yrs should have much to do with handling snakes because they don't know their own strengths....and reptiles are wild, even if you have them in captivity. You can't hold on to them and say....don't go this way or that way snakey....they move where they want to, unlike a dog or a cat which can be controlled. I have friends who have children around 6 yrs old and even those children find it hard to understand how careful they have to be when holding a snake. 3 yr olds will like any animal and like to cuddle and pat things....snakes aren't like that. Get a snake by all means, but don't think of it as a pet for your 3 yr old. 3yr olds can even be very rough on puppies and kittens......

Every child is different, my nephew is 3 and a half (very intelligent for a 3yo mind you) and he knows perfectly well how to handle the snake.
3 simple rules.

1. Dont move fast
2. Support him
3. Open hands only, no grabbing.

They learn pretty quick, at least my nephew did

 

[Rotten]

I should've gone into a bit more detail...I the breeder handl the snake and watched how my sone reacted and I asked him to stay still and he did, he firt pat the snake then let him crawl up his arm...This encouraged me because say I have to clean out the snake enclosure and need to handle the snake my boy won't freak out if I'm handling the snake...I will have a Puppy for my boy to play with as a pet til he's old enough for a snake...And my boy is pretty much on par with Vincey's Nephew he's a very smart boy and as long as he isn't be distracted he will listen to what I say...But thank you so much for your input please don't feel that I am in any way attacking your opinion