vent-snakes as pets

[mamajoan]

My son and DIL live in Texas, they are both soldiers, DIL is pregnant and due in May. They already have 2 children 2 and 4.
They are both young parents, 23 and 20. We love them all.

now the vent... they purchased a small dog a few months ago.. a pom. mix.... he is now an "outside dog.. he really likes being outside." or so I am told...
Yesterday, dil called to tell me they had purchased a 7 foot boa constrictor.. SNAKE... she said the snake is in a locked aquarium in the living room............

I am not a fan of snakes... especially a 7 foot boa.... in the house...
snakes get loose... they need more attention than I think this family will give them once they become bored with this docile pet.
the thought of my grandkids watching as dad feeds this snake live rats really bothers me...

I am just glad they live in Texas right now.. it makes it easier for me not to interfere, they are adults who can make their own decisions without Mom approval.
Thank you for listening. I appreciate the room to vent.

 

[monkeyboy]

 

[two4ruff]

I with ya on the snake issue....but my kids would likely make more pets out of the dinner rats...

 

[GEM]

I would have loved that as a kid! Especially getting to watch him eat the rats!! How cool! But then, I have sort of a snake fascination.

 

[shep]

If the snake gets out the dog might be a appetizer..

 

[missypie]

My 8 year old DD would like a snake as a pet more than anything else in the world. I just can't cope with it.

 

[Serena]

Boas are very docile snakes. I'm glad they chose that instead of another kind.
Feeding live rats is not very healthy for the snakes. Sometimes the rats bite back and the potential is high for the snake to develop an infection and die.

A seven foot boa is several years old. I hope the previous owners took the time to tame and gentle it. They do better when they get to know the people and they are much more relaxed around people they know.

My dd has two boas. They love her. If anyone else holds them, they try to get away to her. When we go downstairs, where the cage is, they will raise up to see/smell who it is. If it's not her, they couldn't care less.

A seven foot snake sounds big, but if you could see them, you could see that it's really not.

They are strong, but not that fast. They don't require that much care. A cage big and strong enough, warmth, water and proper and enough food. There are lots of books and websites with the information about them.
It's really not all that bad. Although it took my dd 3 years from me telling her "no way" to "ok". Three years of visiting pet stores, researching, going to reptile shows, finally holding a baby, to yes.

 

[Sleepy]

I personally don't think it is wise to have a snake with children that young in the house. I am no expert on snakes but I used to work with them (anacondas are the coolest BTW). I see how they can become escape artists if given the slightest opportunity and I know the grip they have when wrapped around you. Never been around one larger than my thigh. Would never have one in my house! Hopefully their snake will never get loose outside. Oh, and I agree with Serena about the feeding suggestion. Always give dead rats to snakes.

 

[Mermaid02]

I was trying to figure out what a Vent-Snake was!

 

[tiggersmom2]

I Gotta agree with sleepy on this one!

 

[mamajoan]

Thank you for the personal experience info.. I appreciate the calm nature it was presented to me in.. ... LOL.. that is a good thing for me!

and I agree with shep.... I think that Georgie Chewbacca.. the dog.. which is actually a pekinese mix... will be a furry appetizer!

I will pass on the info about the live vs dead rat thing... to be honest that makes me feel ALOT better.

DS has wanted a snake for many years. He had a ToKay.. (sp?) gecko..... it was a mean bugger.. after it bit ds a couple times he took it back to the pet store........the sales lady told him that they are mean little gecko's, needing lots of attention.

 

[Serena]

mamajoan, a Bearded Dragon is a wonderful pet lizard. They are good pets, not mean at all, and they rank up high on the cool factor. They need fresh veggies along with the pellets, but if your ds wants a lizard/reptile, that would be the way to go.

 

[Serena]

Oh, I gotta tell you this. When they, the snakes, were babies, Bri would hold them and wrap them around her neck. They would coil around her spaghetti strap and stay there for hours. Or she'd have her hair up and they'd tangle themselves in it.

One time her first one was wrapped around her wrist. It looked like it was some elaborate bracelet with the head pointing to her fingers. She answered the door that way, when the pizza guy got here. He didn't notice at first, and then he did, and then it moved. He was off our porch so fast it was crazy. She had to toss him the money, I let him keep the change.

 

[mamajoan]

Bearded dragon.. that sounds like a good pet for him. I have heard that they are peaceful little lizard.

Neighbor/friend has had big iguana's for several years. It took me awhile to get used to those pets, but they were kinda friendly after you got to know them

update btw.. DIL just called. She is going to make a couple of phone calls...if the orders to England go thru soon it looks like the boa will be headed back to the pet store....
aw shucks

and this gramma will be doing one happy hobble dance of joy!

 

[mamajoan]

Originally posted by Serena
Oh, I gotta tell you this. When they, the snakes, were babies, Bri would hold them and wrap them around her neck. They would coil around her spaghetti strap and stay there for hours. Or she'd have her hair up and they'd tangle themselves in it. :

YIKES!!!! OH LORD IN HEAVEN... SNAKES IN THE HAIR!

I have now fallen off my chair!

 

[Serena]

I'm glad. Snakes are cool, but so many people don't know what to do with them and end up either giving them back, or trying to, or the snakes getting sick and dying.

And frozen mice and rats in your freezer are a bit of a surprise sometimes. And thawing them out, warming them up and feeding them to the snakes is yucky. I can't watch.

 

[mamajoan]

oh my... I never thought about that... the thawing of frozen mice for the snakes entree... omg!!

and the thought of little furry frozen mice peering at me as I grab a popsicle is an eerie thought....

 

[browneyes]

I don't know which grosses me out more-the snakes or the mice. My cousin had a few pet snakes. His sister had a few pet white mice. Bad combination. I only visited my aunt once when they had the snakes and mice. I didn't go back until those things were gone. The snakes roamed freely. YUCK.

My Pom would think I was a big mean mama if I left him outside all the time. I'd watch any snakes around their Pom.

 

[Serena]

It is gross. But I totally refused to have live mice and rats in my house. I should have refused to have a snake, but it's too late for that.

 

[Sleepy]

Originally posted by mamajoan
He had a ToKay.. (sp?) gecko..... it was a mean bugger.. after it bit ds a couple times he took it back to the pet store........the sales lady told him that they are mean little gecko's, needing lots of attention.

I agree, Tokays are mean. They have a HUGE mouth and they get really big. I think they look really cool though.....grey with red spots. They make awesome sounds. We had several loose in the warehouse. They would come out during the day and make noises. If cornered, they would lunge for you. Their feet are neat too. A better choice would have been a fattail gecko or a leopard gecko.