INSIDE BAY AREA (Oakland, California) 04 November 07 Snake charmers raise serpents for fun and profit (Dawn Ocampo)

Victor Gopiao takes his 3-foot snake out of its glass terrarium to feed it a pinky mouse. He warns his roommate that the snake is friendly but has the grip of a grown man's handshake.

The mouse is released and Boss, who only eats once a week, wastes no time, quickly striking at the baby mouse's neck then coiling back like a yo-yo and squeezing it lifeless.

Gopiao, a 24-year-old bartender from Union City, is one of many Bay Area snake charmers who raise such serpents as pets and for profit.

"My thing is to recreate its own environment in a captive sense," Gopiao says. "I simulate their natural environment from where they originally come from."

Gopiao has owned reptiles since he was 10; he currently has six boa constrictors and pythons and is one of about 50 individuals who breed, raise and sell snakes for profit in the Bay Area. Most sell directly to pet stores and to other amateur and professional herpetologists.

Local herpetologists come together through the Bay Area Amphibians and Reptile Society once a month to share their interests and concerns.

Gopiao's six arboreal snakes come from tropical regions of the world, ranging from New Guinea to the Amazons of South America. He has two Amazon tree boas that cost $150 each, two green tree pythons, $300 each, a red-tailed boa, which cost $150, and a coral lipstick boa that cost $700. Boa constrictor snakes, unlike python snakes that lay eggs, give birth to fully developed babies. Both are the only snake species that tightly coil around and asphyxiate their prey.

Caring for a snake costs about $100 to $200 a year for food, husbandry and medical check-ups. Breeders like Gopiao can earn from $200 to $2,000 a snake. Constrictors can lay up to 17 neonates, most of which will be sold for $1,500 to $15,000. Some have been known to sell for as much as $40,000.

While Gopiao has had some luck raising and selling snakes, others find it hard to make a profit.

"It's a hobby and hard to make money," says president of BAARS, Scott Alexander, 49. "It's actually a way of spending money."

Alexander, a manager at Verizon Business, has owned reptiles for more than 20 years and has 25 snakes in his San Jose home. His focus is less on making money and more on endangered species, including fresh water turtles and tortoises from Southeast Asia. He spends $800 a month on water and heating costs alone.

He says the most popular pets among collectors are boas, pythons, corn snakes and rare versions of them.

"Boas and pythons make great pets," he says. "They're low-maintenance and hypo-allergenic."

And while snakes might seem dangerous (especially if you're a mouse), Alexander says he's been bitten just once, by a lizard when he was in high school.

Gopiao keeps his animals in large glass and acrylic cages, where he creates an environment resembling the snakes' native ones. He says other hobbyists might try to save money by keeping the babies and adults in less expensive cages such as shoe boxes and rubber containers.

He provides misting systems such as an artificial rain machine for snakes that need a more humid climate, perches for pythons and boas and driftwood to mimic natural habitat and allow for exercise. For some species, he installs emitter light bulbs for gradient heat.

Dianne Flagg, BAARS' adoption coordinator, hopes that breeders use good judgment in taking care of their reptiles.

"I foster snakes like they were my own," she says. "So when I look for potential adopters I know what kind of owner I am looking for."

Flagg says generally she interviews the adopter, making sure he is knowledgeable about reptiles and financially stable. She says breeders should give buyers a care information sheet and veterinarian referrals.

And she explains that a snake is a long term commitment.

"Most reptiles can live up to 20 years and that's longer than cats," Flagg says. "So it's a commitment, and I wouldn't want someone to keep them if it were just a phase."

Gopiao says above all it is important for buyers to have a passion for snakes and to be willing do the research beforehand. He says Kingsnake.com, a hobbyist Web site, is the epicenter for breeders, sellers, exporters and importers.

"If I can contribute to the knowledge of herpetology, then I will. It is an ongoing study, cycle and experience," Gopiao says.
Snake charmers raise serpents for fun and profit

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