When I saw the title of the post I was 'What? and its Jeff Asking?' Then I read the post and realized he wasn't asking the question himself LOL



The sad thing about the world we live in, is its in an 'instant gratification consumer market'. People don't want to take a moment to think about anything or research, they are pretty much 'see it, buy it. Think much later about it.'



I had one person respond to my classified she wanted to buy a snake for her 5 year old. She just said she wanted a snake so next day the mother was trying to find a snake to buy...which already tells me she has no clue about the care....and I pretty much told her a 5 year old is too young to be the care giver of a snake or any animal...unless she fully intends to be the primary care giver and gets all the necessary research, and any interaction with the snake is supervised by a parent or older sibling. I never heard from her again...and I rather not sell one of my reptiles than have it go to somebody who is buying it for a 5 year old but doesn't have any intention to care for it 95% of the time.



Its one thing to have a pet and care for it with your young children...especially when they are under 10 years old. Kids get distracted easily, have short attention spans etc...so they may be focused on handling the snake then hear the start of their favorite show, or dad arrives..and the snake gets forgotten...on the chair. and thus escapes or ends up somewhere dangerous to its health.



I do believe people have to take more time before buying any pet, whether its a dog or a snake and do research. Heck even fish need to be researched properly. So many think its all just toss into a tank, with filter, feed once a day and change the water once in awhile (if this even gets done). Seen plenty of algae covered tanks in doctor's offices and people's homes. When I had a fresh water tank, I rarely had any algae in it...only time I typically had an outbreak is if i put in something in the water for the aquatic plants..which I only did once...as all it did was make algae grow and the plants died anyway. That and many pet stores just have a bunch of fish tossed into the tanks..some fish which don't do well in a community.



I read about every pet I ever owned... I read about cat breeds and care time to time, same with dogs (really liking the Cesar Millan books...first person who treats dogs like the way I always felt they should be treated...and understands what I have always felt was the cause for so many dogs being aggressive barking little terrors...(oddly enough rarely had any troubles with the 'danger' breeds (ie rotties, pit pulls etc)Its always been the small dogs that seem so wild and vicious). As with many reptiles, number one reason dogs and cats are returned to shelters, abandoned etc..is because owners got more than they expected, didn't know how to handle/train the dog and just couldn't keep it. IF they did research on the breeds etc...they would have known Jack Russell Terriers are a high energy breed that can destroy your house if they don't have any proper outlet for all their energy. (like keeping a hyperactive child in a 10 square room with nothing but furniture...that kid would destroy everything in a day too...)



Then there is animals that are in popular shows or movies. Kids want that animal as a pet..and parents just buy it, without making any efforts in learning about the animal. Jack Russel Terriers were used in a few shows. Fishbone was a children's series with one...not sure if its still on or not. Well, Harry Potter sparked interest in owning owls (maybe rats too, for those who liked Scabbers). Its fine having some of these animals as pets..but many are not suitable for most if not all households. Birds of Prey are definitely not a typical family pet. Not to mention they can be very dangerous. Rats are good pets, but again, you do need to do research on them. Safe bedding to use, cage size, the fact they are social..how to sex them (I wouldn't trust a pet shop employee to sex them..even if boy rats are as obvious as human boys.)



I am all for educating and encouraging people to research. In a way I think its a great loss not only for the animal who's going to suffer under improper care but for personal discovery and knowledge as well. I find it fascinating to learn more about care and history of an animal...and how it survivals not only in captivity but in the wild. In a way researching and learning more about animals and their care..I have found more insights in human health and nutrition.



It isn't nice to make fun of people who ask silly questions in general...and definitely not to their face...but having a laugh at the questions themselves (and not just the individual people who honestly just want to know, as we are all learning and we all start somewhere) is fine...As long as we try not to laugh at the individuals who just don't know.



I am sure anybody who talks about reptiles to others who know nothing about reptiles..will get alot of the same questions 'Aren't they poisonous? Slimy? Does it bite? etc. However for every person we answer those questions for...there is one less person who doesn't know the answer. And hopefully that person will tell somebody else that no, not all snakes are poisonous, they are not slimy etc. Remember that one of the greatest gifts Humans have is our sense of curiosity.



Feed other people's curiosity and stave the fear..and you will have more people willing to sit down at a computer to do an extra bit of research before running to a pet store to buy a new pet and maybe, they will go for the calm easy to care for corn snake or rainbow boa, instead of the cheap $20 Burmese or Reticulated python or green iguana...thinking it will be fine in the 20 gallon tank/reptile kit the store employee assures them will be fine for the life of the reptile..
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PHLdyPayne



Forum Princess

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