Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I think I've lost interest in my snakes...HELP! I've been keeping reptiles since I've been about 6. Since then I dont think I've EVER been without at least 1. Thats about 20 years!! But now, I just dont have the interest I used to. Never hold them, never stare at them in wonder. Is my former LOVE gone for good? I hope not, but then again at this point, I dont especially care. Has anyone else ever felt like this? What can I do to save my dying interest?

Brandon

What can I do to save my dying interest?
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laying off the crack pipe could be a start.
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recycle your pets

HI!I'm sorry to hear that.I truely think it will pass.This time of year sometimes does that to us with everything changing so fast.Have you had other changes in your life?When I felt not as excited with mine I sat back and thought about the joy they do bring into my life.I have a lot of back trouble and they really do.Maybe you have too many?They won't hurt with a little less attention mine I guess sensed I was going threw something and was happy wheen I returned.Maybe you can get a little heelp for cleaning and stuff?Just a little thought I hope it helps again I do think it will pass.

I went thru that phase at about 25.I found homes for my pythons and boa's.I had alot of things going on at the time but when things settled down i could have kicked my f#ing head in for giving away an important part of my life.Im sure you have your own reasons.But try to tough it out a little longer if you can...Good Luck...Paul.

Hey maybe you need some separation from your snakes and I would be glad to give them a loving home. lol But if your not feeling like making me that lucky I would say to just rough it out or breed them. A nice clutch makes you fall in love with them all over again.

I suffered from herper burnout about eight years ago when I was 16. I think the two major reasons for this were gathering up too large of a collection too quickly, and having too broad of a spectrum of a collection. If either of these apply to you, I'd suggest cutting back your collection to a few animals of a type that you're really into, and then just specializing in them.

Jake

I've had similar feelings when my collections grew to an out of control size for a person with serious back problems, a full time high responsibility job, and lot's of stress... (my family lives 1,500 miles away)
Seems like 100 snakes was just to much to really appreciate it..
it seemed like most of the time I was smelling, touching and cleaning poop and there was no reward...

That ALL changed when 2 of my girls produced 64 live healthy babies last season!
Have you ever produced babies? This springs it back to life allll over again - like a little kid in a candy store.

After all the babies were sold, same problem started to reoccur.

WHAT I DID NOTICE IS THAT THE DAYS I ACTUALLY HELD AND 'PLAYED' WITH MY ANIMALS, IT BROUGHT A BIG SENSE OF RELIEF TO ME. The day after I would totally forget about all the 'inconveniences' and stress or pressure of it all.

One problem is that I would leisurely clean, at my own time, taking much too long. Same with feeding and watering.
Turns out I was doing these things EVERY SINGLE DAY, and that didn't help!

What I did was go back to a schedule, let's say Tuesdays I would water and spot clean, Sundays I would clean, feed and water. This left the other days clear, I actually kind of felt like I didn't have a collection those other days! This freed up alot of time, alot of time in my head most importantly. I was now more free to even think of other things that please me.

I would now have the time to peak into each cage once in a while and actually take the animals out and appreciate them alot more.

Unfortunately, one of the only answers that took me a looong time to come to grips with, was that I had to cut down my collection drastically, so to avoid the possibility of losing interest all together.

Sometimes you have to make some tough decisions....

Hope this helps - Joe Rollo
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'Tis not the stongest of the species that will eventually survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change' Charles Darwin
Thanks and take care - Joe Rollo

Especially when I get involved with large projects at work that require long hours. I get home and I have to check animals and clean cages. It sucks. I feel the same way about my kids. Sometimes when I get home from a mentally exhausting day at work and the wife wants to tell me about Oprah, my son is teasing my daughter, she is crying, my pit is so pleased to see me his tail is knocking everything off the table. This happens all at once. I just think of that old commercial and feel like saying "Calgon take me away" No seriously I think we all go through it from time to time but in the long run when we breed or make a new breakthrough it makes it all feel worth it. TBH coming here also rejuvenates my love. Anyways that me.

Ithink that its alot more common then most of would like to admit , as examples that have been stated to many animals , to many types of them boas , pythons ,etc etc . a few years ago i had it hit me pretty hard a had a good sized collection of LARGE burmese , afican rocks , reticulated pythons all between 10-18 ft along with that a small collection of boas .Well i am also self employed so most of the time i was doing 3 things at one time and it was very stressing both to me and my snakes .I would wake up at 6 am or earlier to start getting ready for the days work ahead of me peek in on all the snakes load tools / materials and off i went for 10-14 hrs a day then come home to 1-3 hrs of paperwork for that day on top of having to get a estimate out for a new customer etc, then around 10-12 pm i think hmm now its time to do the Reptile rounds . this was becoming very taxing on me due to the fact i felt the snakes were becoming moreless a burden on me and my time ... so with little haste i posted all of the larger snakes for sale ( pythons only) and once they were gone it was more of a relaxing tasks due to the fact i wasnt having to wrestle these huge as dead , wiggling weights all the time after having a bad day .Now i have just my boas and do miss the large pythons around but know with my schedule it wouldnt be fair to go back into a "large scale" snake keeping scenario again at this time .
When you have something breed and see the fruits of your & the females labor alike it does send that bonechilling spark back into your blood of thinking ok now what whos next ordeal. if you re truely in a burn out relocate some of the less favorite animals and keep the "special ones " you really like / enjoy. its true you can always pick up a new one but can you ever really replace the " special ones" i say no way in hell they may be just a regular BCI nothing fancy but it may have been you first or something special about it . I know last year i had round one of Boa burnout and luckily by posting every animal for sale and then reading the post before people replied i was like WTH am i doing here this is what i truely enjoy doing it may take time away from other things but when you truely love something the old saying set it free if it comes back ... well you know thats BS lol if i would have set them free aka sold them im not sure if i would had gotten back into them from sellers remorse i would have had .

make your collection consist of the animals you enjoy the most , the ones that are the most active and the easiest to hold , i also found that when i built a HUGE habitat for them to live in i could enjoy them more them sitting in a rack , or a cage with newspaper or something that made them just look like a snake in a box. by doingthat i was able to sit on the couch wach tv and glance at will into a large setup with my favorite two "100% het normal breeders in it" to watch them climing or just doing anything would remind me of why i do what i do all day ... to come home and watch scaley fish do what they do ...

dont be to fast to sell off your entire collection you may very well regret it afte they are gone
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Buisnesses come and go everyday, what keeps you here is how you treated the customer the day before....

Between 18 and 33 I didn't have any pets at all. I had other
tings on my mind if you catch my drift....

I didn't feel like I had the time or energy for animals like I
used to when I was younger. Plus, I was afraid they might stink
up my apartment. Ugh, I mean batchlor pad, or better yet 'crib'.

I got caught up again into reptiles when I took my nephew to
get a baby snapping turtle. The pet store had a gorgeous tiny,
baby FL Kingsnake that I just had to have. I bought it on the
spot, and now I've got 6 boas. There's a time and place for everything......tc

np

.
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'Tis not the stongest of the species that will eventually survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change' Charles Darwin
Thanks and take care - Joe Rollo

I've got quite the collection of lizards. You think cleaning once a week is bad?

Recently I started a high pressure job with long hours, it took me a month before gaining enough composure to realize I was neglecting my herps. It took some major deliberation and soul searching before I could decide on a workable course of action.

I've been selling off "non-essential" lizards, and researching (sometimes the most fun part of the hobby) less demanding species to involve myself with.

Making and keeping a schedule is the most important part of keeping yourself from being overwhelmed.

Taking the time to handle some of the animals is the most important part of keeping yourself interested.

It can work. You just have to keep your priorities in order.
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. I have been keeping snakes most of the time for the last 39 years. I never tire of just stopping and looking at snakes. Taking care of them is a big commitment but I find the time I spend with my snakes, even the cage cleaning to be a very relaxing break from all the stressful things in life.
Jeff

>>I think I've lost interest in my snakes...HELP! I've been keeping reptiles since I've been about 6. Since then I dont think I've EVER been without at least 1. Thats about 20 years!! But now, I just dont have the interest I used to. Never hold them, never stare at them in wonder. Is my former LOVE gone for good? I hope not, but then again at this point, I dont especially care. Has anyone else ever felt like this? What can I do to save my dying interest?
>>
>> Brandon

Not ever live FOR or THROUGH your creatures, but add them to your life.

By the way, this is a great post.
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"There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all arguments and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance- that principle is contempt prior to investigation." Herbert Spencer

I know what your going through,since 1988 i have sold out 4 differant times and have regreted it down the road.My problem was that i get involved with the wrong people,I have run into alot of dirtbags in the snake business,ex-cons,drug addicts-dealers,liars,cheaters,scammers...and the latest,the backstabber from keystone florida(scammer as well)yes i sound abit harsh,and i have had reason to,BUT!!! there are alot of good honest guys as well-now im looking just to get a few boa morphs,smart or not,probably not....good luck with what you decide and if you do sell out, well look at all the time youll have to pursue other interests...