MISSISSAUGA NEWS (Mississauga, Ontario) 19 February 06 Snakes and lizards the stars at Reptile Expo (Craig MacBride)
Depending on who you are, the expo at the Lithuanian Foundation Anapilis on Sunday was either the creepiest place to be, or the most fascinating.
The Ontario Reptile Expo was in full swing in the early afternoon, with snakes, lizards and frogs everywhere, alongside the mice, crickets and slugs to feed them.
Packed with roughly 200 hobbyists and dealers, the floor was mobbed with people looking for a deal, or simply for an interesting afternoon for the kids.
At the Ontario Rodent booth, owner Greg Andrews was happy with the expo's success. Surrounded by dozens of plastic drawers of nursing mice at various stages of development, he pointed out that the industry is growing quickly.
Andrews started out with a petting zoo in Mount Forest, Ontario, wanting to have a farm with every animal he could find.
It was when he moved on to rodents that he really found his calling.
"I got mice and rats, and they kept reproducing and I didn't know what to do," he said.
After making some contacts, he began selling to pet stores.
He now moves about 3,000 mice per week, and expected to sell about 1,000 at the show.
On the other side of the hall, Jeff Breckenridge was showing off his three-year-old reverse oketee corn snake named Emery.
He travels with Reptile Rascals, a pet store in Alexandria, Ontario, and he agreed with Andrews' assessment that the industry is attracting a more mainstream crowd.
"It's a melting pot of everybody," he said. "We've seen punks, goths, everybody. I've met a lot of interesting people doing this."
John Tucker, a hobbyist from Kincardine, echoed that.
"I've sold pythons to veterinarians and businessmen, and blue collar workers, too," he said.
Asked why he spends his spare time breeding and selling boas and pythons, he said, "I keep doing it because it's what I do."
The expo was organized by a local business, Port Credit Pet Centre.
Grant Crossman, the owner of the business, has been putting on these shows every few months since 1992.
It started with just 17 vendors. Now, in the busy summer months, he can have 140 tables set up.
"Everybody comes, from all different walks of life," he said. "There's really no stereotype anymore."
The reptile side of the industry is, according to Grossman, the fastest growing sector in pet sales.
Low-maintenance and relatively small, they're the perfect pets for condo and apartment dwellers.
"It's enjoyable," he said. "They're a pet when I want them to be a pet."
As in, no late night walking of the dog, or cuddling with the cat when all you want is to watch the television.
As for the enormous number of people who are freaked out by these animals, Crossman thinks people just need to become educated about snakes and lizards.
"You've got to get over all the myths that they're slimy and cold and gross," he said.
For more information about the expo, and upcoming expos, visit www.reptileexpo.ca.
Snakes and lizards the stars at Reptile Expo