Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Here is the story.. An 18ft burm was found in FL and I guess weights 400lbs.. Didnt baby the 27ft worlds largest burm weigh 400lbs?? I never seen an 18 footer weight 400lbs.. I seen a huge thick 20ft anaconda that weighted 200lbs.. Man, I guess the media will never get anything right... Lets bring fear to the people.. Fear = ratings = $$.. Here is the story..

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APOPKA - Delilah, an 18-foot-long, 400-plus-pound Burmese python who had enjoyed a swell existence in an Apopka-area backyard feeding on rabbits, has a new home -- for now.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials removed the Burmese python from a home on Section Drive on Friday due to concerns about Delilah's size and whether the chain-link cage she was in was secure enough to contain her.

A complaint prompted wildlife officials to visit the home and check out the snake, which some officials called the largest python they had ever seen.

The snake was removed from her enclosure and brought to a caregiver with a permit for reptiles of concern. Officials were trying to determine if the Burmese python's owner had the proper permit for Delilah.

"To me it's a Goliath. It's a monster of a snake," Lt. Rick Brown with Fish and Wildlife's Investigations section said, adding it is the "largest I've ever seen."

Recently, the snake was being cared for by Melvin Cheever of Apopka, the brother of her owner.

Cheever said his brother was moving to West Virginia and left the snake behind to prepare her new accommodations. Cheever said his brother has owned the snake for 16 years.

"I fed her this morning, gave her seven rabbits," Cheever said soon after the snake was placed in a container and prepared to move Friday from the small community alongside Lake Apopka. "She is as docile as can be. She's as happy as can be."

Cheever acknowledged the snake, which measures 30 inches around, had escaped its enclosure in the past.

The snake's discovery comes at a time when Burmese pythons are being hunted in South Florida and state lawmakers are looking at legislation to make laws governing python owners tougher.

Fears about the snakes escalated following the early July death of a 2-year-old girl in Sumter County killed by her family's pet python.

Cheever said that snake was maltreated and blamed its owners. Delilah, meanwhile, was well fed and not aggressive, he said.

But her history of wandering out of her cage and her immense size caused wildlife officials to investigate Friday in the small community alongside Lake Apopka. The snake was kept in a chain-link cage behind a duplex-style home.

Charlene Boush, 39, who lives in the home where the snake was living, said she had reservations about letting her two dogs near Delilah.

"She got out just last week. They had to put her back in," she said.

"I don't let them go back there at all."

If you see the video, she is impressive. Not 400 lbs, but probably bigger than any burm I've seen.
Why, oh why, was he keeping her in a dog kennel?

I'll tell you, a 19yo 301# snake is pretty darn big! It measured 27 inches in girth...WOW!

I saw an interview on the local news with Glades Herp co-owner and he really had a lot of positive things to say about the snake. The coverage was pretty fair. In the end it seems the owner will get charged a 2nd degree misdemeanor for not having a ROC permit and the owner said he's considering giving it to a FL institution that is currently building an enclosure to house it. I'm thinking Gatorland, but it could be St. Augustine Alligator Farm or Croc Encounters in Tampa.

Laura how have you been .. are you going to the Tampa Show next weekend?

Tom

I feel sorry for the brother. You know the guy that actually OWNS the snake. The guy that successfully raised up a burm. to that impressive size. How many people have an 18 foot 200lb plus burm, raise you hand? That's what I thought. Now how many people out there have kept ANY snake alive for 16 years, raise your hand? Once again, that's what I thought. To raise a burm. to that size and to have kept one that length of time may not be unheard of but it is certainly admirable. With the propensity that burms. have for respirtory issues this is no small feat.
Excellent husbandry, a little bit of luck and good genes(on the the burms part).
Unfortunately the FL brother is an idiot. The owner trying to prepare the housing before moving the snake is once again doing the right thing. Every burm. owner in the country should be outraged at this. FL Wildlife while at one point admitting how big and seemingly well cared for yet can't take a moment to contact the owner and tell him the situation. My guess 16 years.
He leaves WV and drives straight to his brothers house to pick up his snake. FL is out of control. The media is a collection of fools. And my disappointment with the general public is at an all time low.D.C.

One question...OK, a few...

Why didn't the brother properly secure the snake before he left? Why was it kept in a dog kennel where it could escape? Why was it left with someone who didn't know how to handle it and didn't even know if it was legal?

The brother may have done the right thing by preparing a home ahead of time, but he left a mess behind him.

I don't know the owner or the brother. so all of this is ... speculation. The owner had a designated room in his house for the snake. This room was his cage. He lost his job and subsequently his house (why else would anyone move from FL to WV?) He got a job in WV which began immediately. This is his only snake. He's not a reptile guy. He doesn't hang out with reptile guys. He has a brother who is not a reptile guy but he is his brother AND he helped Wildlife handle the snake. So apparently he is competent enough to handle the snake.
I bought my first retic 37 years ago. I've had hundreds of big snakes. Right now I have 40 snakes over 12 feet long. Burms, retics,greens, and 1 A rock. I am a reptile guy. A lot of my friends are reptile guys. The only friend that has a designated building(like me) doesn't have caging for big snakes, or crocodiles and he hates venemous. Other friends have no buildings, little kids, or they are to old to deal with large aggressive snakes. Coming to my house to care for the animals, no problem. But asking for someone to properly care and house my 8 foot saltwater, maybe more difficult. I don't know this guy all I am basing this on he has a 16 year old perfect burm. I have to believe he did everything in his power to ensure that his snake would be okay. I know snakes are escape artist I also know if you don't latch the cage the most secure cage in the world is useless. In other words did the snake "break out" or did someone forget to latch it? These are tough times I'm not judging someone who has apparently done the right thing for 16 years. D.C.

Here's my beef (or soapbox, whatever you want to call it)...

I don't know the whole story and I'm not going to speculate. The questions I posed are not meant to sound judgmental, they are what popped in my head when I first heard the story so I post them here to have a discussion.

Here are the facts that pertain to me and the fight going on in FL right now: FL enacted the ROC law to prevent this sort of issue. The owner did not have a microchip which leads me to believe that he probably didn't have a ROC permit either. It appears that the owner covered his bases and had a place to keep his snake. Clearly it is not an aggressive snake and surely was not a danger to anyone.

What gets me heated up about this is that herpers in FL are trying to fight a ban and are arguing that laws are already in place to regulate ROC. But stories are popping up about python owners that are non-compliant. It doesn't really matter if you agree with the law or not, it is a law. So I'm in compliance but I fear losing my right to python ownership because others are picking and choosing what laws they care to follow. I have to clean my Burm cage today and I dread taking him outside in my own backyard because I feel like I have to hide him from my neighbors.

On a positive note, the news did report that FWC was going to return the snake to its owner when he a proper enclosure set up. I honestly believe that FWC is working with people, but the news media is just wacko.

I understand your frustration. I would have driven from TX to help you guys string up loser boy(owner of alb. burm that killed little girl.)
But this is not that guy. I understand that in recent years FL has passed these laws. When 6 years ago, 3 years ago. The guy had already had the snake 10 years. I understand that FWC gave people a window of time to comply with the new laws. I also know when you're not a reptile person...
You say herpers are in a battle in FL.
I just don't believe this guy is a herper. If he is why hasn't someone said,"Oh that is Joe Blow's snake he does educational shows at the school". Or something to that effect.
This guy seems to be completely under the radar. I meet people like this quite often. They are not herpers they have one or two reptiles and they care for them reasonably well for an extraordinary length of time.
I do educational reptile shows I travel all over the country.
Last year doing a fair in CO a guy brought me a 6 foot Columbian boa, a female. He had it for 16 years!!! He got as a kid(14) and still has it. To be perfectly honest probably hadn't wanted it for years. But he was a responsible guy and he didn't know what to do with it. None of his friends were snake guys. Now he is married and his wife is pregnant she was never fond of the snake.
This year back in CO doing a different fair. A family brings me a 12 year old corn snake, and a 13 year old Columbian boa.
There kids had them when they were young the kids have been at college for years. They saw an opportunity to get rid of the snakes. So many times people wait to long to get rid of unwanted pets and the animals health deteriates because of this. In these 2 cases this was not the case. Two nonherpers that kept snakes for extended periods of time. i am certain if the laws had changed they would probably be unaware or not care. These were people keeping goldfish.
Obviously in FL I'm sure he was aware of changes in the laws. Was this to be his last snake and he didn't feel like messing with beauacratic nonsense? I don't know.
What I do know is if ALL FL keepers and importers were as responsible as this guy was for the first 16 years you wouldn't be in this fight right now.
Congrats to FWC on the possible return to the rightful owner. Now if it won't die or catch something at Glades...
Also I would be more inclined to pat FWC on the back if I HADN"T seen them drag the snake out of the kennel to measure and photograph it for the media.D.C.

Glades Herp is doing some TV stuff...I wonder if they were the ones to drag the snake out for media shots. Kinda like, "I'll take your big snake if I get some photo op." FWC is calling for ROC permit holders right now for an upcoming amnesty day. I don't think there are a lot of legal open arms for big snakes in FL. It's a shame.

There are a lot of responsible owners under the radar for whatever reason. Pity only the sensation irresponsible ones make the news. But you know...the news is really only bad news.

Nice "chatting" with you.

You too. I hope everything in FL works out. When it comes to animal legislation the rest of the country seems to take its lead from FL. D.C.

It dosen't matter if the Burm was in a proper enclosure. It doesn't matter if he had all the legal permits.

IMO If a complaint was received for a "LARGE" snake. They would have taken one look at the size of that Burm and decided it was a "danger" and they would have seized it anyway.

There's "basically" a witch hunt going on in Florida right now. They'll "LOOK FOR ANY EXCUSE TO SEIZE A LARGE" snake!!!!!

It was very clear that Delilah was not an aggressive snake. She was not a danger to anyone. She's well fed, maybe too well fed, and won't be looking to eat anyone's "dog". There's just way to much paranoia going on right now.

From what the brother said, "She escaped ONE time". That one time happened last week. They put the snake back in it's enclosure and it was, for the most part, secured.

I just hope Delilah's owner gets her back. He took care of her for 16 years and she grew to an impressive size. It's obvious that he must have been doing something right to have kept her that long and grew her so big. He DESERVES to get her back. This "WITCH HUNT" needs to STOP!!!

The dog crate was just what it was transported to Glades Herp in. The snakes cage was 25 foot by 12 foot and although left somthing to be desired seemed to be for the most part acceptible. The funny part is that I'm sure glades will "properly" house her in a much smaller cage my guess would be an 8 footer of some sort.As has been stated before the fact that she is the size and age she is shows she has been well cared for. I do have it on good authority that the brother who was watching the snake was sort of tricked by the news in to saying she excaped when what really happened was that they take her out of the cage to let her crawl around but not having spoken to the brother i can't confirm or deny this.
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"We don't inherate the earth from our parents, we borrow it from our children"

I'm sure he was manipulated and I'm sure the reporting was iffy. Did the snake "escape"? We can all see that it was not "captured" by wildlife officials as reported.

It is a witch hunt here in FL.

I understand they do eat feral cats, dogs? I've heard A. Rocks do. Retics will eat pretty much anything.

>>I understand they do eat feral cats, dogs? I've heard A. Rocks do. Retics will eat pretty much anything.

I've read, "no." I think it was in the recent Burm publication referenced on this forum. I don't want to get the name wrong, but was it VIP?

if they did, so much the better. Feral dogs and cats are as or more destructive than feral burms...

I don't know of any confirmed cases of burms eating dogs. This could be because they come across each other so rarely under normal circumstances. My own personal observations, burms don't seem to be very interested in the scent of dogs or their movements. Burms will eat cats but... One of the reasons cats are so successful is because its almost impossible for a predator to catch one.

The feral Florida burms favorite prey is the cottontail rabbit. They do eat a wide range of prey items but most are VERY common animals that are consumed in small inconsequential numbers. Something that always seems to be left out when certain people start yapping about how burms eat everything.

Burmese pythons are not nearly the generalist survivors some are trying to present them as. The proof is, These pythons have failed to establish in areas within their native range near towns, cites and village's where no doubt hundreds and probably thousands have been accidentally introduced over hundreds of years.

Unfortunately all the BS that as one scientist put it "far right of the bell curve" nonsense will take presentence over the facts and realities surrounding these animals.

Ernie Eison
WESTWOOD ACRES REPTILE FARM INC.