Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I would like to here opinions on the new animal planet shows-Fatal Attractions & Something "Aliens". While I love to see anything on Animal Planet that showcases reptiles just for my viewing pleasure, I do believe these 2 shows will negatively impact our hobby/business. Nothing positive about the reptiles is mentioned. Just like to here opinions of other reptile lovers.

Lance

I watched Fatal Attractions...I found the obsessive compulsion and the animal hoarding topics very interesting. Since I am already an animal lover and can separate the BS out of the show I found it pretty interesting. If my mom watched it she would have probably had night mares and thought all animal hobbiest where as crazy and compulsive as those idiots. Just my thoughts though....

Bill
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2.1 Tripple Het Caramel, Orange Ghost, Genetic Stripe
1.1 Het Lavenders
1.1 Het Caramel Albino
0.1 Het Albino
0.1 Spider Het Albino
0.1 Het Pied
1,1 Pastel Het for Orange Ghost
1.0 Albino
0.1 Spinner
1.1 Super Pastel
0.1 Jungle Pastel
1.0 Pied 50 percent White
0.1 Clown
0.3 Normal
1.1 Kids
0.1 Spouse
1.0 Chocolate Lab

the shows as back to back viewing, were meant to complement each other to create the effect - reptiles = danger, and people who enjoy them = unstable.

the man who kept monitors most likely died of causes having nothing to do with them, but they never menioned how he died, they just implied that it was the monitors. then they actually spent time discussing komodos and the dangers they are, as if it bore relevance.

the purposeful omissions, innuendos, and one sided gathering of information were all used to great effect to stir up public outrage over "the reptile problem", of which us all (anyone who is a keeper) are portrayed as the problem, and as most likely unsocial, unstable, ticking time bombs. i believe shows like this do huge damage. yes, we can see the truth thru it all, but 99% of the non-reptile-keeping american public cannot. and they carry all the voting power.

animal planet is a witch hunt. it's a mockery of a channel, no better than the star or the national enquirrer.

I don't like these shows. They spread fear among the common people that can't distinguish a python from any other snake. Most people aren't well informed (rather, most people are ill informed) about reptiles in general and snakes in particular. Most people think that all snakes are venomous and dangerous.

These shows, by mixing some truth with a lot of misinformation do a lot of damage. People that watch the shows without a real knowledge of the matter would think that EVERYTHING said there is the truth because if Animal Planet shows it, it MUST be true...I think we all should write Animal Planet and voice our opinion regarding shows like these!

It is true that there are pythons in the Everglades, but I don't think their numbers are in the 150,000s mentioned in the show. They mentioned that a female burm lays 80-100 eggs per season...well in captivity, with optimum feeding conditions a female might lay as many eggs in one season, but in the wild with an uncertain food supply I don't think a female would lay as many eggs every year as they said...

They also failed to point out that out of those supposed 80-100, maybe one or two would survive to reach adult size. (They do mention something like that every time they have a show about marine turtles to stress the fact that they are endangered).

Although they did say that adult pythons are predated by alligators and crocodiles, they didn't mention that a baby python is a tasty morsel for almost everything in the Everglades, from eagles, hawks and ospreys to all sort of herons, storks and egrets, to otters, racoons and posums, turtles, largemouth bass, gars, other snakes, and of course, alligators and crocodiles.

The shows are biased. Animal Planet seems to have an agenda and it is anti snake and anti reptile keepers.
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Neutiquam erro. Hostes alienigeni me abduxerunt.

Any online links to these fakeumentarys?
Sounds pretty bad for Animal Planet...

The fear mongering crap from the Aliens show really pissed me off. I live in South FL, so this really hit home for me. There wasn't anything educational about the show, they conveniently left out how that burm was caged that strangled the two year old. Thanks AP, for making more people afraid of snakes. Not helping with this BS legislation going on right now.

Fatal Attraction was somewhat educational, not so much about the reptiles, but on personality disorders people have. Yes, it's dangerous for people to have a hoarding mentality, especially when they coincide with (what can be) dangerous animals. I'm not far enough along in my psych. degree to go into any further details...but this show didn't piss me off like Aliens did.
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BALL PYTHONS
1.0 Mojave
1.0 Cinnamon
1.0 Yellowbelly
1.0 Het Piebald
0.1 Piebald
0.1 VPI Axanthic
0.1 Lesser Platinum
0.1 Orange Ghost
0.1 Black Pastel
0.1 Pinstripe
0.2 Spider
0.2 Pastel
0.7 Normal
OTHER SNAKES
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0.1 Poss. Super Salmon Boa
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LIZARD
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1.0 Cinnamon Pinto Hedgehog - Niles
0.1 Albino Skunk - Lakota (aka Stinker)