Reptile & Amphibian Forums

did anybody see the monsterquest on the "killer pythons invading the US"? It dealt mainly with the Burmese problem in Florida but they did show a nice colored blood. It was a case of the media trying to scare people about a non existant problem. For one Pythons are not out to "get" people. I think the burm problem is exageratted. I have kept burms and I know how cold sensitive they can be. I lost my 16 foot female to an upper ri a couple of years ago. they will not get out of fla. I keep a few species now but concentrate mainly on bloods. I just hope the people who watch this stuff on tv gets their facts straight before they start calling their congressman. I am a member of USARK and am glad they are helping save our hobby and livelihood.

A good idea would be to get involved with your community, talk about snakes and how the media makes them into monsters when in fact they are no where near the threat may people think they are.

I volunteer my time every year with my local reptile organization to man a booth at the Wildlife Festival near the end of March, which is held in one of the malls in the city. Alot of people move through the mall during the weekend and my reptile org's booth is often a favorite...I answer alot of questions about snakes and we typically only have small species on display (ball pythons, corns, brazilian rainbow boas, black rat snakes, bull snakes, boa constrictor and various lizards, like bearded dragons, blue tongue skinks, etc.) A local reptile zoo often has a booth there too and they bring some of the big boys...including a very large Burmese python and they do a great show on education. They also at times have a small crocodile (or alligator, can't remember) maybe 3-4 feet long and other interesting reptiles from their zoo.

The point here is being in this situation gives you a chance to tell people the correct information about our passions, to show reptile owners and breeders are not freaks and the animals we love are not vicious man eaters out to eat our children. Snakes are very simple creatures and have very basic and simple reasons to attack. A feeding response, or a defense response. They certainly don't plot ahead of time who they are going to eat.

But being out in the public in a relatively controlled situation, presenting people with a snake that is comfortable with being touched by nervous people etc. and talking about the animal, answering questions etc. really impacts people far more. Touching a Burmese python while a few handlers hold it so no accidents happen, amaze people up to that moment would swear they were terrified of snakes. I had so many people shocked by the feel of a snake...finding it feels like soft leather etc...not slimy or cold (often my hands have warmed up the snake's body sufficiently they really don't feel cold they they tend to). Besides, its fun introducing people to something they probably wouldn't have encountered normally. It gets them curious, makes them realize what they knew before from other sources isn't true. It may even be enough for them to research more on reptiles and realize they are not the man eaters and scary things they grew up believing they were.
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PHLdyPayne

I have tried to start a herp society in my area but there seems to be no interest for such a thing. I am trying to iron out a deal where I can give a lecture at a local school. I am not sure what to take and what to say yet. I am willing to donate time and energy to educate people about the wonderfully diverse world of herps but I am only one person and I need Help. Anybody got any Ideas?

Talk with friends and family who have an interest in reptiles and see if they will help out presenting and educating children etc. about reptiles.

search yellow pages etc for pet stores, especially ones who have good knowledge about reptiles they sell. Also check for animal shelters, rescues and zoos, if any in your area. Visit or call these places and ask if they ever get reptiles handed over to them and if they do, do they adopt them out themselves or hand them off to somebody local who can care for and find new homes for the reptiles. You can certainly tell them you are a reptile enthusist looking for others to help educate the public etc. Talking with vets or their receptionists to see if they have regular customer's who bring reptiles in for care or just checkups.

At all these places, ask if you can put up a flyer/ad saying you are looking to find a few people to volunteer at various events, to present reptiles to children, to further education on the wonders of reptiles.

As for what to say or what animals to use in such a presentation, the first thing you want to do is select your calmest animals. They need to be able to tolerate a fairly long period of being handled (though its best to limit even these handling sessions for short periods). Its good to have a few animals so you can present it, talk about some basic information (you can give a brief rundown on the animal's natural range, maximum adult size, etc, followed by its personal history (how long yuo had it, age, male/female, morph information if any) then you can hold the snake and let children touch the back third of the body, (always ensure yuo have control of the head, just in case it gets cranky, better for it to bite you than a child)

Have children come up one at a time to touch with a finger, but not to grab.

Before each presentation, make sure you practice ahead of time, and make sure you know how long you have in total (calculate the time for you to give a short speech about the animal, and a 'touch' period, and time for questions and answers.) If you say, have a half hour to present, maybe bring 2-3 animals, give a 5-6 min talk about that particular animal, ask if anybody has questions, then let the audience have a chance to touch if they want. If you feel confident your reptile is calm and not likely to bite or scratch, and the child or listener seem comfortable, you could let one hold it for a few seconds. Then go to the next animal.

If you have a friend or two along with you, they can help get the next animal ready and you can switch over and start talking about the next animal while the helper either just puts the first away, or walks along the audience to give them a chance for closer looks or touch.

Don't move animals too close to people, or too fast, if they seem nervous or fearful, at best, have them come to you, while encouraging them.

Make sure you do your own homework, so if somebody asks you a question, you are prepared with the answer, especially if you don't know much about the animal itself, besides basic care, such as natural range, the scientific name etc. Also, make sure you are polite and courteous, even if you are asked the most stupid questions (remember alot of people only know all the wrong facts so you will certainly be asked if its poisonous, does it bite, is it slimy etc.)
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PHLdyPayne