# Site General > General Herp > Herp Broadcast >  What the heck....python bites baby

## swansonbb

http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/20...apartment?lite

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## xFenrir

As much as I hate to say this, if the apartment had a "no pet" policy, then the snake should've never been there in the first place. But also, if the snake was properly housed and secured then this never would've happened. Bad owners=harder times for responsible keepers.

Another thing: they say that the child had "a bite mark, bruising and scratches"... SCRATCHES? How exactly DID this animal with nothing other than a mouth "scratch" your child?

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## mackynz

Greaaaaat...also,




> The father, Devin Winans, used a blanket to pull the python off the child


A blanket? What?

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## Cendalla

While I have snakes and children I take great care to make sure my animals are safe from the kid and visa versa. If I came in and saw that kind of situation I would be beyond POed (especially that someone else obviously didn't take the same responsibility). The average person doesn't have a clue about reptiles and that would be an unimaginable fear to walk in to such a situation (that and finding one in the shower). Someone's pet got loose (no matter if just plain old accident or irresponsibility) and now more reasons to spread pet law propaganda. All around sucks.

- - - Updated - - -




> Another thing: they say that the child had "a bite mark, bruising and scratches"... SCRATCHES? How exactly DID this animal with nothing other than a mouth "scratch" your child?


I've been tagged defensively and it looked more like scratches than bites.

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## RetiredJedi

Something about that story doesn't seem right.  I find it hard to believe that a ball python would escape it enclosure, wrap itself around a kids ankle and bit him for no reason.  I guess it's possbile but still hard to believe.  Think of how many people on here have had an escape and it takes months to find their lost BP, and of those, how many found it in the neighbors house wrapping and bitting the neighbors kids?

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_C&H Exotic Morphs_ (07-06-2012),fedele (07-06-2012),JulieInNJ (07-10-2012),_meowmeowkazoo_ (07-06-2012)

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## xFenrir

> I've been tagged defensively and it looked more like scratches than bites.


Hm, you're right. My guess then would be the snake was just slithering by and the child kicked it/touched it with their leg somehow and the snake reacted defensively.

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## kitedemon

I have been taged a number of times and all I have ever had were scratches bite mark? LOL

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## Don

Something is wrong with this story. A two foot (meaning adolescents snake) ball python made its way through an apartment, climbed up into a bed with a child and attached itself to the kid's ankle. I call BULL. There isn't anything about this story that is credible - Bad journalism and sensationalism at its worst.

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_C&H Exotic Morphs_ (07-06-2012),JulieInNJ (07-10-2012),_meowmeowkazoo_ (07-06-2012)

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## meowmeowkazoo

> Something about that story doesn't seem right.  I find it hard to believe that a ball python would escape it enclosure, wrap itself around a kids ankle and bit him for no reason.  I guess it's possbile but still hard to believe.  Think of how many people on here have had an escape and it takes months to find their lost BP, and of those, how many found it in the neighbors house wrapping and bitting the neighbors kids?


My thoughts exactly. Ball pythons just...don't do that.  :Confused:

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## RetiredJedi

Almost seems like they worked on giving other pythons a bad name to get all of these bans put on them and now it's time to work on the ball pythons as well.

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## Anatopism

Parents shouldn't be letting their kids run around in rodent infested cribs, lettin' them smell all rodenty.

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_Capray_ (07-15-2012),JulieInNJ (07-10-2012),_loonunit_ (07-06-2012),_meowmeowkazoo_ (07-06-2012),_patientz3ro_ (07-07-2012),Spookitie (07-06-2012),_Valentine Pirate_ (07-06-2012),_Vasiliki_ (07-06-2012)

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## swansonbb

The "wrapped itself around the foot..." part got me.  I could maybe buy off on the snake near the baby for warmth, but nothing else about the story makes sense.  Very poor reporting - the story makes it sound like the parents rushed in just in time to avoid the snake eating the baby.

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## Vasiliki

> The "wrapped itself around the foot..." part got me.  I could maybe buy off on the snake near the baby for warmth, but nothing else about the story makes sense.  Very poor reporting - the story makes it sound like the parents rushed in just in time to avoid the snake eating the baby.


That's the part I don't understand either. Why would the snake wrap it's foot? I could understand the snake climbing, because the crib was likely elevated. And the baby is probably warm, which is nice for a cold python. But why would it wrap it? A defensive bite I could see too. 

All in all, I've seen more problems with dogs running loose and hurting kids than this kind of thing happen. Just a month ago my friend's puppy was killed in it's yard by a dog that got out of it's yard and jumped the fence. But you don't hear reporters crawling all over that one. Nope. Just snakes.

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## angllady2

I put in my 2 cents.

Stupid I know, but I couldn't help it.

I'd really love to blow out of proportion the dog and cat attacks that take place all the time and make people see how idiotic they really are.  Just because you don't care for snakes, doesn't make everyone who does evil.  Of course, if I did that, it would just make the HSUS happy.

Gale

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## Really

I found this story while looking for a different story about a different python incident today. This one worries me because it was a ball python and therefore fuel for those who want to ban our snakes to go after even the smaller species.

I am so glad they have the snake up for adoption and that it wasn't euthanized. I am guessing it went into the crib looking for warmth since a one year old baby is too big of a prey item for even the largest BP. Thankfully, the child is okay, but the poor snake was obviously not taken care of.  The poor thing is so thin with pieces of shed just stuck to it's body.  

Anyone here live close enough to rescue the snake?

[Link]http://illinoishomepage.net/fulltext?nxd_id=389902&nxd_238653_start=25[/Link]

There was also an incident in TN with a python but I don't know the details or what kind of python.

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## h00blah

> Of course, if I did that, it would just make the HSUS happy.
> 
> Gale


Sounds like a win / win for them either way.

This story is definitely over exaggerating the situation. That's terrible "reporting" but it makes great "news"... People enjoy reading this stuff. You don't see "GIANT 3 FOOT PYTHON found SLEEPING next to a baby!"... That just isn't too scary sounding lol.

This kind of press goes for anything really. Pit bull owners have to deal with this all the time. The scary part is that due to the owners' mistakes, the specific ANIMAL is labeled "dangerous" by the government. Laws to ban these animals soon follow.

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## loonunit

> I'd really love to blow out of proportion the dog and cat attacks that take place all the time and make people see how idiotic they really are.


Yeah, that's what I was thinking: Salmonella risk aside, most cats can do a lot worse than the very worst a ball python can dish out. And nobody raises heck, because cats are fundamentally harmless. 

An out-of-control, badly-treated dog is actually far more dangerous to a child, and I'll defend dog ownership to the end. 

I think the best course of action is to do education with our best-behaved ball pythons, teach responsible ownership, and create more crazy snake people like ourselves. The more people are familiar with ball pythons, the more they'll build the sort of popular base like cats and dogs have. There ARE people at HSUS who would ban cat and dog ownership, too---they just can't get a foothold because so many people love having them.

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## Spookitie

Okay..so we know theres no way the snake could have given the baby bruises and scratches...I'm concerned about where the bruises DID come from.  It seems farfetched but could the snake have been a scapegoat?

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## h00blah

> Okay..so we know theres no way the snake could have given the baby bruises and scratches...I'm concerned about where the bruises DID come from.  It seems farfetched but could the snake have been a scapegoat?


Probably more nonsense added to make it sound scary... As stated above. Parents open the door just in time to save the baby from the clutches of the evil serpent!

Man I should be a reporter  :Very Happy: .

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_Capray_ (07-15-2012)

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## Anatopism

I don't think that the right stance is 'why doesn't the media talk about how much more dangerous dogs are?" The media does go after dogs. Anyone ever heard of a pitbull? doberman? Surely they are more dangerous, but that doesn't mean they should be banned either. It would be nice if the media would focus on exactly what the problem is: irresponsible people. 




> Okay..so we know theres no way the snake could have given the baby bruises and scratches...I'm concerned about where the bruises DID come from.  It seems farfetched but could the snake have been a scapegoat?


It is possible for the snake to have given bruises and scratches - I've been scratched by snake teeth, and I've also had bruises from even tiny kingsnakes have given me bruises. It's unlikely that a snake would have gone in and attempted to actually eat the baby, or even coiled other than just for warmth. It's still possible, just highly unlikely. I agree with a previous poster. It's probably more of a case that there aren't any bruises or scratches at all.. the snake was probably in the crib, or even near by.. MAYBE wrapped around the legg (for warmth), and the parents freaked out, and then the sensationalism took over.

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## Royal Hijinx

IMO we really should not entertain this stuff with threads on it.  We have just added another link to show up in a search engine concerning this ridiculous article, and therefore more visit it.  People will not write sensationalist crap if no one reads it.

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## WingedWolfPsion

As a mom, I can tell you, babies KICK...and a little ball python, being repeatedly kicked, may just get worked up and bite.  If confused enough, maybe it would get mad enough to wrap, as it could in 'tease-feeding'.  Still, the damage done would be negligible.

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## gsarchie

Are you kidding me!?  The video says it was wrapped around his body.  The hours spent in the hospital felt like forever?  The first article states that the parents walked in as the snake was attacking the child.  That would be like saying that I swatted a horesfly as it was attacking me.  Scared to death?  Going to eat your first child?  It was slimy?  Of course the child is unphased by the ordeal.  And why the hell did they take him to the hospital in the first place?  Thankful that he survived?  I want to slap that man and the reporter both silly!  And why the need to move out of the apartment as soon as possible?

Some people shouldn't be allowed to breed.

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_Capray_ (07-15-2012),ShamelessAardvark (07-07-2012),_SRMD_ (07-08-2012)

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## Clint Bundy

http://herald-review.com/news/local/...9bb2963f4.html

This is from a small town not far from where I live. We have to educate people that think snakes are bad pets. What a huge setback in my opinion.

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## WarriorPrincess90

Ugh. Wonderful. How hard is it to get some secure clips?  :Mad:

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## SRMD

it can take hundreds of people to build up the reputation of snakes, like telling friends, parents etc...

but then it takes one person to destroy everything :/

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## Rob

It's the way of this world, the only news people want is bad news.

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_Redneck_Crow_ (07-08-2012)

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## RetiredJedi

So is this a follow up to THIS STORY or is it the same story in a different paper?

EDIT:  Oh I see, this story names the owner of the killer ball python.

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## SRMD

> Are you kidding me!?  The video says it was wrapped around his body.  The hours spent in the hospital felt like forever?  The first article states that the parents walked in as the snake was attacking the child.  That would be like saying that I swatted a horesfly as it was attacking me.  Scared to death?  Going to eat your first child?  It was slimy?  Of course the child is unphased by the ordeal.  And why the hell did they take him to the hospital in the first place?  Thankful that he survived?  I want to slap that man and the reporter both silly!  And why the need to move out of the apartment as soon as possible?
> 
> Some people shouldn't be allowed to breed.



Lol your funny!

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## Redneck_Crow

> It's the way of this world, the only news people want is bad news.


So true.  If what the media reported were a true reflection of life then every church would be a sinister cult, every gun owner a vigilante, every pit bull a crazed killer, every parent a child abuser, every driver a drunk, and every cop corrupt.  

The way the news presents life is pretty much the same way Jerry Springer presents humanity.  I guess it would be too much to expect that our hobby would fare any better.

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_Rob_ (07-08-2012)

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## wolfy-hound

It smells like a AR media hype to me. Remember when they bought a boa and put it somewhere so they could "find" it later and claim there were escaped snakes?

Perhaps a bp got loose but when have any of us seen a BP wrap someone's leg biting? I don't know aout any of you, but my pythons refuse to hit and wrap rats that are too large... and a 1 yr old is WAY larger. Perhaps it was loose and it struck the foot when the kid kicked or stepped near it.. but wrapped? That sounds off to me.

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## alittleFREE

Could a 2 ft Ball Python ACTUALLY have posed any threat to the child?


I had to turn off the video after the Dad was like, "I'm so glad he's going to have another birthday."

What would they have possibly taken him to the hospital for? A bruise?

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## Fastjazzy

I've had my big female bp bite and wrap my arm/hand, but it's not as if she could potentially EAT my arm or anything. Bites happen occasionally, and although they look impressive they're not a big deal whatsoever. Unfortunately the parents didn't know that...

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## Clint Bundy

Same story different paper. I did not see the other post. I can't begin to tell you how many people I worl with called to make sure I knew what had happened and then ask me how safe I thought snakes are now. I told them that I still have 84 snakes and have never been wrapped up by any of them. I also explained that I am a responsible owner and value my pets much more than that. Media hype and the focus on all the negetivity to get a story published sickens me though.

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_Capray_ (07-15-2012)

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## RetiredJedi

It's like I said in the other post about this...it doesn't make sense.  How many Ball Pythons escape their enclosure and then come out and wrap around a childs leg and bite.  Look at all of the discussions on here about people whose BP escaped and can't be found for days or months.  Out of those how many found them in the neighbors apartment wrapped around a childs leg?  I know it IS possible but it just seems weird.  Unless the neighbors let their 1 year old child play with rats with his feet and the BP was starved for a long time...it just seems like there's something missing in this story.  It kinda makes you think they did what they could to give the big snakes a bad name now they are working on the smaller ones.

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## Clint Bundy

I feel the same way Jedi. There is just something missing in the story.

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## FireStorm

I dunno...it doesn't seem impossible to me. I've occasionally had BPs strike and wrap my hand. Was the snake trying to eat the child? No. But I'd guess a child's foot is about the same size as a prey item, and probably gave off a similar heat signature. 

As for the scratches, snake teeth can cause scratches...

It's terrible for the hobby that this happened. But it also must have been scary for the parents. Put your self in the shoes of someone who is scared of snakes...even though we think their fear is unfounded that doesn't make the experience any easier for them. No member of the general public should have to find an escaped snake in their house, much less attached to their young child. The article is actually less sensationalized than I expected...

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## RetiredJedi

> I dunno...it doesn't seem impossible to me. I've occasionally had BPs strike and wrap my hand. Was the snake trying to eat the child? No. But I'd guess a child's foot is about the same size as a prey item, and probably gave off a similar heat signature. 
> 
> As for the scratches, snake teeth can cause scratches...
> 
> It's terrible for the hobby that this happened. But it also must have been scary for the parents. Put your self in the shoes of someone who is scared of snakes...even though we think their fear is unfounded that doesn't make the experience any easier for them. No member of the general public should have to find an escaped snake in their house, much less attached to their young child. The article is actually less sensationalized than I expected...


Not saying that BPs don't strike at people because they obviously do when they feel threatened and have no other choice, but for an animal that loves to hide and in small enclosed spaces it just seems weird (not impossible) that one would climb into a baby crib.  As far as the heat goes, it's the smell that gets them going.  Ever try to turn a mouse eater into a rat eater?  It's not easy because they smell totally different and ball pythons don't hunt for humans regardless of how small they are.  Even the ones that don't eat for a while, don't go around looking for human flesh.

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## DooLittle

My first thought to was, "struck & wrapped?????".  I don't know.  I just really don't see that happening.  Maybe the little kid stepped on it and it tagged him, and the rest is bull.  Still a crummy story out there, feeding the minds of the clueless, giving them wrong impression.

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

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## FireStorm

> Not saying that BPs don't strike at people because they obviously do when they feel threatened and have no other choice, but for an animal that loves to hide and in small enclosed spaces it just seems weird (not impossible) that one would climb into a baby crib.  As far as the heat goes, it's the smell that gets them going.  Ever try to turn a mouse eater into a rat eater?  It's not easy because they smell totally different and ball pythons don't hunt for humans regardless of how small they are.  Even the ones that don't eat for a while, don't go around looking for human flesh.


I'm not saying the snake was out "looking for human flesh." But a crib could be a reasonable hiding place, depending on how it was set up...toys and blankets could give the snake places to hide. And, I can tell you, heat signature can be enough to trigger a feeding response. I have a collection of around 100 snakes, and I have taken a feeding strike (strike and wrap) to my hand on more than one occasion when I had clean hands and there were no rodents around. It's even more common with my carpets. I have a male JCP who will wrap my hand any time I'm not paying attention (he's still young and overly enthusiastic). So you can tell me that it doesn't happen, and I will still argue that it can, because I've had it happen enough times to be sure. 
And yes, I've switched plenty of mouse eaters to rats (every hatchling I've produced), and I'd say 90% of mine switch first go with no scenting needed. 

As a hobby, I don't think taking the approach of trying to convince everyone that the story is inaccurate is a very good tactic. It won't get us very far even if the story _is_ exaggerated/made up. We are better off stressing that this unfortunate event happened because the owner didn't take the necessary steps to secure the animal.

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## RetiredJedi

Well I never said its impossible or doesn't happen because it obviously happened in this story...I'm just saying think there's more to the story than what's being put out there.  I know I don't have 100 snakes of various kinds or have been taking care of them for years but I also something else happened that we don't know about.

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## alittleFREE

I don't think the story itself is totally impossible ... I just think the implications of it are absolutely ridiculous and the reaction the parents had completely unnecessary.

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## Clint Bundy

http://news.yahoo.com/video/oddnews-...-29927058.html

And now it's made Yahoo odd news. I would love to comment on the condition of the snake but hey we have all had bad sheds before.

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## twoninerfan

OK, where did the snake come from? Besides, that little python looked awful. It would be scary to find one wrapped about your baby's foot though. Do yourself a favor though and do not read the comments. 

http://news.yahoo.com/video/oddnews-...-29927058.html

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## Poseidon

This thread has been done enough times.

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_Royal Hijinx_ (07-09-2012)

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## shelliebear

A. That's what happens when people buy snakes without learning how to take care of them first...including securing the cage...
B. Thank God they didn't kill it, for once
C. Anybody else notice the terrible stuck shed on this poor guy?  :Sad:  
D. I would love to help him, but I have too much on my plate.  :Sad:  Poor ball python! I wish him the best of luck!
http://news.yahoo.com/video/oddnews-...-29927058.html

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## Jeo123

http://news.yahoo.com/video/oddnews-...-29927058.html

The "dangerous" 2 foot python is now "safely" behind glass... where's it's got shed stuck all over it and is being tossed around on camera like a ball...

Thanks yahoo...don't you think you might be overreacting a bit?

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## moonlightgdess

The attack! Ugh. I saw that and thought no wonder he got that baby's foot: about the size of a small rat and with that awful stuck shed he's probably neglected and/or homeless and starving.

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## CherryPython

Wow....O_o That shed's bad.

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_shelliebear_ (07-10-2012)

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## Stewart_Reptiles

> I found this story while looking for a different story about a different python incident today. This one worries me because it was a ball python and therefore fuel for those who want to ban our snakes to go after even the smaller species.
> 
> I am so glad they have the snake up for adoption and that it wasn't euthanized. I am guessing it went into the crib looking for warmth since a one year old baby is too big of a prey item for even the largest BP. Thankfully, the child is okay, but the poor snake was obviously not taken care of.  The poor thing is so thin with pieces of shed just stuck to it's body.  
> 
> Anyone here live close enough to rescue the snake?
> 
> [Link]http://illinoishomepage.net/fulltext?nxd_id=389902&nxd_238653_start=25[/Link]
> 
> There was also an incident in TN with a python but I don't know the details or what kind of python.





> http://herald-review.com/news/local/...9bb2963f4.html
> 
> This is from a small town not far from where I live. We have to educate people that think snakes are bad pets. What a huge setback in my opinion.





> Same story different paper. I did not see the other post.


 That would be because you thread along with the following others were merged with the original created on 07/06 by swansonbb




> OK, where did the snake come from? Besides, that little python looked awful. It would be scary to find one wrapped about your baby's foot though. Do yourself a favor though and do not read the comments. 
> 
> http://news.yahoo.com/video/oddnews-...-29927058.html





> A. That's what happens when people buy snakes without learning how to take care of them first...including securing the cage...
> B. Thank God they didn't kill it, for once
> C. Anybody else notice the terrible stuck shed on this poor guy?  
> D. I would love to help him, but I have too much on my plate.  Poor ball python! I wish him the best of luck!
> http://news.yahoo.com/video/oddnews-...-29927058.html





> http://news.yahoo.com/video/oddnews-...-29927058.html
> 
> The "dangerous" 2 foot python is now "safely" behind glass... where's it's got shed stuck all over it and is being tossed around on camera like a ball...
> 
> Thanks yahoo...don't you think you might be overreacting a bit?



All merged now.  :Good Job:

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## DiscoJaguar

I think that's supposed to be a spoof of the attack ..that "news anchor" is a comedian.

also the most haleriously ignorant comment:
Too many times people buy ball pythons from stores like Pet Smart, yet it is illegal to let them go because they can cross breed and have done so in the south...DON'T BUY EXOTIC SNAKES LIKE THIS! They get very big and too many people let them go free...this little child's life was at stake...had the parents not heard the baby, they would have seen a dead baby due to strangulation! This snake was hungry and looking for his prey. To give this a humorous light, is absolutely wrong

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## Zombie

...RANT START...

 :Mad:  :Mad:  :Mad:  :Mad:  :Mad: 
I watched or read 5 different articles about this same story. Every single one was different and the dad changed his story in the same video. First, how was the snake slimey? That's something people say when they are affraid to touch a snake, then once they do almost always the first thing out of their mouths is "that's not slimey at all". The dad says he heard his child "stirring" in bed so he went in there and felt something slimey and turned the light on. Who goes into their kids room and start blindly feeling their child? On another article they said he heard crying, and even another they said he went in to change a diaper. In a video he says it was wrapped around the leg then says it was wrapped around his neck a little later. He talks about how they are practicing walking on the hurt foot and it will take time, really?? This whole story is full of crap. My opinion is that the father wants attention and/or money. A lot like the dad that said his kid was in the balloon that floated away, and he really told his kid to hide in the attic. 

...RANT OVER...

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using Tapatalk 2

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_Capray_ (07-15-2012)

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## Tzeentch

There is a Yahoo article about a ball python being wrapped around a one year old's foot


Parents find python wrapped around baby's foot
22 hrs ago - Odd News 2:09 | 2,357,177 views

Two parents in Illinois woke up to a bad surprise - a python wrapped around their 1-year-old baby's foot.

http://news.yahoo.com/video/oddnews-...-29927058.html

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## Kodieh

Yeah, someone posted a link from Rueters when the story first broke.

I'm really quite surprised about this, I personally don't believe it. ;0


Browsing on Tapatalk from my iPhone  :Smile:

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## Stewart_Reptiles

> There is a Yahoo article about a ball python being wrapped around a one year old's foot
> 
> 
> Parents find python wrapped around baby's foot
> 22 hrs ago - Odd News 2:09 | 2,357,177 views
> 
> Two parents in Illinois woke up to a bad surprise - a python wrapped around their 1-year-old baby's foot.
> 
> http://news.yahoo.com/video/oddnews-...-29927058.html


Merged  :Good Job:

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## Andrew B

Zombie is right on this is bs,kinda weird that a ball of all species is trying to eat a baby's foot and ya as to how a snake feels not so true as you all know. This doesn't feel right to me in some way now the child is injured and learning to walk with this awful injury. Smells funny, smells like attention!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

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## Clint Bundy

This was not their snake. They said it was a neighbors in the apartment complex and it got out. I have to say that not everything is being told here. There are too many different sstories coming from the parents. THey have said that the owner has been charged with having a pet on the loose. I am still watching it closely.

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