Please help!!!!

I only meant by kids are easier to pay for that there are state programs available, AND insurance. I wish pet insurance was readily available like human insurance is what I was trying to portray. Sorry it came across poorly. I worded it wrong, very wrong.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by shelliebear

I only meant by kids are easier to pay for that there are state programs available, AND insurance. I wish pet insurance was readily available like human insurance is what I was trying to portray. Sorry it came across poorly. I worded it wrong, very wrong.

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Not to sound rude here, but I really hope you do not have kids while you do not have enough money to care for them too. You only get the bare minimum expecting the state to pay for your child's health care needs.

if the snake is your brothers then have him pay the bill for the vet.

So if I'm understanding you correctly, you're a 17 year old who hasn't graduated highschool living with her parents (who have no money) and fiance who pays for all of your expences. You want to live with your brother because your mother won't let you get a job, you think owning children is easier then taking on the responsibility of owning a ball python, and you think that the state should pay for animal health services?

A) If you are not responsible enough to finish highschool, you should not be engaged and living with your parents with no job or money
B) You cannot expect you brother to just take you in as his responsibility, I understand that it is his snake, but as he could not care for it, he passed it on to someone he expected to be a more dedicated owner. You should follow his example, and do the same, regardless of your undieing affection for her.
C) DO NOT HAVE CHILDREN, obviously you are completely oblivious to the expenses and responsibilities of having children, you can't just put a child in a terrarium and feed him once a week. along with the fact that you intend on the goverment paying for it. Welfare programs are not in place for us to plan on using them, they're in place for those who had plans and they did not work out.
D) The usa is struggling enough as it is to provide healthcare to its own citizens, you cant honestly expect them to start tending to animals needs, beyond making sure they dont mass reproduce..

PLEASE either get your snake help, or find someone who can help you snake, some pet stores take in un-wanted or un-ownable pets. They're called surrenders, your snake is not in a healthy environment, and it will die it you don't get it help. This is a very serious issue and you don't seem to be taking it seriously, I understand you love him but you cannot expect him or anyone else to put their money up to take care of a snake, the mere fact that you took this snake in without considering the fiscal responsibilities that are necessary, is fairly selfish, and that is the only true reflection of your precious "reputation".

This isnt a joke, your brothers snake is not a teddy bear with a rip in the seams. It is living, breathing, and it needs help.

I do not want to be harsh, or cruel in any of this but you don't seem to be getting the message. This isnt something you can just keep poking at and hope you will underturn some magical, one-day instant snake healing solution for free. If your dad is on the verge of losing his job, your mom is sick, and your fiance is paying for everything, I HIGHLY doubt your mom is even saying no to getting a job. Something is very suspicious in your story here.

Dont go blowing your composure over this, or bringing yourself down, I'm not saying give up on owning a ball python, or stop posting on this forum, all I am saying is consider the responsibilities that fall with the choices you make in life, rather than the momentary hapiness of having a snake. It is a lifetime responsibility that can bring great hapiness the entire time, given you are able to see how happy your snake is in its living situation.

You need to seriously sit down and think about your life kid. Engaged at 17 while living at home with parents, not going to school, no job and constantly pawning something to feed and take care of your pets. :colbert: Please re-home your pets and go back to school. Once you are on your feet with a career/good paying job and your own place then you can get all the pets you can afford to provide proper care to.

*Any updates on the BP?

Shelliebear,

First off, I understand from your former posts that the majority of people that surround you or that you are aware of are on some type of "state assistance". This should NOT be an expectation or desirable outcome for ANY person. If I was in your living situation, I would be studying my butt of trying to get out of there and to NOT live on the state's dime (aka TAXPAYERS). To put this in perspective, go to the store. Every person working there is paying for every person on the "state's dime". People who are on welfare are living off of the hard work of someone else. Government has NO income and PRODUCES NOTHING. Every dime that the Government gives out in a program or "invests" in a project is money taken from a person in the United States. You seem like a person who does not enjoy living off of charity do why do you talk of these "state funded programs" and how kids are easy to pay for? Do you want to live off of someone elses hard work for the rest of your life? If the answer is no (which I suspect it is) then get a high school diploma/GED and find a career and work your way up.

Contrary to what people say, a college education is basically worthless. It does not prove how smart you are, or represent your work ethic. All it is is a piece of paper that says you paid X amount of dollars and did busy work. It is NOT necessary to make a good living.

B) As for the snake, Do what you can afford. If you find that you cannot afford the vet care then surrender it. I've heard people on this forum say that they've given up food, etc for their snakes vet bills. I'm sorry but that is ridiculous. YOUR health and welfare comes before the snakes. And before I get jumped on for being a 'poor owner who doesn't deserve animals" I should point out that my family and I have owned animals for decades and we have loved them and given them great homes but we DO NOT spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on vet care. Putting more money in an animal than it is worth is not a smart decision.

For example, when my Dad's beloved Jack Russel, Rascal, was ran over and had a broken hip and leg, we took him to the vet. The vet wanted to do surgery that would cost $5,000+. My dad said "no thanks" bought painkillers and wouldn't leave rascals side for weeks. Said dog is now 8 yeas old, happy as a lark and running around perfectly fine. While he could have died, it would not have been a smart decision to spend thousands on him when said money could be spent on our family.

I understand if some, or most, of the people on this forum disagree. Thats fine. It's your money and your life but please don't go off on the few/many people who don't agree with your point of view. As shellie pointed out, there is no insurance for pets. Everything comes out of pocket and vet bills can easily add up to tens of thousands of dollars. Thats enough to bankrupt the average American family.

Shellie, do what you think is best and what you can afford.

Edit: On the college education, if your studying to be an engineer or the equivalent, then yes, college is essential. But, in reality, only 5% of the population or less should be in college. Not 60%. More supply of degrees= Less demand for said degrees.

Step 1: Give your snakes to someone who will properly care for them.

Step 2: Get yourself back in school or get yourself a job(no excuses GET A JOB)!

Step 3: Figure your life out(17 and engaged??...engaged and still living with parents??)!

Step 4: Do not procreate until you have sufficient financial and emotional means to care for a child WITHOUT TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THE GOVERNMENT!!!!

Step 5: If you get confused or distracted along the way go back to 'step 2'.

Seriously girl, I dont mean to offend you but it seems like you're in way over your head and you're fighting just to stay afloat...you should NOT have pets that are your responsibility if you have less than $800(MINIMUM!!!) free to spend on them exclusively...personally I have 13 snakes and I have over $3000 saved just for them in case something happens(RI or infection of some kind) and they have a need for a vet or something...I just dont think you're ready for the responsibility. I hope your snake makes it, but I also hope that you wise up and do the right thing for your animals...I'm sorry.

Look, stop it. Clearly I realize the snake is not a teddy bear, damn it. If I thought it was a teddy bear, I would have given it to someone else today instead of forking over money to bring it to the vet myself like I did. It was 78$ and he got a Baytril injection. You need to stop saying that. I've taken a lot of criticism but that's not true at all--I KNOW the snake is not a teddy bear. Clearly you didn't read the whole thread. Thanks. :/
Don't ever have kids? Boy, I'd like to tell you what I really think but I respect the mods of this forum too much to put all the cursewords that might be in it. :mad:
No matter what I say I'm wrong. I say pets are easy to take care of, you guys jump down my throat--"They're a commitment."
I say I THINK kids are easier to take care of WHEN THEY GET SICK because there are insurance programs that will pay for it right away. I didn't EVER freaking say the state should pay for anything. I meant use it while it's there. There is no insurance program to pay for a snake visit to a vet. That's all I said. Please show me anything in my post where it shows that I would be an inadequate parent. a hospital has to treat any patient that walks through the door. They can get better. If I bring a snake in to a vet they aren't obligated by law to do a thing.
THAT is what I meant. I know kids are difficult. How DARE you say I don't understand--you don't know what I've seen. I watched my parents juggle decisions--choosing to take my sick mother to the hospital or pay our mortgage bill, pay the doctor bill or take our dog to the vet, take out a loan or have no food. You...have no idea. I DO understand how hard it is to have kids. I've seen it first hand. Many of my friends are pregnant and have children of their own, on state welfare and the dad's don't give a flying you know what. I KNOW it's hard.
All I meant is that if you go to the hospital, they have to treat you, and there are programs--I can name so many--that will help you to pay that bill.
THERE ARE NONE FOR MY BABIES.
I am overwhelmed with anger right now. I can't win with you people. I'm sorry--I'm done.
I'm trying to get help and I'm getting slammed. Thanks guys. This sure makes me want to try to help animals in the future.
Go ahead. Give me bad karma. Say bullcrap like I don't understand how hard it is to have kids, though I understand more than you EVER WILL because you are clearly pathetic in that department if you're accusing ME of not knowing.
I wish I could tell you where to put it right now. But I respect the mods, and I will not. I don't think I respect you right now, and you know who you are. I won't call names.
I'm going away for a while....again. I will not EVER be humiliated the way I feel I am right now, all for trying to help an animal, and making a COMPARISON.
I'll stay in the background. I'm not posting on this thread.
I'll give the clothes on my back before I see an animal suffer. That's what I'm trying to do now. Sorry I'm trying to help my brother. Sorry I saved his snake's life. Sorry. Next time, I'll put it in the freezer, how does that sound? :confuzd:
By the way, Zatarra is doing good. We took him to the vet, he got a shot of Baytril. He'll go back Sunday for another, andthree days after that. He's looking better.
Peace.

Also, believe what you want. go ahead! My mother actually isn't saying no to getting a job at all. :) You're right. I'm actually 30 years old. I'm gay. I live in a cave with a hermit, and I made up the whole story about even having a mom so I could go on a little online parade gathering sympathy from all of you. You're right! How'd you guess? Don't ask me how I get internet access, it's a highly guarded secret. :gj:
You have NO idea the crap she puts on me. "I'll cut off your insurance if you take this medicine, no Gardisil shot or I'll cut off your insurance because one girl died after getting it, if you get a job I'm calling the police because you still live at home, if you apply for a job while you live under my roof your boyfriend is out of the house".
You have no idea. I don't know why I bothered talking about it here. You know what I actually think? I think you're trying to guilt trip me into giving you my snakes for free. :gj:
You give me a BS response, I'll give you one. Enjoy!
You certainly will NOT get my snakes. You are absolutely nutters.

Black shark also has a point, family should always come first.

If your dad is on the verge of losing his job, your mom is sick, and you're all relying off your fiance, get a job and help your family.

I mean, we understand you love your snake, we love snakes too, but if you're struggling, dont give up your families welfare just to have a snake in your hands, give the snake to someone who can help it, and find peace in that it is in good care. I mean, you can be broke, and have a dieing snake that is hanging on by the mere left over threads from that hole in your wallet, or you could be broke and mending your wallet, while knowing that snake is going to live happily.

Why can't somebody say all that WITHOUT all the harassment thrown in, too? You're just about the only one....

Shelliebear.
I highly commend you for getting the snake the help it needed. No one is here to bash you, they just want what is best for the animal. Some people just come across as being harsh, that is only because they wanted to see the right thing done by this animal. You did what needed to be done and I applaud you for that. Animals are a very big responsibility and we as owners need to make sure we have the resources to care for them. If you could get a job, it would be very responsible to put money aside for animal emergencies. These kind of situations will arise from time to time. Again, I am very proud of you for getting the snake the care it needed and I hope he has a very speedy recovery.

What tells me that you're not a sutible parent? The fact that your living with your parents and fiance and arn't finished schoool, you are not ready. None of what I said was meant directly to hurt you, you need a reality check. And the amount of times you've contradicted yourself in this thread is overwhelming, we're not trying to hurt you, we're trying to help you. You're not in the position where you should be taking responsibility for any more lives then your own. And that is the cold hard thuth.

Well, I'm not just another drop out who hated high school. I love school. I'd tell you more but it's too suspicious. :rolleyes:
I know, I know, no kids. Got it. :gj:

Shellie,

None of what myself or these people are saying is harassment. We all just want you to etter yourself but from what we've read on here your not ready for any animal/child. You need to have a sit down with yourself and think long and hard about what you want from life, your current financial situation and whether or not this situation will support snakes/children/whatever.

Personally, I want to see you achieve your goals. To do that, you need to face reality, which is that A) You need to finish High School. B) DO NOT marry at this early of an age. While for some people it works out, for the vast majority it will be a decision that they regret for the rest of their lives. Having a spouse early in life severely limits your life options. Please don't get offended by that. I have been dating my gf for 3 years now, since she was a sophomore in High School and I was a senior. She is currently pursuing a degree in Education and Art while I just took the LSAT and am heading to Law School. We both realize that marraige hindes more than helps us at this situation and were content with knowing we love each other. THerefore, we leave open options we wouldn't have if married or engaged. C) Get ajob and work your butt off. I know you will but it bears repeating.

Good Luck and don't take constructive criticism so harshly. We're on your side here!

I'm not in a hurry to get married. Jeez, we're engaged but that doesn't mean the wedding is tomorrow.
All our engagement is, is a promise to stick by eachother and help out, and if marriage isn't part of that yet, so be it. The rings signify to us more than "we're going to be married". It's a reminder.
But we're not rushing anything. Do people that get engaged usually get married right away or something???
Trust me, we're not. That costs money too. Plus we have years of life to do all that. :gj:

What you say directly contradicts your previous statements and what a person can infer from those statements. Your fiance is living with you. Supporting you at the moment. That is, in my opinion, rushing things. You need to get your life on the track you want and be successful on your own before you insert another person into the equation.

Again, my own opinion. I wish you luck with whatever you choose in that regard!

Hmm. I guess I see what you're saying, although I disgaree. In my opinion living together isn't as big a commitment as a marriage. In my opinion you should try living with someone before you get married because who knows, maybe you like dating but you'll hate seeing that person with bedhair and morning breath every day. :confuzd: It's like a test IMO. I like it better than NOT living together and getting married without knowing if we're compatible.
But you have a point. I don't think it contradicts what I said before though.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by shelliebear

Do people that get engaged usually get married right away or something???
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I once new a guy who got engaged, married, and divorced all within a week...so yeah some people do rush things...but that was vegas and a whole 'nother story all togeather!!!:cool:

I was not aware it was a common practice, I thought that was a movie thing. That's ridiculous. :/

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Powerspythons

I once new a guy who got engaged, married, and divorced all within a week...so yeah some people do rush things...but that was vegas and a whole 'nother story all togeather!!!:cool:

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Hahaha I was about to ask if it was vegas but you answered my question for me.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by shelliebear

I was not aware it was a common practice, I thought that was a movie thing. That's ridiculous. :/

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Trust me once you're 21 and have made the trip to the wonder that is Sin City, you'll realize exactly how quickly things can get out of control there...

I had no clue people did that :D :D :D That's ridiculous. Gives marriage a bad name. :P

I have been trying to resist the urge to post this, but seeing what is going on I cannot. All I can say is wow! I cannot believe what just happened here. I think it is quite unfair for so many people to gang up like this. I understand the need to offer advice, but just the sheer number of people who have posted it in an accusatory manor is quite upsetting. It certainly makes me look at this site with new eyes.

I think your commitment to your snake is really wonderful. While your situation certainly sounds very difficult, the fact that you go to such lengths to help your snake speaks to the fact that you are a good owner. If you had no way of caring for your snake, I would be concerned, but you were able to find the money, and you sound responsible enough that if you believed you could not care for your snake, you would rehome him.

I am seriously very sick, had to drop out of high school, and although I will get better, each and every day is filled with medicine, doctors visits, medical treatments, and just feeling miserable. I am telling you this because I know how amazing it is to have pets, how much they can light up your day. If I did not have my dogs and now my ball python, I do not know what I would do.

Also, while I know that at 17 biologically our brains are not fully matured, if each of you were to think back to when you were 17, I don't think you would think yourself as naive as most adults seem to think we teens are. Of course a lot of that has to do with the individual, but when adults act like I don't know anything, it bothers me. (I am currently 19). Just something I thought Id point out. I don't know if it applies to anyone posting, but it sure is something I wish I could say to the people I meet who seem to think like that. lol

I'm so glad to hear that you got into the vet. I will keep my fingers crossed that he recovers fully.

P.S. Yes, I do realize I am being a bit hypocritical

Thanks Dragon Queen! I appreciate it...
I dropped out of high school for a combo of health reasons. 1. my thyroid is dying because I have Hashimoto's thyroiditis.
2. I had severe depression and tried to kill myself, was an active cutter, etc. so I was finally admitted to the hospital and missed tons of school while in there
3. I developed tarsal tunnel syndrome in my foot.
I'm not trying to whine. But boy when life beats up on you, it hits you hard. All three of those things are why I dropped out. Even my teachers were understanding. I was sick.
I definitely understand your situation also.
My snakes light up my day. Sometimes when I feel so down and I have slept 16 or more hours because of my thyroid, holding the snakes makes me feel a little better....There's a reason they use pets in hospitals.
:salute:
Thanks for the nice post and support. I understand your situation all too well.

Hi,

I can't believe some of the posts I have just read. :mad:

I think we need to put the personal attacks aside - if they continue I will simply lock or delete the thread.


dr del

yeahh this was the harshest thread i have read :O wow, didnt know people were like this on here, anyway im glad you got the money to get the snake to the vet i hope he gets better!!

I don't want to wade through all the new pages, but may I ask for an update on the snake ?

Also, sorry to hear about the health problems. Just the fact that you come here and care to get info and advice, bodes well for you. I think you will overcome your challenges. I'm not familiar with those health issues, but perhaps one day you can get your GED, there is no time limit for that...

As for pets being therapeutic, ABSOLUTELY !!!

I have heard more then once that snakes in particular have helped people with depression or anxiety problems. Imagine that :)

Shellie, I pmd you...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dr del

Hi,

I can't believe some of the posts I have just read. :mad:

I think we need to put the personal attacks aside - if they continue I will simply lock or delete the thread.


dr del

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Haha, I think this thread should just be locked anyways.

It's good to know she got to the vet, was able to pay for the bill, and hope that her brothers snake will be okay. But honestly, now it's kind of pointless. There is enough in here to write an autobiography.. >.<

Some people were very harsh, but honestly. It is the internet. I'm not saying it is okay to rant, and personally attack someone elses lifestyle choices, it's just very difficult to expect everyone to be as loving and as caring as most snake owners do appear.

Moral of the story: Keep it to the snakes. The details of your life, are important but their voicing isn't necessary, when it comes to the welfare of your snake.

I'm sure all the members still have the utmost respect for you, and your dedication to your brothers snake, but this thread was.. high school, to say the least.