What do you do with your snake(s)?

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Originally Posted by blueberrypancakes

Take them out to fancy restaurants?

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oh you know, just the usual; we go out for some steaks and a bottle of bordeaux, then maybe we'll hit the club and dance the night away.

:rofl:

I handle all of mine at least a few times a week. Some are out longer than other because they are just chill and stay. Some like to go exploring too much.

I personally don't understand having snakes that you don't take out and play with at least some of the time. My snakes are pets first, breeders second.

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Originally Posted by mikeandsheleen

I have a group of about 8 friends that come together with some of our collection every Saturday at the local pet store (we had over 20 snakes one night). We stay there for 2 to 3 hours and let the public come up and see/touch/hold (properly sanitized, of course). I know that most don't take their snakes out in public much because it stresses them; but mine usually eat when we get back home (a stressed ball won't eat) so I don't believe this upsets them as much as most people think. There are certain snakes that don't ever go with us because they do get stressed, but there are some that go practically every week.
It's a loooong story, (maybe I'll post it later) I have a spider bp that is so laid back, I've thought of trying to start a "snake therapy" thing with him (like therapy dogs). One kid that had SEVERE Cerebral Palsey instantly quit shaking when he started petting the spider. I've had alot of people tell me that they felt somehow calmer when handling the snakes, and we have changed hundreds of peoples minds about reptiles in general. We have been doing this for about 5 years now.
The pet store loves it when we come in, because we can offer advice on proper husbandry, etc. We have also "sold" alot of snakes and supplies for the store.
So, please, go ahead and don't be afraid of handling your snakes!

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" One kid that had SEVERE Cerebral Palsey instantly quit shaking when he started petting the spider" .........THAT IS ONE OF THE COOLEST THINGS I HAVE EVER READ ON HERE ! WOW ! .....Yosef

I handle my Borneo python a lot. I have bred snakes and lizards in the past and I have always handled them. They were my pets first and foremost.....breeding is secondary.

I enjoy sitting down and watching her crawl around on the floor ( SUPERVISED ) and I sometimes just like to hold her while I walk around the house.

She seems to not mind it at all so why not ?:gj:

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Originally Posted by okcbrad55

What's the point of having a bp if you don't take them out and enjoy them. why would you get any and not take them out, unless you are JUST a breeder!

Seems like a waste to me!

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Honestly? BPs are kind of boring in the handling department. I prefer to take my BCC out and hang out with her more than I do my BPs.

Ok, well this is the long version of the kid with cerebral palsey.
Over a year ago in the spring, some friends of mine and I were at Harp's Exotic Pets in Evansville, like we do every Saturday night. We had around 12 snakes with us. It was nice outside, so we decided to go to Sonic for drinks afterwards. A couple of us had our pets out while sitting around and enjoying the slushies. Someone caught sight of us holding snakes and after about 5 minutes we had a crowd. I was holding my male spider bp (named Peter Parker) when I feel someone tugging on my shirt sleeve from behind me. This lady says "My son is wheelchair bound and can't come over here. He doesn't believe that you guys have snakes." I said "sure!" and went over to her van. In the middle row of seats, there is a boy that is shaking so bad that the van was moving. His left hand was contractured up into a little ball and his right hand had the index finger extended into the pointing position, while the rest of the fingers curled and contractured like the other hand. His shaking included a "clapping" motion, even though his hands never touched. When he saw that I had a snake, he literally squealed with delight. His mother explained that he had always liked snakes, but was afraid he would be bitten due to the shaking. I asked him if he wanted to pet Mr. Parker (and explained why he was named that), to which he made some kind of motion with his head that his mother said meant "yes". I told him that this snake had been handled by so many people that there wasn't anything to be afraid of. I held the snake close to him as he brought his hand over. (I was thinking "oh boy, I hope he doesn't poke at him. Shame on me!) He concentrated so hard to try to be gentle that his entire body quit shaking. After a few strokes of his finger, I asked if it would be ok to put Spidey on his lap. The boy squealed again, and made the same motion that I recogized as being the "yes" motion. I placed the snake (kinda coiled up) in his lap and he sat there for about 20 minutes slowly stroking Spidey with the one extended index finger. The mother was almost in tears and told me that she had NEVER seen him so deep in concentration for so long. She then proceeded to pull out her checkbook and asked "how much?". I replied that this was a pet and he wasn't for sale. She said "He has been with therapy dogs, therapy cats, and therapists, and has never shown as much interest as he is right now. Again, name your price, how much?"
It broke my heart, but I couldn't sell my spider.
I didn't get his name (again, shame on me), but I did give her the numbers to some local ball python breeders that could get him a "therapy snake."
I still don't know if he got one or not.
This is absolutely a true story and can be verified by the friends that were with me that night, including the boy in the van.

I take my ball out from time to time, and if I feel like it and the weather's nice, I'll take her outside. I really want to go into town with her, or just go for a drive, but I'm afraid of accidentally taking her into places where pets (much less snakes) aren't welcome. Could I possibly take her to Wal-Mart or some place of the sort?