wow!!?? (graphic?)

First, I'm going to pretend those photos are photoshopped. It will help me sleep better at night to believe that.

Second, I had no idea that there was such prejudice in the herp hobby! I kind of thought we all banded together against people that think snakes are evil or disgusting. The majority of my reptile collection is balls, but I also have two king snakes, two milk snakes, one leopard gecko, two red tails, and two burmese pythons. I in no way think one is better than the other. Every one has different characteristics and personalities, and each one has things I appreciate about it. To me a pet is a pet, and there is no such thing as better. It is personal preference. Although, I am completely opposed to selling large reptiles to individuals without the financial stability to have them. Sorry, but I personally think that boas, anacondas, burms, retics, shouldn't be as readily available as balls, kings, milks, etc. The simple fact is too many people get one and a year later have a nine foot snake they can't house, feed, or handle because it wasn't hand tamed properly. That is how I ended up with both my boas and burms. I adopted them from people that thought it would be "cool" to have a giant snake, and then the reality of owning it was too much for them.

One of my redtails, Cookie, had a huge infected burn on her from her previous owner. He had put a heat lamp in her cage with no cover and she burned herself on it. However, she was full grown, and he hadn't actually handled her in years (and yes, her cage was disgusting) because he was afraid of her. She bit him once when she was a juvenile, and it all got "real" to him. Because of that she was pretty much wild, and not only was the vet bill astronomical on her when I took her in, but treating her wound was not fun. She is a big ol' baby now, but I'll never forget how angry I was when I saw the condition she was in. And her owner? He said he was too scared to get close enough to take her out of the cage and clean it. She was literally sitting on top of years worth of feces in that big wooden box he'd built her. He just keep throwing more food in there and never cleaning anything out.

That's why I am so opposed to selling giant constrictors in the same manner balls and other snakes are sold. In my opinion red tails, burms, retics, anacondas, etc are not a beginner pet. They are also not a pet for some kid just out of high school and going into college that has no guarantee three years down the line he'll have the space or money to house it. This is why burms and retics are overrunning the American everglades, and the reason so many are abandoned or advertised as "Free to good home" on Craigslist.

Ok, rant over.

On another note, I have an Arabian and several Quarter horses. I also have a Shire, Andalusian, and Friesian. Yes, I went through a princess faze. I try not to dwell. Moving on, at the end of the day I think it comes down to what you are wanting to do with that horse. When I'm going to be in the saddle all day on a long trail ride nothing beats one of my Quarters. They are literally built to go all day long. That's why cowboys preferred them. When I was homecoming queen and rode in the high school parade? I was on my Friesian all decked out. Our two shires pull the wagon when we do hay rides. Different horses are bred for different things, so it's not really fair to judge them by the same standards.

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Originally Posted by Marrissa

*cough* Appendix QH *cough cough*

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Appendix means 1/2 TB, which rocks as far as I'm concerned!

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Originally Posted by bcr229

And the owner of an OTTB needs to go clean coffee off of her monitor now... :D

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:D IM(not terribly H)O TB's are the greatest all-around equine athetes there are hands down, and I have known quite a few OTTBs who can give the 100k German imports a solid challenge at the GP level. In fact I'm hoping to pick up a new OTTB jumper prospect later this year (except I keep blowing my horse money on snakes, which is not a bad thing lol).

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Originally Posted by TexanLady

On another note, I have an Arabian and several Quarter horses. I also have a Shire, Andalusian, and Friesian. Yes, I went through a princess faze. I try not to dwell. Moving on, at the end of the day I think it comes down to what you are wanting to do with that horse. When I'm going to be in the saddle all day on a long trail ride nothing beats one of my Quarters. They are literally built to go all day long. That's why cowboys preferred them. When I was homecoming queen and rode in the high school parade? I was on my Friesian all decked out. Our two shires pull the wagon when we do hay rides. Different horses are bred for different things, so it's not really fair to judge them by the same standards.

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You are absolutely right, although I want to see pics of you in that parade (because that's awesome). And I think it applies to the snakes as well, I love jumping, so I go for breeds that are built to be good jumpers. And I like snakes with easy temperments and small size housing requirements, so I have balls not retics. But my heart warms up to see a big draft head come over the stall door for a scratch and a treat just as much as any other head, and I appreciate the beauty and rabbit-disposal capabilities of a retic even if it doesn't suit my preferences. Respect for the animal comes first, no matter what that animal's morphological characteristics might be.

"Respect for the animal comes first, no matter what that animal's morphological characteristics might be."

Single greatest line so far! And so true. It all boils down to the fact that every pet is a living, breathing being capable of feeling pain. As pet owners we are responsible for these creatures. No matter if our pets are covered in fur, scales, or spines (got a hedgehog the other day!), they are solely dependent upon us. It is a responsibility, and I think a lot of people don't take it seriously.

I never thought I would take on large snakes, but when I went over to that guys house to check out some of his kings I couldn't leave Cookie there. One of the most frightening experiences of my life was treating her burn. She was completely wild, and vicious! Of course that was totally the fault of her previous owner, but it was a learning experience for both of us. I got over my fear of big snakes with her, she bit me a few times and found out I wasn't going to hurt her, and after about eight months she finally let me take her out of her cage (which is 6x3x3! and much better than that tiny box that jerk had her in!) and hold her. I still have a great deal of respect for her moods, and I don't let too many people besides other experienced reptile owners hold her, but she's been a beloved pet for almost five years now, and I don't know what I'd do without her. And as much as I love my great state I really wish they had better animal cruelty laws. I called the police as soon as I left that guy's house and filed an animal abuse complaint and nothing ever came of it. The condition his reptiles were kept in was appalling. Not to mention how he kept his rats! Sometimes I wish we were all required to pass a psychological evaluation before we could get a pet. Too many psychos out there abuse their animals.

And Devon, I'm not very good at computer shorthand. Don't let my age fool you! But I'm taking it from what you wrote that you're a big fan of Thoroughbreds? I admire the breed, but they get too hot too quickly and too often for me. I like them mellow. We only got our Arab because of my Black Stallion faze. I think they are beautiful, and they look beautiful jumping, but not the best for barrel racing, roping, or long days in the saddle. We have a few that we adopted from the track, but they are rescues so they wouldn't be put down. And don't get me started on the racing industry! It is shameful the way they treat horses!

And as for that photo of me in the parade? Not on your life! All I can say is Pink Taffeta. Lots of Pink Taffeta! Yeah, it was that bad!

Oh, and Draft horses are some of my favorite breeds! Think of Great Dane's in horse form. Yeah, they act like overgrown lap dogs! Not to mention clingy! We have a miniature Donkey, and while all our horses love him, our Shires follow him around religiously. Not kidding. I'll try and remember to take a picture because it is too funny! Seeing these great hulking horses follow this itty bitty donkey cracks me up every time!

It's nice that my parents own so much land. Growing up my sister and I filled up our back pasture with pretty much any horse that caught our eye, and now my parents are being kind enough to let me build a ventilated shed so I can start raising my own rats to cut down on my feed bill. Of course that is probably a year away. My collection is small enough at the moment that I don't feel the need to set up a rodent breeding facility just yet. But I'm thinking in the next few years I won't have a choice. Not to mention I don't have to pay boarding fees on any of my horses. Which is a huge load off. I was surprised to hear how much commercial barns charge their boarders. It's ridiculous!

this is horrible idk how anyone could do something like that makes me sick actually

I like the look of some of the bigger snakes, but I also know my limits. They aren't for me. I like the mellow ball pythons. I personally think they have plenty of personality, add much add my rosy boas, who are a lot more active but smaller. I'm entertaining getting a rainbow boa some day, because they are so beautiful, but I'll need to do more research and decide if I'm really right for them.

Now where horses are concerned, got an Arab and a QH, and I have to say I prefer my Arab! He's 70+% Crabbet, which in my opinion are the best. Rest of him is mostly Polish lines, which are pretty good too. I don't care for the Spanish, Russian, or Egyptian lines. They are the ones that tend to have hotter temperaments, in my opinion, though Polish can sometimes be hot too if they haven't had proper handling or training, or have purposefully been trained that way (to put on a show). I like my horse's brains and trainability, his personality and friendliness. He's like a puppy, really just wants to be with people. The QH, and all others I've known, just aren't like that. Nice horses, but not as expressive. Nothing wrong with that, just different breeds. I will say one thing, my QH is lazier than a rock, but at the same time has a crazy strong work ethic. He not just wants, but needs a job. My Arab will do anything I ask to please mer, but not necessarily because he wants to. As long as he's around people he couldn't care less if he had a real job or not. Don't take me wrong, he'll do any job given, or die trying, but only out of desire to please, not so much desire to work.

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Originally Posted by sorraia

I'm entertaining getting a rainbow boa some day, because they are so beautiful, but I'll need to do more research and decide if I'm really right for them.

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Do it! My adults are both quite gentle, topped out around six feet, are easily handled, and are very curious. As hatchlings they can be nippy but once they learn that you aren't some evil monster that will eat them they chill right out. The hardest part is making sure your enclosure can stay humid enough to keep them healthy.

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Originally Posted by bcr229

Do it! My adults are both quite gentle, topped out around six feet, are easily handled, and are very curious. As hatchlings they can be nippy but once they learn that you aren't some evil monster that will eat them they chill right out. The hardest part is making sure your enclosure can stay humid enough to keep them healthy.

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I didn't even know if they were legal here (pretty as they are I figured for sure they weren't legal! Lol) but saw a big breeder at the Reptile show last weekend. First time I saw them in person, and I just stood there looking at them for 15 or 20 minutes! Just breath taking.

TexanLady - I do love the thoroughbreds, there aren't many breeds with the athleticism to be competitive on the track as babies and then learn a whole new sport and compete at the highest levels there too, whether it's jumping, eventing, or dressage. I don't have the kind of budget for a big German import (apparently people out here think $30k on an untried prospect is a bargain :confusd:) so I pick up my jumpers off the track, they always seem to make up for a lack of jumping-specific breeding by having an extra dose of grit and heart. That said you are so right about not being barrel racers, I think with the momentum of their big bodies they would run into the wall before they made it around a single corner! If we're not getting photos of the taffeta-splosion, then we're definitely going to need some of the shire/donkey herd, because that is too adorable. And I'm super jealous of your farm set up, board and training at my barn starts at $800/month, not including shoes, supplements, worming, blanketing, and everything else!

Sorraia - I grew up with arabs, so I tend to favor them. But sometimes they're too smart for their own good, the only horse I ever met who could undo snap bolts with his teeth was an arab. He used to undo his bolt, open his stall door, and turn himself out.

Maybe I should look into rainbow boas, I've been obsessing over Boelens the last few months, mostly because of the rainbow-ness, but I'm put off by both the cost and the size of Boelens, maybe a Rainbow would be a good alternative.

Badgemash, tell me you are kidding? Please tell me that whole $800 was a joke? I was talking about my friend having to pay $250 a month for her horse before she moved him to my parents. I thought that was outrageous! But $800! That's theft, plain and simple. I just can't believe that! That's like my rent and soon to be mortgage! Actually it's more! I'm putting enough down to keep my mortgage right at $630 a month. You must live in the Northeast or in Cali where living is so much more expensive! I have never been so thankful to live in Texas. Tornados, crazy weather, heat waves and all! At least we get more bang for our buck. I feel for you. I simply can't imagine that. My parents have just shy of fifty acres and it's considered recreational land. Like having a really big front and back yard. Surrounding them are two cattle ranches and about a dozen quarter horse ranches with a few hundred, if not thousands of acres! And we're actually only about 45 minutes out from Dallas.

I just can't imagine it being such an expense to keep a horse like that. When I went to college (Go Tarleton Texans!) the dorm I chose came with a stable, and it only cost me a total of 375 a month to take three of my horses with me and keep them there. I also got to park my trailer there for free. Not to mention that there were dozens of barns in the area where you could board. One we looked at offered pasture boarding for $50 a month. That's it. Meaning they fed your horse every day, and you could keep your tack box in the tack room, but other than that your horse stayed in the pasture with the other horses. Stall boarding would have cost me $100 a month. There were several run-ins for them though. There are a lot of setups like that out here. Not to mention if you were part of the Equine Program at Tarleton you got to keep your horse at their Equine facility for free. That facility also offered boarding to other students (I was an English major), and it was still far less than $200 a month per horse. My parents board about twenty horses for friends and family and they only charge $75 a month. I just can't believe you pay that much to board A horse.

Oh, and Tarleton is not an exception down here. Texas A&M, UT, UNT, Rice, and many other colleges down here offer dorms with boarding options. And colleges aren't the only ones offering boarding options. In fact there is a multimillion dollar suburb not too far from here (houses start at half a mil and go up) that has it's own country club, golf course, restaurant, security force, and stable, and they only charge a little over $300 a month for full care. Pasturing, stalling, exercise, food, the whole nine yards!

My advice, Devon? MOVE TO TEXAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!