Ball Python bites 4-year-old girl

What are your thoughts on this article?

http://www.wfmz.com/news/Regional-Po...tml?hpt=us_bn7

Seriously that article just pissed me off! Its the owners fault for not.supervising the 4yr old holding the snake! They cut the snakes freaking head! These are the kind of irresponsible owners that ruin our hobby :(

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"cutting the pythons neck"? God. Poor snake.

Okay everyone, I want us all to practice for the first time a ball python latches and wraps. Grab a pencil. Ready? Okay! Go! Stick it between the ball python's jaws. Don't jab him, just put it in his teeth the way you do with a Q-tip to check his mouth. HE'LL LET GO. IMMEDIATELY. PROBLEM SOLVED. PUT HIM BACK IN HIS TUB, QUICK, AND PLEASE FEED HIM.

(If you've never done a mouth check with Q-tip, now is a good time to practice that.)

The mother commented on the comments for this so I asked why she took the child to the hospital and more-so why was an x-ray taken. I'll post here if she responds.

Can we go cut the necks of the parents?

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Originally Posted by loonunit

"cutting the pythons neck"? God. Poor snake.

Okay everyone, I want us all to practice for the first time a ball python latches and wraps. Grab a pencil. Ready? Okay! Go! Stick it between the ball python's jaws. Don't jab him, just put it in his teeth the way you do with a Q-tip to check his mouth. HE'LL LET GO. IMMEDIATELY. PROBLEM SOLVED. PUT HIM BACK IN HIS TUB, QUICK, AND PLEASE FEED HIM.

(If you've never done a mouth check with Q-tip, now is a good time to practice that.)

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Actual photo of the Killer Beep in question:

http://file.walagata.com/w/the-salamander/bpfangs.jpg

The parents are morons.

I pity the children.

I saw this and I posted a comment. It was very sad that the snake had to die that way. This is why I NEVER let anyone near or touch my snakes. I will do whatever I have to keep my snakes safe and stress free.

That may well have been the most retarded thing I've ever read.

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Killing the snake was an insane reaction from the parents. A child getting a few pin-pricks should not result in a death sentence for the animal that did it. This was their own fault and completely avoidable. Unsupervised animal/child interactions simply shouldn't be allowed at all until the child in question is mature enough to understand how to behave appropriately around the animal. No matter how much you can trust the animal with yourself, you can't trust a 4 year old not to get excited and/or randomly do something crazy to set the animal off, plus of course any animal can also just plain have a bad day.

I have no doubt that the other snakes will be better off in new homes, but I bet the kids are going to be pretty unhappy at losing all the family pets, and they probably won't really understand the situation.

As far as the X-ray thing goes, I imagine that was done in order to placate the presumably hysterical parents. I rather doubt the doctor who ordered it actually believed it was necessary - it was probably the least costly test s/he could run that s/he felt would be "enough" to satisfy the parents that everything was being done for their daughter.

Ughh stupid stupid people. Im so happy they are getting rid of their other snakes! If they panicked and killed it over that then they don't know enough to take proper care of the animals any ways! That's the equivalent of putting a tournique on your neck for a razor nic while shaving. If Stupid people weren't allowed to reproduce things like this wouldn't happen.
Wow sorry. Just read that. Guess I'm feeling a little mean today.

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Originally Posted by ballpythonluvr

I saw this and I posted a comment. It was very sad that the snake had to die that way. This is why I NEVER let anyone near or touch my snakes. I will do whatever I have to keep my snakes safe and stress free.

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Especially since their head doesn't "die" immediately.

How gruesome.

dont they know how to grab the head to loosen the bite grip... wow... more people making use look bad and the animal look bad.

Such a mock up story. It just doesn't even make sense. The family has many snakes, but doesn't know how to free a snake that tagged a person. I have never had a issue with my girl, but I still did the research so I would know what to do. Besides take the snakes head off which I'm pretty sure that wouldn't free the snakes jaw.

I read this and went to bed.... I had nightmares about stupid people trying to cut off my snake's head.

Cutting the snakes head off, killing it over this, police, hospital, and xrays, REALLY people??? You probably can't even see the mark hardly anymore. Morons. Exactly why some people shouldn't own pets. My daughter knows that on the off chance she gets bit, to be very careful not to pull on the snakes teeth, and not to drop them. But then again she loves her animals and is very good with them. What a sad story because of stupid people, poor snake.

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I don't even want to read the article, I'm sure it will just upset me. :rage:
They obviously were ignorant about the snakes they owned. You have to become educated about the pets you own. Although I have never had my snake bite me I know what steps to take if it does happen.

Sad thing is that if it were a dog or cat they would't have killed it...even though it would have done much more significant damage to the child.

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Originally Posted by olstyn

Killing the snake was an insane reaction from the parents. A child getting a few pin-pricks should not result in a death sentence for the animal that did it. This was their own fault and completely avoidable.

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It wasn't "a few pinpricks"; it was a latch. The sort we almost never see as keepers, because our animals are so well-fed.

So I can see how it would freak the parents out, because the snake wouldn't let go. But even so, a latch and wrap from a ball python is still completely harmless, and the snake didn't have to die. Period. And everything else everyone has said still stands.

Ok I am confused, the snake bit her chest? Not her hand that was in front of its face? And they didn't try the water trick to get the snake off of her? These people need to open their friggin hands, look at their palms and move it super fast at their face. Maybe that will knock common sense into them. Poor kid has to grow up with parents that more then likely think that putting your child's head in a sealed plastic bag is a good way to keep them dry during rain storms.

I feel bad for the snake. Let's go "cut these people's necks" for no reason like they did to the snake. Wtf

Horrible parents. Makes me wonder how they treated the snakes. SOO OVEREACTED:mad::mad::mad:

The child was tormenting the snake waving her hands in front of the poor things face, she should not have been allowed to do that and the parents should have stopped her and she should have been educated by the parents not to do that to the snake! If the child was the sort to not listen she shouldn't be allowed near the poor snake!!! The snake should not have been killed, it was a natural response and it would have been simple enough to solve without the extreme measures taken.

I feel sorry for the BP! My BP likes to have a strike at me and I would never consider hurting her if she did bite and latch :/

The fact they then got rid of all their snakes maybe shows that although they had snakes they may have still been very inexperienced, but I'm still inexperienced and I accept that I am likely to get bitten at some point. Any amount of research will show this! Calling the police and taking the child to hospital seems highly disproportionate also! I understand worry for a child but this seems very wrong to me!

If in doubt, don't let young children handle you animals. A dog would bite if tormented, a cat would bite or claw if tormented and a horse will kick if tormented. People need to look into their animals more before buying them!

Sorry, little rant here! The story really annoyed me :(

I never let my son handle any animal without supervision, not even my dogs. Is he responsible for his age, yes, but he is still a child, and children make mistakes. This is another demostration of ignorance. All of my dogs are abused rescues. When I brought my wolf hybrid home he latched onto my arm (pure fear/lack of human trust) with what seemed like the intent to rip it off. Even then I didn't panic, did it hurt yes, it took 5 long minutes to get it loose. I would have never considered hurting the dog, heck I didnt even kick at it. I don't understand the mentality of people that feel its ok to treat a reptile a certain way because its not a "furry friend". It makes no sense, a pet is a pet, bottom line! I know this will never happen, but in my mind the parents should be charged with cruilty to animals.

Thread back from the dead!!!:skullbone:tombstone:skullbone

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Originally Posted by KMG

Thread back from the dead!!!:skullbone:tombstone:skullbone

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Wow, I just realized when this was posted....it came up in the new posts section, I guess I should read that before I post.

Those people were damn IDIOTS!!!!! X-Rays???? Seriously?!?!?!?:mad:

this happened about 15-20 minutes away from where i live. i remember watching the news story last year and how frustrated it made me. i had just gotten my first bp the december before and my family got all worried about "how dangerous that snake is." no matter how many times i told them that ball pythons are extremely docile they wouldnt listen. thankfully they dont worry too much anymore but my mother still wont come near it.

ive read a bunch of articles on the snakes in florida and the mistakes that snake owners make but this by far angers me the most. LITTLE CHILDREN SHOULD NOT BE LEFT ALONE WITH A SNAKE!!! PERIOD. they end up stressing out the snake and bothering it to the point where it feels threatened and does one of the only things it knows how to do. bite. animals bite. snakes are animals. snakes bite. it happens. ive been bitten by both my bps, and a carpet python. ive never even thought about harming any of them. whenever anybody holds my snakes i make sure that i am right there and watch very closely. i even go as far as to tell them that if they get bitten, to not move or harm the snake. they are my babies. nobody can hurt my babies

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[QUOTE=martin82531;1908809]What are your thoughts on this article?

http://www.wfmz.com/news/Regional-Po...tml?hpt=us_bn7

Umm... aren't ball pythons constrictors? I have one and she doesn't have any teeth, she squeezes her prey to death. Not only that but the photo doesn't even look genuine. Correct me if I'm wrong, (mine may not have teeth because it's so young) but I'm pretty sure that this is all just some troll...

Zombie thread, but this is worth answering (I think).

Ball pythons are constrictors.

They most certainly have teeth even when they're young. Even when they just hatched. They're tiny, but they 'hook' into the prey and help move it along.http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/n...30thNov082.jpg

Those tiny little teeth are, well. Teeth.

"They said everything looks fine, theres nothing to worry about"...somebody got something right in this article. Sorry PA now all your snakes will be banned for almost killing a sweet little family. Some one needs to tell the parents that they caused their daughter more harm then the snake did by cutting in to the snake while on her

Ugh what morons!! If you are going to have any type of pet with teeth they all have the ability to bite. If you have children in the mix you have to be diligent and understand that them being bitten is a possibility. You have to supervise young children with any animal. I can't believe they called the cops, seriously? They should be fined for wasting their time. That poor BP.:rage:

I realize this is a necro-thread but I missed the story when it came out.

Unfortunately the stupid parents bred. :mad:

I love it when a noobie's first post is to pull up a Necro-Thread and make questionable comments....also love it when their first post has the word "troll' anywhere in it...

*facepalm*

They have teef.

You have to be kidding me! Poor snake. I am just flabbergasted and cannot think of anything to say other than I am glad the other snakes are going to other homes.

First off when your holding snakes I don't care how old you are you should be in a calm environment no sudden moves,animals are animals and My Ball Pythons seem to be on the shy side and not only can this happen with Snakes but also Birds and many other animals.
I raised and trained Large parrots and I took some pretty good Crushing Bites from people reaching for me after I said no you don't do that the Parrot does what it would do in the wild and will bite at its bird friend to scare it off when they sense danger they look at their people as part of the flock. I think they scared the snake without even thinking about animal behavior. People need to understand the animal no matter what is is and I think a lot of people just buy pets for the wow factor and thats very wrong to do. I made it my mission to visit schools, churches, boy scouts , Girl scouts etc. to educate people Adults and the kids on these beautiful Animals we are stewards of its not a toy its a privilege to have these pets and to treat them with respect. This is were education fails people ignore it because its that wow factor. This is a time were education is only finger tips away and their is no excuse for people to remain Idiots do it right or don't bother hurting an animal over your stupidity this is unacceptable in my book. I am Glad they re homed the snakes after they had their public spill on how they handled the situation a lot of times people just get off on bad publicity and if their is a medical emergency I don't know about other folks but I would be calling for some paramedic's not the Police they snake did not commit a crime.:rage:

You can't fix stupid.

In other news...a cat scratched an eight year old boy. The boy is expected to survive, however the family has completely flipped out and are getting rid of all their cats. More on this story as it develops...


Must be a slow news day...:rolleyes:

Ok I've heard of zombies. Heck some of my family is from Louisiana. I've just never seen such a zomby actually resurrected as this thread was. Yes the parents over reacted. Yes they are stupid. The kid probably doesn't even remember being bitten unless someone brings it up. Yes BP have teeth. They hook backwards to hold prey as they constrict, and as they swallow said prey item. I've been tagged by babies and it felt like getting a shot. Actually not even that. I hate needles and this hurt less because nothing was injected. Oh wait next newb will say BPs are venomous lol. Yes I'm mocking stupidity tonight. I have 5 BPs plus a cat dog and 2 very young children. The ONLY one my oldest will even think about touching is the girl I've had the longest and that's only on her lower back. If she looks at him he's across the room fast. My other 4 he stays away from. I don't even leave him alone with the dog I've had since she was a puppy and is 9 yrs now. It's called BEING A PARENT AND PROTECTING YOUR CHILDREN. I'm an animal lover. I don't like seeing any animal abused. What the parents did was animal abuse. If they had a cat and 1 of its claws got caught in the little girl would they chop off the poor cats paw or head? No they wouldn't. That would be animal abuse besides its a cute fuzzy wittle kitty. I've had worse bites at work and from mine, family and friends cats. I had to have a nail removed because of getting bitten through the nail by a cat. Did I demand the cat be killed? No because it was stressed from being at the vets office. Animals lash out from fear, and stress. Snakes are no different. They shouldn't have had it outside the house imho. Plus it was probably chilly out. Way to be parents of the year. Here's your sign.

thats crazy that they did all those x-rays and stuff, it was just a bite. i seen youtube videos of people getting much worse bites and they just wash the blood offf and carry on. the girl said to her mum that it doesn't hurt so why did they panic so much! and they didn't need to cut the snakes neck, poor thing. they probably didn't even try any other methods beforehand, cuz if they had that snake would still be alive. personally i think the whole story was a big over reaction to something that wasn't that bad.

this may sound hypocritical, but I'm thinking of getting a ball python, and I'm a bit nervous about it biting me. if it does bite, how bad does it hurt? cuz I've seen snake breeders get bit and they say it doesn't hurt but I've never been bit before and I'm kinda young (not like, 4 year old young, but teenager young) and i might be more sensitive to the bite. i defiantly want one, i just want to prepare myself :)

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Originally Posted by diamond123

this may sound hypocritical, but I'm thinking of getting a ball python, and I'm a bit nervous about it biting me. if it does bite, how bad does it hurt? cuz I've seen snake breeders get bit and they say it doesn't hurt but I've never been bit before and I'm kinda young (not like, 4 year old young, but teenager young) and i might be more sensitive to the bite. i defiantly want one, i just want to prepare myself :)

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Their teeth aren't long but they are needle-sharp. If you've ever been nipped by a very young puppy with milk teeth, that's what it's like.

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Originally Posted by Tigerhawk

You can't fix stupid.

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x2

Also, I really hope that by 'getting rid of all their snakes' they don't mean killing them. That would be super stupid, but these guys have already overreacted so I wouldn't put it past them. And why the f**k did they call the police?!

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Originally Posted by diamond123

thats crazy that they did all those x-rays and stuff, it was just a bite. i seen youtube videos of people getting much worse bites and they just wash the blood offf and carry on. the girl said to her mum that it doesn't hurt so why did they panic so much! and they didn't need to cut the snakes neck, poor thing. they probably didn't even try any other methods beforehand, cuz if they had that snake would still be alive. personally i think the whole story was a big over reaction to something that wasn't that bad.

this may sound hypocritical, but I'm thinking of getting a ball python, and I'm a bit nervous about it biting me. if it does bite, how bad does it hurt? cuz I've seen snake breeders get bit and they say it doesn't hurt but I've never been bit before and I'm kinda young (not like, 4 year old young, but teenager young) and i might be more sensitive to the bite. i defiantly want one, i just want to prepare myself :)

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A paper cut hurts significantly more.



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Originally Posted by Coleslaw007

That may well have been the most retarded thing I've ever read.

Sent from my PG86100 using Tapatalk 2

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X2 typical over reaction, the kid was taunting the animal. No real harm was done except to the poor animal.

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Originally Posted by kmg

thread back from the dead!!!:skullbone:tombstone:skullbone

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AGAIN!!!

Sounds like the toothless ball python needs some snake dentures.

Where did you get this photo?

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Originally Posted by AuWiMo

Where did you get this photo?

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Over TWO years old and many members no longer active....