Why PETA Thinks Snakes Shouldn't be Pets (Disputed)

http://www.peta.org/living/companion...es-never-pets/
Here's the article, and why it's wrong, like most things the PETA writes.

1. PETA claims that the reptile trade is a "dirty business."
First off, this is a ridiculous claim for several reasons. Despite the fact that most common pet snakes are CB, the PETA apparently believes that; "most reptiles are stolen from their natural habitats". Notice how they declined to say snakes. On top of that, those in the reptile business tend to be very caring, intelligent, and kind people. Of course there are many exceptions, but most care about their animals above all else.

2. Snakes have specialized needs.
Well, this one's title is correct, but that's about it for facts. Saying that it is near impossible to provide for a reptile appropriately is frankly asinine. In the wild snakes don't have perfect temperatures, stress free environments, or a constant supply of fresh food/water. These can all be easily taken care of by any responsible owner. I wonder why snakes tend to live 3-4 times as long in captivity as they do in the wild...must be improper care and all those evil reptile owners. :rolleyes:

3. Keeping reptiles is a killing cycle. Quote from the article: "Snakes eat rabbits, mice, and crickets, animals you’ll have to purchase at a pet store, further bolstering the industry." I wouldn't even dignify this with a response, but I'm covering everything, so here goes. What does PETA think that snakes eat in the wild? Flowers and grass? And I'm sure all us ball python keepers are causing the mass slaughter of thousands of innocent crickets each year. Seriously, where does this place get its facts? A five year old can tell you that most common snakes do not eat crickets. (Yes I know some do, but very few everyday pet owners go out and purchase an insect eater.)

4. Captivity is Cruel. "Rather than exploring lush jungles and swamps and experiencing all the sensory pleasures that they're so keenly attuned to, captive snakes are relegated to aquariums in which they can't even stretch out to full length, much less move around or climb."
PETA's bomb-proof argument. Okay, so exploring lush jungles basically translates to dying slowly of exposure/hunger or getting killed by a large bird of prey. I mean, if getting ripped to pieces or starving to death is a sensory pleasure, then sure I guess... And the second part of this "argument" is twice as bad. If you are keeping your snake in an "aquarium" where it can't move or climb, then you should have your snake taken away from you. But once again, PETA paints everyone with the same broad brush stroke. I can assure you that 100 percent of RESPONSIBLE and caring reptile owners would never dream of such terrible housing.

5. "Sky-High" Mortality Rates in Captive Reptiles.
Last, but definitely not least on the crazy-scale, is this argument. According to PETA, at least 75 percent of reptiles (once again, not snakes) die in their first year of captivity. Um, what? Not only is this statistic highly improbable, but surely even PETA isn't insane enough to believe that wild survival rates are better! If well taken care of, captive animals live much, much longer than their wild counterparts, particularly reptiles.

There is just so much wrong with this article, and the PETA in general, that I can't cover it all. Facts and statistics that make zero sense, strange and manipulative wording, and "shock" factors everywhere. Please, please, please never support this organization and educate others about it. Anyone who cares about animals should avoid and boycott them. They have a radical agenda and value human life as less then that of an animal. So, if you are a pet owner who cares about your rights to own, yes own, your pets, not companion animals or whatever the PETA calls them, steer clear of PETA, educate others, and contact them to demand this sort of crap taken down. The contact information is on the site linked. Sorry for the rant, but I was recently targeted by this organization and decided to dig deeper. Thanks for reading, and please correct anything I may have missed or written wrong. :)

I honestly agree with every bit of this


I think they're more concerned with making money and pushing people around than actually caring anything about animals.

peta obviously cares about animals, but they've got such a deep green mentality, plus quite ignorant, that they just sometimes miss the point a bit. A lot of the issues they raise are valid- i.e. a lot of animals do die in their first year, and a lot of animals are taken from the wild, but their need to sensationalise and shock means that they sometimes miss the point, as here. Their heart's in the right place though :P

I have a profound love and respect for all animals, that being said, I have seen unspeakable atrocities inflicted upon many animals (from pig and cow slaughterhouses to police tying dogs to the back bumper of the car, to the Yulin dog meat festival in China) and I think organizations like PETA could help diminish that kind of human abuse. As I have expressed in other posts I believe nature is cruel and like you said wild animals don't have controlled environments and diets and most all the times suffer gruesome deaths. I will never forget a documentary about lions, one of the females got her jaw kicked off by a giraffe. That lion knew she was dead at that time, so she just separated from the pack and after a couple days with the face fully infected and starving to death she just lied down and relaxed while she was being eaten alive by hienas. Now tell me nature is not cruel.

Also as an avid hunter I believe that hunting is just part of nature, I feel it is my responsibility to practice and keep my gear in top shape to guarantee a good, clean and fast kill, I rather hunt my food than buying processed meat from stressed and ill treated animals. The meat business has turned now days onto disgusting inhuman slaughterhouses. And that is what PETA should target.

Obviously no one in PETA has ever kept any pet, and as such they can't have an impartial opinion. The down side of this organizations is that they easily loose track of their objectives. They need funding and for that they have to do things that go to media and for that they become sensationalists, they tend to go hugging trees in front of the camera instead of going to courtrooms where they can really make a difference for suffering animals.

But that's just my opinion.


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Most hatchlings in the wild don't survive their first year. If they did, we'd have hungry snakes underfoot everywhere. Most CB clutches have a high survival rate, keepers are producing healthy, robust babies generation after generation. I think that data is in that snakes can do very well in captivity.

An activist should be well versed in the situation he/she is trying to change. PETA people are ignorant about pet care, farming, hunting, and the natural world in general. I tend to think the organisation attracts individuals suffering from a personality disorder.

Unfortunately, a lot of people have very low information literacy. The most frustrating part about these articles is that people will read them without questioning them, or would not know how to go about finding and recognizing credible facts vs dubious, vague statistics. All of the "facts" in this article are very vague and not properly cited, but many people will assume it's all accurate. It's no different from the people who get medical information from Facebook posts and mommy blogs vs actual peer reviewed articles. [emoji849]


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If only their motives were pure I could try to give them some credit, but when an animal right activist group "saves animals" from the pound and turn around to euthanize them to make their number look good and increase their donation, then they have lost all credibility. Who is cruel now? :rolleyes:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nathan...b_2979220.html

http://www.roanoke-chowannewsherald....in-peta-trial/


Captive breeding is not a bad thing, some species owe a lot to captive breeding, not to mention that there is a REAL conservation effort out there and it's no thanks to PETA.

PETA is a money making machine that will lie and say just about anything to reach their goals.

Sure there are problems in any animal industry but PETA is not the solution, we as responsible individual are, and education is key.

You can also put HSUS in the same group, huge media presence,, tear jerking commercial and not doing much.

Thanks for all the good points everyone. Deborah, I used to be impartial to the PETA until I read up a bit and realized, like you mentioned, just how many "rescued" animals are euthanized at their kill shelters. A couple weeks ago I got threats from PETA to confiscate my snake. Luckily, they are not allowed on my property without a warrant and I made that very clear. Unfortunately, their power is growing with millions of dollars in funding each year.

Smokin our ciggarettes

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Originally Posted by SKO

Smokin our ciggarettes

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:rofl:

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Originally Posted by FlynnTheBP

A couple weeks ago I got threats from PETA to confiscate my snake. Luckily, they are not allowed on my property without a warrant and I made that very clear. Unfortunately, their power is growing with millions of dollars in funding each year.

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Can you share how you got on their radar and what justification they were planning to use for the confiscation?

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Originally Posted by bcr229

Can you share how you got on their radar and what justification they were planning to use for the confiscation?

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It's crazy, but I actually have no idea how they got my address. Really, all I can think of is that my neighbors (who luckily no longer live in the area) tipped them off that I owned reptiles and they came over to check it out. Their reason for the search and "possible confiscation" was the fact that I might have "illegal and dangerous" snakes in my house. Anyway, I was surprised bye the request to come in and "look" at my animals, but I knew something was up and told them to leave before I called the cops. They had no warrant or even a valid reason for coming, so they took off. Funny thing was, I answered the door with one of my leopard geckos on my shoulder (I'd been cleaning his vivarium), and the look on the guy's face who knocked on my door was pretty hilarious... Anyway, it's no secret that I keep reptiles, so I've actually had organizations call me over and over to yell at me over the phone on numerous occasions. I think the fact that almost everyone who knows me also knows that I own reptiles, especially when I was breeding my leos and posted ads, made me a target. I'd advise being very careful about who you talk to about non-traditional pets, I certainly learned my lesson. It makes me sad that I can't even talk about my animals without having to worry about being harassed.

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Originally Posted by Dumdum333

peta obviously cares about animals,

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Before it became a corporation maybe, now its simply a payoff to the people running it.

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Originally Posted by FlynnTheBP

Thanks for all the good points everyone. Deborah, I used to be impartial to the PETA until I read up a bit and realized, like you mentioned, just how many "rescued" animals are euthanized at their kill shelters. A couple weeks ago I got threats from PETA to confiscate my snake. Luckily, they are not allowed on my property without a warrant and I made that very clear. Unfortunately, their power is growing with millions of dollars in funding each year.

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First off PETA has zero authoritative right to send you a letter threating to take any of your property, secondly if they do show up don't open the door, and tell them were they can go and how they can get there. They themselves shouldn't even be there in general, it should be a uniformed police officer with a warrant, the people making the complaints should not be on the property with law enforcement.

EDIT I just read the post that they did show up and you did just that lol...I get ahead of myself with replies, sorry.

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Originally Posted by FlynnTheBP

It's crazy, but I actually have no idea how they got my address. Really, all I can think of is that my neighbors (who luckily no longer live in the area) tipped them off that I owned reptiles and they came over to check it out. Their reason for the search and "possible confiscation" was the fact that I might have "illegal and dangerous" snakes in my house. Anyway, I was surprised bye the request to come in and "look" at my animals, but I knew something was up and told them to leave before I called the cops. They had no warrant or even a valid reason for coming, so they took off. Funny thing was, I answered the door with one of my leopard geckos on my shoulder (I'd been cleaning his vivarium), and the look on the guy's face who knocked on my door was pretty hilarious... Anyway, it's no secret that I keep reptiles, so I've actually had organizations call me over and over to yell at me over the phone on numerous occasions. I think the fact that almost everyone who knows me also knows that I own reptiles, especially when I was breeding my leos and posted ads, made me a target. I'd advise being very careful about who you talk to about non-traditional pets, I certainly learned my lesson. It makes me sad that I can't even talk about my animals without having to worry about being harassed.

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You are nicer than I am....I'd have gone to jail had some no-name turd showed up at my door asking to see my reptiles.

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Originally Posted by FlynnTheBP

It's crazy, but I actually have no idea how they got my address. Really, all I can think of is that my neighbors (who luckily no longer live in the area) tipped them off that I owned reptiles and they came over to check it out. Their reason for the search and "possible confiscation" was the fact that I might have "illegal and dangerous" snakes in my house. Anyway, I was surprised bye the request to come in and "look" at my animals, but I knew something was up and told them to leave before I called the cops.

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this is terrifying and honestly borders harassment. i can't even imagine how i'd react; i would have called authorities regardless.

i think this is an important part of the article that's getting overlooked; the very last sentence:

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Please, never buy a snake or any animal from a pet store and ask friends and family not to support this deadly industry, either.

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this is something i agree with, but i believe it should have been the opening/main point of the article. we all know this forum's general feelings surrounding big-chain pet stores and how they operate. most of us in the hobby buy from responsible breeders and try our best to keep our money away from these places.

if PETA wanted to actually educate anyone, they would have stuck to this point and branched off from there. instead of pointing out the fact that almost ALL of those "statistics" should be solely applied to reptiles within the big chain pet store industry (and some "statistics" should not have even been mentioned), this is just not the case with responsible breeders and hobbyists at all.

their entire business is based on sensationalism, hate and fear-mongering. they are just a business. they have strayed very, very far from what they once were (were they ever a reputable organization?).

Wow, those PETA people have some balls. If they showed up at my place, I'd be calling the police at a minimum. It could probably be argued that they're impersonating a police officer. Try to push their way inside though, they're leaving in one of those big, fancy vans with the flashing lights.

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Originally Posted by sneksNferts

Wow, those PETA people have some balls. If they showed up at my place, I'd be calling the police at a minimum. It could probably be argued that they're impersonating a police officer. Try to push their way inside though, they're leaving in one of those big, fancy vans with the flashing lights.

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An ice cream truck?!

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Originally Posted by predatorkeeper87

An ice cream truck?!

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:rofl:

Ice Cream Trucks have freezers though....hmmmmm:O

??? Where do you live that your ice cream trucks have flashing lights?

But yeah, no, PETA is a PRIVATE organization, they have ZERO legal authority to enter you home or even step foot on your property. If any of them showed up at my door I would def be calling the cops. Most of my neighbors know I have snakes, but they're all chill with it because usually they see my 7 year old handling my big girl and how sweet and gentle she is, and I get going on my spiel about what awesome pets they are (and then I trot out the ones with really pretty, stunning colors and long story short I think I have people currently lined up for future snake babies and I don't even start my first parings until fall).

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Originally Posted by Lizardlicks

??? Where do you live that your ice cream trucks have flashing lights?

But yeah, no, PETA is a PRIVATE organization, they have ZERO legal authority to enter you home or even step foot on your property. If any of them showed up at my door I would def be calling the cops. Most of my neighbors know I have snakes, but they're all chill with it because usually they see my 7 year old handling my big girl and how sweet and gentle she is, and I get going on my spiel about what awesome pets they are (and then I trot out the ones with really pretty, stunning colors and long story short I think I have people currently lined up for future snake babies and I don't even start my first parings until fall).

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I live in the woods haha, ice cream trucks are like unicorns out here, they don't exist.

This scenario is why no one outside of my family knows what is in my house. Unless I know who you are I don't answer my door or my phone for that matter.

We don't answer the door or phone either. If it's important, they can leave a message. Any time I see a suspicious car in front of the house, I take down the plate number. I also have signs on the doors notifying people we have video cameras. The front and back gates are always locked anyway, so someone would have to climb over. However, at that point they would have to face three angry dogs.

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Originally Posted by distaff

We don't answer the door or phone either. If it's important, they can leave a message. Any time I see a suspicious car in front of the house, I take down the plate number. I also have signs on the doors notifying people we have video cameras. The front and back gates are always locked anyway, so someone would have to climb over. However, at that point they would have to face three angry dogs.

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I think I should get a couple signs too...where did you buy yours?

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Originally Posted by FlynnTheBP

I think I should get a couple signs too...where did you buy yours?

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I just made them.
They can stand there chewing it over and decide to believe it or not.
I expect you could find something to down load that looks "official."

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Originally Posted by tttaylorrr

i think this is an important part of the article that's getting overlooked; the very last sentence:

this is something i agree with, but i believe it should have been the opening/main point of the article. we all know this forum's general feelings surrounding big-chain pet stores and how they operate. most of us in the hobby buy from responsible breeders and try our best to keep our money away from these places.

if PETA wanted to actually educate anyone, they would have stuck to this point and branched off from there. instead of pointing out the fact that almost ALL of those "statistics" should be solely applied to reptiles within the big chain pet store industry (and some "statistics" should not have even been mentioned), this is just not the case with responsible breeders and hobbyists at all.

their entire business is based on sensationalism, hate and fear-mongering. they are just a business. they have strayed very, very far from what they once were (were they ever a reputable organization?).

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I would agree that chain stores really do need to step up their animal care, but not all local pet shops operate in this way. In fact, even my nearby Petsmarts are very well versed on caring for snakes, fish, and other "non-traditional" pets. Of course, I try to avoid purchasing from them since not all of their locations are as nice, but they are the only practical option for my area. Then there's the closest Petco, which makes me sick to my stomach and is a very good example of a very bad chain store. :(

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Originally Posted by distaff

I just made them.
They can stand there chewing it over and decide to believe it or not.
I expect you could find something to down load that looks "official."

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That's a good idea actually, it'll save some money. Thanks! :)

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Originally Posted by FlynnTheBP

I would agree that chain stores really do need to step up their animal care, but not all local pet shops operate in this way. In fact, even my nearby Petsmarts are very well versed on caring for snakes, fish, and other "non-traditional" pets. Of course, I try to avoid purchasing from them since not all of their locations are as nice, but they are the only practical option for my area. Then there's the closest Petco, which makes me sick to my stomach and is a very good example of a very bad chain store. :(

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That's a good idea actually, it'll save some money. Thanks! :)

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totally agree! my local petsmart actually does very well with their beeps, and i always check on them to make sure they're doing okay. however i've heard many horror stories to consider my store's care atypical.

great care is not always the case, but even one instance of neglect is enough for me to think hard about where my money goes.