How does your family/friends react to your pets?

In the short time I've had a snake, I've already been able to show a few friends that snakes aren't evil creatures. But for the most part my friends figured it was only a matter of time before I get some exotics into the mix, I love animals and they know it.

My sister also expected it but my mother was kinda shocked (mainly because she is deathly afraid of snakes). Hopefully I can eventually get my mother to warm up to snakes.

My mother was a bit apprehensive at first, but after seeing how mellow BPs are she warmed up. She doesn't mind if I get my girl out when she stops by my apartment. The main thing was showing her that they are slow and calm, not trying to dart and slither real fast like some of the colubrids and other species.

-Smiles.- My mother has been handling reptiles since she was a little girl, and they were the ones who bought Ophi for me. Mom is Grandma to Ophi. -Grins.- My father's sort of apathetic, but that's to be expected from a man like him. -Smiles.- My boyfriend loves them. They're our "kids."

My mom is the only one in my family that will hold Stan. My dad, my brothers and my boyfriend all refuse to touch him....

You mean friends already outside of the reptile world? Well that leaves me out of this question:(

my mother always says im sick for owning such evil creatures. the whole adam & eve with the apple thing always gets her. and how im sick in the head for being able to feed them other animals. (eye roll) but she LOVES my dogs & cats.

my father cant stand ANYYYY animal. I keep telling him I want to move to CT but no one would rent to me w/ all my pets in CT his answer is always the same, "get rid of them" oh how the makes me mad. I always tell him they are like my kids tho dad. but it never sinks in, never will either. So I just ignore him.
I told my dads wife I wanted to come visit for her halloween party but I dont like how I am made leave my dog in my sisters cellar (dad & sis live next to each other) so I cant justify keeping him down there for something as dumb as halloween. His wife told me all snotty, "you can rent a hotel" How rude is she!?!? Just because my dad now has kids with this woman, ages 1 and 3 now, I am not welcome to stay at his home. b4 my dad married her my dogs were allowed in his home when I came to visit! not to mention I was supposed to inherit his home someday which is valued close to 600k, my dads words when he told me the house would be mine was "sisters should live by each other, your sister and her husband are getting the business and its only fair you have something too". His young money grubbing wife who is only a couple years older than me & my sis made sure I wont get it and he allows it. When I went thru a bad break up a few yrs ago, I asked my dad if worse came to worse, can i live in ur cellar for a little while? he laughed AT me and said NO! I said well what about your shop? NOPE! he's not too nice at times lol

My sister isnt an animal lover but she at least loves me enough to understand me. the reason she makes me keep my shepherd in the cellar is she HATES dog hair and GSD's shed like mad, Our chi is allowed upstairs but either in her crate, on our laps or she can run around in the kitchen. Her home is brand new and beautiful. She owns really nice things, I respect her and her hating dog hair ways lol. Her kitchen is literally all silver & crystal. She's not mean to them and she buys them treats & toys on her own, she just doesn't like the messes.

So yeah thats how my family reacts to my pets.. Which is why I usually stay home except for major holidays.

they think im nuts lol, always think the snakes are 20 feet looking to constrict you lol.:rolleye2::rolleye2:

Hmm, let's see...

My partner/BF, Ari, thinks I have WAY too many animals and has made me sign a contract against bringing any new animals in unless they're hatched here or traded. Despite this, he really does love animals. :)

My mom is an animal lover as well, but snakes make her nervous. She can't understand why I would want so many, but doesn't fuss about it.

My dad, however, is an ex-Navy man who spent time in many Eastern places. Therefore, he thinks snakes are horrible and dangerous and not to be pets. He also hates rodents (life on ship) and doesn't really understand why I would have a whole colony in my apartment. :) He loves other animals, tho.

As for other friends, well the reactions are mixed. Some think it's too cool, others have sworn they will never enter my apartment. I have homemade snake crossing signs for BP and Corn on my door as a request from the maintenance people so they can remember which apt. has all the snakes. :)

Friends are cool with them. BF was scared of them at first and now has snakes of his own. Family, lol is a mixed bag. My mom has no problem with them, just the amount of them I have, she likes snakes and will hold them if I have them out. Grandpa likes the investement aspect but worries that I won't make my investment back (I won't, lol!) and my sperm donor hates all animals. Good thing he is not around :P

Well let's see...

The kids (8 year old twins) live with their mother up north, and are VERY excited to meet Bacchus when they come down for Christmas. They ask me about him every day when I call.

I had to tell my parents about him cause they are also visiting for Christmas, and I figured the kids would rat me out before they got here anyway. My dad said one of those words you can't use on a web forum, and my mother said she just doesn't want to see it....had to screw with her and tell her that when he escapes he mostly stays out of sight :P

My GF was with me when I got the little guy, and even though she is VERY afraid of snakes from some childhood incident, she has warmed up to Bacchus and handles him regularly. The GF's daughters think he's 'da bomb', their words, and both want one some day.

My mom and older like them as long as they stay in thier cages. My younger bro thinks I'm nuts and my friends have the full spectrum of reaction.
Mark

Oh, that reminds me...

My 10 (on Sunday) year old daughter who lives in Austin with Dad has never yet seen my snakes in person... but she thinks it's the coolest thing. She has pictures of all of them and is always asking how they're doing when she calls. :) Of all my friends and family, she's the one who loves them the most!

I can't believe I forgot to mention her... shows how long it's been since I saw her.

Family is pretty much of the whole "Well, ok, but you sure are weird. Don't let them eat the baby." mindset.

Friends are pretty much all either snake owners themselves, or want to be now after meeting my babies. I can't really think of any that are actually scared of them, though some just don't much care.

I'm newly single after just getting out of a 4 year relationship, but the Ex was just as into the snakes as I am.

My side of the family except for my brother's brood will not come to visit my house anymore since we got the snakes... (my husband is too polite to admit he's cool with that). My husband's family doesn't like them but tolerates them when they come visit.
The crazy thing is all my Asian friends are deathly scared of them and avoids the "snake room" like the plague.
My sons took the snakes to school for show and tell and all the kids are super excited and wanted to hold the snake (which I wasn't cool about thinking it would be too stressful for the snakes, but my husband thinks it will be just fine since he really wanted to reinforce to the kids that snakes aren't evil and all that stuff). My 7-year-old son gave a very detailed oration on bp husbandry while my 5-year-old handled the Q&A brilliantly! Cool, huh?

I have a Pitbull and a Blood Python in my home and they keep my in-laws away and for that I am very thankful.

Yup!

My wife "tolerates" it... my boy loves it as it is his first snake. If he is anything like me, he will have more Herps as time passes. Though his BP will be with him a long time...!

Friends are glad it's in my house and come over to see the "feed".

My wife actually was the one who suggested it, as we took in/adopted a baby BP. I have had beardies, monitors, snakes, frogs, turtles, etc since I was a wee lad. Used to come home from the woods with pissy water snakes and bloody arms.

Mother hates them, Father does not care. They will never learn. haha

All of my friends seem to either remain neutral or really like the critters. as for the parents the hardest thing for them to swallow was the Ball Python. My father said he had a phobia of snakes but didn't care much that I got one. Odd thing is he tries to peek into the snakes tank and look for him and loves to watch him eat. My girlfriend also helped me pick out the python and says it reminds her of her dog because its so cute.

My imedate family is pretty used to how I am. I had a pet garter snake for a summer and he was like my buddy. I wanted a pet but I can't have cats or dogs in my apartment not only that I can't give them the proper care 'cause I'm not home everyday. With my snake it's easy. My sister doesn't mind snakes, mom thinks it's cool, and my Dad is like okay what ever. Then he'll ask me how much you spend and then get pissed off. My grand parents say the Adam and Eve stuff since I don't believe in organized religion they're used to me anyways. The rest of the family I rarely talk to. My friend Gary will ask me when he comes over if he can get him out. I have no problem with him doing it 'cause I can trust him.

Our families think we are crazy. And when the neighbors come over and we get a snake out they freak out. The cringe when they crawl over our faces and heads. It is funny. My mother inlaw likes them but is kinda afraid to hold them but she does anyway. We try to educate people with the knowledge that we have of them so people aren't so afraid. :snake:

My boyfriend is the secondary caregiver to Pandora. He helps me with almost everything that needs to be done even though I end up doing most of the work :P:gj:

Dad is indifferent, doesn't mind snakes but doesn't really pay much attention to it either. On the other hand, my mom is deathly terrified of snakes which is why I always leave Pandora and everything to do with her in my room, I warn my mom when I have her out and she always peaks in to make sure she's not exploring before she comes into my room. I just purchased in a mini fridge for my room so that my mom doesn't have to deal with frozen rats in her room. We both kind of compromised when I got miss snake.

My brother in law loves Pandora and handles her/watches me feed whenever he comes over, where as my sister will handle her for a bit but has no interest in feeding or anything like that. A bunch of my friends are also very interested in her where as some are scared.

Overall, I'd say I have it pretty good :)

My mother was the one who got me my first snake (despite disliking them originally) and now even likes them; she holds them, talks to them, and pets them. My dad is fine with them so long as they don't touch him--and in the entire time I've had snakes, he has never once touched one of them. My brother is mostly indifferent; he likes them well enough, but doesn't want one (but that's generally how he is about everything except video games). My sister is terrified.

My maternal grandparents put up with them, my paternal grandparents are terrified of them, and the extended family is either fascinated or terrified.

My friends mostly like them, and a lot of them will fight over who gets to hold which snake when they're over. XDD

My mom has always liked snakes, my dad doesn't care.

i love the squirmy people!! the reactions when they come in and you are just chillin with your snake on your arm, they stand there or sit down for a few. then when they finally see it, they have a friggen heart attack! yeah baby!!

My mom who lives 1,200 miles away wishes I would sell all 35 of them.

Well, here's an example. I got accepted to a great school in the city, and it will cost me almost nothing to go there, tuition-wise. My aunt, uncle and two cousins invited me to come live with them because they are only 5 blocks away from the school. My aunt knows that I have snakes, but for some reason, didn't expect them to come with. She flipped and refuses to have them in her house. ....sooooo.... now I have no where to live..and I doubt I can afford an apartment. If I take on a job to help with the apartment, my grades will drop and Ill lose the 20k a year that I am getting off of school for my grades - and I won't be able to go. (I'm pre-med. Slightly difficult to keep up grades, all by itself) Hopefully I can get a good loan on an apartment...or everything is now messed up because my snakes are going to eat her in the night... *sigh* :snake:


:tears: ....and I start school Monday....

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by HypoPita

Well, here's an example. I got accepted to a great school in the city, and it will cost me almost nothing to go there, tuition-wise. My aunt, uncle and two cousins invited me to come live with them because they are only 5 blocks away from the school. My aunt knows that I have snakes, but for some reason, didn't expect them to come with. She flipped and refuses to have them in her house. ....sooooo.... now I have no where to live..and I doubt I can afford an apartment. If I take on a job to help with the apartment, my grades will drop and Ill lose the 20k a year that I am getting off of school for my grades - and I won't be able to go. (I'm pre-med. Slightly difficult to keep up grades, all by itself) Hopefully I can get a good loan on an apartment...or everything is now messed up because my snakes are going to eat her in the night... *sigh* :snake:


:tears: ....and I start school Monday....

---

I hate to say it but... ...I would sell what I have and move in with the aunt. School is nothing to mess up. After school you'll have plenty of time and opportunity to get want you want. Sometimes sacrifice now is best for your future. Just my .02 cents

My partner likes the snakes and does not mind them, he isn't as passionate about them as me, but can tolerate getting defecated on without flying into hysterics, I cannot really ask for much more than that.

My family is relatively indifferent, they are neither scared nor into them. They like the breeding aspect (I come from a long line of animal breeders) so we can talk genetics, temperment, etc.

Most of my friends aren't that involved with them, and I am OK with that. I do not really like having a bunch of people in the snake room, and I do not like strangers handling my animals.

a) I do not know what they may or may not bring in
b) I do not want to be responsible should they get bit or have a bad experience
c) most people cannot sit through "snakes 101" so they lose interest (I do not let my animals get handled unless I think the person can anticipate the animal's body language and they can respect the animal and know how to interact with it)

The two that show the most interest are my 6 and 9 year old nieces, they come through the door and the first thing they want to know is "ou est les pythones?"... they are always in the snake room hanging out.

I have one or two that are great lap snakes, so if people are interested I will bring them out to visit if everything is calm and cohesive.

If not... I just say "oh they just ate... are going into shed... are locked... are sleeping (my favorite)" and interest dissipitates pretty quickly.

Bruce

My mother is terrified of them, but she let us have them as pets when we were growing up, kudos to her.

My brother absolutely loves them!

My son thinks they are cool, I've exposed him to all kinds of animals in his 21 yrs.

My roomates 14 y/o daughter wanted a ball but her dad said no he didn't want her to get a snake, so I sat him down and explained things to him, the pro's & cons, he gave it some thought for a few minutes and agreed with me. she's had her 08 pastel for a month now.

My friends 5 y/o son is here every feeding day to watch, and make playdough

I'm working hard at staying single, so no significant other to worry about.

My roomates girl friend is terrified os snakes and spiders, I don't like her anyway (thinking about getting some T's to keep on the kitchen counter) :)

My immediate family thinks I am insane for having 40+ herps (19 of which are snakes) and prefer not to hear about or see them.

My live-in girlfriend's family thinks of my hobby as a curiousity, and I've been asked several times to let relatives "see" my collection.

In general, when I meet people socially or at work, I make absolutely no mention of any of it. People don't understand, nor do they have any desire to learn.

Growing up I always wanted a snake but to no avail, so when I was like 11 my grandmother let me have a green iguana from there I got into monitors and kept 2 of them an argus and a savanna and later into panther chams. I would mention a snake now and then and ofcourse she would flip. My neighbor was moving and had to get rid of his BP and everything was free , I snuck it in my room while she was gone. When she came home I didnt hear her come in my room so to no suprise shes like "whats that"? I'm like uhhhhhh.... Ya she went flying out of the house with the cordless and called the cops on me LOL so ya I had to give the snake back and was almost homeless after that attempt.So I had to wait to the college days for snakesIn college I had a GTP and a normal ball . So along with pretty much the rest of my family I always hear " The only good snake is a dead snake". Which to me people will always fear what they dont understand. As I have been out of the hobby for a few years , I have gotten back into it . My fiance is "ok" with them. She flipped about my first purchase, which was a Female BumbleBee. I heard the price everyday alll day, until I explained the business side (and no its not all about the money) that I wanted to get into but never had the opportunity before. She takes sticker shock a bit easier now which Im very thankful for and shes very supportive of what I choose to do. I find it cool that she will get into these indepth convo's with me about the hobby and like " well what would you get if you x this morph" which to me is great that she is very inquisitive about the BP's. Plus I'm not a "petshop addict" I dont drag home everything I see, I stick to the BP's (

my mom hates snakes my dad thinks shes cool when she eats :P and my other family (OLD GEEZERS!)think its going to eat me lol!

Well the only pets I have are in my 75gal saltwater aquarium, lol, and I consider them more of a decoration than pets.

But I can give you MY reaction to pets in general. IMO, there is nothing more disgusting than animal hair, so if i walk into someones house that has a dog or cat and theyre laying on the couch or walking in the kitchen where people cook and eat, it skeeves me out beyond belief. Even if im standing on line at the grocery store behind some person that has cat/dog hair on their shirt i want to vomit. The smell of their food and litter boxes dont help any either.

I think I was scarred when growing up because my parents had 4 cats and they had free roam of the house. Between the hairballs, the puking, the hair, the smell of the food/litter box, I stopped eating at home in fear there would be a strand of cat hair in my food lol...

My cleaning lady says my apt is a "joy" to clean because im the only one on her route that does not have animals. My girlfriend has a dog and my parents still have a few cats and before they walk in my place I have the lint roller and little wastebasket right in the hallway before you step in my living room..

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Louie1

I hate to say it but... ...I would sell what I have and move in with the aunt. School is nothing to mess up. After school you'll have plenty of time and opportunity to get want you want. Sometimes sacrifice now is best for your future. Just my .02 cents

---

Thanks for the honesty. On the plus side though..Apparently, I'm getting $22k in scholarships pr year...so I only would need a loan for ~3k for school...and then an apartment. I'd say that's getting off pretty easy! I don't feel like being around never-washed dogs that I'm highly allergic to...or the communists that live there...Allergic to them as well. :rofl: I wouldn't be happy there - and that would lose me significantly more than an apartment costs (they're a lot cheaper than the dorms).

To add to the original now that I'm not frustrated; My mom likes them, and my g/f loves em. Charlie is hers! She spends more time looking up morphs than I do sometimes XD My dad wasn't crazy about snakes. He refused to be near me if I had one out, but he has calmed down quite a bit and could really care less if one is out or not.

Not very many of my friends like them. More girls than guys...which I wouldn't have thought.

One thing seems to reign supreme - say "python" and the sky falls, forms into gigantic snakes and eats your children. :rolleye2:

Its funny my dad hates that I have so many pets 38 balls, 2 hots, 5 geckos, 1 tortiose, 1 rtb, 4 dogs, and now 1 brb but when I had my gaboons, rhinos, puffs, and cobras he was always cheching them out. He would tell everyone about them, like everytime he went into the room the breeding pair of gaboons would hiss really loud. My mom was deathly afraid that I was going to die from one of them but now that I only have 2 hot not so much, the others she doesn't care about. My friends love to come over and see them, none of them have any reptiles so to them comming over is like a live NatGeo show.My wife loves them and helps me take care of them and all this even after being bit more than once.

Well I have cats and a dog. My sister would prefer that I not have the cats or the dog.(We've had fights over it but I told her I can't get rid of them..even though they're crazy little kitty monsters..lol). As for my Chihuahua my mom doesn't really like her. She thinks she's annoying and spoiled. LOL. My sister also doesn't enjoy my dog either. She sort of thinks having a little dog is pointless because she doesn't play like a big dog. It's true though..Belle probably plays for like 5 minutes and is than done. She'll sleep next to me while I hang out on the computer or chase the cats.

My dad doesn't love animals. LOL. He met Belle(the Chi) in Idaho. He held her for maybe a minute while I went to check on something and that was it. He did think she was "cute" though.

I love dogs and cats myself. Cat hair, dog hair, etc doesn't really bother me all that much.

As for snakes I do not own one but at first thinking I thought you snake people were crazy! I said "What is the point of owning a snake?" I made silly assumptions that were wrong. I'd love to own a snake-after much research and learning though. I don't think I could actually come home with a snake tomorrow and feel okay with the decision.

My family thinks i'm nuts for wanting to own one. I haven't talked to my 22 year old brother about it. My older brother said it was cool that I was getting over my fear of snakes. My sister said it was crazy but whatever.. (gotta love that response) and my dad doesn't know that I want to own one. I told my mom about it and she was kind of curious. I was never interested in reptiles as a kid.

everybody thinks im a weirdo!:D,having the rats is worse than the snakes!:)people say you have rats in your house YUK!!

mom cant stand snakes, the whole bible story thing gets to her... but she does love my cat cuz hes the cutest freakin thing ever (my sister and dad also have cats) but she is ok with my beardy, geckos, turtle, and the monitor that im planning on picking up, but overall shes a good sport about my having my snake out and on my neck or wrist

dad hates my reptiles only because his electric bill is $50 more a month, but he refuses to touch them, weird...

my 3 sisters are all different, one sister loves all my pets, and holds the snake and knows a decent amount about them, my other sister has a 2 month old kid so her only concern is my BP constricting my nephew, :rolleyes: and my oldest sister cant stand him, but her BF used to have boas and loves my snake, always holds him when he comes over

all my friends love checking out all the various tanks in my room, even the girls are interested until i pull out the BP than they start freaking out, but i once had 14 people in my room and i had the snake out on my wrist for 10 minutes before anyone even realized... hahaha it was pretty funny when they did see it