How do you deal with negative reactions about your reptile keeping?

[wilomn]

Perhaps it's because of my size, or maybe it's my winning smile, or maybe, I'm just a total smartass, but I generally don't encounter people in public who are overt in their objection to my snakes. However, since my partner and I now run a retail shop I do occasionally have people come in who are either genuinely afraid or genuinely stupid. The generally afraid I will generally try to educate, but if they don't want to learn I don't feel obligated to teach. Now the genuinely stupid, or conversely those who think they know everything but are in actuality genuinely stupid, are fair game.

Hearing something like, "oh, I hate snakes. Won't they try to kill you if they can?" often prompts me to respond with something like, "Well, they might try to kill you, especially after what you said, but if I don't give the attack command you'll be ok. For another minute or so."

People with kids who ask if we feed them the cute little mice and rats and then go on to tell me how cruel it is often get something from me along the lines of, "best keep an eye on your kid, last one that got too close almost got eaten, had to pull the little bugger out of the snake by his shoelaces."

Just plain idiots looking for an argument are often asked, "why does your opinion matter to me again?"

But then, I've been doing this a bit longer than most of you so I'm both amused and jaded.