I need some snake people!!

[mainbutter]

Ummmm, at 27 Mommy should NOT be putting your dog down or telling you what to keep in your own house.

Stiffen that spine and stand up for yourself.

[JohnNJ]

I feel your pain. My father thought my Iguana would give us bad luck.

Tell her you are going to get rid of the snakes as soon as...whatever. Just keep putting it off. Every time she brings it up just agree with her.

I do that with my mother-in-law. We can't fight if I always agree.

[ChristinaP]

I think guys tend to be more sensitive with their mothers. I know my hubby absolutely canNOT say no to his mother. Drives me up the wall sometimes, considering she HATES me!

We went through the same thing with her and my mom. We have a 4 year old and they were concerned that the snakes would bite him or get out of their enclosure and strangle him in his sleep. Our ball's lid locks and on top of that, we have 30 pounds of books (as extra) Jake is in a critter carrier with a locking lid.

I copied some care sheets from around the web, showed them pictures of their set-ups, snakes don't tend to "kill" for fun, usually for food, so I'm not so worried about that.

Try that.

Also, you're 27, I assume living on your own (own house) she shouldn't have any say so in it. If you were living with her, I can understand, but not on your own.

As far as your doggie, I'm sorry he/she was put down. But he/she was prob scared with the NEW person. You can't just walk up to a dog and pet it, it would growl (I know mine goes insane if a stranger walks in the yard) Again, she would have no say so if it lives in your home.

[BPMIKE]

Protoplasmic Pete, Pelagic Wonderer and Lover of Rubber Boobs says welcome to the Jelly Club, the only prerequisite for acceptance is total lack of spinal chord.

Yay you.

When you are dealing with a parent you should show respect!It is his home and he can keep what he wants in his own house.Those of you telling him to grow a back bone what do you suggest he do body slam his mom?You are going about this in the right way with the exception of the yelling at mom.Just take it slow and easy.She may never get over this you don't know the level of her fear.Take it easy with your Mom.We only get one!
Mike.

[Jason Bowden]

U-B-U You're a grown-up and being your self is part of that.

I don't keep my snakes in the "high traffic" family/friends/get together rooms of my home. Plenty of people come over and don't realize that there are 50 or so snakes in my home. I keep 7 adult breeder ball pythons in my master bedroom(in a rack system; yes there is a lamp and framed pictures on top of it; and it doesn't look too out of place). I beleive that most peoples' master bedroom is off limits during get togethers,etc.(with the exception of using the restroom there). Like on MTV cribs: dats where all the magic happens--PRIVATE--. The third/guest bedroom in my house is strictly a snake room.

Sorry to hear about your dog. I'm at a loss for words on that subject.

Parents love us and want the best for us!

I hope you meet a guy that shares your passion for animals! Jason

[PythonWallace]

When you are dealing with a parent you should show respect!It is his home and he can keep what he wants in his own house.Those of you telling him to grow a back bone what do you suggest he do body slam his mom?You are going about this in the right way with the exception of the yelling at mom.Just take it slow and easy.She may never get over this you don't know the level of her fear.Take it easy with your Mom.We only get one!
Mike.

I disagree with a lot of that. This is a matter of a mom not showing respect for her grown adult daughter.

If that were my dog, I would have flipped out and severed ties with her for a while. Dogs are supposed to bark at new people. I have two dogs, a rott/beagle that only barks at shady people, and an American bull dog that barks at everyone who enters HIS house if he doesn't know them. The rott/beagle has an amazing sense for picking out scum bags, and the bull dog not so much, so he does his job with everyone he doesn't know. Dogs are supposed to be protective of the people who take care of them, as well as their homes. If they didn't bark, I'd consider them defective, and useless for that purpose. To have a dog put down for barking at, or jumping at a new guy who walks into it's house behind your sister is absolutely INSANE.

As far as her concern with snakes, tell her to know what she's talking about before she opens her mouth. I would have gotten the yelling out of the way a LONG time ago, putting my foot down with that sort of nonsense way before it came to the possibility of her thinking it was okay for her to kill your dog. If you don't want to yell, at least write her a serious and long letter. It sounds like you have a lot you could say to her about this and probably a ton of other things she does. You're 27. It's time mom is brought down a peg or two. Even if she was a brilliant woman with infinite wisdom, you are still too old to be putting up with that kind of shadow, but she doesn't sound like a genius, so it's definitely time to back her up 50 paces before drawing a line for her to stay behind. Do you want to be like Principal Skinner your whole life, just so you can avoid ever hurting her feelings, which will heal?

[Freakie_frog]

I went through this for a little while with my parents when I got my first snake. I was 24 had my own place and had been that way since I was 18 and in college. However I simply had enough one day after hearing all the reasons I shouldn't keep killer snakes, and politely told them that if they felt the need to tell me what pets I could keep I'd happily have my bills forwarded to their house..At that point they could interject their opinion on my choice of pet as much as they want. However since I am a GROWN ASS MAN who pays his own bills I'll keep what ever pets I wish..

Now my dad and I are business partners and my mom goes digging through the racks when shes over looks for her favorites which are the Mojaves and Bee.

There is no convincing them only coming to acceptance with yourself that your parents aren't always going to approve of your life decisions,and that OK's . It doesn't make you a bad unloving, ungrateful child. It makes you an grown ass individual who no longer needs you parents approval to eat cookie dough at 2am or keep beer in the fridge or rent rated R movies on pay-preview or keep a ball python in YOUR house.

Its not them that has to live with this realization its you and the sooner you do the happier your life will be.

[stratus_020202]

Well, she's coming over on Sat. for a pre-Mother's Day get-together. We'll see what happens. I am going to talk about them, and if someone wants to see them i will get them out. They are upstairs, and if she doesn't want to see them, she can stay in the living room.

I will simply tell her, "I love you, but I love them too. If you can't respect what I want in life, then I'm sorry, but they will be a part of me forever." If she leaves then she leaves. If she chooses to be stubborn and pig headed that's her fault. I know she loves me, and hopefully she can get over it. Maybe over time, she will realize they aren't monsters. I just look at their faces every day and don't see any sign of something threatening.

I'll also tell her if she wants ground to stand on, then find me some proof. Someone put in the hospital, or killed by a ball python.

[wilomn]

When you are dealing with a parent you should show respect!It is his home and he can keep what he wants in his own house.Those of you telling him to grow a back bone what do you suggest he do body slam his mom?You are going about this in the right way with the exception of the yelling at mom.Just take it slow and easy.She may never get over this you don't know the level of her fear.Take it easy with your Mom.We only get one!
Mike.

Not all of us have advocated yelling at mom. Let's keep our facts based in the realm of actuality not your made up one.

I suspect there is a LOT of stuff behind the scenes that we know nothing of but I can see the apron strings from here. I also think I see the can of teflon no stick in mom's apron, the one she keeps spraying on those apron strings to keep them from being cut asunder. Keep things slippery and the scissors can't bite. Time to break out the Katana.

[juddb]

My mom doesnt care so much that i own snakes, she just hates hearing how money i spend on them, she always says ~ "you used to catch them for free, why do you pay so much for them now?" But im also 27, so she can only offer advice. Just tell your her you love her and happy mothers day! Good luck