Fox News 9:45 Friday Morning

[Custom Exotics]

Hmm... Not liking the thought of a mass ball python genocide. That seems like the very very very last option when all others have been exhausted. A sudden non-existence of rat breeders seems a little unlikely - they would still be in demand because reptiles would still be kept as pets by enthusiasts.

That would definately be a last option, and I dont think rat breeders will be suddenly non-existant either, there will still be rats out there, maybe not as prevalent bet they will be there. I also wasn't meaning everyone would be putting all their pythons down, I just meant that if this passes and people now have 10's, 100's and sometimes thousands of ball pythons, they aren't going to be able to keep them all as pets and buy rats from them on a weekly basis, it would be impossible, especially for the big breeders/hobbyists. Lets just hope this never even happens, I don't think it will, atleast for ball pythons.

[mxrider42]

Dark Angel- Thanks for the support.
To answer your question, I will NEVER put my snakes down. They are pets first. I love my animals. If you listen you can tell I was cut off.
Thanks
Trey

[darkangel]

Dark Angel- Thanks for the support.
To answer your question, I will NEVER put my snakes down. They are pets first. I love my animals. If you listen you can tell I was cut off.
Thanks
Trey

It makes me tremendously happy to hear that.

[Simpson Balls]

Thanks for all the advice. I was planning to take a normal and an Albino.

Panthercz. I was worried about them cutting my words. But it will be Live.

Well I guess a normal would be great to compare to a Albino but then again maybe to Fox it won't be? Maybe bring your top 2 snakes!

Daniel

[DM1975]

I think we all need to be flooding Fox with emails right now, many professional sounding emails about how bad of a job reporting this they did. This kind of reporting is biased and does nothing but sway others fears, the same as the anti-gun media does with portraying all of the evil in the world coming from the millions of guns legally owned in the USA, or anti war, or pro war media, or just about any other large scale press campaigns out there.

If one side can be heard then so can the other, and if we do not educate those out there about this hobby then we might just loose it for good. I have seen bogus restrictions and bans come and go in my other hobbies, and they get passed because people stay quiet until a law is passed, then it takes ten years or more to get them changed, if at all. I feel we need to be doing something about this now.

[Jason Bowden]

Thanks to AaronP, I got to see it. I think you did fine Trey. There is no way to address every snake issue in 4 minutes.
I think there will be regulations pertaining to the keeping of giant and venomous snakes in the future. Just my opinion.

[dmaricle]

i hate that i missed it. is there a way i can see a replay of it?

[LGL]

i hate that i missed it. is there a way i can see a replay of it?

Link: YouTube - Trey Barnard of Fireballpythons.com Fox National News Interview

Now Working.

There you go.


And great job, Trey!

[Jamie-n-Heith]

I would handle any leading questions with humor, and also maybe provide some statistics on injuries caused by other more traditional pets.

For example, on dogs:

4.7 Million Americans are bitten by dogs each year. Of those, about 800 Million require medical care, and on average, 12 are fatal. In 2008, 23 fatal dog attacks occurred in the U.S. -USlaw.com

You could follow that up with a statement like this:

"Contrast that with reptile pets, the numbers don't even come close, despite widespread media coverage on the few attacks that do unfortunately occur. Dog bites are not news simply because they are so common."

Good luck!

I disagree with the dog attacks not making the news, I am a pit bull owner and any time there is any kind of bad press on the breed it makes the news!! I think that instead of making beloved pets illegal to own (any type of pet) the legislation should be making people take more responsibility for their pets and their actions. I think people who own a pet should be responsible for its safety as welll as the people around its safety, and I dont think the government should be making the choice on what kind of animals we can or can not own!!

[DM1975]

I completely agree with this statement. Pits get a bad wrap all around. I do not own one, but my old neighbors had two and they were some of the best dogs I have ever seen. I have a GSP that bit someone in the face last year as they were climbing over my fence. So far I was fined by the city for it and their insurance is now trying to get mine to pay the damages. All because someone trespassed on my property. If it had really been my fault I would have been the first to pay up for my dogs actions, as I believe everyone should take responsibility for themselves. We just have to face the fact that people are stupid.