^THIS^
Suits will not get switch between animals so if a snake comes in has mites or even eggs on him, your snake can pick that up, not worth the risk to get a picture taken IMO but ultimately it's your snake.
The only way I would do it if I was doing a shoot with Santa is if I was hiring one to come to my house and that is VERY expensive so you better make it count and do a family thing and make sure he is comfortable to do a shoot with animals and snakes in particular.