Touchy subject, snake remains.

[JamieLynn]

Well the way I see it, is if you use the animal parts left over after death it in a way honors the spirit of the animal. If a snake I owned where to pass I would skin it myself, I don’t know what I would use the skin for; I may just frame and hang it. The rest of the snake would be placed in a tank and put outside near a red ant hill. The red aunts would make short work of the meat, and leave only the bones, then a soak in bleach, and some wire and ta-da a snake skeleton.
I had one rat I really liked, he died while I was out for the night, and the other rats took care of what I was not there to take care of. When I came home all that was left was skin and bones, I placed the body outside in a mesh box and let the bugs clean it. I still have the skull, but the rest was buried.

As long as it is not something uber tacky, be tasteful in your homage.

(I don't think snakeskin would look that good on a dreamcatcher, but maby a snakehook with the handle covered with snakeskin)

[Slim]

I'm sorry, but I don't understand how it's even possible for snake keepers/lovers to wear clothing that came from wild snakes.

I mean, wouldn't you feel HORRIBLE about a snake being killed so you can wear its pretty skin? Especially for people like you.

To be honest Dutch, I bought all my snake skin shoes prior to getting into this hobby. I don't think I would ever buy any more, but the snakes in the wild will continue to be used for skin and meat becasue that's just the way it is in the countries where snake harvesting is common. They are seen as a natural resource in some countries. I try to understand it from their prospective.

[anatess]

It keeps the color. Like leather but the scales stay on and can snag on stuff.

Usually - well, at least in my limited experience watching that ONE time (hah!) and several stories from the grandpas - the scales are kept if you're keeping the skin for display purposes (like a taxidermied thingamagig). For leather (or something cloth-like you can sew into purses or boots or what-have-you) the scales are removed. They come off fairly easy when you crumple the leather after it has dried.

SAN MIGUELS! Hah hah... Have you ever had a RED HORSE? It's a San Miguel product. If not, you gotta go try it. And make sure you don't have need for car keys when you do! It can knock you out!

[dsirkle]

Would you feel differently if they ate the meat from the snake before using the skin for other stuff? Maybe they did.

You can pretty much bank on it that not one part went to waste in Thailand.

[Bruce Whitehead]

But the point of the thread is would you want to?



I nominate Transgressive as the word of the night

or

Uvula...you guys decide!

Never enough oppurtunities to talk about the Uvula!!!

[DutchHerp]

I know it's a culture for these people, and I know (some of) the meat is eaten, but I personally would feel horrible if I was wearing snake skin boots...

[Mike Cavanaugh]

You can pretty much bank on it that not one part went to waste in Thailand.

exactly. I guess that is why I would't see something like that as a bad thing....

[Peter Williams]

To be totally honest, I don't think there is anything wrong with it. I wouldn't want to skin an animal or anything myself, but if I could find a real taxidermist in my area, why not? Theres just something about spending thousands of dollars on an animal, and then just burying it when it dies? Imagine you had a 4000g 4 gene BP, wouldn't you want to preserve it forever? I don't know about turning it into clothing or accessories (MAYBE a wallet) but what I'm leaning towards is having the animal itself preserved in a neat pose. I for one can never see myself putting an adult snake thats died of natural causes into the ground, especially a cool morph. And to stray away from BP's for a moment, what if you had a full grown female retic or anaconda? Thats not something you can easily just bury, that would be quite a bit of work to dig a hole that big. I think it would be kind of neat to have a suit made. That may sound crazy, but you raised the animal, gave it a good life, and now you want to remember it forever. That's just how I feel.

[juddb]

Mike, you could always have a taxidermist preserve the entire animal for you. I think it would make a great memorial/mantel piece

[Smoke]

[QUOTE=Peter Williams;995668]To be totally honest, I don't think there is anything wrong with it. I wouldn't want to skin an animal or anything myself, but if I could find a real taxidermist in my area, why not? QUOTE]

I agree not sure I would have anything made out of it but I would maybe have the skin tacked to a cool peice of wood to make sort of a decrative peice.