Pet boa constrictor chokes owner

[malaise]

Why am I reading this on BBCs website? How is a boa constrictor a pet?
<snip>
A man has been choked to death by his pet boa constrictor at his home in the US city of Cincinnati, police say.

The 13-ft (3.9m) snake was still strangling Ted Dres' body when it was discovered by an acquaintance.

Members of an animal protection group removed the snake from the house after helping police officers free it.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/6191305.stm

[MrSlayer]

1. How does that old Native American fable go?

"You knew I was a snake when you picked me up".

Snakes are cool pets but you really have to be careful with them. This dude got careless.

[Show_Me _The_Truth]

2. Something about a scorpion riding a racoon across a river?

N/T

[newscott]

8. The version I remember is a turtle, but raccoon works too.

My favorite line was, "I can't help it, I'm a scorpion."

[everythingsxen]

12. Here:

http://www.rider.edu/suler/zenstory/onesnature.html

Another version of this story describes a fox who agrees to carry a scorpion on its back across a river, upon the condition that the scorpion does not sting him. But the scorpion does indeed sting the fox when they are in midstream. As the fox begins to drown, taking the scorpion with him, he pleadingly asks why the scorpion has jeopardized both of them by stinging. "Because it's my nature."

From the same page, the main article and a more pleasant story:

Two monks were washing their bowls in the river when they noticed a scorpion that was drowning. One monk immediately scooped it up and set it upon the bank. In the process he was stung. He went back to washing his bowl and again the scorpion fell in. The monk saved the scorpion and was again stung. The other monk asked him, "Friend, why do you continue to save the scorpion when you know it's nature is to sting?"
"Because," the monk replied, "to save it is my nature."

[malaise]

4. I'm tempted to extend the fable to

Bush. We all knew about him as well :D

[leftchick]

5. wild animals never make good "pets"

ever.

[Quantess]

7. Agreed. Some animals are just not "pet" material.

How about Paris Hilton's cute little exotic animal that bit her and gave her a nasty infection? :evilgrin: She probably deserved it.

[CurtEastPoint]

9. I feel sorry for the animal that bit Paris! Did it get infected, too? n/t

[Quantess]

10. LOL! Here's the story:

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/08/11/D8JEI3VO0.html

She's annoying to animals as well as humans, I see.

[MrSlayer]

11. Wild animals almost never, captive born on the other hand are quite manageable.

I have a friend who bred snakes for awhile and he had a 14 foot python that was quite a good pet. It was was even affectionate.

[Lyric]

19. As someone who's kept large snakes before...

...I've never seen a snake be "affectionate". I've seen snakes that enjoyed contact with nice warm human bodies, but that's not affection. They'd feel the same amount of affection for a sunny rock or a heated waterbed.

Snakes are reptiles, which makes them basically a big ball of primitive instincts. Feed, breed, find warmth, escape threat. The vast majority of reptiles don't even show concern for their own babies--it's a mistake on our part to assume a reptile feels affection for a human being. We misread their instinctual liking for warmth and disinclination to attack something too large to be food as an expression of affection for us, which it is not. Constrictors rarely attack humans, but those tragic few are usually the ones who have fooled themselves into thinking that their snake "loves" them and would never harm them, and thus make careless mistakes when handling the snake.

Reptiles can learn to tolerate and predict human behavior to some degree, when it affects their own well-being. They can recognize in a primitive way that the large warm creatures are a source of food, water, and warmth. That's about the extent of their consideration for us--even captive-bred ones. It's impossible to truly "tame" an animal that is incapable of affection and emotions. All snakes are wild animals, and should be handled as such. Constrictors only "constrict" when they're hungry and attempting to get food. When they're angry or frightened, they strike with their teeth like any other snake. They know that humans are (for most of them) far too large to be "food", so they don't bother wasting their energy on constricting us. However, if their handler smells like food (after having handled a cat, dog, chicken, rabbit, rat, etc.) they can get confused. They strike and constrict first, and only discover their mistake when it's tragically too late.

The rule of thumb for constrictors is to have at least one handler per 5 feet of snake--or with the more large and aggressive species (reticulated pythons, anacondas, etc.) one handler for every 3 feet of snake. No constrictor larger than 8 feet long should ever be kept by someone who isn't experienced in caring for them. And no large constrictor should ever be allowed out of its enclosure while its handler is all alone.

If folks would follow these common-sense guidelines, tragedies like this would likely never happen. It's heartbreaking for the life lost, and frustrating because it gives snakes a bad reputation that they don't deserve.

Sorry for the long-windedness. Snakes are something of a passion of mine. I don't have any in my home right now, but I have a lot of experience caring for them, and it always upsets me when something like this happens. :(

[BlooInBloo]

3. Did he have kids? Possible Darwin award nominee!

[kineneb]

6. snarky- brings to mind a children's song

that I learned back in the days of Camp Fire Girls day camp:

"I'm being swallowed by a boa constrictor..."

A 13' snake is a 13' snake.

[bigwillq]

13. Oh wow

we were just talking tonight at dinner about people who have exotic animals as pets.

Just wrong.

Sad to say that the owner deserved his fate.

[Oeditpus Rex]

15. Deserved it?

:shrug:

[bigwillq]

16. I didn't read the story

so I don't know if it was only an accident....

but if you have a fucking Boa as a pet, you take your risks.

It's a wild animal that needs to be out in its natural habitat and not in someone's house.

If I have a Lion as a pet and it decides to eat me....then I deserved my fate.

[Oeditpus Rex]

17. No one deserves to die for ignorance

You could say there's a form of natural justice at work, but "deserved"... no.

[bigwillq]

18. I smoke cigarettes

and if I ever get lung cancer....I deserve it.

Natural justice, deserved...all the same to me...

[Oeditpus Rex]

20. I'm not gonna argue this logically

because it won't go anywhere.

I will say, though, that I disagree with your philosophy on this. But that's cool. :hi:









Okay, I lied. :evilgrin: If you deserve to get lung cancer from smoking, the corollary is if you smoke, you don't deserve not to get lung cancer.

[otherlander]

14. ...

[RebelOne]

21. I had two pet boa constrictors.

They were 7 feet long. Boas make very good pets. They don't bark or mess on the carpet and you only have to feed them every few weeks.