At my house we have four ball pythons and two corn snakes. One of the pythons is fully grown, one is a juvenile and the other two are are babies. The corn snakes are both juvenile, one with beautiful red and orange coloring and one albino. Some of them are rescues and some not, but I love them all. Yet most people are terrified of them and terrified when they see them at the house, even though they're all in cages. It's something that's always bugged me and something that eventually inspired me to create Chan and Dan's Amazing Animals, an exotic animal show geared towards children to educate and familiarize them with these amazing animals.
Once, long ago before I was a mom, I wanted a pet snake really bad. I checked out all the different kinds, but ball pythons were the ones I loved the most. Something about the shape of the head, the pattern of the scales....they were just beautiful to me. I've wanted an albino more than anything, for such a long time. What I actually got, however, was a regular male ball python baby. I named him Mr. Snuffleupagus. This may not seem like a sign of affection to some, but I assure you that it was. I loved him to death and I used to take him with me all over, coiled around my wrist or occasionally my neck. Until the day came when my daughter was born and I started having nightmares about him getting out and hurting her. It was ridiculous really, he was perfectly friendly and never hurt anyone. Besides that, they know what they can eat and what they can't and they won't attack something they can't eat. In any case, I had a friend who wanted Mr. Snuffleupagus desperately and had been asking me for him for ages so I gave in and let him keep my snake.
And I missed him. For years and years I missed him.
So when Dani was about 8 I decided she was old enough for me to get another snake. We went to the pet store and they only had a single ball python - a one year old male. I snatched him up and took him home with me. Dani was scared at first, but kids are curious and much more resilient than we give them credit for. When we were still at the pet store she wouldn't even touch him, she was too scared. By the time we were driving home she would touch him, but not hold him. When we made it home she decided she could hold him after all and within an hour or so of that she decided she wanted one of her own. I named him Mr. Slithers, which may not seem like a sign of affection to some, but I assure you it is.
I was stunned though at how negative and fearful people were upon finding out I owned a snake. And around a child! What a terrible mother they thought I was. I suppose it had been too long since I'd been a snake owner for me to remember how common it is for people to loathe snakes of all kinds. You can tell them that ball pythons are very tame, that they're one of the most sought after as pets because they're so docile and friendly but it makes no difference. People think snakes are evil. But why should they be any less deserving of rescue than a kitten or puppy? Don't they deserve to live their lives just as much? And to be loved and happy, as much as a snake can be happy?
It was this very thing that led me to come up with the idea of a kid-friendly, fun yet educational animal show. In some ways Danica was my inspiration for that. She got over her fear extremely quickly and can now recite all kinds of facts about snakes and their breeds and different morphs. It's awesome. So I thought "What if I could show them while they're still young enough to be willing to try? And teach them too, so they have fun and learn at the same time?" It's an awesome thing to see, the kids so eager to try something new and even the ones who are scared still buck up their courage enough to try petting one. And that's really all it takes, because after that they've charmed their way into your heart.
Mr. Slithers was the first snake I got once Dani had grown up some. I know my earlier fear was completely irrational, I could tell you even then that it was, but I can also tell you this: there's no reasoning with brand new mothers. It doesn't matter if something really is a threat to your baby, if you perceive it as such then it is. We couldn't just stop there though. So we also have Ben, one of the babies that Danica named after Big Ben Roethlisberger, her favorite Steeler. And Fezzik, the other baby, named after Andre the Giant's character in The Princess Bride. Then there's Juju, who is something of a rescue. Part of his tail was cut off by very evil people for use in some ritual or ceremony that I never want to understand. He was originally rescued by others, but they couldn't keep him so now he lives with us.
The first corn snake I got was also a rescue. His name is Squirmy, because he IS, and his original owners thought that you needed to get a snake "excited" in order for them to eat. So from infancy until a little over a year old they would literally smack this snake around a while before giving him his food. What they actually accomplished was to make the poor thing terrified not only of people but of eating. He had quit eating before they ever surrendered him to me and it took me months to get him to eat again. Now he eats fine, but he's still scared of people. We let him be in his cage, where he mostly chills out in his tree. He really loves that tree. The other corn snake is the albino that for some reason no one ever wanted at the pet store. I don't know why, he's gorgeous and so friendly. He lived his whole life there and no one ever bought him and one day I was talking to one of the workers there while buying pet food and they said I should take him home, since they knew he'd have a good home with me. And they knocked half the price off. I couldn't say no, so I took him home and we named him President Snow. It's a sign of affection, I swear.
Yesterday I got a call from the mom of a little girl about to turn two who wants us to do our little show for her daughter's birthday. Two is a bit younger than our target audience, but still very exciting. She was telling me what animal lovers they are and how they couldn't find anything like what I do anywhere around. She was so excited to have us and so is the venue where the party's being held. Awesome!
I can't wait for the show, I'm so excited. You know the funniest part? I have massive stage fright. Put me in front of a crowd and tell me to speak and I'll probably just start crying. I've been that way my whole life. My very first show I was sooooo scared. But I said to myself "Just jump in, it's the only way." And I jumped and then something crazy happened. I saw the kids listening all rapt attention and ready to have this new experience and the fear was gone. I still hate being in front of crowds and I haven't found a magical cure for public speaking. Just for this one thing. When I go in front of the kids, I just want to share with them how amazing these animals are and fear has no chance against that.
