Every so often there is a news story about an escaped snake - the last one I can think of was an escaped python that if I remember rightly was about 12ft long! It caused a lot of fear in a small village for a while before it was caught by the RSPCA. Luckily I've never had any experiences with escapees, but have you?

Should any action be taken against members of the public who look after dangerous pets and then allow them to escape?

The problem with pythons is that many of them get to be huge! It's not as if the owners don't realise that, either. A large python is not likely to harm a human adult, but they can certainly swallow cats and small dogs without a problem. And, at that size, the owner is probably feeding rabbits to them, so rabbits are not safe.

Most snakes and lizards would not survive well in the UK, though, as most of them are from warmer parts of the world. I do think that anyone who keeps a dangerous animal as a pet should be held accountable if the animal escapes. NO ONE owning a dangerous animal can pretend to NOT know that the said animal is dangerous.

Kingfisher

Apropos of this:

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,9...08,00.html

I would guess that this snake did not get 'lost', so much as was abandoned after getting too large, poor thing.

Kingfisher

One one of our fire crews went in the basement of a derelict building & found a python. Two strokes of luck 1) it was sluggish as it was cold & 2) one of the firemen was a reptile fanatic & had snakes. That is what we call a 'result'!!

That really is a stroke of luck! There wouldn't be many people who would have had the confidence to pick it up. Were the fire crew called out specifically to rescue the python or was it just found there?

I can't imagine a much greater shock than going into a basement and seeing a huge python, so well done to your fire crew member for having the knowledge and courage to deal with it.

I'm not very knowledgeable when it comes to keeping exotic pets as I never have had one before, but is there any sort of legal requirements before you can buy an exotic pet and do you have to keep the pet registered if it is potentially dangerous?

A very interesting question!

Those that don’t need a licence . . .
Woolly lemurs; tamarins, night (or owl), titis and squirrel monkeys; sloths ; North American porcupine; capybara; crested porcupines; cat hybrids; wild cat ; pallas; little spotted and geoffroy’s cats; kodkod; bay and sand cats; blackfooted cat; rusty-spotted cat; cacomistles; raccoons ; Coatis, lingos; little coatimundi; binturong; kinkajou; hyraxes; guanaco; vicugna; emus (bottom); sand and mangrove snakes; Brazilian wolf spider

Those that need one now . . .
Argentine blackheaded snake; Peruvian racer; South American green racer; Amazon false viper; Middle Eastern thin-tailed scorpion; dingo

And some of those that did before and still do
Tasmanian devil; eastern and eastern grey kangaroos; wallaroo; red kangaroo; new-world monkeys – capuchin, howler, saki, uacari, spider and woolly; old-world monkeys – baboons, colobus, gelada, guenons, langurs, leaf monkeys, macaques, mandrill, mangabeys; the patas and proboscis monkeys; the talapoin; anthropoid apes – chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans, gorillas; gibbons and siamangs; leaping lemurs; large lemurs; giant armadillo, Giant anteater; wild dogs – wolves, jackals, the maned wolf, bush dog and dhole; wild cats – bobcat, caracal, cheetah, jaguar, leopard, lion, lynx, ocelot, puma, serval and tiger hyaenas; badgers (except Eurasian badger); otters; tayra; wolverine; fisher and ratel; bears; civets; walrus; eared seals; true or earless seal; common seal elephants; aardvark; wild asses; [wild] horses; zebras

Source: Defra

Kingfisher

Thanks! Quite a list there that do need a licence, I'm glad to see they do actually.

It's an odd list--I noticed that you or your neighbour could own dozens of rattlesnakes and there's apparently nothing to stop you! And WHY you would want to own a North American Porcupine is beyond me. Same with sloths...

Kingfisher

Sorry Xeract, The house was on fire at the time!!

Xeract,

There is a place in Hersham (Near Hampton Court) called SurreyPetSupplies. Please visit, as it has an upstairs education room which contains snakes such as Boa constrictors, Reticulated pythons (20ft+ - Biggest in the world), corn snakes, not to mention Chipmunks, Turtles, tortoises, Argus Monitors, birds and such. If it's quiet, you will be allowed to handle the animals. They have a pair of rear fanged venomous (argument over venom delivery v toxic saliva) hognoses, which were a delight to hold. They also have scorpions and tarantulas too. It's free, and upstairs. It's a great way to see these animals.

The only snakes you need a license for are those which are dangerous. Contrary to popular belied, many aren't. The only ones you need CITES papers for are endangered, and if you keep venomous, a DWA.

I keep snakes. I have two. Corn snakes. 4-5 feet they reach. They're like large worms, but are funny and interesting to watch. They're very very tame, and easily handleable for kids and adults. I have been thinking about a local school presentation, which shows how much I trust them.

I can't emphasise how wonderful they are. The amount of people who think they're dangerous is disheartening in some ways because fear would have most kill a snake if they saw it.

Snakes are escape masters though. I make sure my vivs are fully encloses, and any tubs they're kept in, even as hatchlings, have lockable lids, with the ventilation holes being too small for it to escape. Snakes can go months without food also. One guy found his 6ft boa constrictor 18 months after he lost it, lying in his bath! It obviously lived in his house somewhere, by a heat source, feeding on spiders, lizards, or possibly house mice. Christ knows where it found the water though!

There is a guy in Northampton, after 15 years of trying for a DWA (Dangerous Wild Animals) license - he was finally permitted one. He keeps a dwarf caiman crocodile - don't let dwarf deceive you though - it'll reach 6 foot and feed on pigs, rabbits, chickens etc. He has had to convince the council that his converted garage into an enclosure is safe. Whilst I think it's cool in someways, I'd be worried about it escaping, if children were about.

You can read the article here: http://www.thecomet.net/content/comet/ne...3A21%3A540

If you do come across a snake, chances are it's a Royal Python or a corn, as these are the two most commonly kept. I very much doubt it'll be venomous either, as most people who keep venomous snakes need a DWA, and as such, tend to be more professional in their keeping, and actually have locked rooms, so if they do escape their vivarium, they won't get out of their door.

If you do though, don't call the RSPCA. They'll put it down. Call a local rescue centre or such, or if you choose to learn more about what snake is what and such, then you'll be able to identify if it's venomous or not, and give you the confidence to approach it, placing it in a damp pillow case or a tub with a water source, and near some heat around 27c/80f until you decide what you want to do.

To put it into context, although there are more of them as pets, dogs are more dangerous than snakes, and are responsible for more human deaths.

Even if you do not wish to learn, surreypetsupplies makes for a wonderful hour or two, spending time and interacting with these exotic animals unfamiliar to us. It's a 2 minute walk from Hersham train station: http://www.streetmap.co.uk/newmap.srf?x=...search.srf

Thank you, The Libertine .

I personally have three snakes--all either milk or king snakes, and just love them. They are quiet and colourful! My brother has two cornsnakes, and thinks that they are even better than milk or kings (they tolerate handling much better for one thing).

What a wonderful way to be introduced to 'exotic' animals. When I was growing up (in the United States) a local park had a similar set up, but one could actually 'borrow' an animal for a week and take care of the creature (naturally, parents were involved!).

Too much liability for that now, but it certainly contributed to my being at ease with snakes and the like.

Welcome to Wildlife UK, too!

Kingfisher

Thank you, The Libertine .

I personally have three snakes--all either milk or king snakes, and just love them. They are quiet and colourful! My brother has two cornsnakes, and thinks that they are even better than milk or kings (they tolerate handling much better for one thing).

What a wonderful way to be introduced to 'exotic' animals. When I was growing up (in the United States) a local park had a similar set up, but one could actually 'borrow' an animal for a week and take care of the creature (naturally, parents were involved!).

Too much liability for that now, but it certainly contributed to my being at ease with snakes and the like.

Welcome to Wildlife UK, too!

Kingfisher

Ta for the welcome.

Milks are nice - I like the banded colours on the Sinaloan and the Pueblan Milks. King snakes I'm not too keen on, simply because they're so cannibalistic (not that I house mine together) and can be a lot snappier. It can't be doubted though that the banded colours of king snakes range from the nice to overload on the 'wow' gauge.

Your brother doesn't have a 3 year old+ female hypo or ghost does he? I'm looking for a breeding loan as I need to determine if my male is a normal stripe or hypo - I'm not asking for any of the clutch as my beneft comes from the knowledge of knowing what mine is - that's the problem with rehoming snakes. You just don't know what you're getting homozygous or heterozygous wise, so it's hard to get any sort of breeding plans together.

I'm siding with your brother on this one - I prefer corns because they're so much more tolerable of handling. Then again, any snake if tamed correctly, and as long as you don't threaten it or trigger a feeding response, will be handleable.

Back to the original question though, if a snake escapes, the owner is responsible, simply for providing inadequate housing. The enclosure wasn't escape-proof. Then again, pet shops can be held responsible for the lack of information they provide. I don't trust vivariums in shops either. I customly build my own, and a 3 foot viv works out about £40 with glass, vents and runners, which is £40 less in the shops, so you make major savings too. I just like the fact I can control the level of security from the off.

The snake borrowing for a week is fantastic. Like you said though, with liability should anything happen to the snake, that suffered an unfortunate ending. I guess the next best thing is places like Surreypetsupplies - they're purely about education, as their snakes aren't for sale. They even do feeding session and free school trips - amazing !

Unfortunately, no, my brother does not have any females, so I can't help you with that.

My two milks are Mr. Che, a Sinaloan, and Mr. Bump, an apricot Pueblan!

Mr. Whump is a Durango Mountain Kingsnake.

They are all housed separately, and are easy to handle. My brother settled on the corns because he had two young boys under the age of ten when he got the snakes.

Ah well, not everyone likes snakes, but it would be nice if everyone didn't fear them quite as much (at least, without good cause!).

Kingfisher