why do we keep reptiles

[krrc]

after being asked this question and brushing it off as stupid I begain to think about it and really couldent come up with a good reson. why do you keep reptiles?

[Dunner]

why do people collect stamps, coins, anything...because they enjoy it and it fascinates them

[Dunner]

by them, i mean us

[XxRachxX]

you could ask the same thing about hamsters! or stamps or fish or cats, dogs, horses, sheep, rats, GIANT SQUID!!
but these are my reasons.
1: theyre beautiful! they come in lots of colours patterns, shapes, sizes, with legs, without legs, :)
2: theyre unusual, exotic, interesting. i wanted a break from the norm eg, hamsters,cats.
3: easy to care for (most of the time) they dont need to go out for walks, they dont get muddy pawprints all over the house! they dont make much noise/no noise at all!
4: theres a huge variety out there each with theyre own specific needs, so i guess its a challenge.
5....................addictive:)

[BurmBaroness]

They are beautiful, graceful, strong yet sometimes delicate, sweet or not so sweet, and for the not so faint at heart, there are the hots, which BW loves. Many reasons, but mstly for the love and appreciation of these gorgeous animals.

[Andy_G]

I love everything about them and want to learn more about them in general. That's an easy question!! :)

[Kathy]

They keep my family out of my room, hehe

Also they scare my devil cat, this cat attacked a male doberman last summer because the dog tried to eat his food, but hes affraid of a 6 month old corn...

But really, I keep snakes because I enjoy them, I enjoy showing them off, the same way I can show off my dog's stupid tricks. I like caring for stuff, and teaching people things they may not know about them

[paul_le_snake]

mmmmmm. no real answer but beauty is in the eye oof the beholder.
ppl keep insects as pets and i think theyre mad as hatters
cheers
paul

[Lisa]

I find them facinating, and very primal. Snakes are very graceful.

And I agree with paul on the insects.

[paul_le_snake]

i knew i wsant the only one lisa!!!!!
cheers
paul

[Aztec Fred]

Why do I keep reptiles?

Why...thats an EASY question to answer...

BECAUSE EVERYONE SEEMS TO HATE THEM!!
(Which makes me love them all the more)



I figure if everyone HATES it it must be good.



Works for me

Rebeling into my old age


:) Fred
AZTEC REPTILES

[BILLP]

Here is an interesting website on that very subject.
www.geocities.com/rainforest/vines/3124.html

[Alicewave]

To start with I was allergic to just about everything with fur except for dogs and my apartment didn't allow dogs. Before I moved in my boss sent out an email saying he has a Leopard Gecko to give away. I had been thinking about getting some sort of lizard so I looked for some websites on their care and said "Yes I want it". Hook line and sinker, I've been fascinated ever since.

[corr]

A radio topic last week was about pets. The host labelled dogs and cats as "real pets", rodents as "so-so pets", fish as "useless pets", and reptiles "for insecure people who crave attention". :rolleyes:

[Nanashi04]

Originally posted by corr
A radio topic last week was about pets. The host labelled dogs and cats as "real pets", rodents as "so-so pets", fish as "useless pets", and reptiles "for insecure people who crave attention". :rolleyes:

Heheheh ^^
I like reptiles because they're differnt - they're (like everyone has been saying) graceful, gorgeous, and just plain cool. Not to mention it's another thing for my father and I to disagree on... hehehe

[Linds]

Why do I keep reptiles?

*beautiful
*fascinating
*misunderstood
*well-suited to my situation (space, time, etc)

[Xetox]

I have been fascinated by them since I can remember, I have been working with them since I was about 6, and have been hooked ever since! Who ever says that they dont make good pets can come on over!

[eyespy]

Heehee, attention? Nope, tends to be a lack of it when some of your so-called loved ones are afraid to visit you! ;)

I keep reptiles just for the sheer joy of being in their presence.

[damzookeeper]

Why do I keep reptiles?
That is a very simple question.

As everyone said they are graceful, unusual, gorgious and so on.
But also because they are misunderstood and I want to educate people on how special they really are. I want my daughter to grow up to respect and love them along with ever other species of animal as I do. I love them because they are easy to care for, they suit my lifestyle, and they are fun to watch and play with for the most part. And yes, the attention is also great! :) But being a shy person that was definately not the reason I got them to begin with. I was bringing stray animals and herps home from the time I could walk. I grossed my mother out many times with the things I brought home. But it was always fasinating and interesting to me. :)
I don't think I have a "normal pet" unless you call our bird ( a tiel) normal. We have the herps a bird and a ferret. No cats, no dogs. And we are content this way. :)
Every summer you can find me going for walks with my beardies or taking them to the local park and all along the way I am answering questions from the young and old. And the beardies seem to just love the attention, or maybe it's the fresh air. lol.
I've also gone to my daughter's class with a little show and to her brownie group. THe kids love it!

[SnowFoxx]

Snakes are beautiful, graceful, and fascinating, yes. But there's more to it than that.

Snakes are a piece of something wild and untouchable that this world is losing a little bit of every day. Snakes are killers and healers. They can be tamed but never domesticated. They are incredibly strong and equally delicate. They appeal to the primal spirit that cries at the sound of a wolf howl and yearns to just take off into the wild, never to be seen or heard from again.

I know I'm sounding a bit dramatic, but when I was holding my BP this morning, I remembered an article I read somewhere that said pythins are one of the oldest living creatures around today. There were pythongs crawling the earth long before there were people. I looked out my window into the parking lot behind my building as my little Idunna crawled around in my hair, and tried to picture a huge prehistoric Idunna curled up under the one lonely tree on the edge of my parking lot...and I felt so sad.

I guess, for me, keeping snakes is a way to hold on to the fast-disappearing wilderness, and to enjoy the far away jungles that I will probably never see. I love picturing Idunna and Freja, my BPs, slithering through steamy tropical tree roots, and Arden, my corn, burying himself in leaf little in southern forests.

It brings me such joy to have a little wildness in my home.

- Victoria:w

[Xetox]

Where have you been my whole life snow ;)

No really I agree there is nothing like herps as pets, people say they have personality, but they are full of personality every one is different. Even those little shits that like to nip all the time.......it all who they are...I know I like to nip alot to ;)

[rethius]

You know what that is a great question, I think since I have always had such an interest in snakes I think i just kinda developed a sort of love! can't really describe it! A little bit of WILD earth right here in my home!

[Dilshad]

When I was a kid I was fascinated by the idea of dragons and dinosaurs. I think most kids are, but these ideas and images retain their fascination for some of us more than others. As for the why of it...well these images fire the imagination when you're a kid, but there are deeper ideas buried in the fossil record, regarding the nature of life and death on this planet.

The reptiles and amphibians I keep remind me of a much larger, more complex natural world. They're also aesthetically pleasing - living studies in line and colour, and they're profoundly different from me.

Personally, I don't keep them to educate or enlighten others. I enjoy working with my dart frogs or phantasticus the way someone would enjoy working in their garden. It's simple enough, I think.

[Lizzy001]

i like reptiles because of their different attidutes etc. , like a challage, lus its way better than an ordinary pet!@!!!

[krrc]

I really like what snow fox and all of you said. I guess for me it's a little of all these things and my desire to futher the reptile hobby it's almost comparable to the civil rights movement (if you've every tryed geting a pet store to change it's husbandry you know what I mean). I injoy fighting for them even though it can bring much discust tord the store and pitty for the reptiles.

[BAZ]

I keep them because I tink they are..

*beautiful
*facinating
*misunderstood
... hold on I think Linds already said that

*they are the underdog of the animal kingdom in my opinion. Too many people hate them and I think they need people to love them and protect them
*there are too many myths about these creatures and I keep them to dispell any myths (especially in the Indian and pakistani community which i am a part of)
*you can give unconditional love to a reptile. they are not going to love you back.. if they were big enough tey would probably eat you.

I think if we have the right frame of mind we can learn deeper lessons from keeping these animals. Showing love and caring for something that does not have any love for you (it may not even like your presence or it may just tolerate you). It can teach a person compassion and if we reflect on this it could teach us to treat each other better as human beings.

* oh yeah and... birds love a bloke with a large snake ;) :p

[Dilshad]

Hey Baz, long time no speak...hope your scaly crew's all good.

Anyway, of course you're right about the myths that abound in the Pakistani and Indian community, although for the first time, I have a better understanding for my mother's intense fear and hatred of snakes.

Having done a lot of research on venomous snakes (for my own edification, I don't intend to maintain these in my home) over the last year or so, and later finding myself in their presence at places like the Indian River Reptile Zoo...I can understand the basis of the fear. Wonderful, beautiful and ecologically important these animals may be, but they also have the potential to cause great harm and suffering when uninformed humans come into contact with them, or even informed people who tangle with them by accident or other misadventure.

The fear and loathing which I once found foolish, I now see has a rational basis. Those aren't garter snakes hanging out on the subcontinent, something that someone such as myself, living in Toronto my whole life, can't quite get my head around.

That said, over the years my mother has made a lot of progress. She can admire snakes when they're securely caged, and has held lizards in her bare hands, overcoming a lifetime of fear.

As for your philosophical take on it all, I think that's kind of a long and circuitous route towards compassion for your fellow human beings, but I suppose better the long route than no route at all. Cynical as ever, I will say this much; I've met a lot of reptile keepers. Some of them are truly intelligent, insightful and admirable people. I've met just as many who are ignorant or just plain stupid. In most cases, I don't think keeping reptiles is going to make someone reflect on deeper meanings the way you evidently do.

In my opinion, people are people no matter what kind of hobby they happen to pursue, and aren't easily improved upon. Luckily, it's not impossible for people to better themselves. I guess that makes me an optimist. :D

[Herpogirl]

Because we like them and thier fun to keep and take care of