Snakes for kids?

[Lankyrob]

Not sure if hognose venom would cause a worse reaction in a kid than an adult but myself i would go down the colubrid route for an 8 yr old.

[shaunyboy]

Originally Posted by Lankyrob

Not sure if hognose venom would cause a worse reaction in a kid than an adult but myself i would go down the colubrid route for an 8 yr old.

have to agree with rob mate

cheers shaun

[boosh96]

Another thing-what kind of snakes can live comfortably in a 10-gallon tank? That question is why I've been leaning toward a Hognose or an African House snake, but would either of those snakes be a good choice?

[jdavy]

Originally Posted by boosh96

Another thing-what kind of snakes can live comfortably in a 10-gallon tank? That question is why I've been leaning toward a Hognose or an African House snake, but would either of those snakes be a good choice?

Don't count on an African house snake staying small. I once had one that grew to be 5 feet long.

I wouldn't give a hog to an 8 year old, personally. I have a friend who was bit by one and had an adverse reaction - she keeps FWC and some other halfway crazy stuff...but the reaction she had to this bite seemed to scare her pretty good. Contrary to popular belief, hogs can catch ya with a fang (especially 8 year old sized fingers and hands). I like 'em (used to keep them), but I don't think they're for kids.

Enclosures are cheap, so don't let the fact that you only currently have a 10 gallon tank stop you from getting a corn. You could pick up a big sterilite container that would fit it for about $10, or a 20 gallon reptile tank for about $30.

My vote is the corn snake. They are colourful, easy to handle, tolerant of small errors in husbandry, etc. If an 8 year old is going to get a pet snake, a corn is the way to go.