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11-29-03, 05:17 AM
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#1
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Member
Join Date: Jun-2002
Location: Trenton
Posts: 6,075
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Holiday for herpetology is a hit
Holiday for herpetology is a hit
Snake experts and fanciers gather at a Des Moines pet store to praise their ssssssssslithery friends.
By BETHANY WESTENDORF
11/24/2003
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Being thankful for a 14-foot Burmese python isn't generally what people profess during Thanksgiving dinner. But at Aqualand Pets Plus on Sunday night, giving thanks for snakes was at the top of the agenda.
The first annual "Snakesgiving" event at the pet store at Sixth and Euclid avenues was an informal seminar for snake lovers on how to get permits to keep certain kinds of snakes in the metro area. Tom Weidner, a Des Moines herpetologist and Iowa State Fair Snakes Alive exhibitor, was on hand to answer questions about the process.
Under Des Moines' dangerous-and-exotic-animal ordinance, any snake 6 feet or longer cannot be kept in the city unless the owner has a permit. To get a permit, Weidner said, the owner must have 20 hours of instruction about snake care and handling. Any person who wants to keep a venomous snake must have 1,000 hours of instruction. The Iowa Herpetology Society has offered the classes in past years.
"There are only six people in Des Moines who have the permit. There are lots who claim they do, but they don't," Weidner said as he handled a feisty albino Monaco cobra.
Weidner said it's common for people to just turn large snakes loose when they get bigger than expected. He often takes in the larger snakes that are confiscated by the city. His collection includes more than 100 of the reptiles.
"That's the bad part about showing these guys. It gets people fired up about getting one. By no means am I recommending it," he said. "I just try to inform people about how to get one and take care of it once they have it."
Zach Wright, owner of Bubba, a Burmese python, said he's thankful for his snake.
"Big snakes are really cool, and Bubba is really nice to people," Wright said. Bubba "wouldn't hurt a fly."
Bubba was the star Sunday night. Although other people responded to the invitation to show off their snakes, none of the critters compared to Bubba, who weighs about 100 pounds.
Larry Arnold, co-owner of Aqualand, snapped pictures for kids, adults and the Aqualand Web site.
"We just want to answer questions people might have about snakes," he said.
Colby Crase, 10, of Winterset wasn't scared to carry the python on his shoulders. "It's really heavy and kind of weird, but I'd do it over and over again," he said.
Crase's mother, Tammy, said they made the trip to Des Moines to share Colby's new ball snake. "He's had it about a month and just loves it. I just stand way back," she said.
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11-29-03, 05:29 AM
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#2
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Member
Join Date: Dec-2002
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Age: 36
Posts: 1,616
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That's too cool
__________________
Who are you callin' a freak?!
~*Rachel*~
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11-29-03, 10:09 AM
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#3
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Member
Join Date: Jul-2003
Location: Ontario
Posts: 1,176
Country: 
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Hmmmmm, a Monaco Cobra? That would be the rare cobra of the French Riviera? LOL... I suppose Monaco sound slike Monocle, reporters are funny.
Cheers,
RMB
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11-29-03, 10:58 AM
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#4
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Banned
Join Date: Jan-2003
Posts: 1,033
Country:
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That would be great here ...but people who(allegedly) own snakes in Durham region(whitby/oshawa) are outlaws..due to the by-laws....yippee kye yaeee..m fer
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11-29-03, 11:05 AM
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#5
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Member
Join Date: Aug-2002
Location: Manitoba
Posts: 4,971
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Sounds like a great program but whatever type of feisty cobra that is he was handling, how was he doing it and why was he doing it while being interviewed?
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11-29-03, 11:32 AM
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#6
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Member
Join Date: Jun-2002
Location: Trenton
Posts: 6,075
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I'm not responsible any typos, as i just copied and pasted.
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11-29-03, 02:33 PM
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#7
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Member
Join Date: Jul-2003
Location: Ontario
Posts: 1,176
Country:
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I know Lisa, it was a jab at Bethany Westendorf
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11-29-03, 10:56 PM
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#8
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Member
Join Date: Jun-2003
Location: Oliver, BC
Age: 35
Posts: 970
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Lol, ball snake. That's great that they're educating people like that. Thanks for sharing Lisa.
-TammyR
__________________
Tammy Rehbein
-You can search all day for something and never find it, only to see it in the most obvious of places after you've stopped looking.-
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11-30-03, 12:56 AM
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#9
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Member
Join Date: Jul-2003
Location: Ontario
Posts: 1,176
Country:
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Ha ha, yeah, ball snake?!? I stopped reading at Monaco....
It is good that they are trying to educate though, I am sure the proper names is not their priority.
R
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12-01-03, 05:15 PM
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#10
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Member
Join Date: Jul-2003
Location: Edmonton, Alberta, Canuckland
Age: 46
Posts: 3,934
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A Monaco cobra and ball snake...hmmmm...must be new morphs that we're unaware of. *LOL* 
Great story though, I'm glad that they're educating people, especially giving the Burmese python a good reputation.
__________________
Erin Keller :eb:
Snakes: 2.1 Corns, 1.1 Kings, 1.0 Everglades Rat, 1.1 Spotted Pythons, 1.2 Children's Pythons, 1.2 BCIs Lizards: 0.2 Leopard Geckos, 1.3 Bibron Geckos Inverts: 2.1 Tarantulas, 0.1 Emporer Scorpion Mammals: 0.2 Kittens
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12-01-03, 07:22 PM
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#11
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Member
Join Date: Apr-2002
Location: Mississauga, Ontario
Age: 35
Posts: 1,339
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moacle cobras are supposed to be a really rare morph i have a a friend that i don;t talk to any more but he owns dimondreptiles i know he he sells them i have a pic but i'm not sure how to post it. he has pics of them on his site at http://www.diamondreptile.com
ya lol they can;t be to conserned about education if they can;t even spell the snakes names right lol ball snake.
__________________
Kayla Young
1.2 Corns, 0.1 Ball python, 0.1.2 crested gecko's and 0.0.1 Bearded dragon
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12-01-03, 07:45 PM
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#12
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Member
Join Date: May-2003
Location: Southwestern Ontario
Age: 45
Posts: 1,605
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Who cares if they call it a "ball" snake. It's great that people are making the effort to learn more about them (and snakes as pets in general). My hat is off to them.
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