7 Foot Long Babysitters?

Janice - posted on 03/21/2012

A constrictor can and will kill a toddler. Happened in Florida a few years back, so yeah I think that is crazy!



Elfrieda, my daughter loves the book Good dog, Carl. I used to "read" it to the kids at my daycare and when my hubby first pulled it for our daughter, he was like "What the f*&%" Lol. He still sometimes addlibs (SP) crazy things about the parts with the laundry shoot and the fish tank.

Jaime - posted on 03/21/2012

poor Rocky :( my mom's python Twiggy had to go to her ex in-laws and they sold him, then the person they sold him to lost him in their house :( it sucked. Twiggy was a sweetie. tried to kill my mom's ex a couple times, hehehehehe....

Teresa - posted on 03/21/2012

We had snakes when I was little. They all had cages though. Our huge snake (Rocky) used to be out of his cage sometimes. We were never left w/ the snakes as babysitters, but my mom did leave me and my brother (3 and 6 at the time) home alone a few times.....



I don't remember much about my childhood though. I remember stories that Rocky was awesome... until he committed suicide by slithering into his water bowl at night and freezing to death.

Jaime - posted on 03/21/2012

first off, snakes prefer live rats, so unless her snakes are not normal i wouldn't worry about dead rats lying around. why on earth a cold-blooded creature that can't function without warmth would eat something frozen is beyond me.



as for leaving the kids home with the snakes.........wtf???? i wouldn't leave my kid home alone at all, especially as a baby! the oldest kid is 8, right? that's not old enough to be responsible for three other children and him/herself AND a bunch of snakes. what the crap, the thought that she leaves her kids home alone is what bothers me the most, who gives a rat's ass about the snakes at that point....lol...



my mom let her ONE python roam her apartment freely but ONLY when she was home during the day and she NEVER left my brother home alone. so for twelve of them to be loose with four kids alone is crazy to me. leaving four kids alone at all is crazy to me. i'm surprised she hasn't had an issue come up just between the kids yet.

Mother - posted on 03/21/2012

12 Snakes??? **shudders** Ummmmmmm.....a big resounding HELL NO!!!



the only good snake.....is a dead snake!! **shudders again**

Elfrieda - posted on 03/20/2012

That's hilarious! (because they all survived)



Think of the stories those kids will tell about their growing up years. They'll be the interesting ones at every party. :)



On the topic of animals as babysitters, has anyone read the board book "Good Dog, Carl"? I laugh every time. It kind of reminds me of my Oma. She likes to tell us about these two dogs she had when her kids were young. She'd send the kids outside, and tell the dogs, "Don't let them get into the puddles!" and the dogs would block the kids and not let them get into puddles or any other dangerous situation. (unlike Carl)

Fiona - posted on 03/20/2012

Like any animal, I would be reluctant to leave the child and the animal alone unsupervised. Animals are unpredictable, children are unpredictable and no matter how well "trained" or domesticated the animal is, it is still an animal. But you know, not my animals, not my kids so I couldn't really speak on how appropriate it is without really knowing the snakes and the kids personally.

S. - posted on 03/20/2012

I have never heard in all my life of a snake babysitting a children, how can a snake take care of the childrens need's or detect a fire and help them escape (maybe they can, I must admit I know very little of snakes) I guess they could bite a intruder! but in my eyes this sounds like the equivalent of leaving the kids alone. I personally would worry the snake would eat my children but then I don't trust any animals round children you just never know.

Karla - posted on 03/19/2012

Sapphire ♥ says "I would think it's a health code violation with dead rat bodies and child neglect."



I'm sure the rats are alive therefore not a health code violation. Though I could be wrong, I just found this on-line:



Of course there is also a difference between the eating habits of snakes kept in captivity and snakes that live in the nature. Of course every snake keeper tries to imitate the natural eating habits of the specific type of snake it keeps, but this is not always achievable. In captivity people are often confused whether to give live or frozen food to their pets. Well, since there were cases where the pets have been injured or even killed by aggressive rodents. So if you are concerned for the safety of your pet it is always advised to feed them with frozen food.



As for me, after reading Rikki Tikki Tavi I would trust a mongoose to stay with the kids, but not a snake, at least not cobras. just saying.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rikki-Tikki...



(ETA -- joking all around!)

Johnny - posted on 03/19/2012

They aren't trained to babysit, she just leaves the kids with them. And yes I've seen it, I was in the house. I didn't call CPS but I thought about it. Since the oldest kid had been with the snakes since he was a baby, I didn't think they'd care.

Stifler's - posted on 03/19/2012

They trained the snakes to be aggressive to strangers but not the babies.

Sapphire - posted on 03/19/2012

50 years ago babies were brought home form the hospital in the front seat of Daddy's new Chevy.



Snakes as babysitters?! I call BULLSHIT!

Stifler's - posted on 03/19/2012

I think it's a parents choice, mother knows best. 50 years ago all our parents let the snakes baby sit us and we turned out just fine.

Sapphire - posted on 03/19/2012

Besides, even 1 pet snake is a dangerous pet to have near children.

Sapphire - posted on 03/19/2012

Oh come on this can't be for real! Did you actually see all these snakes? I would think it's a health code violation with dead rat bodies and child neglect. No one leaves a BABY with a pet snake! Especially a boa or python that can crush a child. Did you call child welfare services?