You have very stringent requirements for pets. I know dogs who wouldn’t qualify.
As a general rule, a dog that’s raised with proper care and affection will display a strong bond with its owner(s). It would be profoundly foolish to expect the same of a large constrictor.
There are enough horror stories about snakes of that type and size to make the linked video disturbing.
Ah, well, all the snakes I’ve known have been human-raised (see, I will even avoid the term ‘pets’ to in accord with the threads sentiments), and quite comfortable and relaxed with humans, so the video did not disturb me, because the girl did not appear unattended to me.
However, I have also known apparently peaceful dogs to suddenly attack, and some that I truly thought should be put down. Don’t even ask about cats. The kids look to be in just as much danger in those cute pictures of babies sleeping on big dogs or chasing reluctant cats, because dogs kill fast. I know canines are domesticated, but they still kill. And I just don’t trust cats.
That’s the second creepy photo of a kid with a snake I’ve seen this week. The other was less creepy, because the kid was older, but the giant snake climbed up the child (who was seated at a desk) and draped itself over the head, coming thiiiiis close to going around the neck. Then the child brushes the snake aside and the snake lets it do so, and the video ends.
Snakes are fun to play with, and I can see keeping a smaller one around. They are more like fish than like actual pets – a living amusement, not a part of the family like a cat or dog or even a rabbit can be.
But I don’t think snakes are smart enough or social enough to have a sense of “this animal is part of my social group”, so I would guess the snake just thinks:
harmful/harmless
prey/not prey
warm/not warm
provides food/doesn’t provide food
And any of those categories could change. I would not keep a snake large enough to eat me or my child. Come to think of it, I wouldn’t keep a snake large enough to eat my cat.
Dogs are highly social animals. They don’t attack without a reason unless they are psychotic (happens). Just because a person who is not animal-savvy thinks they attack randomly doesn’t mean they do. Of course, their reason might not convince you, personally.
Not a lot of cat fatalities, most years.
I like snakes, myself. But I agree with most posters that they are non-social, deeply stupid predators which don’t necessarily mix well with children and other weak or unskilled persons.
I did not say randomly, but suddenly. The problem with cats is infected scratches. And that they’re cats.
Is the snake yawning at one point? (Do I know?)
Stretching it’s jaw muscles?
Exposing some sensory anatomy?
Doing a random just for test “snarl?” (Do snakes display their teeth/open wide as an aggression/defensive posture?)
So many questions.
A snake that large can be dangerous even if it’s not attacking. When I was working on a biodiversity survey project in Gabon, our project herpetologist and his team caught a large python. While they were handling it, it whipped its tail around his neck and started to tighten it, not as an attack but simply to get a hold on something. He and his assistants were able to pry it off, but if he had been alone it could have gone worse.
Regarding the point that the child was safe because there was an adult in the room, the snake would have had to get its coils around the child to harm her. Constrictors have a mouth full of needle-sharp teeth, and a bite could do a lot of damage.
Seriously?
Dogs are highly social because they come from a lineage of pack hunters. Aggressive behavior occurs in establishing pack hierarchy; in responding to perceived external threats to the pack; and in hunting perceived prey with the pack.
Of course, we breed and train dogs to modify these behaviors to socialize them to a human context. But aspects of these instincts are very obviously still present in all dogs to varying degrees.
One of the biggest problems with incompetent dog owners is the mistaken assumption that because the dog is loyal and friendly to them, that the dog will respond in a similar way to others; and worse, that if their dog behaves aggressively to someone, that the different behavior to someone perceived as outside their pack must somehow be related to the way that other person behaved.
Don’t snakes carry salmonella, too?
“It can’t be bargained with. It can’t be reasoned with. It doesn’t feel pity, or remorse, or fear! And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are dead!”
Sorry, that just automatically popped into my head.
Have you ever had a cat? I’ve had cats all my life, ad they’re the most affectionate little shits on the planet. I’ve NEVER had a scratch get infected – never. A few scars, that’s it. (And none of them were intentional – the most prominent was when my cat tried to CLIMB ON MY SHOULDERS because she liked to sit there)
Want an affectionate pet? Siamese cats are the best. They are extremely outgoing, loving, social and playful. They’re also very talkative, though, so if you want a quiet one, they might not be for you.
Cats can become very attached to certain people as well. I’m Maggie’s favorite, and she usually sleeps on my pillow at night. I tell her “It’s bed time” and she follows me upstairs.
You thought the snake video was “sweet”? Try this.
Do you think a large enough snake could crush the shoulder bones of a child and then be able to swallow him/her? Or is that just not the behavior of constrictors, that constriction is used only to kill and immobilize a victim?
As has been said, constrictors don’t “crush bones.” They kill by suffocation, by compressing the rib cage so the victim can’t breathe, or as mentioned by Tamerlane by increasing blood pressure.
A snake that size probably couldn’t break the bones even of a child. However, maybe it could dislocate the shoulders if the coils were positioned right, but it wouldn’t be intelligent enough to do so intentionally.
And even so, the issue is the abrupt widening of the body below the neck. A snake gets its mouth around its prey by unhinging its jaws and hooking its teeth in. Then it moves each side of the jaws forward, hooks its teeth in again, and draws the prey deeper into its mouth. The problem with the shoulders is that it wouldn’t be able to hook its jaws sideways in order to move them over the shoulders.
kayaker:
Sounds like an episode title for The Big Bang Theory.
I’ve lived with cats, off and on, about half my life. Blood thirsty little predators, every one of them.
But the scratches really can be dangerous, be careful.
So do I. Some breeds are dangerously aggressive by nature, individual ones of any race can also be aggressive or react in an unwelcome way.
Cats? They vary from friendly to distrustful to aggressive. With cats and dogs it is a question of bringing them up among humans. Strays never really adapt, in my experience.
Mammals seem to have conscious awareness than reptiles, which are just a collection of reactions and instincts, as was pointed out here. But whatever the animal, it is best to keep an eye on it if it is with a small child.
Same here. Cats around the house when I was growing up. Two that I have had for a year now, got them from a farm. They are incredibly affectionate, and not just at feeding time. Scratches? Occasionally, if they get excited, but I just quickly swab the grazes with antiseptic - I did get “cat scratch fever” once, years ago, because I ignored the scratch. (Not from my own cat.)
Siamese? An acquaintance had a full Siamese. Lovely animal, very friendly, but LOUD. Later we had a cat that was a very small part Siamese, and it was very friendly and very intelligent, and not loud.
Only downer when it comes to cats; if you die in an enclosed house and nobody comes in for a few days, cats will start snacking on you much sooner than a dog. Just keep their dishes well topped up.
Yes, i have and do on a regular basis. I have 12 large boas of my own and volunteer with 20 or so other reptiles. Yes, that snake could kill that child but any teenager could pull it off easily. The secret in not having that happen is food. Keep your snake well fed and it wont feel the need to eat something that isnt part of its normal diet.
Ive been bitten more times than i can count but never in an aggresive or defensive manner. Only when im stupid in feeding and don’t wash my hands betwwen snakes and food.
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Indeed. I am a happy owner of a dog and a flock of chickens. First of all, birds are significantly more evolved than any reptile (flocking behavior, caring for young, songs, etc.) and chickens are still one of the stupidest things ever. They get stuck in the same fence every single day (if we let them). They do not learn other than response to a couple of words for which we have them trained. But this is clear stimulus-response and the strongest stimulus is simply my presence and particularly my walking toward the coop as I am the primary source of food outside of their feeder.
SImilarly, I give very little affection to our dog (I think petting any animal is gross and disgusting and wash my hands immediately afterward), but what I do most frequently is give him leftovers or treats. He definitively loves me the most to the consternation of everyone else in the family/house. And also watch how dogs generally find the person who doesn’t pay them any attention and try to get that person’s attention.
I really doubt that most animals have affection of any significant form- rather animal affection is to a very large extent purely anthropomorphization (sp? real word?) of the interest in food (giving).
Female aligators will look after their young for up to two years…/nitpicking
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I think the gerund “anthropomorphizing” is most commonly used.