Going Mouse-Shopping

Well, now that Bandit, Bud and Barney have settled in their new homes finally, it's time to feed them. So today I am going to town to get some feeder mice. I hope the pet shop here has babies to sell!! Bud and Bandit can only eat pinkie mice. Barney on the other hand, can have bigger mice. Though not too much bigger. I have a special trick up my sleeve, I plan to kill the mice myself. Or at least paralyze them so they don't hurt my snakes. There is a way to do it quickly, easily, and with no ill effects to the snake. I've heard of people suffocating the mice with CO2, but I've also heard of that killing the snake once the overabundance of gas has been released in their body. Not sure if that is really true, but I don't want to take that chance. I also don't want to keep mice in my freezer!! There is something very disturbing about that! My ma is terrified of and disgusted with mice, so I sure cannot do that. Of course she is also disgusted by snakes too. LOL! Some people are, and I understand that. But not all snakes are venomous or icky creatures. Actually, once you get to know them like I have, you'd see they are very beautiful and beneficial animals.

Snakes can be good pets like dogs or cats, only without the shedding of hair, and very little mess to clean up. They are non-allergenic too. And some, like my house snake Barney, are very docile animals. No snake ever "loves" people, but they can become docile to a point where they actually seem to. Some tolerate the company of their humans more than others. Some snakes are not tamable at all. I always heard that green tree pythons are very skittish and flighty, and are rather difficult to tame down. But I have seen some people who own them and have been able to interact with them regularly. I guess it depends a lot on how they have been raised. They are hard to tame though because they have such long and sharp teeth (they are non-venomous), but their bite packs something of a whollop too! It can be quite painful. But all it takes is patience, kindness, and some good, strong gloves, and you'll have yourself a lovely snake. I had one friend call me weird because I own snakes now. hehe! Which as many of you reading this now may know I take that as a compliment!! I remember last year I found someone who said all snake owners are freaks, except her daughter who owns a corn snake. Well, honestly, it won't be long before her daughter will be among us "freaks". Snakes are addictive! They are so easy to care for, that makes them almost the perfect pet!

My long-term task with these snakes is to turn them into a business. I want to breed snakes. Of course I will be starting off small, I got a good start now, with Bandit, Barney and Bud. All I have to do is get them some girlfriends! Of course it will be years before they will be able to begin breeding. I'll start in Billings, and later on, maybe have enough to move out here and keep my business going in this town. I hope!! Most of my business will be with reptile expos. I'll get myself an RV, and travel with my snakes around the country to different expos. Of course most people nowadays like morph colors, like albinos and hypomelanistics and lavendars. While man-made morphs are great on dogs and cats, I don't like them in snakes, lizards and birds!! I prefer natural colors in those animals. They are all naturally beautiful. I think messing with their colors totally subtracts a lot of their own natural beauty. That's something that should not be messed with! That's what I am going to specialize in, naturally colored animals. Not just snakes and lizards, but also birds. I saw a report from one person who said he got morph babies from 2nd generation wild-caught milksnakes. So, not sure how to keep my lines morph-free, but I will give it a try. I hope I have much better results breeding snakes than I did breeding chihuahuas!! Well, one thing I would have going for me is that snakes lay eggs. All I need is a mentor. I've read many books on the subject of snake breeding. I even found some literature on the internet. Fortunately, my snakes are all babies, and I don't need to breed them just yet. So, no worries for now. But they grow fast! Especially if you feed them several times a week, which if I am going to breed them, I need to do. Which is why while I am out today, I also intend to pick up some breeder mice.