Escaped Snake

[ArcticRain]

Am after some opinions here on whether the snake should be rehomed or not.

My stepson is 15 and has an adult corn which is about 5 and a half feet long. It is not poisoness or a constrictor but can carry salomenella on its skin.

We had issues with him not providing it with water, but this has picked up after we threatened to rehome if he didnt act more responsible. It is not handled no where near enough which is a welfare cocern to me. DH picked SS up on not shuting the tank properly previously. When you open the tank, the other side opens and you have to check its closed. He has a tank lock but doesnt use it.

Yesterday after they had all gone to school and work I jumped into the shower in the en suite leaving DD of 5 weeks in our room. Usually I leave her on the floor on the soft changing mat while in the shower as she is happy there. After this, I opened our bedroom door to find snake at the door, and about a foot of its body in the air. I dont like it, but can accept it in its tank, so this scared the hell out of me, and I managed to shut it in DD nursery after it moved in there.

What concerns me is if I had left our bedroom door open a jar, it would have been in our bedroom with DD while I was in the en suite. If she had been on the floor, it would have been on top of her.

The snake had also been downstairs because there was a poo trail. Not only could it have remained hidden for me and my DD to encouter later on, the dog could have gotten hold of it and killed it.

I would like to see it rehomed and know of some friends who we could consider, DH wont, saying im favouring my DD above the other children, and the catch he has now made for the tank should resolve it, but this is dependent on SS using it.

It scared the hell out of me, and I cant stop thinking how easy it could get to being around the baby. I so careful about the dog and cat, but feel I have no control over the snake.

Sorry for any spelling mistakes / typos, breastfeeding.

Not handling a snake is not a welfare issue. They only tolerate being handled, they don't like it and some snakes even stop eating if they are handled too much.

You also do not need to worry about the snake constricting your DD, there is no way a corn would even attempt it, let alone be able to, even a newborn baby would be too big.

The salmonella is obviously a worry, but I know lots of people with snakes and lizards and the only person I know who has got salmonella accidentally put a lizard egg in her mouth. (yes, it was accidental, long story!) Not all snakes carry salmonella and they would have to poo and then move through it for it to be on their skin.

I would also be worried that the dog would kill the snake if it got out again.

Snakes are escape artists though and some can open glass vivarium doors even if they are shut properly if they are not locked or wedged shut. Perhaps if your DH is keen for your DSS to keep the snake he can oversee the care and handling of it?

Quite apart from the fact I have a complete phobia about snakes so am totally bias and wouldn't allow a snake in the house in the first place...

That snake would have been out of the door and rehomed faster than you can say "rehome the snake, DH". If DSS is not looking after its welfare needs properly and not checking it is secure in its vivarium, then he shouldn't be allowed to keep it.

QuietTiger, I want to rehome it . This was the last straw for me . No water was bad enough . DH refuses and as its my stepsons I don't get the final say I feel .

DH did say if found opened or unlocked it will be rehomed , maybe if I find it wondering around again I simply rehome straightway ,.given that us what DH has said .

Right you have baby in your house and dog and snake.
Yet you leave you child alone with out checking either is a safe place..

surely as a parent it is your job to check that your animals are in a safe place before you leave your baby alone....

I would be thinking or rehoming your dog as they are far more dangerous to your baby that the snake..

Was the snake in the house when your got pg?

The dog was downstairs behind the doggate as it always is . The snake should be shut in its tank .

But you're right longjane . Where as I can ensure that the dog is in the correct place , I can't ensure the snake is constantly in its tank , and its obvious I can't trust DSS to ensure it is in the tank , so I guess it must go .

yes you can check the snake is the right place you have to check before you leave your baby.
It is was parent does they have to check for themselves that their house is safe .
It is not your SS fault or Dh fault the snake was out but yours you have to make your house safe for your baby.
did you check the dog gate before you left your child.

You left your child

how you would feel if ss when looking after your baby left on floor when he when to loo and did not check that the dog or snake was lock away.

Hidden I just watched that video. And it reminded me of something my sisters DP told us.

This woman had a Boa, and she let it have free reign in the house, and she woke up one night to find it lying next to her on the bed, totally straight and stiff. So she called up her vet who told her to get out of the house right now as it was measuring itself against her to see if it could fit her in it's belly! It was going to eat her!

I think it might have been on local news, can't remember where it was though.

longjain, firstly I wound not leave either of my stepchildren alone with the baby.

Secondly, it is not my snake, the snake is not my responsibility, and I do not want the responsibility of having to check up on constantly. A 15 year old should be capable of being responsible enough to ensure the tank door is closed. If he can not be, then as the repsonsible adult, I can remove the snake from the house. Problem solved.

I didnt leave my child, she was a few metres from me while I was in the en suite. Yes I know the dog was secure. My husband was the last out, and shuts the dog behind the gate. If he doesnt she ruins the living room, it has been this way for many year, unless you are suggesting I cant trust the father and I have to check up on him to, and all responsibility to ensure the satfey of all in the household falls to me?

Spaghetti, that story sounds familiar, but I heard that a women use to sleep with the snake, and was proud that it use to wrap itself around her at night to go to sleep, until the vet told her it was getting ready to eat her!

It's very simple. Get rid of the snake. The thought of getting out of the shower and seeing the escaped snake like that has made me feel sick.

yes when you are in charge of baby/child alone it is your job to make sure it is safe.
NOBODY ELSE.
You did leave you child on the floor with dangerous pets in the house which you had not check where in a safe place. You dont even think you should have to shut your bedroom door .

You put your child at risk nobody else .
I dont think you should keep pets if you are going carry on like this .
YOU will the police charge if your baby get harmed by these pet not ss or Dh .
You are the adult who chose to have a baby in house with a dog and snake it is your responsibility to keep your child safe when in your sole care .

I am sorry you dont want to responsible but guess what
YOU ARE PARENT . You have to take charge of all the pets so your baby does not get hurt. Dont care if you dont want to the pets where their 1st and still chose to get pg.You made a choice to bring a baby into house where there is snake. YOUR CHOICE live with like a grown up. Grown up dont throw away things cos they dont want to take of them.

ok longjane, I accept in your eyes I am a very neglectful, bad, bad person who deserves to be locked away , and am not fit to be a parent. Is that OK?

thanks everyone else for your replies. Ill trust DHs faith in his son and give him another chance. If it happens again, we will rehome the snake to friends. I think thats a fair compromise .

Longjane What the heck has having a dog got to do with anything? Millions of families have dogs with babies

And I'm pretty sure a lot of families also have snakes with babies. I know of one family, they have an 8mo son, 6yo daughter, a 7ft Boa constrictor, a 1 1/2ft Boa constrictor (my mums snakes brother) and a dog.
Your worst nightmare by the sounds of it.

spaghetti

I know loads of family have pets with babies but I am sure the parents/caregiver make sure the the pets are safe before they leave a baby alone ...

If you are going get rid of snake because you cant be bother to look after it surely you should get of dog as you have proved that you cant look after pets Dogs are far more likely to harm babies and arctic has said she did not check the dog was in a safe place when she left her baby.

longjane, the baby was in a safe place, the door was shut, she was with me, not sure what on earth you are going on about with regards to the dog.

The woman and the boa "sizing her up" story is ridiculous and a complete urban myth. Even a fully grown anaconda would struggle to eat an adult human. And snakes dont "size up" their prey by lying alongside it anyway! My pythons (about 5 foot each) eat rats that are 6" long at best. Think how long the snake would have to be to fit 5' of person in their stomach
Really makes me laugh when anyone quotes that story as fact.

Midori talks sense. Not handling a snake isnt a welfare issue. I'm pregnant and haven't handled mine for months. Same as last time I was pregnant. They were fine when I picked them up after this.

Everything that is born from an egg has a salmonella risk, but its tiny.

By the way, most (possibly all, I'm not an expert) snakes dont drink water, so its not necessarily the end of the world if he left them without it for a few days. They only use their water to bathe when their skin needs to be shed.

I think you hate the snake TBH, you seem to be looking for excuses to get rid of him :(

she was not with you
you were in the shower
she was on the FLOOR

And you did not check the pets were safe away before you left your baby on the floor .
WOW the bebroom door was shut so the snake could not got her then . So why the big fuss. Next time check all pets are safe away before you leave your baby alone.

Of course nothing could happen to her on floor .Baby do move you know . As you did not check on your pets I bet you did have checked your bedroom to see if it a safe place to leave you baby alone....

PS, just want to add that a corn snake is a constrictor. Because how does it kill its prey...

PPS, I have been bitten by my little girl snake in the past. It did not even leave a mark, their teeth are tiny, they kill using their bodies. So, even if worst case scenario, anyone did get bitten by the rampant corn, they're hardly going to die from it.

I dont hate the snake! Its been in the house for about 3 years. Im afraid of it, but it really hasnt been an issue until it escaped. In fact if anything Im concerned for it and think it would be better off in a home where someone can care for it properly. We were actually informed by the seller that it needed fresh water every day because they can dehydrate, and to be handled every day unless it had eaten / was going to shed. And to clear out any mess. It was the eating that we neednt worry about to much.

I also dont like the idea of finding a snake half eaten by the dog, although she'd probably ignore it.

I think im compromising, it doesnt escape and it can stay. It escapes again, it goes.

longjane, my bedroom and en suite are the same room, the en suite is attached to the bedroom. I can stand with one foot in the ensuite and one foot in the bedroom. There is one door to get into both rooms. I didnt need to check the bedroom because I was in the bedroom ensuite.

I said I normally put the baby on the floor on her mat while I have a shower. I can see her on the mat if I pull the curtain aside. However like I said, if my bedroom door was a jar, the snake would have been on top of her while I was in the shower. In this instance, I said she was in our bedroom, in her basket incidently, a couple of metres from me. Again, I know there was no dog in there because the door was shut.

I voiced my concerns that the snake could have been in the bedroom and I would not noticed, because funnily enough they dont make their presense known, and also that it had been down stairs so it could have 'jumped' out at us anytime. I also voiced concern that the dog could have gotten it. I was asking for opnions as I know some people would say get rid, and others would say keep, and I wanted both sides. I also know that the snake would only be a risk from a salomenella view point, and that the snake was more at risk of being harmed by the dog.

Im also not entirely convinced that a 5 week old can move that far.

Sounds like a good compromise. I'm bloody terrified of my DS's snakes. I refuse to handle the thing and if it ever escaped I'm not sure who would be most scared, me or Taboo the Boa.