Reptile Rob says pythons, anacondas and boa constrictors do not make good pets.
But, adds Rob Kamstra, owner of Thunder Bay Reptiles, they’re also not the monsters they’re being made out to be in the wake of the death of Noah and Connor Barthe earlier this week in Campbellton, N.B.
“There are many snakes and lizards that are great pet material,” he said Wednesday at the CLE, where he was setting up an exhibition of reptiles, amphibians and exotic birds.
“But when you get into boas or pythons, the bigger species, there are a lot of safety issues involved. I’m talking the ones that are well over 10 feet when they’re adults.”
The trouble is that many would-be pet owners don’t think ahead when making a purchase.
“A lot of guys get them when their small and they’re all cute and cuddly and they can tame them. You can tame them to a degree of handling them, but there are always handling issues. And that’s with anything over six feet,” Kamstra said.
“A corn snake, a garter snake, anything over six feet, you’ve got to get another person involved, just on the off chance. Because with these guys, always on their minds is food.”
Connor and Noah Barthe, aged four and six, died overnight Monday, allegedly after a 45-kilogram African rock python escaped its enclosure, slithered through the ventilation system above a reptile store and then fell through the ceiling into the room where the visiting youngsters were sleeping.
Kamstra, who has pythons as part of his weekend exhibition, said it’s too early in the investigation, being conducted by the RCMP, to determine what happened.
He also offered his condolences to the victims’ family.
The snakes, which have been outlawed in communities across the country, including Thunder Bay, should be allowed in Canada under the watchful eye of trained experts, he said.
Jody Kondrat, the supervisor of animal services for the City of Thunder Bay, said boas, pythons and venomous reptiles have been banned in the city since 1983.
There are simply too many concerns to allow the public to keep them as pets, she said.
“Exotic animals do pose a risk to human safety, unfortunately. They also carry diseases. Some of these animals don’t adapt well to captivity, so people acquire these animals without thinking about what they’re getting into,” Kondrat said.
“They require specialized care, diet, housing and often people aren’t aware what they’re getting into.”
Luckily, she noted, complaints about exotic pets are few and far between, although just last year the city was called in and seized a pair of pythons from a homeowner. The animals were relocated outside Thunder Bay.
