Are you afraid of snakes?

[stracci2000]

I recently had the opportunity to meet and handle a friend's pet boa constrictor.
She had beautiful makings, and was really docile. I thought she was really interesting, but other friends who were present
made themselves scarce and later said they didnt like snakes. I think reptiles are really cool, and don't understand why some folks are scared.
Are you afraid of snakes, and if so, why?

 

[packrat]

I'm not. I got to hold a boa years ago and it was really cool. Her name was Juliette.

Spiders, now....I see a spider and there will be much screaming and caterwauling and flailing of the arms.

 

[TooPatient]

I think some are sort of pretty.... Behind glass or in a picture. Just not near me. Not loose. Not even the possibility of loose.

They are creepy and slithery and can hurt people and pets. I don't mind them living in the wild.... I just choose to live in an area with essentially no snakes.

 

[marcy]

I would and have screamed like a little girl when I see them. We had a garter snake in our living room (about 3 feet long) and I certainly cleared out my lungs with that adventure.

 

[amc80]

Yes. I think I have an actual phobia. When I was about 9, my brother had a pet snake and was holding it in his hand. I pointed at something and the next thing I knew, the snake was flying through the air and attached to my finger.

 

[House Cat]

I am not afraid of pet snakes, although I have to be sure I can wash thoroughly after handling because of salmonella. I am afraid of wild snakes. My husband comes from the foothills and says that rattlesnakes are "no big deal." I'm not buying it.

 

[stracci2000]

Amc80, I think that childhood memories definitely stay with us, and form our opinions for life.

When I was about 8 yrs old, a 4-5 ft. long black snake was sunning itself in the middle of the alley behind our house. A neighbor decided to repeatedly run over it with his car in front of all us kids who were watching. I was horrified, because that snake never had a chance. My dad was angry with the neighbor, and told us kids that the snake was harmless to us. Maybe that's why I have a soft spot for them.

 

[Niel]

In general I think the fear of snakes is a primal fear from our ancestors, like a fear of the dark.

 

[Candygrl]

I respect them as living breathing creatures, but I do not like them! I have held them before, and I felt very uncomfortable and freaked out. Not a fan at all!

 

[missy]

No I'm not afraid of them. I think they are beautiful. Would I approach one in the wild? No because I wouldn't know if the snake was poisonous but I wouldn't hesitate handling a friendly non poisonous snake and in fact have.

Now bugs, that's a whole other story.

 

[luv2sparkle]

I am TERRIFIED of them! We have a lot of rattlers where I live in the foothills. When we lived in the mountains I told my husband if I ever saw one in my yard it would be my last day living there! There are reports every year of dogs being rattlesnake bit and I have a friend who had two dogs bit by the same snake and both died. When one of my boys was in high school his best friend went to take the trash cans out an a baby rattler was hiding in the foot tilt thingy on the trash can. It bit him and he was in the hospital for a little over a week. I would love to go hiking more but don't because of the snakes.

When I was a small child I had recurring nightmares about my whole floor of my bedroom being covered with snakes.

I am going to learn to shoot and get a pistol with snake shot. There are a lot of mojave green rattlers in CA and they are nasty nasty creatures and have been told they are aggressive. I hope to never see one. To say I have a phobia would be to put it mildly. But I know so very many people that have had them in there yards and quite a few who have unpleasant encounters.

I wouldn't be afraid of a garden snake if I knew for sure it wasn't poisonous but still wouldn't be too happy about seeing the critter.

 

[Rhea]

I'm scared of snakes in the films - movie snakes are terrifying and I have trouble watching them. In real life I'm very cautious, boarding on fearful and move quickly to avoid them. I love pet snakes! My ex-boyfriend had a wonderful pet snake and his friends had a couple as well. She was pretty, easy to care for, and fun in a snakey kind of way.

Rafting in the summer as a child my dad grabbed for a plant to slow himself down so we could catch up as a family again. He nearly grabbed a snake. I screamed like the girl I was. I don't necessarily avoid places with snakes but I definitely scan the area around me before stepping or reaching.

 

[maccers]

The smaller the snake, the more apprehensive I am...sounds strange but I get creeped out by smaller, faster, sneaky snakes and insects.

Where I live, anything that's going to kill you in the wild will be big and you will SEE it. But places like Australia, it's the small creatures that can kill you! And everything is poisonous, lol.

 

[jordyonbass]

I'm an Aussie boy; I encounter dangerous, venomous snakes on a regular basis. If I were afraid of them I would have had a heart attack by now lol

I used to run a pub in a rural area and we were pulling venomous Red-Belly Black Snakes out of the outside beer garden once or twice every week. Despite being a venomous snake they are a good sign; the highly aggressive, extremely venomous Brown Snake is usually nowhere to be seen when the reds are around as the reds eat the browns.

Only in Australia are people happy to see a venomous snake because it means they won't see another venomous snake

 

[jordyonbass]

The smaller the snake, the more apprehensive I am...sounds strange but I get creeped out by smaller, faster, sneaky snakes and insects.

Where I live, anything that's going to kill you in the wild will be big and you will SEE it. But places like Australia, it's the small creatures that can kill you! And everything is poisonous, lol.

This actually isn't all that strange; I know that here in Australia the juvenile venomous snakes can actually be a lot more dangerous than the bigger, fully grown adults. The reason being that they tend to inject all of their venom on their initial bite whereas the bigger snakes will not inject so much venom.

 

[tyty333]

I am not afraid of snakes. My brothers used to bring them home all the time (then release). I actually think some of them are
pretty cool looking. I would never choose to own one though. My favorite snake is the gaboon viper. Very pretty markings.

 

[telephone89]

I'm only afraid that because i'm unknowledgeable, I have no idea which are poisonous. In general, I'm not afraid of them though. I actually think they are very cool animals.

 

[April20]

Yeah, I don't do snakes. When we lived in Haiti in 2013, one of the first things I asked the Creole word for was snake! Just to be prepared if I saw one......

 

[Skippy123]

Yes! We have rattle snakes out here.

 

[lulu]

I'm a gardener-I need snakes!

I'm not afraid of them but when I walk in the woods in Florida I'm cautious since there are a lot of rattlers here.

On the other hand I don't like people bringing exotic snakes into the US and keeping them in cages. They tire of them and release them into the Everglades. Boa constrictors are destroying the Everglades.

 

[momhappy]

I wouldn't say that I'm necessarily afraid of snakes, but I certainly wouldn't want one as a pet. I have nothing against them per se, but to be honest, snakes aren't something that I put much thought into...

 

[MarionC]

I am not afraid of snakes. My brothers used to bring them home all the time (then release). I actually think some of them are
pretty cool looking. I would never choose to own one though. My favorite snake is the gaboon viper. Very pretty markings.

WOW

 

[MarionC]

I think snakes are beautiful. I'm not afraid per se, but I am always startled when I see one, and when I have to get a large black snake out of the chicken coop the hair on the back of my neck & arms stands up : )

I know that knowledge helps with fear. When I had the science lab for a middle school the kids wanted a tarantula. I could not even look at a spider in a photo and did not know how I was going to get one home from a pet shop. At the pet shop when the guy reached for the tarantula to put in a box I could see that it was scared - so I felt sorry for it. From then on I was not afraid and even took it home with me for the summer. However I never want a spider or a snake ON me

 

[dk168]

Snake soup is tasty, one of the many dishes that I miss for not living in Hong Kong.

DK

 

[missy]

I think snakes are beautiful. I'm not afraid per se, but I am always startled when I see one, and when I have to get a large black snake out of the chicken coop the hair on the back of my neck & arms stands up : )

I know that knowledge helps with fear. When I had the science lab for a middle school the kids wanted a tarantula. I could not even look at a spider in a photo and did not know how I was going to get one home from a pet shop. At the pet shop when the guy reached for the tarantula to put in a box I could see that it was scared - so I felt sorry for it. From then on I was not afraid and even took it home with me for the summer. However I never want a spider or a snake ON me

Ooh I definitely agree about the spider part. I am scared of them. Crazy right? Not scared of snakes but scared of spiders. I think it is due to the fact that spiders are small and can get onto you more easily and ooooh just thinking about a spider getting into my hair or worse gives me the heebie jeebies.

Snake soup is tasty, one of the many dishes that I miss for not living in Hong Kong.

DK

This makes me sad. Poor sweet snakes.
Not judging you though DK. Just saying it makes me sad when I think of any living creature (minus bugs that is and that is mainly because I am scared of them but would never kill a "good" bug like a spider or bee!) being killed.

 

[stracci2000]

I think snakes are beautiful. I'm not afraid per se, but I am always startled when I see one, and when I have to get a large black snake out of the chicken coop the hair on the back of my neck & arms stands up : )

I know that knowledge helps with fear. When I had the science lab for a middle school the kids wanted a tarantula. I could not even look at a spider in a photo and did not know how I was going to get one home from a pet shop. At the pet shop when the guy reached for the tarantula to put in a box I could see that it was scared - so I felt sorry for it. From then on I was not afraid and even took it home with me for the summer. However I never want a spider or a snake ON me

See, this is what I mean-they are misunderstood for some reason. Finding out that they are innocent and vulnerable too, may help us to feel sympathy instead of fear. Yes, spiders and snakes bite, and some bites may kill you.
But dogs and cats bite, too, and we love them so much!!! So why the difference? Maybe the furriness of dogs and cats makes them cute and endearing to us humans.

 

[cflutist]

Yes definitely, especially when rattlesnakes are along side a trail that I'm hiking on.

 

[stracci2000]

Yesterday, a small spider was in my bathtub. I scooped him up on a bit of tissue to carry him to the back door to release him. I don't like to kill spiders in the house. Anyway, he scampered off the tissue and ran across my hand on the way to the door. I was a little freaked out, but we made it outside, and I shook him off my hand, and we both felt alot better!

My backyard is full of black widows in the summer. They love rocky nooks to hang out in. They come in other colors, not just black with the red hourglass on the belly. Some are tan colored with brownish stripes. I have gotten over being afraid of them, because I see them so much all summer long. I wear gloves alot when doing any gardening. DH will spray them with raid, because he says they will overrun the backyard in no time. We have never found one in the house.

 

[lyra]

I feel like I could write a Dr. Seuss book about snakes and spiders. I do not like them in my house, I do not like them in my bed, etc. I am fine with snakes outside. They are nice to look at. I don't really feel that individuals should keep large or very venomous snakes. I think they belong in nature and not in "cages". I don't know much about snakes, and all I ever see here are garter snakes, which don't bother me in the least.

 

[partgypsy]

I think some people are just instinctually scared of snakes, and others are not. I still remember when walking with a (guy) friend and a garter snake slithered across the sidewalk from one patch of grass to the next, and he jumped back 3 feet. And I said, "It's just a garter snake." Snakes don't bother me, in fact I have a memory when a kid of sitting next to a sleeping rattlesnake on some warm stone steps and looking at it for quite some time, fascinated.
My older daughter is also not afraid of snakes and loves all manner of things including snakes, turtles, lizards, frogs, etc.

On the other hand I hate creepy crawly things, especially if they end up crawling on me. We were at a nature museum and my oldest daughter when little, around 5, really wanted to hold some particularly large insect. I was holding onto the botton of her hand to steady it. Apparently the insect thought her hand was too small and jumped onto my hand, clutching on with it's little pincher feet and actually hissed at me. It took all my willpower not to squish the d*mmed thing in front of everyone.