|
1-10 of 25 messages
|
Page 1 of 3
Next
|
|
Think Before You Speak
|
Reply
|
|
by DexterB on January 15, 2002
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Jason,
You've made some good points in this article, and I would like to respond to it. I too, condemn the people who are not willing to give serious beginners any credit when they ask 'silly' questions, but instead try to flame them.
This is not only disrespectful, but also creates a situation in which those people go ahead and buy the venomous snake that they want, without being fully prepared to take proper care for them, which in turn may give the hobby a bad name if something bad happens, like an escape or a bite incident.
But nowadays there are also lots of people who are 'into venomous snakes' just for the excitement and the thrill of being able to say that they own venomous snakes.
These people keep large venomous snakes in small and improper housings and take them out to show them off, or have their picture taken 'handling' or even worse 'freehandling' the snake.
And these people also found the way to the forums on the Internet and have begun to ask their questions....
I remember that during the time that the SHHS was founded, there was not nearly as much information to be found regarding the keeping of venomous snakes on the Internet. That's why I was one of the first keepers in Europe to become an active member of the SHHS and had my former web-site approved by them. ( The very first SHHS logo even contained a picture of my Crotalus horridus atricadautus female "Bitch" which still can be seen in the horridus photo album by the way...)
I had a disclaimer on my site warning people that venomous snakes were dangerous and that I would not recommend anyone else to start keeping these animals.
I also got tagged ever so lightly with one fang of my female Cr. horr.atricaudatus. (hence her name "Bitch")
Still I received about 40 e-mails a week, asking for info on how and where to obtain snakes, or how to keep them.
But nevertheless, even today there are still lots of things that you can't learn from a book, or find on the Internet. Actually handling a snake for instance, is difficult and has to be learned from another keeper.
There's no way in the world hat you can learn that from a book or a web-site.
So with this in mind, I've virtually stopped answering people who ask 'silly' questions on a forum.(which is better than call them names or worse.)
Sometimes I rely on my instinct, which says that the person asking a question is serious about getting into the hobby and provide that someone with an answer.
But nowadays there seem to be more and more 'trolls' and sensationalists, who get their kicks out of asking for information that they really do not need and I for one am getting tired of typing the same info over and over again, knowing that it is not going to be used.
If people are serious in getting information they can always send me an e-mail and I'll be happy to help them out.
But as for the forums are concerned I'm afraid I won't be as helpful as I used to be anymore....
regards,
Dex.
|
| |
|
Think Before You Speak
|
Reply
|
|
by KingCobraFan on January 16, 2002
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Excellent article! I'm extremely fortunate in that I've
met a venomous expert who's more than willing to share info and let me watch him work. Certainly "Watch this!"
types are annoying, and it can be hard to sort them out
from those of us genuinely interested in learning about
hots, but we've got to learn from somewhere.
Sincerely,
Bill Huseth
|
| |
|
RE: Think Before You Speak
|
Reply
|
|
by NegativGain on January 19, 2002
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
I was fortunante enough to be taught since the age of 3 on how to handle snakes. My father gave me a garter snake as a kid, and i have since moved on to boigas, copperheads and rattlers. My only supervised experience was with non-hots, but after 18 years of that, I was willing to give it a try. My b.Dendrophila was my first hot, and even now, I handle it like a hot snake. People think I am completely insane (and have no problem telling me that) for keeping ANY snakes, not just hots. There will always be people who don't like them, or are just afraid of them. All we can do is try to educate them.
|
| |
|
It is irritating......
|
Reply
|
|
by Hotstuff on January 24, 2002
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
dealing time and time again with the thrill seekers. And the novices that believe "it can't be THAT tough". And, granted, often if you do try to explain, they don't listen. But, there are always those new guys that are simply misinformed. And laying out facts for them, can change their mind about getting a potentially dangerous herp. Sure, more often than not, our warnings fall on deaf ears. But, every now and then, those new guys listen. I've gotten emails from some of them saying things like,"I had no idea, I guess I better wait." I for one, don't think I could live with myself if I didn't at least try to prevent them from getting a hot snake prematurely. Not only might we be preventing yet another blemish to snake keeping, we could be saving a life.
|
| |
|
Think Before You Speak
|
Reply
|
|
by Ophion on February 27, 2002
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
I definitely agree with this article. I think the one thing we can do as a hobby to ensure our future is HANG TOGETHER. I also have to deal with macho idiots and people who have no idea what they are doing asking "where can I get a cobra like that?" We all have that problem, but there must not be a 'flame first and ask questions later' attitude. There is far too much acrimony in this hobby as it is.
|
| |
|
Think Before You Speak
|
Reply
|
|
Anonymous post on March 13, 2002
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Well thought article.
Just a perspective from an outsider:
I remember once a friend told me that I need to scale my desktop wallpaper properly so that my PC would function smoother. And when I asked him how to do that, the answer I got was "If you don't know scaling then you don't need a wallpaper".
The questions to people who flame others who asked questions then is: How would you like it to be in my shoes when I got the above answer.
Do you really think people would listen to you and not by a hot/delay buying a hot when that's your way of telling them? Or would they just think "Hey, if I'm not going to get help from this bunch of elitist a$$holes, then I'll just go and do it even if I have to learn the hard way."?
I don't actually keep any herp, just occasionally browse through websites and forums out of interest. It is just really sad when I get to see an otherwise good informative forums dirtied by so much flamings.
I've been to lots of other forums on the net, where people are there to help each other, and it is my impression that herp forums have a high proportions of people who would easily flame others simply because they have different values.
|
| |
|
Think Before You Speak
|
Reply
|
|
by Sheldon on April 14, 2002
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I think your article was very informative, but I'd like to know what some of the "silly" questions are that you have heard. I've been keeping and breeding venomous snakes for 13 years and I'm sure I've asked my share of "silly" questions. But if it wasn't for those silly questions I wouldn't be where I am today.
I have no herpetology schooling and I have no degree but I do have many years of knowledge and experience, thanks to other herpers who were willing to answer some of my "silly" questions.
As far as I'm concerned there are no silly questions when it comes to hot snakes, especially, or anything for that matter. When it comes to those who never put in enough time to respect and understand the snake I can understand questions. And even now after 13 years, I'm still asking questions and I probably will until the day I die. And when somebody does ask me something, silly or not, I try to the best of my ability to answer that question in an informative and respectable way. Being that they are at the bottom of the ladder of herping I will try to the best of my ability to guide them the right way.
I don't mean to put your article down, because it was very informative, like I said, and I can relate to most of it. But by not answering people's questions because you think they are silly, isn't going to help make them any more informed or you any better of a herper. You got where you are today just as I have, or any of us have, by questioning and learning.
Think back to your first hot herp, and who was there for you. How silly were you?
Sheldon
|
| |
|
RE: Think Before You Speak
|
Reply
|
|
by Sheldon on April 14, 2002
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
The above comment is directed to "Dex" not the writer of the "Think Before You Speak" article.
Sheldon
|
| |
|
RE: Think Before You Speak
|
Reply
|
|
by CollegeRattler on April 15, 2002
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Good artile,
I hope it brings to light the true dangers of putting down the begginer. I remember when I was a begginer I got chewed out for introducing myself on a forum. I would like some of these guys who are tuff online to say it to my face and see what happens. I stopped asking questions because of those people. Sometimes I even avoid answering questions because I'm worried about people bashing my answers. Just common manners have been forgotten by some of these "experts" but thankfully not all are like this and good people are helping the novice get their needed answers.
|
| |
|
RE: Think Before You Speak
|
Reply
|
|
by DexterB on April 15, 2002
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Sheldon,
I think you have missed something important here. In my reply I have stated that I virtually do not answer people who are asking 'silly questions' on the different venomous forums. (questions like: what is better to begin with, a Gaboon viper or a Western Diamondback? coming from a person with zero experience handling venomous snakes.....)
However, I also state in my reply that anyone that wants to get into the hobby in a serious way, can always e-mail me and I'm happy to answer all of their questions.
It's not that I do not want to share information, but rather that I am tired of answering the same questions over and over again. The people that ask those questions, are going to do what they want to do anyways,( believe me, I know they will) so what is the point? Am I supposed to be my brothers keeper regardless of what?
My take is that if people are genuinely and seriously interested in obtaining vital information regarding husbandry or handling techniques for specific venomous species, they will go that extra mile and e-mail me off the forum.
I get your point about sharing and exchanging information and totally agree with that, but the Internet has made it possible for lots of people who should not be in this hobby, but are actually in it for the wrong reasons, to get information for free without being able to ascertain the true value of it.
I could write a complete lecture on how to handle a 9 ft Black Mamba, but that will not help them out in actually handling such a snake, if they have never handled anything as big as that before.
Some things you simply cannot learn from a forum on the Internet, even if you get all the right answers.
As for what some might call a 'high horse attitude' is concerned, I can only say that I have always been a person that has tried to be helpful in anyway that I could, up to a certain point.
I will not help a person who clearly is planning to do something drastic, which will place him/her in a sitution which is way over his/her head.
If something bad happens, this will reflect bad on our hobby and that is the last thing that we need.
Hope this clarifies things for ya...;-)
grtz,
Dex.
PS: When I got my first (baby) Western Diamondback some 12 years ago from a breeder in Germany, the only advice he gave me was 'not to let it bite ya' and to use tools if I absolutely had no other option than to handle the snake. Oh and he wished me good luck too!
Don't know if I qualified as being silly or just plain ignorant and pigheaded at that time, but I went ahead and bought the snake anyway....;-)
Today I feel absolutely no regrets about that decision, even though when I look back, I can now clearly see that I have had some very close calls during that first year!
|
| |
|
Email Subscription
You are not subscribed to this topic.
Subscribe!
My Subscriptions
Subscriptions Help
Check our help page for help using
, or send questions, comments, or suggestions to the
Manager.
|
