The Downside of Having Venomous Snakes as “Pets”

By Minnesotastan in Animals & Pets on Mar 26, 2010 at 12:08 pm

Several days after purchasing a highly venomous cobra, a German teenager discovered that it was no longer in its terrarium.

What followed was one of the lengthiest and most expensive pet-hunts Germany has seen in recent years. The walls, floor and ceiling of O’s attic apartment were dismantled and the two units on the ground floor below were also carefully searched. Flour was strewn on the floor in the hopes of collecting tracks. Strong, double-sided tape was installed to perhaps trap the cobra baby. The fire department even brought in mini-cameras to search the tightest and most inaccessible corners.

After the fire department removed and examined all the furniture, a construction company was called in to demolish the apartment.  The house has now been sealed, and other renters in the building have been told they will need to live elsewhere for two months while the cobra (hopefully) starves.  The cost of these interventions is well above €40,000; German authorities will apparently send the bills to the young snake enthusiast.

Link.  Credit for photo of the redecorated apartment to ddp.


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  1. Anonymous Backstabber
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 12:26 pm

    They don’t have fumigation tents in teh Germanies?

  2. Craig
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 12:46 pm

    That kid should be forced to live in a snake pit for a month as punishment.

  3. Foreigner1
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 1:01 pm

    …Oops….. Sorry guys- forgot to tell: I forgot I loaned it to a school-project…..

    :-D :-P :-P !!!

  4. Kalel
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 1:51 pm

    I bet his parents are totally hissed.

  5. Tara Wheeler
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 2:52 pm

    Cobras are not ‘poisonous’. You can eat as many of them as you like.

    Cobras are ‘venomous’, that is, they inject you with poison.

    All the damn fools had to do was put a line of heaters in the attic, chill the building and then check the heaters.

  6. Minnesotastan
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 2:58 pm

    Tara, you’re quite correct. Post fixed.

  7. LisaL
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 3:05 pm

    What an idiot. Glad that this moron is going to have to pay for all of the damage done.

    Why even sell venomous snakes as pets to people anyway?

  8. marishka
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 6:26 pm

    Not necessarily the downside of having venomous snakes as “pets”…rather, the downside of being an idiot that has venomous snakes for pets.

  9. Justin
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 8:38 pm

    Why do people even like having snakes as pets? Aside from some people’s joy of seeing a live animal eaten for its food, I can’t understand the draw.

  10. Wes
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 9:12 pm

    @Justin:

    Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, and sometimes it isn’t.

  11. Cola
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 10:06 pm

    I don’t really get keeping reptiles. I mean they are totally awesome and I was a huge fan, especially, of cobras when I was a kid, but like… put them in a tank and they just sit there. Ooooh, exciting!

  12. Tigergulp
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 10:27 pm

    @Cola:

    LMAO! Yeah, REAL exciting XD

    Hopefully this will be a learning experience–get a dog, not a snake.

  13. petunia
    Mar 26th, 2010 at 10:50 pm

    Hey, I don’t think keeping a venomous snake as a pet is a good idea, but don’t take it out on keeping snakes as pets. They actually make fantastic pets for people who would like a very low-maintenance pet. Not to mention that they come in very beautiful colors and patterns. And people are rarely allergic to them. I have a small kingsnake and I just love her. So all you people who think keeping snakes is dumb, don’t judge everyone just because you wouldn’t keep a snake.

  14. monkey_town
    Mar 27th, 2010 at 12:03 am

    On the subject of pets that just sit there, I have a betta fish. It swims happily in a large bowl on my dining room table and I pay attention to it maybe five minutes a day, longer when I clean the bowl. My reason for keeping such a pet? It’s nice to take care of something. As an added bonus, when I do pay attention to it, I’m delighted at how beautiful it is.

  15. monkeypr0n
    Mar 27th, 2010 at 12:20 am

    I used to own them as a child and teen. I lost them a bunch of times. Finding them isn’t really all that hard. They always go for heat, follow walls, and hide in things the same size as their burrow.

    Anyway let me go over the stupid in this article:
    -It will not hurt someone, unless they step on it with bare feet or something.
    -If you lost something illegal, don’t call for gov’t help.
    -If you just want to kill it, not find it then just rapidly cool the house down.
    -If idiots are tearing your house apart looking for a snake then just buy another one and tell them you found it.
    -If you want people to report stuff like this for public safety then don’t charge them $80k when they do.

  16. Aaron
    Mar 27th, 2010 at 7:46 am

    I can’t imagine the sick feeling of dread that would come over me if I walked into my room and saw that my venomous snake terrarium was empty…

    At least if my dog isn’t on the couch when I get home, all I have to worry about is whether or not he got into the ‘Nilla wafers


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