Posted on 01/18/2006 10:03:24 AM PST by freepatriot32
TOKYO - Gohan and Aochan make strange bedfellows: one's a 3.5-inch dwarf hamster; the other is a 120 yard-long rat snake. Zookeepers at Tokyo's Mutsugoro Okoku zoo presented the hamster _ whose name means "meal" in Japanese _ to Aochan as a tasty morsel in October, after the snake refused to eat frozen mice.
But instead of indulging, Aochan decided to make friends with the furry rodent, according to keeper Kazuya Yamamoto. The pair have shared a cage since.
"I've never seen anything like it. Gohan sometimes even climbs onto Aochan to take a nap on his back," Yamamoto said.
Aochan, a 2-year-old male Japanese rat snake, eventually developed an appetite for frozen rodents but has so far shown no signs of gobbling up Gohan _ despite her name.
"We named her Gohan as a joke," Yamamoto chuckled. "But I don't think there's any danger. Aochan seems to enjoy Gohan's company very much."
The Tokyo zoo also keeps a range of mostly livestock animals, and promotes "cross-breed interaction," according to Yamamoto.
But Gohan and Aochan's case was "was a complete accident," Yamamoto said.
Awwwwwwww. ; )
exactly: Hamster Shares Cage with Fed Snake. Weekend Approaching.
Holy cow! Did they find him at a nuke plant??
Hamsters probably aren't good eating. They are mostly puffed up fur.
My cat was afraid of my hamster. When I put the hamster on the cat's back she freaked out and ran away.
The only negative.. the snake is a snake..
When hunger strikes the friendship could go "GULP"..
They found the head at one nuke plant and the tail at another.
just wait.
I wonder what they'll say if the hamster kills the snake?
Bipartisanship - Animal style. The hungry snake is a Democrat, the trusting rodent is a Republican. Despite the smiles and handshakes the relationship is only going to end one way...
Just shows that hamsters aren't that smart.
Hamsters and snakes living together, mass hysteria!
120 centimeter-long (yard-long)
You can bet that if they don't feed that snake on time, the hamster will be snake food.
Yep, snakes don't make friends.
The rat is dinner one day.
Proof that we can all get along...
Everybody join hands, sing peace songs, group hug now...
I just think it shows that even with creatures like snakes, the Lord has given them some level of decision making process and capacity for choice. They are not all 100% pre-programmed reaction...
By the way, the snake is 120 centimeters ( 4 yards) long - not 120 yards long - the A.P. gets it wrong again...
After taking another look at the picture, I will agree that the snake is plenty big enough to eat that hamster. I have been around friends'"pet" constricting snakes like gopher and king snakes and even a ball python. From what I've seen, they won't eat a large meal until they are good and hungry. That can take months, but it's gonna happen sooner or later.
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