Pet python kills Florida toddler

Reuters ^ | 7/1/09

[Texas Eagle]

Sickening.

[FromLori]

Sure is and another “boyfriend” story!

[clintonh8r]

Shameful. What are people thinking? The “parents” should be in prison.

[randomhero97]

Snakes are cool, pythons and boas specifically, but they are NOT pets. I wish knucklehead Americans would realize that. Now because of their stupidity, as the article states, they pose an environmental threat to the everglades.

[TaMoDee]

The most dangerous words a child well hear:
“Honey, I want you to meet my new boyfriend. He’s going to live with us.”

[Chet 99]

There are no bad pythons, only bad python owners.

[greatdefender]

I believe so, especially this part:

The python apparently broke free in the night, entered the girl’s bedroom and attacked her

[SpaceBar]

Snakes ... are NOT pets...

That is correct. They are properly referred to as "display animals". I got into a big argument with some woman in a Petsmart with a large boa constrictor in a shopping cart, showing it to kids and describing it as a pet.

[Think free or die]

To the boyfriend’s credit, he stabbed the snake when he discovered the attack. I wouldn’t have such a pet personally, especially not with a child in the house. Poor kid. It must have been terrifying.

[lefty-lie-spy]

Crazy story. I love big snakes. I love my kids too. Tragically sad.

[paul51]

smells fishy to me

[HiTech RedNeck]

He probably told her “love me, love my snake.”

[HiTech RedNeck]

A “holding tank” — that means trying to keep it in an aquarium?

[WilliamofCarmichael]

A horrible tragedy.

If the parents' gun had killed the child the parents would be facing severe penalties.

Before that had the parents tired of the gun and discarded it where it was found and injured/killed someone or someone's pet the parents would be facing severe penalties.

Yet hundreds of these "pets" have been loosed and from newspaper articles we learn that there are tens of thousands (150,000?) of them spreading over large areas of the south.

.. and all Florida wants to do is ban ownership in the future?

I'd like to see former owners tracked down and account for their missing "pets."

[FromLori]

I would agree but that seems like an impossible task.

[Scotswife]

“a boyfriend of the child’s mother”

That’s how more and more of these stories are starting.

Wondering if the snake really “escaped”

[randomhero97]

There are no bad pythons, only bad python owners.

That is correct. Although, there shouldn't be any python owners. The snake acted on it's predatorial instincts. These animals cannot be domesticated and I don't care what joe blow exotic pet store owner has to say about it.

[HiTech RedNeck]

I mean, are they expecting the snakes to tell authorities who had set them loose?

[HiTech RedNeck]

There's nothing wrong with keeping a non-poisonous snake as long as you keep the snake. Don't put it in a makeshift enclosure not meant for the snake, or turn it loose in the wild when you get tired of it.