Pet Snakes and Pet Rats...

have you tried making your own food for ur dog.. they like rice and vegies.

i hate to be a debbie downer
but animals aren't meat to be in cages
and if infact you think it's "nature" for a snake to eat mice... i doubt they eat frozen ones in the wild.
and where do you think those frozen mice are being raised? in a factory farm type of place?

i think it's very weird that you have both... sorry
but it depends on your reasons for being vegan i guess
i believe animals are no ones property, and that you should rescue animals and have them become your companions.. rather than your "pets"

Keeping snakes isnt just about having them as "pets", ive lost count on the amount of people ive educated on reptiles because of keeping snakes. And next time they see a snake in their yard or on the road, they will think twice before grabbing a shovel or running them over.

A fully grown snake will eat once a month, if not longer, how often does a dog or cat eat meat? Which one is taking more lives? Just because the food item is in its original state and not processed does not make it any worse.

But there is always the "perfect" vegans who are going to have their say, hey...

who said i was perfect? the initial poster said to share your thoughts..
instead of getting so defensive, i am not trying to have a dig at anyone.

if you are vegan for ethical reasons, why do you have a snake? because you like them? that is pretty selfish.. (like i said unless you rescued them)

Perfect was in " " because its basically impossible to be a perfect vegan, not that it was aimed at you directly

I am vegan for ethical reasons, that doesnt mean I feel it is 100% right to feed my snakes rats/ keep them in enclosures... But I do try to minimise this by making the enclosures about 4 times the size recommended for the particular breed, and as close to their natural habitat as possible. There are countless keepers who simply house their reptiles in tubs, with little more than a water bowl and a hide, that to me is cruelty..

Why was the argument regarding dogs and cats ignored?

okay, that's fair enough. it just seemed implied that it was about me.. sorry

dogs can be completely vegan, cats not so much. (not a cat person, so i don't know much about their diet sorry)
i would never feed a dog something i wouldn't eat myself, but that's just me.. and i don't have any companion animals, but when i did look after my mothers dog for 3 weeks, she had two vegan meals a day! she started turning her nose up at canned dog food when mum got her back >_<

but you definitely are right, it does eat quite a significant amount less than a dog/cat.

it is about personal opinion i guess.
if you think it is ethically sound, that is your decision.
but i don't see how a rats life is worth less than a chicken? if you are so against one slaughter, why do you support another?
i'm sure your snake would rather be able to hunt than eat a frozen already dead boring rat anyway. (not saying feed it live ones)

i see some people feel bad about feeding their animals meat, we all have our own views.
and it sounds like you take good care of your snakes and they can't be vegetarian, so i guess there's nothing you can do.
but i definitely do think it's weird to have rats then feed dead ones to your snake.. D= i wouldn't be able to detach myself from that..

I wouldnt say I consider it to be ethically sound, but there really isnt any alternative food options.

And I dont consider a rats life to be less than that of a chicken, I realise rats are smart and curious animals. My comparison was just that if one person has a snake, and one a dog, overall the dog will be taking more lives if it has an omnivore diet.

As for a snake would rather be able to hunt its food, as far as I can tell, all the snake cares about is food in its belly, the rats arent fed frozen and rock hard, they are defrosted prior

I dont keep rats and snakes, the girl who started the thread does, but I would probably have issues having both

haha sorry, i didn't mean to get militant vegan or anything.
if you've had them for a long time, they are domesticated and it would be worse to let them in the wild.
I don't know alot about snakes, i do know that dogs/cats still have the instinct to hunt/kill animals even if they aren't hungry/don't eat the animal and they have been domesticated alot longer.

I wouldnt really consider snakes to be domesticated animals, but through years of selective breeding for the best temperments etc, most snakes sold and kept as "pets" these days are quite docile, but there are the odd breeds that will basically attack anything that moves, but over time the individuals can be tamed to a degree, by being handled regularly etc.

Snakes have the same instincts as well, its just nature, a hatchling knows exactly how to strike, coil and dislocate its jaw to eat from the moment its born

until the day they invent a mock meat for snakes, I guess il have to keep doing what I do

What would you say to keeping Ferrets? they have to eat meat sadley, they dont eat veggeis or fruit, Murphy was a rescue and i dont think i can rehome him after all the trumer he has been through unless it was to a experianced ferret handler.

I have pro"s an con's about animals in cages.

pro's~if the cages are big, safe and full of stuff to keep the animals entertained i think they are alright. For example : i have 6 female rabbits living in a pen together, i would prefer them to be outside on the grass but with foxes, hawks and dogs around it is not a safe option to have them out running around all day. There pen is 10m x 15m big, wich gives them plenty of room to run around and play. They also have natural logs and hollows to hide in, Wood Blocks to climb, hammocks and dirt piles they can dig burrows in. They get feed twice a day, there main meal includes: wild grasses, roots, corn, barley, lucent ( green and white ) pellets, nuts and scraps ( lettuce, carrot, watermelon, marnderines ect ). I grow most of there food to save on feed costs. I take them out for runs on the grass with there harness on and they love it.

My rat Napoleaon lives in a 3 story cage, hammocks, logs, climbing ropes, stairs, hay, sawdust are only some of the instruments to keep him entertained through out the day since his partner in crime sadley passed away 2 weeks ago, i get him out and play wiith him and he loves it  I think if you do these kind of things its oki to have companion animals ~ also only if you rescue them ~

Con"s ~ Small, dirty, Cramped, diseased and overall descusting cages are NOT acceptable. If anybody keeps animals in these areas with not stimulation they shouldnt have animals . simple.

Some animals prefer human attention over there same species. A good example is Chester one of my sheep. He lives with 2 ewe's ( female sheep ) and a pig, yet he will always choose human affection over the 2 sheep and pig. He will do anything to empress you and get your attention. I think if he had his way he would sleep inside the house with us over the sheep and piggy.

sorry for the long post just wanted to say my opinion on cages