Reptiles / snakes / non-furry animals that we take in

So, when people ask what all we rescue, and I get into the long list which includes the geckos, snakes, etc etc... people are always like OMG aren't you afraid of getting bit?

So, let me go into a bit more in depth about the reptile stuff that we take in.  We only take in small reptiles / snakes / amphibians.  That means, no burmese pythons, no huge monitor lizards, nothing that will be able to do significant harm.  Even if someone was to call me, having some small venomous snake (many require a permit to own, but we'll pretend that's not the case for a moment), we still wouldn't take it in.  I want to help how I can... without becoming dinner or getting severely injured by something that I'm trying to help.

Yes, we had that big bearded dragon awhile ago, but their care is simple, and they're docile.  About the most "aggressive" reptile we have here that we've taken in is Fluffy, the redtail boa.  She's never struck at me, specifically... though she has gotten the glass, and has struck at other people.  She's a bit of a less docile snake, though to be fair... redtails aren't known for being all that docile.  So she's probably more your typical redtail.

But let's get back to that first question, about, aren't I afraid of getting bit?  I just got a snake from a friend of a friend, who couldn't keep it any more.  Meet Indy, an okeetee female corn snake. 

Indy was about 5 days past her normal feeding date, and was hungry.  When I initially picked her up, she tried to eat my arm.  Twice.  As in, she slowly opened her jaw and tried to fit my arm into it.  That's kind funny.  She's about as "fat" as she looks, about fat-highlighter-size.  She's not gonna eat my arm.  I probably should have taken the hint and put her down, but did I?  Of course not.  

So, while I stood there, holding her, talking to her previous owner, and moving my hands to talk like I always do... I guess one of my hands looked like food, so she thought it was food.

Now, if that looks like a deadly bite to you... well... it's not.  There's multiple poke spots because they have multiple teeth, and you can just barely see where her lower jaw connected off to the right side of my hand.  It's nothing!  Heck, my eczema higher up looks worse to me than the snake bite.  The point is, it felt like getting a shot at the doctor's office.  A quick pinprick, and if you're not expecting it, sure you pull your hand away.  Today, you can see it even less than you could yesterday, and you'll not even be able to see it in a couple of days.  It's not an OMG IMA DIEEEE snakebite.  

Same goes for all the small reptiles / etc that we take in.  Can they bite?  Sure.  Are they going to do any major damage with a bite?  No, probably not.  And if they're that dangerous, they should probably be in a rescue better equipped to handle them.  So, when you hear me talk about the snakes or reptiles or non-furries that we sometimes help out, know that they're not that scary, most don't bite, and often... they're just hungry.  I must look tasty, what can I say...