I kept pythons for many years.  I had a couple of specimens that were close to 12ft in length.  Their bite wasn't so bad (if a little bloody because of the many teeth) but the force they hit you with was astonishing.....bruised for weeks lol.

Why is it that we see such other living forms as ugly yet we willing pay to see them in a zoo ?    When you visit a zoo don't you ever look in wonderment ?   Who doesn't marvel that such creatures exist even "still exist" in the world today ?

One should be looking in wonder that such creatures are still "out there" and, place it in as safe and viable place for it to survive, mentally and physically in it's natural habitat.

If it ends up in a zoo, will its name be "Monty"???

My first hands on was a baby about that size at Takhli back in 69.  Guards had caught it at entry gate and put in a wood cage and two of us were trying to release him - amazing strength (much more than us) when he could coil around a support pole.  We ended up paying guards to release (which suspect was the plan).  But at a swamp area there met a really large guy many times and stopped car for him to cross dirt path (had visions of him enwrapping car for weeks - they get huge - body must have been a foot thick).  But as said concern was the cobras that liked to come to edge of roads at night and the vipers that tried to enter buildings and the kraits that nibbled peoples ankles in the local drinking establishments.  

11 hours ago, Elkski said:

are there ugly ones?  

is a reticulated real aggressive?  I'm sure those bites can hurt and 2 meters maybe a fight.  amd serious infection from the bite is probably common.  

Nope, can't recall ever seeing an ugly snake and yes, some bites do hurt more than others.

Biggest Python i ever handled was 8 metres, in Australia. I was asked to  help measure it. Not being stupid, i took the tail end!

 

I got to handle quite a few snakes there, often got caught in the seine nets we used when doing fish surveys. The python was caught by a herpetologist (and not in the nets!).

11 hours ago, rickudon said:

Biggest Python i ever handled was 8 metres, in Australia. I was asked to  help measure it. Not being stupid, i took the tail end!

 

I got to handle quite a few snakes there, often got caught in the seine nets we used when doing fish surveys. The python was caught by a herpetologist (and not in the nets!).

I had a friend in OZ her job was to go out in the bush and count King Browns !!