3 years after coming out of the army I drove down a road and saw a sign for a pet shop. It was called The Amazon Pet Centre. I thought this was a weird name but at the same time getting a pet made sense. Something to love, a reason to live.
Inside I walked past hamsters, rabbits, mice, small birds, etc and then walked into a second very large room. In there were snakes, lizards, geckos, iguanas, turtles, frogs, spiders and scorpions. I had never been in an exotic pet shop. I spent ages walking around and starring into every vivarium, reading all the info.
Whilst I was in there the shop assistant started to fill up the water and organise the insides of one of the tanks. As she did this she pulled the snake out. It was a 3 foot long Florida Kingsnake. I asked if it bit people and she then told me all about it. You know how chatty these pet people are, they love to tell you everything and we were chatting for ages. She then said I could hold it.
I had a t-shirt on and the sensation of it crawling from my hands, up my arms and around the back of my neck was unbelievably calming. I almost cried with relief. When its head came along side my cheek I could feel it exhaling on my skin and also I felt the flicking of the tongue.
An hour later I walked out of that shop with that exact snake and all the equipment needed to look after it.
I had no job due to my terrible mental health (I was on welfare/benefits) and to make a bit of 'cash in hand' I would delivery supplies to factories around Europe for a small English company. When I was at home (a room in my parents house) I would spend everyday at the pet shop talking to the staff, walking round with my snake playing with it and really feeling much better.
2 months later I had a total of 5 snakes in my bedroom (Florida Kingsnake, Ball Python, Corn Snake, Milk Snake and Boa Constrictor). Then one day the friendly lady left the shop to work elsewhere and they needed help. So they said that I could come in and help them whenever I had time and in return I would get all my snake food and supplies for free (not to mention playing with all the different animals).
All this was before the internet which meant that in the shop was approximately 50 books on all the different animals they had (imagine Dummies Guide to Pythons, or You and Your Corn Snake: A Beginners Guide) and I read every single one of them. I felt like a dry sponge soaking up as much information as I could about an extremely new and interesting hobby. I became an amateur herpetologist
Then something massive happened. The welfare/benefits officer in charge of my finances asked if I had claimed off the army for my injuries (my mental health problems started on an operational tour). He then filled all the forms in and sent them off. I then received a letter saying I was eligible for an Army Disability Pension and it was to be back-dated all those years to when I actually came out of the army. And with the letter was a large cheque!
I am very very impulsive!!!!!! So I then packed up all my snakes and equipment into my car and drove to the pet shop. I said I trusted them to sell the snakes to only good people (no, I didn't want any money).
A short time later, after receiving numerous vaccines, I arrived in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with my sights set on seeing the Amazon jungle.
If you like this story let me know by clicking the 'like' button. Make sure you subscribe to my channel and don't forget to hit that 'bell' to receive future notifications.
To be continued......
Inside I walked past hamsters, rabbits, mice, small birds, etc and then walked into a second very large room. In there were snakes, lizards, geckos, iguanas, turtles, frogs, spiders and scorpions. I had never been in an exotic pet shop. I spent ages walking around and starring into every vivarium, reading all the info.
Whilst I was in there the shop assistant started to fill up the water and organise the insides of one of the tanks. As she did this she pulled the snake out. It was a 3 foot long Florida Kingsnake. I asked if it bit people and she then told me all about it. You know how chatty these pet people are, they love to tell you everything and we were chatting for ages. She then said I could hold it.
I had a t-shirt on and the sensation of it crawling from my hands, up my arms and around the back of my neck was unbelievably calming. I almost cried with relief. When its head came along side my cheek I could feel it exhaling on my skin and also I felt the flicking of the tongue.
An hour later I walked out of that shop with that exact snake and all the equipment needed to look after it.
I had no job due to my terrible mental health (I was on welfare/benefits) and to make a bit of 'cash in hand' I would delivery supplies to factories around Europe for a small English company. When I was at home (a room in my parents house) I would spend everyday at the pet shop talking to the staff, walking round with my snake playing with it and really feeling much better.
2 months later I had a total of 5 snakes in my bedroom (Florida Kingsnake, Ball Python, Corn Snake, Milk Snake and Boa Constrictor). Then one day the friendly lady left the shop to work elsewhere and they needed help. So they said that I could come in and help them whenever I had time and in return I would get all my snake food and supplies for free (not to mention playing with all the different animals).
All this was before the internet which meant that in the shop was approximately 50 books on all the different animals they had (imagine Dummies Guide to Pythons, or You and Your Corn Snake: A Beginners Guide) and I read every single one of them. I felt like a dry sponge soaking up as much information as I could about an extremely new and interesting hobby. I became an amateur herpetologist
Then something massive happened. The welfare/benefits officer in charge of my finances asked if I had claimed off the army for my injuries (my mental health problems started on an operational tour). He then filled all the forms in and sent them off. I then received a letter saying I was eligible for an Army Disability Pension and it was to be back-dated all those years to when I actually came out of the army. And with the letter was a large cheque!
I am very very impulsive!!!!!! So I then packed up all my snakes and equipment into my car and drove to the pet shop. I said I trusted them to sell the snakes to only good people (no, I didn't want any money).
A short time later, after receiving numerous vaccines, I arrived in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with my sights set on seeing the Amazon jungle.
If you like this story let me know by clicking the 'like' button. Make sure you subscribe to my channel and don't forget to hit that 'bell' to receive future notifications.
To be continued......
