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What to do with inquisitive kids

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Ophiuchus View Drop Down
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Joined: 04 Jan 2007
Location: United Kingdom
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    Posted: 05 May 2011 at 11:53am
I have a problem with some kids, I have an allotment which i find slow worms on, and there are also areas near my allotment with slow worms and grass snakes, one of the people on the allotments site often has there kids with them, and kids are inquisitive, they have seen me lifting up flower pots and bits of felt i have put down on my allotment and naturally they asked what i was looking for.
I want to encourage kids to respect our reptiles and all wildlife so at first i was more than happy to show them the slow worms and they were really excited by seeing them, only now i have been up there a few times and the kids have told me that they have gone of looking for slow worms, which is great they they are showing Ian interest, and i don't believe they have any bad intentions, its just that i don't like the idea of them handling the slow worms encase they accidentally injure the slowies, or themselves, as some of the places i find them are under rusty old tins with jagged edges. I have tried to explain that they would feel very good fi they made a slow worm drop its tail, or if they cut themselves on a bit of rusty jagged metal.
I don't want to be pushy and ask the mother if she could ask her kids that if they want to go and see the slow worms can they wait till i can accompany them.
Also some of the felts around that area are very poorly placed, I don't know who put them there i have a feeling its the local council because they transloacated lots of slow worms from an area next to the country park which was being developed and i know that many, if not all were released at this location, the felts are numbered so its part of a survey but they are not very discreet, one in particular is right next to a path which can easily be seen by any passer by, strangely it seems to be the most popular one with the slow worms, it's the only tin, all the others are felts, but last time i looked many of the slow worms had lost there tails, could be a coincidence but i think its more likely they keep getting disturbed by curious folk.
And there is a similar situation at another site nearby where there are tins and felts right next to a skateboard and BMX place, this has adders, slow worms and common lizards and the kids all know about them, there's even a sign that says they are there and last time i was there i was quite shocked when a kid approached me and said they like to trap them, and he said one of his friends was bitten by an adder, which is probably a lie as most adder bites, especially when kids are involved usually attract  media attention.
I want to keep the youngsters on our side but its impossible to tell them the best thing to do is to leave them alone,  if its fun they just keep doing it.
Next time i will warn them that the place is infested with ticks, which is true, maybe that will discourage them!  
I asked what they did with there captured reptiles and they said they just looked and let them go, i just hope that's true and that they don't take them as pets, i really think the laws should be changed because as it stands i believe its perfectly legal to capture them and take them as pets, apart from the smooth snakes and sand lizards of course)

Jay
Ophiuchus *~*the serpent bearer*~*
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