It's always a good idea to have a pet cobra.

http://abc11.com/news/man-bitten-by-cobra-being-treated-at-unc-hospitals/1320104/

5/4/2016 12:00:02 AM

snake people are the weirdest, like even more crazy than horse girls or anyone who keeps any kind of rodent as a pet after elementary school

5/4/2016 9:21:23 AM

Paging Samwise16

5/4/2016 9:25:13 AM

5/4/2016 9:27:55 AM

shoulda gone to MooU, amirite?

5/4/2016 10:31:00 AM

Any elapid keeper should keep antivenom on hand, it's cheap and much better than getting charged thousands by a hospital.

http://www.snake-antivenin.com/node/5

5/4/2016 10:59:11 AM

holy fucking dumb



That shit can't be legal right?

5/4/2016 11:06:07 AM

Caption: "She's a sweet little thing"




Caption: "Dane's glorious snapchat of me and an angry cobra"

5/4/2016 11:06:53 AM

it'd suck being his apartment neighbor

5/4/2016 11:16:58 AM

Illegal in Orange County, legal in wake. I used to have a lot of pit vipers, but elapids never appealed to me.

5/4/2016 11:19:52 AM

Pointy fangs, would not own

5/4/2016 11:31:03 AM

Another article called him out, said he was at commencment but didn't graduate from UNC

5/4/2016 11:32:36 AM

https://www.gofundme.com/22gafkbg

wow so it seems you're allowed to to own venomous snakes: http://wncn.com/2016/05/03/nc-man-bitten-by-cobra-in-critical-condition-at-unc-hospitals/

Quote :

"Regulation of ownership or use of venomous reptiles. (a) It shall be unlawful for any person to own, possess, use, transport, or traffic in any venomous reptile that is not housed in a sturdy and secure enclosure. Permanent enclosures shall be designed to be escape-proof, bite-proof, and have an operable lock. Transport containers shall be designed to be escape-proof and bite-proof. (b) Each enclosure shall be clearly and visibly labeled “Venomous Reptile Inside” with scientific name, common name, appropriate antivenin, and owner’s identifying information noted on the container. A written bite protocol that includes emergency contact information, local animal control office, the name and location of suitable antivenin, first aid procedures, and treatment guidelines, as well as an escape recovery plan must be within sight of permanent housing, and a copy must accompany the transport of any venomous reptile. (c) In the event of an escape of a venomous reptile, the owner or possessor of the venomous reptile shall immediately notify local law enforcement."

[Edited on May 4, 2016 at 2:51 PM. Reason : at least at a state level]

[Edited on May 4, 2016 at 2:56 PM. Reason : https://www.instagram.com/aliiyoob/]

5/4/2016 2:51:04 PM

No less dangerous than owning a pit bull

[Edited on May 4, 2016 at 2:53 PM. Reason : All the more reason for good guys with snakes]

5/4/2016 2:52:01 PM

http://abc11.com/1323863/

Quote :

"A total of sixty (60) animals were removed from the house over the course of six (6) hours. Those included eighteen (18) venomous snakes, sixteen (16) nonvenomous snakes, one (1) caiman, two (2) turtles, five (5) chickens, eight (8) baby chicks, four (4) quail, four (4) fish, one (1) cat, and one (1) dog. Two of the sixteen nonvenomous snakes were constrictors."

WTF?

5/4/2016 11:04:07 PM

Obligatory: turrist

5/4/2016 11:09:35 PM

I had to google a 'caiman', holy shit:

5/4/2016 11:14:29 PM

^ really? i thought that was common knowledge.

Quote :

"Two of the sixteen nonvenomous snakes were constrictors.""

Uhh, what?

5/4/2016 11:36:16 PM

Common knowledge are alligators, crocodiles and the Cayman Islands.

5/4/2016 11:43:09 PM

I assume he was feeding the chickens to the caiman and the snakes.

5/5/2016 7:14:03 AM

^^^constrictors, while popular pets, are illegal to own in orange county.

[Edited on May 5, 2016 at 8:53 AM. Reason : peas and carrots]

5/5/2016 8:52:32 AM

Quote :

"A total of sixty (60) animals were removed from the house over the course of six (6) hours. Those included eighteen (18) venomous snakes, sixteen (16) nonvenomous snakes, one (1) caiman, two (2) turtles, five (5) chickens, eight (8) baby chicks, four (4) quail, four (4) fish, one (1) cat, and one (1) dog."

...And Partridge in a pear tree!

5/5/2016 9:03:48 AM

Quote :

"it'd suck being his apartment neighbor"

I wouldn't want that zoo near me.

5/5/2016 9:17:45 AM

What a pussy.



http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2011/10/18/Wild-animals-loose-in-Muskingum-County.html

5/5/2016 11:31:16 AM

I'll never understand the appeal in having a caged pet. Of any kind. Snake, dog, bird, etc.

The exception would be a fish I guess. But then again, I don't get how a fish is a pet.

5/5/2016 1:41:20 PM

i let my fish roam around my house as it sees fit

it likes to just sit in its puddle and flop in place however

fuckin asshole

5/5/2016 1:44:56 PM

I know why the caged snake bites

5/5/2016 2:05:30 PM

Quote :

"I'll never understand the appeal in having a caged pet."

To me a 500k home is a giant cage to me

5/5/2016 2:31:22 PM

Quote :

"I'll never understand the appeal in having a caged pet. Of any kind. Snake, dog, bird, etc. The exception would be a fish I guess. But then again, I don't get how a fish is a pet."

Fish aquariums are awesome. It is very relaxing to watch the fish swim. They are a nice decoration too. I consider them a pet since I have to take care of them just like I would a cat, dog, bird, or reptile. Some breeds are smart enough to eventually recognize their owners.

5/5/2016 6:08:42 PM

If you can own guns, why not snakes? Seems hypocritical.

It's his right to bear arms snake bites

5/5/2016 8:41:11 PM

^Guns don't have the possibility of escaping and attacking people on their own though.

5/5/2016 11:31:49 PM

there isn't a single god damn fish on this planet that can recognize its owner

5/6/2016 1:24:07 AM

Are you kidding?

My fish jumps out of the tank EVERY SINGLE day when I get home from work.

So excited.

5/6/2016 7:17:19 AM

So excited [for food]

5/6/2016 8:35:22 AM

I've met the dude on several occasions and run across him in a few occasions in the field. He didn't seem to take safety with venomous snakes seriously. He was bitten by a pigmy rattlesnake (native) at some point within the last few years. He's part of what my friends and I call the "Facebook generation" of "herpers" (people who enjoy pursuing reptiles and amphibians in the field). These people do what they do for Facebook/Instagram likes and show their asses on their social media accounts.

It's funny to me to see the reptile keeping hobbyists glorifying him online, talking about how great what he does is. This is part of what makes the Facebook generation such a joke - you need only be friends with someone on a digital level to know what a great person they are. For herpetological professionals in the Carolinas, Ali is known to have gone from one of the museum's up-and-coming young stars to some shit stain that they wish they could wipe away. I know a good bit more about this dude than I wish I did...stuff that's not popping up in the news stories. This dude has been reckless for too long and is now paying the penultimate price.

Let me say I don't wish a cobra bite upon anyone other than the person trying to kill the cobra. But I don't think this dude will learn his lesson. The reptile-keeping community (which has its own sort of SJW fervor) will blindly make him their poster child for the coming weeks, when the dude is part of the toxic element in the hobby that these people should distance themselves from.

These kids are making venomous bites "cool" again (which they have never been). The amount of Support this imbecile is getting on social media is unreal...all because he whored himself in reptile groups and none of those people saw the jackass he really was in real life.

5/6/2016 9:12:56 AM

^very interesting.

I just noticed he was barefoot when playing with his cobra. That doesn't seem like a good idea.

5/6/2016 9:46:21 AM

nope

5/6/2016 10:21:47 AM

There is (or at least was) a pic on his Facebook showing a cobra popping out of an insufficient (safety-wise, at the very least) exposure. It's a "shoebox" rack that s common among snake pet enthusiasts, but dangerous when venomous are involved. He knew the venomous keeping laws and chose to ignore them. He's gonna have legal issues following him once he's out of the hospital, but they'll pale in comparison to the medical costs he'll soon face.

Edit: and it's been completely overlooked that the pine snake he's holding in his fundraiser pic is a protected species - yet another thing where he ignored the laws he knew of for Internet points. Despite the fact I know he travelled to spots and sought them regularly in NC (why I had run-ins with him), I can't actually prove the pic was taken in NC.

[Edited on May 6, 2016 at 10:35 AM. Reason : D]

5/6/2016 10:31:06 AM

^ thanks for the insight. so is it true he could have had some form of antivenom and not have been as seriously injured/be on the hook for so much $?

[Edited on May 6, 2016 at 10:36 AM. Reason : he's raised $8430 and counting]

5/6/2016 10:35:54 AM

^Somebody actually dropped some antivenom here at the ER. The issue is they just dropped it with no information, so we couldn't use it. Hence having to fly it up from Riverbanks and Ali took ten vials of it. $Texas.

[Edited on May 6, 2016 at 11:29 AM. Reason : ]

5/6/2016 11:29:31 AM

I wonder how Kobe is doing these days

5/6/2016 11:33:44 AM

lulz

5/6/2016 11:47:40 AM

My understanding is that the actual cost of antivenin itself is not the bulk of the cost with regards to treating envenomations. It is actually the process of obtaining and administering the antivenin that costs so much. I can't really comment on the king cobra antivenin cost by itself. The facility I worked for bought its own, and I'm almost certain they would have been next in line after Riverbanks, who is usually the source for antivenin in envenomations in the Carolinas.

There have been tons of discussions by armchair "herpetologists" (snake breeders) on social media on how the bite wasn't treated properly, how people brought in antivenin that was expired and then accosted hospital staff for not administering it. To my knowledge, antivenin is regulated by the FDA, and exotic antivenins are often cheaper but not FDA approved, so they must be purchased abroad and flown in for the people and institutions that purchase them. There's also a lot of shit talking about how the hospital should have had a supply of its own, but that's just a bunch of "hothead" (read: venomous snake keepers) idiots who think we live in a perfect world and hospitals should be prepared for incidents that aren't even legal in the first place.

Dude is also getting slapped with a violation with respect to having more than the legal amount (n=4) of native NC reptiles in his collection. This is a particularly sore subject, because dude often seeks snakes in places they're protected. And I know I have seen him offer locality-specific native snake species labeled with counties of well-known protected lands.

It'll be interesting to see if this snowballs into any sort of legislative actions. ARK (Association of Reptile Keepers) is about to implode if they try to defend Ali with respect to any potential incoming law discussion/action.

I wish I saved the old photo Ali had of himself freehandling (bare-handed handling) a copperhead. Dude has been juggling with loaded guns. Bang bang.

[Edited on May 6, 2016 at 12:18 PM. Reason : And yes, he has scrubbed his FB of incriminating photos since regaining consciousness.]

5/6/2016 12:00:33 PM

What good is trash-talking this dude doing?

Or rather, what are you trying to accomplish?

5/6/2016 3:01:22 PM

the truth

5/6/2016 3:07:41 PM

Because it sounds like this dude was irresponsible and could have easily be putting other people in danger, was setting a bad example for other "handlers", was giving a bad name to responsible handlers, and was illegally handling protected species.

5/6/2016 3:11:38 PM

So basically a bad apple spoiled a bunch again?

[Edited on May 6, 2016 at 3:15 PM. Reason : Hardly news zzzzzz]

5/6/2016 3:14:47 PM

Yea, this is the kind of guy who plays fast and loose with the rules and makes legitimate scientists look like snake dancing psychos and attaches a negative stigma to the whole group. Especially moreso since so many of them are coming to his defense, when he was doing illegal shit in this county. My coworker is an avid herpetologist and after looking up this guy she had a similar response to what was said above. She didn't wish any ill will on him, but looking at his FB page she said she was not surprised because this guy didn't seem to take safety into consideration at all.

5/6/2016 3:26:10 PM

all I see in that block of text is herpetologist

5/6/2016 3:30:10 PM

Because the herpetological research community has consistently been tied to and tainted by the keeping hobby. There are plenty who do things well and do things safely. It is a CONSTANT struggle for those who appreciate arguably the most widely reviled taxon, when there are people held in social media circles as "good guys" who consistently ignore laws and safe handling procedures and end up getting plastered all over the news. There are tons of people who haven't spent a single moment in person with him heralding him as a hero of the hobby. He screwed over the herpetological professionals that took him under his wing when he was young and promising by exploiting study sites for rare/protected species by treating them as bargaining chips with other hobbyists. Honestly, this is at least in part the fault of those who took him out, but I assure you they did so in the name of education and conservation.

This dude, while it's obvious that he cares about wildlife/animals, has done nearly everything professionals warn against. The hobbyists can band together however they want, but the truth of the matter needs to be elucidated. This guy fueled a toxic element of the hobby by shamelessly promoting unsafe handling via his social media accounts. And now, suckers who don't know him at all are dumping money into his gofundme. It's their money to do with as they please, but I think it's unfair to paint him as this wonderful person who did all these great things. He was another dude playing with his king cobra for Internet points. And the backstory in cases like this get swept under the rug and disregarded in the community's eyes. There is a need for accountability.

I wish him the best in his recovery, but he has some serious consideration to give to the way he's been conducting himself.

5/6/2016 3:34:19 PM