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No. There are actually very few poisonous snakes, and we do not own any.

Typically when people refer to ‘poisonous snakes’ they actually mean venomous snakes. Poisonous animals only release toxins when you eat them, while venomous animals inject toxins via a bite or sting.  We do not currently have any venomous species, but plan to incorporate them into our shows after we obtain the proper insurance and licensure. Any venomous species would never be handled, by myself or by the audience, and would always be safely contained in a locked and labeled enclosure.

Our ambassador animals are very well socialized and have each experienced no less than twenty educational shows and dozens of classes. We have had hundreds of people meet our animals over the years, and an animal has yet to bite a student or an audience member. 

HOWEVER….. our reptiles are indeed REPTILES and therefore cannot tell us with words when something is bothering them. We watch their body language very carefully, and teach our students and audience to do the same, but you can never be 100% sure. Bites CAN happen, but with proper respect and careful handling it is very unlikely. In my 27 years of keeping snakes, I have been bitten less than 10 times. We only allow the friendliest animals to be touched and held, some animals are brought along in specialized viewing enclosures or are only handled by My Three Chambered Heart staff or volunteers. More fragile and sensitive species are also kept in enclosures to reduce the stress they might experience from a class or show.

We tailor each presentation to the specific event to ensure the appropriate academic or entertainment goal is met, so the exact number of animals varies from show to show. The average age and size of the audience as well as the length of the show play a huge role in how many ambassador animals come along. However, at a typical My Three Chambered Heart event you can usually expect to see between six and fifteen different species of reptiles.

As each audience is unique, we tailor our show to match the needs of the event. A presentation for a college level biology class would last longer and go into more detail than a birthday party for a five year old. That being said, we suggest private shows aimed at a younger age group (seven years old and younger) be kept around an hour long. For older children or academic groups, we recommend two hour long shows to really highlight the different species and allow plenty of time for audience interaction. We also suggest two hours for most birthday parties, to ensure enough time for animal interaction and photos. The shows range in price based on length, as well as distance we need to travel with the animals. However, we believe everyone should have access to quality educational experiences so we operate using a sliding scale for underprivileged groups and other nonprofits with similar visions. Please feel free to contact us with any questions or for a general pricing structure.

My Three Chambered Heart is a nonprofit organization that relies completely on donations and revenue from services to operate. Because we allow audience interaction with the animals, our insurance premium is very high. The majority of our revenue goes towards operating expenses (insurance and licensure) so that we can continue to do shows with live animals. Any additional funds, when available, go towards the creation of mobile science exhibits and animal care or acquisition. Patrice (a Burmese python) and Sasquatch (an Argentine tegu) eat a lot, as you might imagine.