A mother has come under fire for allowing a snake to bite her baby daughter to teach her a life lesson.Footage shows the mother, who has not been named, holding a plastic tub up to the one-year-old child with the snake inside.The baby girl reaches up to touch the creature and pulled her hand away quickly when it bites her.The mother, who now faces child abuse charges, can be heard laughing at her daughter’s reaction. She then posted the footage on Facebook explaining that she was teaching her child a lesson about local wildlife in Sebring, Florida, where they live – and how it is important not to touch unknown animals.
After coming under fire, she explained that she knew the small red rat snake was too small to pierce her daughter’s skin. She also deleted the post on Facebook.The snake had already failed to bite her and her son, she said, adding that she had no regrets after finding the snake on the driveway of their property.
“It had bitten me and my son and didn’t leave a mark, several times,” she told ABC Action News. “So, I thought it was a good opportunity to introduce her without actually getting hurt.”People are too sensitive. They just think that I hurt my child intentionally. The people that know me know that I would never hurt my children.His teeth are too small to actually puncture the skin. So he’s very harmless.”
The woman also said she believes her methods are teaching her children a valuable lesson.
She added:
“My daughter is not scared of snakes but she doesn’t want to touch them, either. That was my goal.”