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Snakes-N-Scales is no "one trick pony." We will make your kid's party a great event. |
| If you're shopping the presenters of similar programs to ours please have a look at our Why Choose Us section. We would like you to take note of the huge variety we offer in animal species, high number of types of programs, unusual mix of animals in each show and the quality of our professional presenters credentials. We believe we have no peer. |
CHOOSING A SHOW  Do you offer different shows for different ages, on different topics and different prices? Of course. Simply click on the appropriate offerings in the menu at left. Are you insured? And professional? Yes, both. This is our full time profession. References? Yes. More than most will ever need. But if that's not enough we can provide specific people's phone numbers or emails that will review us for you. I have seen cheaper, similar style programs offering similar animals. Why should I choose yours? The long answer can be found in the “Why Choose Us,” portion of our website, but the short answer is that you aren’t seeing what you think. No one offers 99% of what we do and no one else rescues their animals to do it. No one else has been a herpetologist, (one who studies reptiles) since 1986, (like Bill.) What you’re seeing, in our competitors, is a group of people that perform with animals. They have an act; they’re clowns with lizards. But they are ex-accountants, ex-cops, ex-musicians, ex-editors, ex-???, etc; most of them are part-timers and their staffs are week-enders only, (I know this because it says so in their bios on their websites.) People that to varying degrees have some ability performing with animals, most are harmless and a few are very dangerous, (Rizzo.) They can be entertaining and good people but they aren’t herpetologists. One competitor touts that he has done a little field work for the State of NJ, but that doesn't make him a herpetologist anymore than volunteering in a hospital makes you a doctor! It’s like asking, “Do you want your child taught by a professional teacher or by someone that just likes to teach?” "Do you want you're car worked on by a mechanic or someone that likes to play with wrenches?" What if my child gets sick or the weather is awful? Things you can’t control aren’t held against you!! We will reschedule your show for free or you can purchase foul weather insurance if the reschedule must be on a specific day at a specific time. (Ask Bill.) BOOKING AND SET UP  How do we book? Simply call and speak to Bill 973-248-9964 or fill out a Program Request Form. He’s the boss, and he can answer all of your questions before and after you book. He’s the animal expert, the education expert and the owner of the company, so if you need anything at all, he can help. And you may be lucky enough to have him do your show, (unlike one of our competitors that dupes clients by having created a false owner that supposedly answers the phone. It keeps responsibility off himself and allows him to make more in tips!) What is your service area? Snakes-N-Scales serves all of New Jersey, Southern New York state; all of NYC including Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx/Riverdale and Staten Island, Long Island, Delaware Valley Pennsylvania, Philadelphia and it's suburbs, and Western Connecticut. (Go to Mapquest.com and put in your zip code and then ours, 07465. If the time for the trip is 2 hours or under, then you are definitely inside our zone and the listed prices apply to you. If it's more than 2 hours we can talk about times and prices and hopefully work something out.) What do we need to provide? For most shows, in most venues, a 6’ table and a little space in front of the table. Keep it out of doorways if we’re inside and in the shade if we’re outside. For our larger shows then two tables, a chair, and a good distance before the first row. (Talk to Bill about specifics, please.) Also help keep people from walking behind us or up to us. So outside is okay? Outside is okay if it’s warmer than 70F.—Yes, 68F is okay. We can also perform in cooler weather if our vehicle can be close by. After Halloween and before mid-April, please plan for an indoors event. When do we pay? For Birthday parties or events not run by non-profit orgs; $100, by check or credit card at booking, (see info here,) and then the balance by cash or check on the day of the show….If you’re a school or a camp, about 40% of total is due at booking, with the full amount on the day of the program. Libraries are not required to pay deposits. Deposits are not generally refundable, but your money is always good with us. If circumstances prevent your show from taking place, your deposit is still good to use on the reschedule, for at least a year. Of course if there is an error at our end that causes your show not to take place, your deposit is completely refunded. When will you arrive and how long will set up take? Most of the time, 15 minutes prior to the actual program start time, that you’ve decided on, is enough. Our larger shows will need 30 minutes of set up. During set up no children may be in the area. For birthdays an adult must present during set up. THE PARTY  Can food be served during the show? Yes, BUT no one that interacts with animals may have food. And in special cases where food is being prepared, like barbecues, we need to be up wind of the food prep and as far away as possible. No exceptions. Should we tip? You certainly should if you feel the instructor did an excellent job. Do you have party invitations, toys and goody bags? We do. Look here!   What if the party or event is running late? Due to our time constraints, usually we’er running to the next show, programs are expected to begin when scheduled. We are willing to accommodate a last minute time change if we can, but usually, we can’t. THE ANIMALS  I have done some searching and I find other companies bring more animals. Why should I choose to have your show with fewer animals? There are other companies that bring more animals, (I’ve heard as many as 20 in an hour!) but they’re smaller animals. Most of our competitors bring animals so small that they all fit it a 40 gallon plastic carrying bin!
(These are their photos.) Ours are significantly larger, most of our pythons would need that bin by themselves. These are two of our competitors and their "big" snake at the conclusion of their shows.
And this is one of ours, and a smaller one at that!
And really, 20 animals! In an hour? Even with 12, after you say who you are and get the rules straight with everyone sitting down, that leaves about 50 minutes of program divided by 12 animals...that's 4 minutes per animal! If the instructor can't go for longer than 4 minutes on 1 animal then perhaps he needs a different occupation? Plus it’s a “show,” not a catalogue! We do a presentation, an act, not a listing of species. Have you ever read a play or movie review that said the movie would have been better if they had more actors? Would a baseball team be a better one with more players? Hopefully you agree that the answer to these questions is, “NO!” Can we touch the animals? That is determined by which program you choose and the number of children. Please ask about your specific circumstances. Please remember to have everyone wash their hands when the show is over. Can we choose the animals? You may. Two species requests are usually no charge. After that it will depend on what is chosen. How are the animals transported? They are each locked into an individual carrier. They are presented one at a time and never out of our control. Can we take pictures with the animals? Certainly. Adults may take photos throughout the program but we will not stop the show for them. Most birthdays include a couple poses with our instructor, the birthday child and an animal of their choosing. Should you want more than that, something special or photos of all the children, just let us know. It is easily arranged. |
| Author Bill Boesenberg |
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