I was typing simultaneously with others it seems so...
I am the one who would not let a fourteen year old near my venomous collection. I don't even keep anything which is really considered capable of a lethal envenomation if medical treatment is sought. There's a single EDB but that's about as potent as it gets.
The issue is a legal one and I stated that to explain why a fourteen year old might be turned away by keepers even if they are trying to learn.
I know of one example firsthand... There's a guy, great guy, intelligent, respectable, cautious and knows his herps inside and out, backwards and forwards who wanted Scott to help get him started with the handling practices. This kid was a few years older than you guys when he first expressed a desire for this kind of interaction and he was being extremely mature by asking to be taught rather than just finding the snake and keeping it with no training whatsoever. He had to wait. He is GLAD to wait until he turns eighteen because he reccognizes the seriousness of the potential negative consequences should a mistake be made while he was still a minor. When he does turn eighteen (or if he has reccently) he'll be THRILLED with the chance to fill water dishes, scoop feces and change bedding because it's all a part of turning "protocol" into "instinct" when it comes to safety.
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I was keeping hots before I was 14. There are a lot of bright and responsible young people whom I'd trust with a hot a lot more than I would trust a lot of adults. Age is not the only predictor of either ability or maturity.
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No, but it certainly is important from a legal standpoint. The court of public opinion cares a great deal for it as well.
Further, these fourteen year olds keep wavering between "Respect my abilities!" despite not having any way of showing tangible or worthwhile experience and "Stop being mean, I'm just a kid!"
They can't have it both ways... either they approach the situation maturely and as adults and respect the right of others to disagree with their opinions on the subject... Ideally they might even pay attention and consider changing their minds but I'd frankly settle for simply accepting that there are people who's opinions on the matter differ greatly. Accepting frank and open discussion is the mature thing to do... Or they are treated as children, in which case they are simply told "No! Bad! No touch!" and I toy around with the idea of calling Virginia child protective services myself. The news story about a kid being removed from a dangerous situation wouldn't have the same negative impact as one where he was first hurt, then removed.
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drug abusing, heavy drinking, tattoo covered, wife beating, macho 40 year old with a bigger ego than IQ
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Hmm... What do tattoos have to do with responsible hot keeping?
Heck, come to think of it, while it's clearly not a good thing, what does someone beating their wife have to do with their ability to keep venomous snakes in a safe and responsible manner?
Even drinking and potentially drug use really don't have a direct impact, unless someone handles WHILE drinking or drugging. That, of course is more a stupidity issue than an alchohol issue though, isn't it?
Working out some of your own issues as they relate to the public's opinion of herp keepers Tanith? Maybe taking up the sword for young teenagers because you feel a bit empathetic? I know you've had your problems with some of the hardcore old boys. You had to work hard to earn the respect and admiration you have gained... It's more valuable because of it though. Fight hard for something and it's precious... have it handed to you and it's worthless. These boys should have to work to earn the ability to keep hots, just as everyone else did.
There were venomous snakes in my house from the time I was around ten years old... My old man put them aside until my sister and I were old enough to listen when he told us not to even attempt to interact with them and, like Scott's setup, they had a locked room and individually locked cages with only one set of keys existing. I was allowed to begin learning how to approach them at a young age too... doesn't mean they were MINE though. I was not responsible for their care, I never handled them unsupervised and it was pounded in from a very early age that they were never handled when it wasn't important anyway.
A fourteen year old kid who's allowed to work with their parent's animals is a far cry from a fourteen year old kid owning a copperhead.
A fourteen year old kid who has a proper respect for the capabilities and an education about of the animals involved is a far cry from one who says he wouldn't need medical attention if envenomated.