Educational outreach is the key to changing people's perceptions about reptiles, PERIOD. It creates a personal connection to reptile ownership that will override misconceptions put out there by the media and others.

With that thought in mind, I am locked and loaded for this year's ReptileFest, an event hosted and organized by the Chicago Herpetologial Society. I will be both exhibiting and covering the event for kingsnake.com. Coverage will be a bit sporadic however, as I will be staffing 12 tables with my slave labor and good friend Chris Law. My exhibit combines my beautiful beloved morelia, my reptile rescue group. and the International Reptile Conservation Foundation. Keep an eye here or on our Facebook page for fun stuff!

It is a very unusual event in that it will have no live animal sales, but that isn't all that makes it special. The fact that there will be around 400 animals and 200 species on display is pretty special. The really cool part is that 99 percent of these animals are privately owned. These are people's pets, and they can share the day to day joy on a far different level than, say, a zoo keeper would.

Our exhibits will range from a 5-year-old darling girl and her corn snake display, to professionals like Rob Carmichael from the Wildlife Discovery Center showing off Illinois native venomous and doing proper public education without sensationalism.

As I get ready to turn the house over to my husband and pick up my trailer of supplies before I head down to Chi-Town, I hope that this weekend will serve as an inspiration to others. Remember, Snake Day is May 14!

Photo courtesy of Mike Heinrich - ReptileFest 2011