A Saudi loves crossbreeding snakes in the garden of his palace.. He buys 100 originals
Faisal: I love collecting live art. AFP
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Saudi Faisal Malaikah's love of non-venomous snakes evolved from having one when he was five years old, to crossbreeding them to produce unique colors when he became the head of a family.
In the garden of his palace in Jeddah, near the sea, Malaikah, a wealthy businessman and father of three children, allocated two entire rooms on which were written in English in green “The Serpent’s Room.”
Malaikah, 35, said: “There are people who like to collect gems, or classic cars, or paintings.
As for me, I love collecting live art,” referring to his acquisition of more than 100 snakes from the reticulated python family spread in Southeast Asia.
He noted that this species is "popular in the field of fashion, as international companies use its skins in the manufacture of bags, shoes and belts, but out of every thousand snakes caught by hunters, there is one of its rare color" that has a genetic mutation.
He added, "The hunters sell distinctive-colored snakes to collectors like me... I produce rare genetic mutations and I combine them with each other to come out in shapes and colors that are unparalleled on earth," pointing to a white snake with gray and gold spots that dances lightly around his left arm. .
Malaikah, who runs a company specializing in finance, did not think of selling snakes to clothing companies for financial benefit, saying: “I value life, so I like snakes alive, not in the form of bags or shoes.”
Animal rights groups generally criticize hunting animals for the purpose of killing them for industrial use.
In the Saudi man's house, snakes dance in spacious wooden boxes with glass fronts and small plastic holes, but sometimes they allow the tongues of these fearsome reptiles to escape.
Sawdust was placed inside the boxes to facilitate the movement of snakes and to absorb their droppings, which leave an unpleasant smell in the narrow room.
Two air conditioners operate in each room throughout the day to provide a cool and humid environment similar to the natural environment of snakes.
Malaikah explained that crossbreeding snakes is a process that requires knowledge, patience and a long time.
Crossing rare-colored snakes takes "three or four generations", while the production of a tricolor snake takes "10 or 12 years", explained Malaikah, who studied finance at the American University of Beirut.
It is also called the constrictor, as it kills its prey by squeezing after its body wrapped around it to suffocate it, and then swallows it all at once.
The giant snakes kept by the angels only eat once a week and they feed on chickens and rabbits.
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