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Journalism of Courage
A lot of us have grown up loving and watching the jungle boy Mowgli; a story where animals in the wild took care of a little baby and he grew up with them, like one of them, still continues to fascinate us. But have you ever thought that this could happen the other way round too? Of course, it does, because there are people who love animals and keep them at home like pets. But a python? That’s a little unusual.
This elderly couple in China is slightly different. Apparently, this couple has been raising a 60-kg, 3.7 metre-long python at their home for seven years, as their own child! The couple and their “child” even go out for walks around their neighbourhood, just like a normal family does.
Shi Jimin, a 68-year-old, adopted the poisonous snake in 2009 after he saved it from dying. Jimin used to work at a meat processing unit, and a snake vendor once came there and sold his entire supply, except for a 30-cm long snake that no one had taken a liking to. The vendor was going to get rid of the snake because no one wanted it, which is when Jimin decided to “adopt” it and bring it home. Reportedly, he had no idea that it is going to grow into the poisonous python that it is now. But even after realising that they had adopted a python, the elderly couple had no second thoughts about sharing their home with their pet, which they consider more as a child.
The elderly couple and the python’s story has gone viral on social media, for obvious reasons. According to media reports, experts have said that the snake is bound to only get bigger.
Though the authenticity of the story has not been confirmed, this reverse-Mowgli story sure makes for nothing less than a bizarre read.
