Creepy, Crawly Crazies

            The Calhoun County Library hosted the Critter Keeper as the final performer for the summer reading program last Thursday.

            The Critter Keeper visited the Calhoun County Library on Thursday, July 21, 2022, with an abundance of live animals. Among those were scorpions, tarantulas, lizards, and snakes. As he was showing off these animals, the Critter Keeper shared interesting facts about them and emphasized that he learned a lot of his information from books. At the age of only five years old, he even learned what a Jacobson organ was because he read it in a book. (Do you know what a Jacobson organ is?)

            As he showed off each animal, the crowd of more than 120 people filled the room with ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs.’ There were occasional screams as well, but the Critter Keeper emphasized how important it is to face your fears and to control how you react to those fears.

            Each new animal allowed an opportunity for the crowd to interact. At the very end of the show, a few brave guests were chosen to help lift up one of the biggest snakes in the world: a Burmese python. Named Julius Squeezer, this snake needed seven people to hold him up, but our patrons, including toddlers, did it!

            The Calhoun County Library had the max capacity of viewers for each of the two shows, and all attendees had a blast. While the animals weren't as cuddly as dogs or cats, the patrons still loved seeing and learning about them.

            One piece of advice from the Critter Keeper is, “always be aware of what you say because the only animal that can hurt you with their tongue is another human being.”

            We hope you all had a great time participating in the 2022 Summer Reading Program at the Calhoun County Library! Let us know what you thought of the programs this year so we can continue to grow and meet the needs of our community next summer.

            This project is made possible by a Library Services and Technology Act grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services administered by the South Carolina State Library. Thank you to Dollar General Literacy Foundation. Funding received will support our summer reading program. Special thanks to Save the Children.