I'm a farmer, and yes, there are cats around. And they will attack people. Cats are tempermental, they have serious mood swings, one minute they can be purring and the next clawing your eyes out. I've kept snakes, but not for long, animals belong outside, not inside. I actually used to volunteer (and still do whenever possible) at the CRRC (Clinch River Raptor Center) where we rehabilitate birds of prey and other animals that come in. I've seen me share of what cats can do. Dangerous to the wildlife. And no animals belong inside. If you have rats and mice, get some traps and put them in your home. It would also be cleaner than having cats inside. They don't eat what they kill most of the time. And I'm not feeling guilty aboot land that the indians once had, I'm 1/8 Cherokee meself. And if there were no snakes in America, you would be over run with rats and mice. And no, I don't have kids, but me neighbors do, and they are just fine with snakes. They know the snakes won't bother anything, the snakes are doing good. The only bad thing around here is too few snakes. We are changing the environment in ways that are bigger than you think. We are sending thousands of tons of CO2 a year into the air. This causes the Earth to get warmer, and to alter climates. Getting rid of feral cats is a harder thing to do, they can hide. And they breed like crazy. I've been bit by snakes before. Why? Because I picked them up. Still, it didn't hurt me. I had to actually run the snake down to catch it. I hardly see any toddler doing this. And I don't see one doing this if you educate them. And snakes eat more than once a week. A full grown black rat snake will eat every day. And I'd like to see someone confuse that with a venomous species. You would have to be ignorant and blind. And king snakes eat other venomous species. So, they are no threat to you. In fact, they are helping you. Although, you would kill those just as soon as look at it. Many people in this world who would do that. Kill something just as soon as look at it. Kill you just as soon as look at you. For no reason at all. At least the snake doesn't want to kill you, he just wants to go on aboot his business. Eating rats and mice.
