MIDDLEBURG – Abby Craven cuddled a Rhino Iguana and held the football-sized reptile within an inch of her face. Moments earlier, Wild Things Exotic Animals Manager Savannah Stevens held an eight-foot Black-Headed Python, and she let it slither around her arms and neck. 

Are either of you worried about being bitten? 

“If it’s got a mouth, it can bite,” Stevens said. 

Have you ever been bitten? 

“At least 1,000 times,” Stevens said. “Snakes aren't ones that we have to seek medical attention. It's like scraping your knee, you know. You clean it off and make sure that it's covered. A snake’d rather bite me than a dog or a cat. Mammals are way worse.” 

One thousand times by exotic animals such as iguanas, giant snakes, alligators, lizards, spiders, scorpions and geckos. 

Stevens and Craven laughed about working with the animals and insects at Wild Things. They know their shop at 2500 Blanding Blvd. is unique and popular. They also know they don’t consider the work hazardous. Rarely has a bite required any medical attention. And never has an encounter led to any apprehension. 

“We have a lot of stuff in the store that you can't purchase,” Stevens said. “We have a lot of displays. We equate ourselves with a mini zoo. I have alligators and crocodiles. I have a venomous display. We breed 50% to 75% of the animals we sell. I do have a lot of larger boas and different kinds of snakes on display that we breed. Those are always interesting.” 

Stevens said her parents owned a chain pet store, but when they divorced, her father kept the store, and her mother decided to do something a little more daring by opening a reptile store because reptiles were easier to care for than dogs, cats, fish and birds. 

Then Paula met Matt, who worked with international customers who had venomous animals like crocodilians, and they got married. They opened Wild Things in Middleburg in 2008. They’ve been flourishing with things that creep, crawl and wriggle on the ground since. 

“I think with most people, the wow factor is usually the baby alligators, because they're right at the front door,” Stevens said. “And then, others are like our larger boas and pythons."

Business is always brisk. There is an audience for Wild Things’ exotic animals. To keep pace, staff often breed popular animals in demand. 

“People from all economic backgrounds, all ages, all international people, we do a lot of business overseas with some of our venomous and larger crocodilians, pretty much anybody,” Stevens said. “If you ask around, you can find a neighbor or a friend who has an animal like what we carry. Even if they're not, it's probably hanging out in their house, or sometimes you may have a friend that you know has that kind of animal.” 

The store is divided into rooms that best suit an animal’s climate. There are hundreds of creatures at the store, but don’t expect any dogs, cats or bunny rabbits. 

Or any staff member with fear. 

It was common to see a staff member like Abby, Abigail Anderson or Addyson Sullivan reach into a cage and grab a snake, tarantula, gecko, lizard, scorpion, or iguana, holding it with one hand. At the same time, they cleaned the cage with the other. 

Stevens unlocked the tank of baby alligators when two girls asked to see one up close. She stood on a stepladder, and without flinching, she reached in and snagged one bare-handed. 

And she wasn’t bitten. Not that she was worried.