Is it OK to let your snakes sunbathe in the park?

A man who takes his snakes to sunbathe in his local park has sparked an online debate about what animals are - and are not - acceptable in public spaces.

The Friends of Barshaw Park group said it had been contacted by people who were worried about someone taking up to 20 of the reptiles to the Paisley park.

It urged anyone who saw the snakes to call the police.

Far from being horrified, many locals have defended the snake owner - who appears to be a regular visitor.

They said he was clearly doing no harm and kept his snakes under control at all times, and questioned why the police would need to get involved.

Margaret Winters, who lives just along the road from the park, said everyone she spoke to was happy to see the snakes lapping up the sunshine.

She said: "The first time I spotted the snakes, they ended up literally crawling over my feet. I got a bit of a fright, but they were really nice.

"I'm not scared of snakes so it was quite nice to get the chance to hold a baby one."

She added: "It was bizarre because you expect to see dogs running around the park but not snakes.

"The man who owned them said they were quite clever and friendly and they looked as if they were enjoying the sun. Most people were really interested."

Photos of the man posted on social media show him happily posing with the snakes draped around his neck or standing close to them as they slithered on the grass.

But the Friends group said in a post on its Facebook page that it had been told by the local council that "no-one has permission to bring snakes into Barshaw Park".

It added: "The police request that if you see anyone in the park with snakes, please do not approach the person but call the police on 101 and they will attend".

A woman who responded to the warning said she had met the man a couple of times with her kids.

She added: "Really nice guy, answered the 1,001 questions we had about snakes. The snakes were under control and enjoying a little sunbathe.

"Can we show the same concern for people bringing their out-of-control dogs to the park?"

Another said the snake owner was "really nice and full of smiles" and that any concerns about him were "OTT".

One local wrote that the man only had two snakes when she saw him - one around his arm and another on the grass - and that she had to warn a passing family not to stand on one of them.

Another pondered what newspaper headline writers would make of the snakes going for a ride on the park's miniature railway, while someone else opened up a second front in the debate by claiming to have once seen people with ferrets in the park.

Support for the snakes was not universal, however, with potential safety issues also being raised.

One social media user succinctly summed up the argument against taking snakes to parks by pointing out: "Nope. Ban it. Ban him. No no no."

Jamie Kinlochan, a regular visitor to Barshaw, told BBC Scotland's Drivetime programme that most people he had spoken to seemed happy to share their green spaces with snakes - so long as they were not venomous.

He added: "People have, much to my surprise, been loving this.

"I had never thought about it before, but I guess when it come to things like dogs in the park we are kind of cool about that even though they can still present some form of danger if not well looked after or not treated properly.

"I guess people's arguments here are not any different and I probably agree with that."

A spokesman for Renfrewshire Council confirmed: "Non domestic pets such as snakes should not be brought into our parks and consent has not been provided for this to take place."