I have a couple questions regarding pet snakes and I was hoping some of you could help me out. I know Pmpimbura keeps snakes and I know some others have experience.

I had a ball python about 10 years ago. I had him for a couple years. He was a great pet but, for reasons unknown, he stopped eating. He didn't eat anything for a year. I tried different rodents (i only fed him live rodents) of all different sizes. He wouldn't eat anything. I had a client that had a huge collection of snakes and he offered to adopt him. Eventually he was able to get him eating again - he started eating gerbils.

Anyway, the kids (ages 9 and 6) are now interested in getting a snake. I am wondering what the best type would be. I know a ball python would be fine size wise, but I don't want to deal with eating problems again. A King snake or a Milk snake is another possibility. I have always loved red-tail boas, but I think they just get a little too big. What about Rainbow boas/pythons?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Of the rainbow boas, the brazilian is the best tempered- but all of them can be a little testy. Ball pythons are fine as long as they are captive babies-do your homework on this, as many purported captives are not in this species. They go off feed for many reasons- but one main one is if they see the diminishing daylight hours, or a change to dryer humidity. They cease to feed in the dry season, which is their winter. Generally they will do best on pre killed food also- they seem to develop issues with prey items they struggle with. A corn snake would be best around kids though- they are less picky eatingwise and thus there is no fear in handling them. The kings are fine- but a little nippy sometimes. If you want a milk i would instead go for a potosi king or a thayeri- both are the most rugged of the grey banded kingsnakes. When milks or some of the more delicate kings go on hunger strikes- lizards are what brings them around- and thats a big old pain. As far as boas go they are the best choice. Really a male that is not power fed rarely exceeds six feet.

All your concerns are warranted.

I say no to colubrids because they are too messy. I am strictly a fan of boas/pythons now. They seem to be a whole lot cleaner for some reason. Plus, they are just more fascinating to me.

I wouldn't buy a baby boa if you are worried about feeding problems. Those little guys are very delicate. If you have the patience to raise one yourself they are great pets though. You can feed them conservatively as previously stated to keep them from getting huge. With frequent handling they are very docile, far moreso than most pythons. Do a google on suriname or guyana redtails if you want to see some gorgeous pythons. They don't have the muddy brown tails like the colombians or the black tails like the central american or peruvian boas. They have screaming fire-engine red tails with pink sides. I had a pair a while back that I ended up selling. They are great pets.

If you are talking about a pet for children those are the best options I think. Get a captive bred ball python or a male redtail. You can also check out rainbow or rosy boas. They are definitely not impressive snake. They look like large worms. But they will reach about 3 - 4 feet in length full grown and eat very well from my limited experience. Handle them frequently and they are usually pretty tame. Check out the kingsnake classifieds for info and options.

Rainbow boas

http://market.kingsnake.com/index.php?cat=62

Rosy boas

http://market.kingsnake.com/index.php?cat=61

Ball Pythons

http://market.kingsnake.com/index.php?cat=32

Boa Constrictors

http://market.kingsnake.com/index.php?cat=8

Thanks for the information guys. I'm not quite clear on the red tail boa. What is the average size for a male? You said that it would be smaller if I didn't "powerfeed" it. That's not the same as underfeeding is it? I have read that it's not good to underfeed a snake as it's not good for it's physical health and can cause it to have an attitude. I am assuming that you meant that if I didn't overfeed it that it would be smaller.

I am getting conflicting info on the web (what's new, right?). Some sites say red tails will grow between 10-12 feet, while other sites say 4-8 feet. I can live with the 4-8, but not the 10-12. I think that's just too big to handle, especially for kids.

most of the common redtail males will be 5 to 7 feet full grown. Females tend to be 7 to 9 ft. There are always exceptions to the rule. Many folks way overfeed their animals. This lends to obesity and respitory problems in snakes. It also can make them more aggressive as they become accustomed to food everytime the cage opens. My oldest boa was 35 yrs old when he died- and ate a couple rats every ten days to two weeks. My largest female was 15 ft and 95 lbs- a real mind blower. I had her for 23 yrs and she was 6 feet when i got her. She also was fed 3 times a month. I have had customers over the years with cornsnakes 15 to 25 yrs old that have always eaten a mouse or two a month- which is less than I recommend, of course. There are many people that really enjoy the rapid growth and fun feeding brings, but they also have the stories of 3 to 7 yr old snakes dying. There are other redtail types that will def stay smaller- hogg island males are small and really colorful. I still think though a foolproof cornsnake is a good choice for the kids. The idea that colubrid snakes are more messy is questionable. yeah if your talking cribos or oriental ratsnakes, bullsnakes and the sort- maybe(but prob not). Obviously I have friends in the business so let me know what you research up and I will tell you breeders or if a deal is worthwhile! I myself am getting ready to pick up something with the same criteria, so who knows what will be found.

Yup syrinx, my cribo was the messiest snake I have ever seen. Nasty to clean up after and an even nastier attitude. But I just don't dig colubrids that much.

Seriosly though, anacondas make the best pets.

I'm still trying to talk the wife into an anaconda. I want a display viquarium with live plants and an anaconda. I was planning to build one 4x4 and floor to ceiling. I even found a great site that sells viquarium plants. She won't have it. I may get a smaller habitat and get an amazon tree boa or a chondropython instead. They are more showy, less savage, and definitely not going to pose a threat to any future children.

quote:

Originally posted by Pmpimbura:
Yup syrinx, my cribo was the messiest snake I have ever seen. Nasty to clean up after and an even nastier attitude. But I just don't dig colubrids that much.

Seriosly though, anacondas make the best pets.

I'm still trying to talk the wife into an anaconda. I want a display viquarium with live plants and an anaconda. I was planning to build one 4x4 and floor to ceiling. I even found a great site that sells viquarium plants. She won't have it. I may get a smaller habitat and get an amazon tree boa or a chondropython instead. They are more showy, less savage, and definitely not going to pose a threat to any future children.

I understand that anacondas are very agressive.

Yes, they are very aggressive. But still one of the coolest snakes ever.

I never bred greens- but the yellows that I did- it was their choice when it came to biteing- the big ones you had to have a sheild!

And as far as the planted vivarium goes- wouldn`t have lasted with a anaconda, plus way too small. But for any of the amazon tree boas- great. I had a colony for a while of a real cool butter yellow morf,not leusistic- but that idea, And they never touched the bottom of their enclosure, They are also like chameleons in the fact that they have to be misted- they tend not to drink from a water bowl. The only issue really with them is keeping the glass clean, what with the mineral deposits and such left behind from all that humidity. All and All after 25 yrs in the herp thing- having a cool set up and treating them like fish- something to watch- is the best thing.

My philosophy is: Just stay away from wild animals completely. Specially if you have little kids.

Thanks for all the information guys. I have decided to go with an Anaconda. Actually, i'm not rushing into get anything yet. I'm not going to buy something on an impulse. The kids have started talking about it and I have always wanted another snake, so I figured I'd look intio and consider it.

I'm leaning towards another Ball Python. That just seems like the best choice for me. I love Red Tails, and those suriname red tails look gorgeous. But I don't want to get something that big. Even if it only got to be 6-8 feet, I think that's a little too big, especially for the kids. The Ball python, with it's small head and length usually around 4 feet, seems to be ideal. I'm leaning away from the king and milk snakes. I've always like the look of a python/boa.

I can't believe the prices on the albino ball pythons and other morphs - $2500 or more. The standard ball python, which can easily be found for less than $100 is, IMHO, the best looking. I like the albino, but there's no way I'd by $2500 for one.

my first albino burmese cost me 10k! And to johnny no wild pets- average nuber of kids killed by dogs per year 17 ave killed by constricting snakes 0.

2500 is nothing. When the first snowball morph came out I think it was somewhere around a hundred thousand. They regularly sell ball morphs for 30 - 60K. Its utterly ridiculous if you ask me.

quote:

Originally posted by Pmpimbura:
2500 is nothing. When the first snowball morph came out I think it was somewhere around a hundred thousand. They regularly sell ball morphs for 30 - 60K. Its utterly ridiculous if you ask me.

And I have seen regular ball pythons sell for $25. So the same snake with a little different coloring or pattern sells for thousands more. Ridiculous.

quote:

Originally posted by syrinx:
my first albino burmese cost me 10k! And to johnny no wild pets- average nuber of kids killed by dogs per year 17 ave killed by constricting snakes 0.

If you leave out reticulated and burmese pythons, the number of deaths is zero. I saw a study that shows that with these larger pythons, the death rate is .4-.5 per year. Horse related deaths are 219 a year and dog related deaths are 14. Here's the link

The bottom line is that the smaller snakes, including the red tail boa, do not kill people. And, even the larger ones rarely do. But, the difference is that there are millions of dogs out there. The percentage of deaths to the number of dogs owned is probably lower than the number of deaths to the nimber of large pythons owned. But, that's just a guess.

Ironically, this was reported today.

http://www.tampabays10.com/news/news.aspx?storyid=19803