High Contrast Albino's

[mattchibi]

Hey,

So albino's have always been part of my plan as to what I want to breed. I've seen a lot of low contrast faded albino's out there, and I only recently found one high-contrast female. Albinos go for $300-500 in the states for standard 2011 hatchling females. In canada, the prices are a bit higher, I've seen albino's selling from as low as $450 (breeder never responded to me though) and up to $900.

Currently, I am looking at a high-contrast female albino 2011.. she is priced at $800, which I find a bit much, but she looks AMAZING. Do you guys think its worth it? I have lots of plans for her in terms of breeding, but I wanted to know if the "high-contrast" quality of albino's puts a higher value to the snake? Do high-contrast examples still fade out during adult hood or do their patterns stay?

Heres a pic:

[Akren_905]

Im not to familar with the albino gene but for a good example of an albino like that and she is a female i would put her in the 650-850 range and really you buy an animal if its amazing n the price would be a second thought. ive asked questions on prices before and i always get the same "you want it you will pay what u think is right for it" or in my case out the can with a couple of mine lol.

But if i were you id be calling as soon as i had the money n see if you can haggle it down 50 or 75 if you think its too much.

[Kenj620]

I always try to talk to breeders about the market for albino balls. Albino balls seem to still be in high demand even though the supply is much higher than in the past. I've paid 500 for albino balls and I know they used to be much much higher. I've seen albino hatchlings going for as low as 300. I don't think the price will drop much lower based on the demand and the fact that it is a recessive gene. As for the quality of albinos, I guess its just preference. I like the high contrast ones better, but some may like the faded ones. The pattern is also something to consider when looking around. Hope this helps.

[meowmeowkazoo]

All ball pythons fade with age, but a high contrast albino will keep its colors better than a run of the mill specimen. If her babies look like her, they would sell very well. You could even breed her to a nice dark normal male that's het for albino, and try for even darker babies.

I think it's always worth it to pay the extra cash when you find an amazing snake. Because albinos are a recessive gene their value should stay fairly stable. But you could always see if the breeder is willing to go a bit lower. I would definitely buy her for $600, and possibly for $700 (US prices, not Canada).

[CoolioTiffany]

That is a beautiful animal

[saber2th]

Seems a bit high, but she is a great example of the morph! You would make your money back with her for sure!

[EverEvolvingExotics]

All albinos look amazing when they are young. The difference between a normal albino and a high contrast is obviously the ability to hold that sharp contrast between the white and yellow. I paid $800 for a female albino around 3 or 4 years ago and I thought I was getting a steal. Can you get cheaper, yes, can you get a better example, look at the parents. Either way, I love albinos and I'll never talk someone out of getting one, they are one of my favorites, few people aren't impressed by how unique they are. It all up to you, do your research, you'll know when you find "that special lady".

[mainbutter]

Nothing wrong with paying double (or more) "average" market rate for a spectacular specimen IMO. She's certainly the prettiest albino I've seen in a long time.