Sexing?

I just got a new ball python and i'm unsure of the sex. Before I do anything stupid I wanted to check with everyone on here first. Is popping a dangerous practice if your not experienced with the technique? should i just take it to my local vet to find out the sex?

If you are not experienced with popping, you can harm the animal. Have your experienced reptile vet sex the snake.

i wouldnt pop it anyway, it just looks painfull

i just looked at the vent then the length of the tail and decided it was a female I was thinking of poping but decided against it. I would rather not know personally, unless I decide to breed her one day.

Thank you everyone. I was leaning toward having my vet do it but you guys locked my choice in. thanks

If you can find a breeder nearby that could also be a possibility for you. I have been talking to a breeder in Arizona, he told me he would happily show me the correct way to pop for free, just need to bring Crawly to him and he would show me how its done. That could be an option for you if money is tight, I know that the cost is a little high to go to a vet just to be told if your snake is a male or female. :)

i would either take it to the vet to have it's sex determined or leave it alone if you have watched any videos of popping you would not want to do it either..... you are squishing there sex organs out of where they belong how would you like it if someone did that

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Originally Posted by Ogre

i just looked at the vent then the length of the tail and decided it was a female I was thinking of poping but decided against it. I would rather not know personally, unless I decide to breed her one day.

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You can in NO way tell the sex of a bp from visual clues. The only reliable way is popping and probbing. And even those arent infallable.

I personally probe. Ive tried popping but im no good at it. A probe kit is like 20 bucks. Im no where near a vet or other breeder so i watched video after video and read tons.

I would NOT reccomend doing it this way. Find a vet, or breeder to show you.. More then once even. Its a stressful practice on both you and your snake. But a needed one... Better to be prepared. But out of the two probing is WAY easier.

To those that have stated popping is bad.. Having the organs squished out. I agree it does suck by the sounds of it. But sexing is a needed evil in this hobby. Either squished out or jammed in. Either way isnt great. But until our bps evolve to having external sex organs.. Were kinda stuck with the methods available.

Wow I know this is from way back but as I said I would rather just not know then so as not to harm the snake and was just calling it a her. As it turns out it was a lucky guess.

Sorry for the typos, I have large thumbs and they make typing difficult.

I would never recommend trying to pop on your own. Try to find a breeder in there area. I'm sure you could find someone to meet up with you and sex your snake/teach you how to sex it. I've done it for people. Check around on here for people in your area. We have a section at the bottom of the forum where people post what area of the country they are in. Someone is bound to know a local breeder. The vet may not be experienced enough to tell you.