A great deal or too good to be true?

Now im fairly new to this whole ball python game. Ive been researching for about a year and a half, and havent had my first clutch yet, my spider being my only morph, but I do know that Pied and het pied are expensive no matter where you look. I was surfing fauna looking for a sub-adult pastel female(posted a topic about it earlier this morning) and I ran across a 2012 100% Het pied female for only 150 plus shipping. I looked around online and even the het males were priced a few hundred dollers higher. The ad said she ate both mice and rats, and both papers and pictures of her parents would be provided. The guy said she was still available, and asked if I had any other questions. I thought at first maybe it was so cheap because it hadnt eaten or shed or something, but apparently its at the very least eaten.

So should I jump on this? I know I would need to get a male het pied, in order to guarantee visuals, but If I bred it to my spider male, and bred one of the spider babies back to its mother theres still a 50% chance that I would produce a spider pied right? So it would take a full 3 seasons to consistantly produce both regular and spider pieds, but it sounds like it may be worth it. Pied werent in my initial breeding plan, and sening over a grand on a visual doesnt sound like much fun at all. It may be a nice background project. Opinions please!

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Originally Posted by Riv

I ran across a 2012 100% Het pied female for only 150 plus shipping.

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$150-200 for a female het pied is right in the ballpark.

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Originally Posted by Riv

I know I would need to get a male het pied, in order to guarantee visuals

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Or a male visual pied, which would greatly increase your odds and can be found for under $1,000. Het to het breeding still only nets you a 25% chance per egg to hit a visual.

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Originally Posted by Riv

Pied werent in my initial breeding plan

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Best to stick to your plan to start, IMO...of course things can change, but going off and buying things on a whim will only confuse you in what your goals are.

Maybe I should go for a Pinstripe after all. I found one for the exact same price, and aside from having to use a normal this season. Even if I did get a pastel close to weight she'd have a year of quarentine to go through anyway. I might as well buy the less expensive baby pin and grow her myself huh?

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Originally Posted by Riv

Maybe I should go for a Pinstripe after all. I found one for the exact same price, and aside from having to use a normal this season. Even if I did get a pastel close to weight she'd have a year of quarentine to go through anyway. I might as well buy the less expensive baby pin and grow her myself huh?

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Are you planning to breed in the future?

If so, don't worry so much about the males, and start collecting females that you like. the rest will fall into place.

I love pins, can't go wrong with a female pin IMHO!

Yeah! Im hoping for my first clutch this next season. Just one, a 1.0 spider x 0.1 normal. Im hoping to have a lot more pairing by the season after, and be in fulll swing by the season after that. Im not terribly worried about males. Once I have a bumblebee im going to have him get with a viariety of different codom females, and then worry about the more complex combinations. Right now im trying to round up Female pins, pastels, maybe a mojo, and then a pair of butters fires and lessers. Then Ill need a new set of goals haha. I feel like starting up is the hard part. But I wanted a pinstripe regardless of breeding. Does anybody know how a purchase from fauna works though? Im assuming I use paypal which I already have set up, but when do I send the money? Before or after he ships? If he had fake personal info couldnt he just sever contact take the money not give me the snake, and in that scenario what could I really do to stop him? Ive never bought a live animal via internet before. Not really sure how it works = /

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Originally Posted by Riv

I feel like starting up is the hard part.

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Keeping control and staying on your plans IS the hard part;)

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Originally Posted by Riv

If he had fake personal info couldnt he just sever contact take the money not give me the snake, and in that scenario what could I really do to stop him?

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You can get taken but the best thing is to do all of your research on the person you are buying from. You can search them on forums and fauna BOI

Not seeing a too good to be true deal here it's fair market price for a female het pied :gj:

Im starting to wonder If I was just skimming obliviously and saw prices for a visual pied :rolleyes:

I think im definitely going to go with a pastel or pinstripe. Im going to have to get a 2012, because theyre the most inexpensive, but in 18 months it should be well worth it XDD.

I agree, it's not a bad price at all for a female het pied. Should be relatively easy to also find a male het pied for cheap to go with her.

Got my little male visual Pied for over $700. So they're not so pricey that getting a visual male in the future would be difficult.

But, I have to agree: Stick to your plans. Don't jump on something just because it's on sale. :gj: