Next step up in reptile keeping?

So, in snake words, what is the next level? I've kept a cornsnake, and currently have my first ball python. What's next in terms of difficulty? I've been eyeballing sand boas and hognose so far... what is the third fourth so on easiest snakes? Or reptiles?

Personally I wouldn't be asking myself what's hard/easy, I'd be asking what am I interested in?

I'm going for stuff I like personally. Like I love pacman frogs, they're easy and low maintenance, and come in cool colors. I really want tokay geckos one day cuz I like some of their morphs and how feisty they are. I want a boa morph one day and I really want a gtp because they're gorgeous display animals and I kinna have a thing for vicious critters with attitude.

So... what do you like the look of? What are you interested in? How much space and funds do you have? I'm sure you'll find something you'll love :) Good luck!

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Honestly the more common types of snakes are going to all be pretty easy to keep. Always challenge yourself!! Hog nose snakes are considered "rear fanged" but they sure are pretty and stay small and are fairly easy to handle. I bought a tri color hog a few years back and that thing was awesome and not so common! http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k8...s/DSC01473.jpg
But it really just depends on what your into, and what size ur abled to handle. Besides my Bps i tend to get stuff thats not so common.

I'm no expert, but from what I've gathered on this site, the next step is having 20 bps.
:P

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Originally Posted by Coleslaw007

Personally I wouldn't be asking myself what's hard/easy, I'd be asking what am I interested in?

I'm going for stuff I like personally. Like I love pacman frogs, they're easy and low maintenance, and come in cool colors. I really want tokay geckos one day cuz I like some of their morphs and how feisty they are. I want a boa morph one day and I really want a gtp because they're gorgeous display animals and I kinna have a thing for vicious critters with attitude.

So... what do you like the look of? What are you interested in? How much space and funds do you have? I'm sure you'll find something you'll love :) Good luck!

Sent from my PG86100 using Tapatalk 2

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Good advice.

However, if you want a challenge without it being too difficult, check out amazon tree boas. They come in a plethora of colors, have a little more specific husbandry than balls/corns and are lots of fun and will keep you on your toes. You'll want to pick up a box of band-aids at time of purchase too. ;)

It's all about what you like. I do hours of research usually before buying a new addition. And yes I have rehomed many after realizing I was in over my head or didn't enjoy the animal as much as I thought I would. I.E. the 14 foot burm I rescued years ago. Seemed like a good idea at the time but a couple months of wrestling her and almost losing more than once I decided maybe I should have started off with a baby so I traded her to a breeder for a hatchling. Lol. I'm staying with balls and leopard geckos as the main staples in my breeding collection because of the variety. However the wife and I seem to have a contest to see who can bring home the next strange and challenging thing. She brought home a couple stepped runner lizards last week and a tarantulla the other day. So now I get to confront my fear of spiders. And today I took in an orphaned squirrel the neighborhood kids rescued. Atleast til I can get a hold of a wildlife rehabilitation center. So really it all comes down to what can you handle, enjoy, and care for with out putting you or the animal at risk. Sorry for all the rambling I just remember being where you are now but I didn't have internet or local reptile nerds to ask for help. Lol good luck in what ever path you choose.

There's nothing that hard work and knowledge won't prepare you for. Unless you're considering a giant or something hot, then even the preparation part of almost any new snake species that is commonly kept in captivity isn't out of your scope. Even if someone was considering a giant or a hot, I wouldn't recommend they spend 10 years working with corn snakes.

You've mentioned sand boas and hognose snakes in the same sentance, and IMO those are two species that often have overlapping interests for keepers. If that's what you're interested in, go for it. They both make fantastic first-time snakes and you'll have no problems keeping one happy and healthy. My only issues with western hognose snakes is that I've had the same issue that practically all snake keepers have with any species at some point: feeding strikes.

The snakes you will find available as CB hatchlings in the US, with rare exceptions, pretty much all make fine animals to keep for someone with the basic understanding of snake keeping who is willing to put in what I would consider even just minimal effort (but possibly more than just a little $, new housing isn't cheap).

I want to set up a nice natural terrarium, as in the book "the art of keeping snakes"..