The crushing disapointment of learning to probe your own.

Also known as "don't buy females from scuzzy people in crappy petstores".

Bought a set of probes and brought a nice assortment of sizes and genders in to my vet so I could practice under supervision.

The big skinny scarred up female that I bought for $50 from the creepy guy because I felt so sorry for her (and was hoping to get a breeder out of eventually when she recovered) is unquestionably a male. Poop and double-poop. "She" has been eating ravenously and gained a good 250 grams in under two months, up to 800 from the 550 I purchased "her" at, so I had hopes that she'd be breedable next year. My other girls are all babies so this one was going to be my "practice" breeding before I get started in earnest the following year.

What sucks is the guy probed this animal in front of me, and at the time I didn't know enough to tell the difference...he had a bunch of unsexed adults in this little tank together with no hides or heat...just a screen top. I asked him what sex they were and he started probing, and this one probed female according to him. At the time, I didn't know what to look for when you probed, and I'm still not sure I could tell the difference just from watching someone do it. This was the one really crappy looking snake, and I knew it wasn't going to get care from him, so I bought it out of pity, and with the hope it would eventually be a breeder. Oh well. Now I know, eh?

Oh, and probing is not nearly as hard as I was afraid of. I'm not saying everybody should rush out and do it, but if you have a good sense of what you're feeling, it's very clear. The descriptions that folks gave in another thread were perfect...I could tell exactly what I was feeling.

a very very very wise man once told me,

Quote:

---

You should buy the best animals that you can possibly
find/afford ... You'll have them for the next 20+ years and cleaning up poop
for an animal that isn't "perfect" in your eyes is no fun ... trust me. :P

---

so, IMO, don't buy an animal out of pity... buy it out of love :wuv:

sorry your girl turned out to be a boy.

My first BP was from a pet store, they told me it was CB but the next day I noticed she had 2 ticks and mites. Mites happen but ticks are from wild imports. I brought her back and only buy from breeders that are reputable and had never had a problem 18 snakes later.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by slartibartfast

Also known as "don't buy females from scuzzy people in crappy petstores".

Bought a set of probes and brought a nice assortment of sizes and genders in to my vet so I could practice under supervision.

The big skinny scarred up female that I bought for $50 from the creepy guy because I felt so sorry for her (and was hoping to get a breeder out of eventually when she recovered) is unquestionably a male. Poop and double-poop. "She" has been eating ravenously and gained a good 250 grams in under two months, up to 800 from the 550 I purchased "her" at, so I had hopes that she'd be breedable next year. My other girls are all babies so this one was going to be my "practice" breeding before I get started in earnest the following year.

What sucks is the guy probed this animal in front of me, and at the time I didn't know enough to tell the difference...he had a bunch of unsexed adults in this little tank together with no hides or heat...just a screen top. I asked him what sex they were and he started probing, and this one probed female according to him. At the time, I didn't know what to look for when you probed, and I'm still not sure I could tell the difference just from watching someone do it. This was the one really crappy looking snake, and I knew it wasn't going to get care from him, so I bought it out of pity, and with the hope it would eventually be a breeder. Oh well. Now I know, eh?

Oh, and probing is not nearly as hard as I was afraid of. I'm not saying everybody should rush out and do it, but if you have a good sense of what you're feeling, it's very clear. The descriptions that folks gave in another thread were perfect...I could tell exactly what I was feeling.

---

Sorry to hear about this:( .I also fell for the bullcrap in my startings since i had no idea also at that time.I was shown something on how some vendors and others pull to make it "look " like a female,next time you probe your now known male for say practice reasons.When you start sliding in the probe stop halfway up.You will now have your female! Since people are unaware of probing they "trust" the person selling it.Just so noone misunderstands i am NOT saying i do this nor telling anyone to do this if you are trying to sell a snake.I am just pointing out what possibly happened in this case from the pet store.Now once you are 110% sure on your probing skills go back to that pet store and show him the proper ways:P .I used to act stupid at certain shows and i would ask them to tell me if this snake is a female or not and of course it was always what i was looking for.Then i would calmly pull out my probe set and get the real truth:8: .Majority of the time the "female" grew a hemipenis within seconds of me checking it:mad:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by recycling goddess

so, IMO, don't buy an animal out of pity... buy it out of love :wuv:

sorry your girl turned out to be a boy.

---

Don't misunderstand me...I'm not sorry I got the snake; I'm quite sure he would have died eventually if left there, or been sold to someone who wouldn't have helped him and he's a pretty boy in general and has eaten like a champ, is docile and easy to handle no matter what...I was just really really excited about being able to breed next year.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by slartibartfast

Also known as "don't buy females from scuzzy people in crappy petstores"....The big skinny scarred up female that I bought for $50 from the creepy guy because I felt so sorry for her

---

i'm sorry - i misunderstood your post. i thought you weren't happy about having him now. :bolt:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by recycling goddess

i'm sorry - i misunderstood your post. i thought you weren't happy about having him now. :bolt:

---

No worries. :-) I'm still happy about having Norma, now Norman. Just cranky about having to wait another year to breed. :-P He's got this funky jungly pattern...crazy loops and circles instead of alien heads. I didn't like it at first...but it's really grown on me. I really and truly bought him as a rescue, because I couldn't bear to leave him in that place. Being female was just a bonus, but a bonus that I got to liking the more I thought about it, and that I'm not thrilled about giving up. Life goes on, and I'm so glad he's doing well and that's what really counts anyway. His right eye was covered by this big oozing scab...I wasn't even sure there was an eye there, until he shed out and revealed a crinkled scar. Subsequent sheds have improved on it, and now it almost looks normal...just a tiny irregularity on the lens. And his sides slope out instead of in...got a lot of weight to gain yet, but the improvements are wonderful.

that's GREAT news!!! https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil.../4/7/heart.gif

Sorry to read that Norma turned out to be a Norman but you've stilled gained major karma for saving it's life. Scuzzy pet stores are the worst and unfortunately buying from them only encourages them to get more "stock" and stay in business. :(

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by frankykeno

Scuzzy pet stores are the worst and unfortunately buying from them only encourages them to get more "stock" and stay in business. :(

---

Trust me, I know. I'm all about rescue and not buying from pet stores or puppymills. I just felt so sorry for that poor thing, and this guy that owns the shop knows nothing. He told me he didn't give them hides because it makes them agressive, and that they like to be kept in groups. *shudder* He normally wants $80 for any ball, any size, any sex and he gave me this one for $50. I just wanted it out of there, so it could try to recover.