Carpet Python or Boa?

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Originally Posted by Gio

Mike,

While we have a decent discussion going, how do you feel retics stack up? You are a new retic owner. I was going to mention a SD retic but I just have no experience. It's one on my list though.

I'd say any Colombian/mainland BCI male or female would be great. I also feel carpets get a bad wrap for their initial defensive behavior. They settle very fast, and a few micro bites from a juvey is absolutely nothing. I didn't even bleed in the 3 times I was bitten by my coastal.

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I've had my boy for five months now and absolutely love him!

Retics are a great option BUT they keep you on your toes. A high percentage SD or SD/Dwarf will stay comparable to a boa or carpet. Longer and more slender than a carpet, but not as fat around as a boa. Retics grow a lot faster than a carpet or boa. My boy went from sitting in a 6qt tub when I first got him to a 41qt tub now, in only 5 months. Every time you open that tub and have an interaction with the snake, you have to be paying attention. Because the day you're not is the day he'll be hungry and come flying out looking for food haha. Whenever I get him out I always have a roll of paper towels or hook in my hand to tap him out of feeding mode in case he's hungry. It's not them being aggressive, they're just looking for food and excited for it. Once you get him out, he's usually calm and just moves around on you. Likes to climb up onto your head. They have tons of muscle tone so they're great climbers. But even then, you have to keep an eye on them. Because if you let them have the opportunity to escape off your shoulders, they will. And dart up onto shelves or wherever they can get to haha. They like to explore lol. They're great eaters tho. In five months Morris has only refused one rat. He was deep in shed and ate one, then he refused a second one which was a refusal from one of my stubborn bps. So I'd say that's pretty damn good haha.

I'd take a retic over a boa or carpet just because I like the extra challenge that comes with them. :)

I love my Dumerils...she is never nippy, even when she was a tiny baby; very curious and fun to handle. I think their pattern is beautiful. They usually max out between 5-7 feet, and though there are exceptions, I think the record length is still under nine feet -- anyone feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. :) And they get fairly thick.

Even though they are a "big" snake (compared to most balls), they don't really seem as large as they are because they're so docile and easy to handle, at least in my experience. And they grow somewhat slowly, so you kind of get used to the size as they grow, as someone else mentioned. Males also tend to be on the smaller side of the size spectrum.

Yea dumerils get sorta fat. Almost like a blood python haha

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Originally Posted by Mike41793

I've had my boy for five months now and absolutely love him!

Retics are a great option BUT they keep you on your toes. A high percentage SD or SD/Dwarf will stay comparable to a boa or carpet. Longer and more slender than a carpet, but not as fat around as a boa. Retics grow a lot faster than a carpet or boa. My boy went from sitting in a 6qt tub when I first got him to a 41qt tub now, in only 5 months. Every time you open that tub and have an interaction with the snake, you have to be paying attention. Because the day you're not is the day he'll be hungry and come flying out looking for food haha. Whenever I get him out I always have a roll of paper towels or hook in my hand to tap him out of feeding mode in case he's hungry. It's not them being aggressive, they're just looking for food and excited for it. Once you get him out, he's usually calm and just moves around on you. Likes to climb up onto your head. They have tons of muscle tone so they're great climbers. But even then, you have to keep an eye on them. Because if you let them have the opportunity to escape off your shoulders, they will. And dart up onto shelves or wherever they can get to haha. They like to explore lol. They're great eaters tho. In five months Morris has only refused one rat. He was deep in shed and ate one, then he refused a second one which was a refusal from one of my stubborn bps. So I'd say that's pretty damn good haha.

I'd take a retic over a boa or carpet just because I like the extra challenge that comes with them. :)

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I have been lookin into SD retics and they seem to be more manageable sizewise. Do you know of any breeders that produce SD retics?

without searching the 3 breeders that come to mind are Bob Clark, Prehistoric Pets, and Nerd

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Originally Posted by sean12wilk

I have been lookin into SD retics and they seem to be more manageable sizewise. Do you know of any breeders that produce SD retics?

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Vital Exotics, Rodney Boalich and Travis Kubes all work with them. I got my boy from vital Exotics, I highly recommend them. Kris is great to work with

Thanks. Back to boas for a minute. Do you guys know any breeders who breed lower end morphs? I know a breeder close to me but he only breeds $200+ snake. Thanks again for all the help.

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Originally Posted by sean12wilk

Thanks. Back to boas for a minute. Do you guys know any breeders who breed lower end morphs? I know a breeder close to me but he only breeds $200+ snake. Thanks again for all the help.

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Nah, sorry. Can't say I do. Special K has some nice boas. Tim is a nice guy.

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Originally Posted by sean12wilk

Thanks. Back to boas for a minute. Do you guys know any breeders who breed lower end morphs? I know a breeder close to me but he only breeds $200+ snake. Thanks again for all the help.

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I think $200 is a decent price for any morph.

You could consider a rescue/adoption. Craigslist always has people wanting to rehome their animals. Unfortunately the novelty of owning a snake wears off for some people. I'll be rehoming a BP in the next few days