Maybe an uncomfortable question, but....

My kids love our snakes, and my daughter at least, who just turned 7, is constantly asking for her own. I want to wait a couple more years for giving her solitary responsibility, but she does help me change bedding and feed them. In the event that I kicked it prematurely, I don't think my husband would be able to convince them to part with the snakes at all.

For anyone interested this is that video
WARNING: it may be considered graphic (bp gets eaten)

https://www.youtube.com/shared?ci=z9kcL4YcpXQ

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Slither Seeker

when we got into breeding fancy guppies, one of the first things we did was to get an oscar and a jack dempsy to feed the throw backs to. I am guessing there is some sort of unspoken reality around this with BP breeding as well, though I have no idea what they could be fed to.

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King cobras and indigoes eat other snakes, as do a variety of other reptile predators such as tegus.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Slither Seeker

when we got into breeding fancy guppies, one of the first things we did was to get an oscar and a jack dempsy to feed the throw backs to. I am guessing there is some sort of unspoken reality around this with BP breeding as well, though I have no idea what they could be fed to. I would be surprised if culling was not a common practice among at least large breeders.

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I definitely intend to feed the dead/afflicted offspring to my black tailed cribo.

I was listening to a podcast today and some numbers shared in that podcast put the OP's original question into perspective:

• There are approximately 4 to 12 million people in the US that keep reptiles
• There are 25,000 to 30,0000 members of USARK

The huge difference between those two sets of numbers is a good indicator of the gap between the hardcore keepers (with larger quantities of animals as seen in the YouTube videos) and the potential customer base for those animals. It's easy to get caught not being able to see the forest through the trees, but trust me - the forest is MASSIVE if you rise above the canopy and take a look for yourself.

Best regards,
Eric

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Eric Alan

I was listening to a podcast today and some numbers shared in that podcast put the OP's original question into perspective:

• There are approximately 4 to 12 million people in the US that keep reptiles
• There are 25,000 to 30,0000 members of USARK

The huge difference between those two sets of numbers is a good indicator of the gap between the hardcore keepers (with larger quantities of animals as seen in the YouTube videos) and the potential customer base for those animals. It's easy to get caught not being able to see the forest through the trees, but trust me - the forest is MASSIVE if you rise above the canopy and take a look for yourself.

Best regards,
Eric

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I think this is really the key. The potential market population is still largely untapped - there are SO many people who aren't even aware of the industry. I've told friends about reptile shows and the numbers of species available (not to mention the numbers of morphs available and their costs), and the numbers of websites and offerings and breeders... and most of them just stare at me like I'm crazy. It never even occurred to them that an industry such as this could exist, let alone thrive. I think it's still very much considered "underground" though it's far more mainstream than it used to be 20 years ago.

The big breeders are ones tapping into that untouched potential. They're the ones providing animals to people who may never have thought about getting a snake. Maybe it's through a round-about means of wholesale selling, but still... if we want our hobby to be successful, it needs to grow.

I wonder about all those animals myself. I'm 31 and it's fairly common for visitors my age or younger to tell me they "had" a snake or an iguana like mine, some died, some were rehomed. The only person I know that's held onto a snake for a few years I'm taking care of it currently and it's your typical pet setup-big fish tank, human heat mat, no heat regulation, massively overhandled and 500 gram @ 5 year old bp so rather miraculous he's made it this long. I doubt most do from what I've seen personally and around forums. It's why I buy from breeders who care about their animals and don't just breed anything and everything to make a buck. In case anything happens to me most of my snakes will return to their breeders, some have another owner lined up and a couple could stay with my husband or nephews if they choose.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kxr

For anyone interested this is that video
WARNING: it may be considered graphic (bp gets eaten)

https://www.youtube.com/shared?ci=z9kcL4YcpXQ

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That is one heck of a size of meal! :O

Did it keep it down ok?

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Originally Posted by dr del

That is one heck of a size of meal! :O

Did it keep it down ok?

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I'm not sure... It's not my animal. If you ask him in the comments he'll probably answer you. He's usually fairly active on youtube


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