Bigger Beginner Snakes?

I feel like my mom would think they would attempt to kill me :/

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Originally Posted by BallPythonWannaBe

I feel like my mom would think they would attempt to kill me :/

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Most of my snakes will attempt to kill me on feeding day.. It's my job to make sure they hit the intended prey instead of my person or, depending on the animal, things can get hairy pretty quick. You need to know what your animals are capable of so you don't end up putting yourself in a compromising situation. A ball python might be just the thing if you want a larger bodied animal. Their shorter length, coupled with that girth, make them pretty impressive animals as adults. You'll also learn lots while keeping an animal that isn't strong enough to put a serious hurting on you.

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Originally Posted by John1982

Most of my snakes will attempt to kill me on feeding day...

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My snakes too. Including a 15 inch long California kingsnake that decided my finger was just the right size for his dinner. :P

Most of the Pituophis genus (bullsnake, pine snakes, gopher snakes) of North America make excellent pets. The bullsnake is the biggest of the bunch, but most of them are nearly as big. Albino Sonora gopher snakes and Pacific gopher snakes are fairly easy to get. The black pine is the most mellow of the Pituophis I've owned. The southern pines were the least friendly but could still be managed. I've also kept Sonora gopher snakes and Great Basin gopher snakes and liked them a lot. Worst thing I can say about the group is that they need handling fairly often because if handled rarely, they learn to expect food whenever the cage is opened. A five foot snake with its mouth open as it shoots out of the cage door can be a bit startling. Handled often, most are puppydogs.

The subspecies of Pantherophis obsoletus are also good. These include the black rat snake, gray rat, yellow rat, etc. The yellow rat is the least friendly, and even they tame well if raised from babies. They are more slender than Pituophis, though.

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Originally Posted by BallPythonWannaBe

I would love a boa,like a Hog Island or a Durmeils,or even a Boa Constricter. But my mother...She thought a Ball Python could kill you :snake: So I feel like the size combined with the name "Boa" will be too much for her. Although a male Durmeils.....Maybe? I'm not actually sure how big the male's get

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I think bulls, like in the pics ziggy posted, are about the same size as a dumeril's though. Depending on the type of carpet python, they also get about that big, but just more or less not as thick.

Maybe best to get a female ball python, or something that size?

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Originally Posted by BallPythonWannaBe

I feel like my mom would think they would attempt to kill me :/

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If your parents aren't 100% ok with you having a snake and are comfortable with caring for it if you're not around then you should wait until after you move into your own place to get one. Snakes will live for decades and you're entering a time in your life where you will be moving around a lot after high school (college, military, first job, etc).

If you still want to work with them find a job at a pet store.

What did you decide? Have you picked something out? I'm gonna jump on the bandwagon and say a Dumeril's is a great beginner snake. They also grow slowly, so you'll have plenty of time to convince your mom it's not going to kill you ;)

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Originally Posted by Team Slytherin

What did you decide? Have you picked something out? I'm gonna jump on the bandwagon and say a Dumeril's is a great beginner snake. They also grow slowly, so you'll have plenty of time to convince your mom it's not going to kill you ;)

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I'd almost forgotten about this thread :P I havent actually decided yet but Im leaning towards a Corn, a Cal King or maybe even seeing if I could turn mom onto a Bull. Im pretty sure a full grown Dum eats rabbits? Because of our pet rabbits I don't see mom being okay with that and I dont want to get a snake who is going to starve(or cost me a fortune eating multiple rats a feeding)just because I dont want frozen rabbits in m freezer.:)

Getting into larger snakes you have to be committed. My Burmese Python from years ago was not a puppy dog but at the same time never struck. Every single time I held it from it being a baby until adulthood it did the typical huff and hiss noise. Never bothered me because I was use to it and it would quit once it got it out of it's system. Also always remember each snake is it's own individual and don't think a Dumerils Boa is tame by default. There is an adult Dum at a pet store in my area that I'm sure will remain in the pet store for some time to come. I've seen wild copperheads tamer than this one. Of all the larger snakes I have ever owned, the common boa was hard to beat.

I would say that carpets are more of an intermediate snake, but that's just me.

They are nippy little things when they're babies and usually grow out of it, but it's still not incredibly uncommon to have a nippy, unpredictable adult. Jungles seem to be more aggressive than coastals but coastals do grow bigger. They are morelia of course, so the bites are not fun either when they're adults.


....If I were you, I would be looking at a male BCI boa. They'really almost always relaxed and docile, very rarely refuse meals, and they're easy to care for.

I would recommend getting a Boa 100%. They are very easy to care for, they never miss a meal, they are amazing to handle, as they are very alert, attentive and active and they reach a larger, yet manageable size...