What to ask

I found someone who lives by me who is selling female pastels but I am kind of hesitant to buy from them because I don't know much about them. What should I ask?

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The best thing to do is to go see it in person if you can.

You want to know the age, weight, have the sex verified, how she has been kept, how and what she has been eating. Those are the basics and should give you a pretty good idea if you want to pre sue this snake further or not.

With Pastels the main concern is "browning out." all pastels do, but to what degree, varies.

Ask about the age (hatch date if they know), weight, husbandry and how the snakes are being housed. What the snakes eat and how often. Did this person breed these pastels themselves?

Also ask for pictures.
Try to get as much details if possible.

Thanks! I asked a bunch of questions! He answered all of them thoroughly! Soooo helpful. He is even going to set up flexwatt for me for $5.

I am going to probably put a deposit on the snake on Friday and pick up my thermostat (hopefully the reptile store has it!). I *may* need to get a different hide but I will only know when I have the snake. I'll need to get a container for the rats plus rat food. I think I'll be set after that.

I have:

12 quart tub
1 bowl hide (because that's all that fits in the container)
1 small water dish (may need to get a bigger one)
1 Thermometer/hygrometer
Aluminum foil tape
extension cord


I will need to get paper towels too.

So things I need to get:
Thermostat
flexwatt
paper towels
container for rats
rat food

Anything else I am missing?

Looks good, I would get a spray bottle for misting purposes to increase humidity as needed.

I have a spray bottle for misting my tarantula so I can use that. =) Forgot to list that. Thanks!

Provent-A-Mite

No matter who or where I get a new BP from, I always pretreat the tub before bringing it home. Make sure your tarantula is far far away (like, treat the tub outdoors and then change clothes), or you won't have one anymore - PAM is potent stuff.

Annarose15 you beat me to it!

yeh, i was gonna say, FIRST thing i would do is grab that snake and look him thru, stare in between some scales for a while, gently grab his head and stare at his eyeballs, mites are my biggest fear ever nowadays. Then after thats done, i would ask about eveything else.

And of course, spray down the enclosure you intend putting him/her with PAM before you bring him in, and lines with papertowels so if he does have mites u can see them when they die off.

Im so paranoid of mites, every week i take my BP out and inspect him, i grab his head by his cheeks (thats what i call the meaty part on the side of his head) and inspect him thoroughly, its gotten to the point that once i grab his head there, he knows the deal, he dosent even bother to fight me he just stand still and lets me look him thru

They want to sell so just asking questions isnt enough. They can tell ya anything. Go see them in person. You van get a feel pretty quick by looking at there setup. If thier setup isnt up to par and you see things that put doubts in your mind then dont buy em. Husbandry first, snakes second.

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Originally Posted by AmysAnimals

I will need to get paper towels too.

Anything else I am missing?

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You might want to pick up some fruit or cheese & crackers in case you get hungry and need a snack. Juice too! ;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by snake lab

Go see them in person. You van get a feel pretty quick by looking at there setup.

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The thing about this is that most people selling ball pythons are doing so out of their home, and may not be(rightfully so) entirely comfortable inviting potential customers into their homes right off the bat. I would be crazy to just let anyone in to see my snakes just because they may be interested in one.

Im a card carrying member of the nra. I dont have a problem letting someone local come over to look at an animal they want to buy. I understand some have an issue with this and if they do then dont buy from them. I would stick with dealing with reputable breeders if thats the case. Just my oppinion

Quote:

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Originally Posted by snake lab

Im a card carrying member of the nra. I dont have a problem letting someone local come over to look at an animal they want to buy. I understand some have an issue with this and if they do then dont buy from them. I would stick with dealing with reputable breeders if thats the case. Just my oppinion

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A bit harsh isn't it? Someone who does not let you in their home is someone you should not buy from and buying from a reputable breeder is what should be done like if not letting someone in your home makes you less reputable? :confused:

I am a NRA member I have a carrying permit as well and I am a great shot ;), yet my home is still my home, I do not invite STRANGERS into my home business wise or other wise.

To the OP

The best thing to do when meeting locally is to meet in a public place for the buyer's safety and the seller's safety.

Now as far as question based on the answers you will quickly know if the person is a hobbyist breeder or just someone who had a pet that he no longer wants.

In the second case you need to ask yourself do you want what might turn into a possible rescue, are you up for the challenge it it is the case.

When purchasing the animal make sure you bring along someone that can sex the snake for you immediately upon purchase so you do not get disappointed down the road.

Where would I get PAM from?

Pro Products

http://www.pro-products.com/index.ph...d=53&Itemid=59

Thanks! I also just realized LLL Reptile has some too. That's where I am going to get my thermostat tomorrow. So I can pick up those things from there.

I have been paranoid about mites with getting my first snake, apparently it's something that all snake owners share. Now I'm not so scared about the mites, more so about visiting the southern states :) you can Prevent a mite but its really hard to dodge a bullet.

If you're so scared about another person coming into your home then why not bring the snake out front to meet the potential buyer? Is crime that bad that you really need to worry about it that much?

With all the break-ins lately with breeders, I don't blame anyone for not allowing someone to know where they live. I also can understand how it would seem sketchy. I would ask for pictures with the person I'm buying from in them, date stamped. Especially of the snake I was buying and her enclosure, as well as her heat set-up, etc. If they have to be in it and it's date stamped, it's pretty hard to fake those.

Local is typically better. You don't have to pay for $40-$60 shipping prices, as well as being able to meet the breeder first hand. :)

Best of luck!

Thanks! I don't think I am going to get that snake after all. It's not the best looking snake and if I would like to breed some where down the road I want a good looking snake with good genes. =) So yeah, I'm going to pass up on the local deal, unfortunately. =( But I think I've found a female from Justin Kobylka.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Deborah

A bit harsh isn't it? Someone who does not let you in their home is someone you should not buy from and buying from a reputable breeder is what should be done like if not letting someone in your home makes you less reputable? :confused:

I am a NRA member I have a carrying permit as well and I am a great shot ;), yet my home is still my home, I do not invite STRANGERS into my home business wise or other wise.

To the OP

The best thing to do when meeting locally is to meet in a public place for the buyer's safety and the seller's safety.

Now as far as question based on the answers you will quickly know if the person is a hobbyist breeder or just someone who had a pet that he no longer wants.

In the second case you need to ask yourself do you want what might turn into a possible rescue, are you up for the challenge it it is the case.

When purchasing the animal make sure you bring along someone that can sex the snake for you immediately upon purchase so you do not get disappointed down the road.

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Yea i guess i didnt put it the way i meant for it to be. All i was trying to say was if you have doubts then deal with someone nore reputable. I wasnt trying to imply that someone not lettin you come to their house was not reputable. My fault. Personally i dont have an issue with it because if someone can get past the security system and the cameras, and then past the dogs, then past me well then hell they can have whatever they want lol. But again i apoligize if my comment looked like i was putting anyone down for not allowing peiple into their homes.

Hey amy I see yout in so cal too where abouts in by the brea mall in orange county I have dealt w justin before dont hesitate to do business w hum hes'great all hus animals are heatlthy and sexed correctly.