Rehoming Help/Advice

Hello!

I have two male ball pythons (not sure what morph) which I have owned since my childhood. One is approximately 12 years old (Viper), and the other is about 10 years old (Khazoo). My father was the primary caregiver for about 6 years, but he passed away 5 years ago. I have been responsible for them since. At the end of next month, I am graduating from college and spending the year abroad. I need to find a new home for my snakes, but I need advice on doing so. These boys mean the world to me, and I want to make sure I find a good, responsible owner.

1. What is the best resource for finding a new owner?
2. I have been housing the males together. Before I get a bunch of heated responses, hear me out. We first got Viper in 2003, and then Khazoo in 2005. Originally, they were housed separately but my dad decided to put them together to save space shortly after we purchased Khazoo. I had no clue ball pythons are supposed to be housed separately, and they have never exhibited aggressive behavior with one another (to my knowledge/from my observations). I recently found out they are typically solitary. Now, should I try to rehome them together, or separately?
3. Should I get them vet check ups before rehoming them?

Any other useful advice would be helpful. This is a really painful process for me, and any guidance would be helpful.

You really seem to love them. what about finding a temp home, maybe a local member with some extra space could watch them for you or a famiky member/friend that way you can come back to your babies and avoid the pain of seeing them off

Where do you live.

I would love to find a temporary home; that is definitely the ideal. My boyfriend's mother might be able to take care of them, but she hasn't given a definite answer yet so I am trying to find other options as of now. I don't want this to be a last minute ordeal and end up surrendering them to a sanctuary/humane society, you know? :( I would rather see them go to a responsible, experienced owner who I meet first hand. I am definitely going to ask around my home and see if anyone would be willing to care for them.

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Originally Posted by Jhill001

Where do you live.

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As of now, Berkeley, CA where I'm going to school at Cal. However, my family/primary residence is in Santa Clarita, CA and Ventura County.

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Originally Posted by M.P.C

You really seem to love them. what about finding a temp home, maybe a local member with some extra space could watch them for you or a famiky member/friend that way you can come back to your babies and avoid the pain of seeing them off

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I would love to find a temporary home; that is definitely the ideal. My boyfriend's mother might be able to take care of them, but she hasn't given a definite answer yet so I am trying to find other options as of now. I don't want this to be a last minute ordeal and end up surrendering them to a sanctuary/humane society, you know? :( I would rather see them go to a responsible, experienced owner who I meet first hand. I am definitely going to ask around my home and see if anyone would be willing to care for them.

If you were in Ohio I'd hold onto them for you, I hope you find a solution.

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Originally Posted by Jhill001

If you were in Ohio I'd hold onto them for you, I hope you find a solution.

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Your kindness is so appreciated. I hope there are others like you in my state who would be willing to make such an arrangement.

You can check out some facebook groups to see if anyone is out there. And google breeders and stuff in your area maybe someone would house them for a small fee :gj:

I would approach it differently, you could perhaps look for other reptile people in your area with the experience to care for them while you are not able and work out some sort of agreement (on paper) to a mutually agreeable understanding. I have seen this in my area where a snake has been cared for by someone else for 2 or 3 years and the owner kicks in a maintenance fee for food and such every month, the ones I have seen about 8$ to cover food and power. Extended boarding of sorts. This usually starts with finding a understanding person in your local community. The times I have seen such a thing ended in fast friends. It has the potential to go south as well so be careful.

Maybe you could contact your local Herp Society and see if they could be of help?

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Originally Posted by kitedemon

I would approach it differently, you could perhaps look for other reptile people in your area with the experience to care for them while you are not able and work out some sort of agreement (on paper) to a mutually agreeable understanding. I have seen this in my area where a snake has been cared for by someone else for 2 or 3 years and the owner kicks in a maintenance fee for food and such every month, the ones I have seen about 8$ to cover food and power. Extended boarding of sorts. This usually starts with finding a understanding person in your local community. The times I have seen such a thing ended in fast friends. It has the potential to go south as well so be careful.

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This is a good idea. I have a friend going to Europe for a year for his job and he has two snakes that I will be taking in while he's overseas. He's paying up front for their food, and I'm not worried about other costs like electricity.

Thanks everyone for your advice! I have decided that care taking is definitely the route I want to take instead of adoption. I have come in contact with a friend of a friend who is interested in care taking. However, I am kind of wary because she does not have experience caring for snakes at all. She is rooming with my friend and will be local for at least the next 2 years, but I am not sure about her being w/out experience :/ My boys are pretty low maintenance, but I need to know she would be 100% comfortable feeding and handling them, and would be capable of caring for them. Opinions?

Also, I spend probably about $24 a month on food and $30 on bedding every 3 months. Should I offer to reimburse them as needed, or provide a monthly fee?