My fiance surprised me with an awesome birthday gift...

Well, my amazing fiance did it again!!!

She DEFINITELY surprised me this time!!! She gave me the gift of another snake! Happy Birthday to me!!! (Picture me doing a happy dance)

Since I'm constantly on MM window shopping I had a few ideas in mind for whenever the time was right for the next addition to the family.

After speaking with a few breeders I decided to purchase from Riley Jimison of Riley's Reptiles. He has been outstanding to talk to, knows his stuff and produces some beautiful animals. Riley provided answers to every question I had and happily provided bloodline info and pictures of the parents. He's extremely professional, but also super easy to talk to.

Now I'm just waiting on a heat wave...come on spring weather!!!! The new guy will be making the cross country journey from Cali to MA when weather allows. For now I play the waiting game (oh the agony!!!!!).

Here's the MM picture of my new boy along with pics of sire, dam and dam maternally incubating her babies.

Is it spring yet......https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...fc18522e26.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...6889631f1a.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...b7c457ab26.jpg

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For some reason Dad wasn't showing up.... hopefully this works. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...70b465510f.jpg

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Great choice dude! Congrats!


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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Great choice dude! Congrats!


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Thanks man!!! It's gonna be a lloooooooong few weeks (or more) waiting on the weather.

That is a great looking dam! My interested are piqued.

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Originally Posted by wnateg

That is a great looking dam! My interested are piqued.

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Yeah, she's gorgeous. I'm hoping my boy inherits her bright yellows.

:carrot::dance::banana::bounce::w00t::pinkele: Sounds like your hints paid off, lol. Pretty snek!

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

:carrot::dance::banana::bounce::w00t::pinkele: Sounds like your hints paid off, lol. Pretty snek!

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Thanks!
Hahahaha, I don't know how subtle my hints were. I think the diamond I put on her finger greased the wheels a bit too. Sssshhhhhh, hehehehehe.
But honestly, she's awesome. Her turnaround from afraid of snakes to now allowing 8 in her house has been super cool to watch. She's not fearful at all anymore and has a healthy respect. She stepped out of her comfort zone to allow me to get back into the hobby I'm so passionate about. Can't say enough good about her.

Congrats on the nice looking addition! Hopefully you get some nice weather soon.

Well that was fast LOL 😂

Congrats!!!

Congratulations on your most excellent birthday snake and many Happy returns too
Fantastic looking python

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Originally Posted by 67temp

Congrats on the nice looking addition! Hopefully you get some nice weather soon.

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Thanks!!! The wait will be brutal, but so worth the wait come unboxing day and beyond.

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Originally Posted by Gio

Well that was fast LOL 😂

Congrats!!!

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Hahahhaha, right? I had my eyes open. But really wasn't expecting to add another just yet. When Katie told me about my present I jumped into action. I was familiar with Riley and his reputation, and talking to him made my decision easy.

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Originally Posted by richardhind1972

Congratulations on your most excellent birthday snake and many Happy returns too
Fantastic looking python

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Thank you Richard.

Congratulations Craig! What a great birthday gift! That's a beautiful JCP. The Morelia bug bit you hard :).

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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

Congratulations Craig! What a great birthday gift! That's a beautiful JCP. The Morelia bug bit you hard :).

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Thanks brother!

Yup, I should have been on team Morelia years ago!!!! They have the curious and inquisitive nature, almost like Kings, but in a good sized python body. What's not to love?

....and I really enjoy the arboreal feedings! It's so cool seeing them perched and ready to go.

Exceptionally beautiful snake and Happy Belated Birthday by the way!! I missed it in the birthday thread.

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Originally Posted by ballpythonluvr

Exceptionally beautiful snake and Happy Belated Birthday by the way!! I missed it in the birthday thread.

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Thank you! And thank you!!

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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

Congratulations Craig! What a great birthday gift! That's a beautiful JCP. The Morelia bug bit you hard :).

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The morelia bug is trying to bite me hard too. Also, so is my actual morelia LOL


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Congrats Craig! Nice choice. Those are some awesome looking parents, and that description of his disposition is good news too.

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Originally Posted by jmcrook

The morelia bug is trying to bite me hard too. Also, so is my actual morelia LOL


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Fernie just took her first pop at me in weeks two nights ago. She's even chill around her head already, barely head shy at all. I'm actually very pleasantly surprised so far. I got lucky with her....so far.

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Originally Posted by Reinz

Congrats Craig! Nice choice. Those are some awesome looking parents, and that description of his disposition is good news too.

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Thanks bud!! Yeah, the disposition was a huge check in the pro column. I'm thinking he'll grow up to be good looking boy with those parents. I'm so stoked.

Nice! It'll be great seeing him grow up. Jungles are awesome.

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Originally Posted by WhompingWillow

Nice! It'll be great seeing him grow up. Jungles are awesome.

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Thanks!! I'll definitely be updating frequently :D

I even got his baby pic [emoji16]
It's insane how dark they are as hatchlings.
This pic was taken the day he was born, May 31, 2019. He's changed quite a bit in less than 8 months. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...15600260ab.jpg

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

Well, my amazing fiance did it again!!!

She DEFINITELY surprised me this time!!! She gave me the gift of another snake! Happy Birthday to me!!! (Picture me doing a happy dance)

Since I'm constantly on MM window shopping I had a few ideas in mind for whenever the time was right for the next addition to the family.

After speaking with a few breeders I decided to purchase from Riley Jimison of Riley's Reptiles. He has been outstanding to talk to, knows his stuff and produces some beautiful animals. Riley provided answers to every question I had and happily provided bloodline info and pictures of the parents. He's extremely professional, but also super easy to talk to.

Now I'm just waiting on a heat wave...come on spring weather!!!! The new guy will be making the cross country journey from Cali to MA when weather allows. For now I play the waiting game (oh the agony!!!!!).

Here's the MM picture of my new boy along with pics of sire, dam and dam maternally incubating her babies.

Is it spring yet......https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...fc18522e26.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...6889631f1a.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...b7c457ab26.jpg

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Beautiful snake and a very happy birthday, congrats.

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Originally Posted by NewmanLovesSnakes

Beautiful snake and a very happy birthday, congrats.

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Thank you!!!

I have one of your snake's siblings so we'll have to compare progress! And yes, his disposition has been fantastic even if he has had one or two of those baby snake moments where he seems to be trying to decide if he hates me or not, lol.

Riley is fantastic - his background as a zookeeper specializing in reptiles really comes through, and he's a pleasure to talk to - he clearly loves his animals. I also purchased a hatchling Children's Python from Riley and am thinking about whether I want to get another Brazilian Rainbow Boa, as I know he's breeding his beautiful pair and the female seems to produce prolific numbers of babies.

Anyway, enjoy your Jungle Carpet Python. I often struggle to find words to describe my experience of my little guy. He's definitely intense (not in a bad way). He just seems to really notice everything. He doesn't miss a thing, and I swear I can almost see him thinking things through. I so much enjoy his semi-arboreal and active nature. It's a pleasure to see him out and about, or just sprawling across his perches observing the world. Looking forward to your updates!

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Originally Posted by Caitlin

I have one of your snake's siblings so we'll have to compare progress! And yes, his disposition has been fantastic even if he has had one or two of those baby snake moments where he seems to be trying to decide if he hates me or not, lol.

Riley is fantastic - his background as a zookeeper specializing in reptiles really comes through, and he's a pleasure to talk to - he clearly loves his animals. I also purchased a hatchling Children's Python from Riley and am thinking about whether I want to get another Brazilian Rainbow Boa, as I know he's breeding his beautiful pair and the female seems to produce prolific numbers of babies.

Anyway, enjoy your Jungle Carpet Python. I often struggle to find words to describe my experience of my little guy. He's definitely intense (not in a bad way). He just seems to really notice everything. He doesn't miss a thing, and I swear I can almost see him thinking things through. I so much enjoy his semi-arboreal and active nature. It's a pleasure to see him out and about, or just sprawling across his perches observing the world. Looking forward to your updates!

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Oh my goodness, that's awesome!!!!

Is yours a male or female? It'll definitely be fun to see how they mature. :)

And you're so right about Riley. He's fantastic. I've been chatting a bit with him here and there and you can definitely see his passion.

I'll look forward to seeing your updates as well :gj:

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

Oh my goodness, that's awesome!!!!

Is yours a male or female? It'll definitely be fun to see how they mature. :)

And you're so right about Riley. He's fantastic. I've been chatting a bit with him here and there and you can definitely see his passion.

I'll look forward to seeing your updates as well :gj:

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This is Ziggy, your snake's brother, at almost 9 months.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...49f61cb4c2.jpg

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Originally Posted by Caitlin

This is Ziggy, your snake's brother, at almost 9 months.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...49f61cb4c2.jpg

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Ziggy is one handsome dude!!!! I love his headstamp :)
Maybe I should call my boy Zag!!! Get it? Ziggy and Zag?!?! I crack myself up!! :rofl:

I can't wait for my new guy to arrive! We've had a pretty mild New England winter, but it seems to be drrrraaaaaaggggiiinnggg for some reason, hahaha!

What size prey are you feeding Ziggy right now?

Apologies, I really thought I had already responded to this! Since you'll be getting Ziggy's sister (or is it brother?) soon, I definitely don't want to ignore 'family' ;)

In answer to your question, Ziggy has been taking a small mouse every 7 days for about the last 6 weeks. I know carpets can take a pretty large meal, but as you can see in the recent photo, I think he is looking good. So I'm not seeing any reason to rush to bump up his meal size.

The gentle temperament Riley mentioned noticing in this clutch continues to hold true for Ziggy. That doesn't mean he hasn't had his moments. He's bluff-struck at me maybe 2-3 times altogether, which is just nothing for a baby carpet python. And every once in awhile I still catch him giving me one of those intense 'GOD I wonder how I can manage to KILL you' stares. You know what I mean, lol. I have several species of snake, and none of them except Ziggy have ever produced quite that same sort of look.

He's still a little nervous when handled, though settling down more quickly every time and relaxing into just exploring. He's even started sitting loosely coiled on my hand and calmly looking around for several minutes at a time, which is fantastic. When he was a wee baby he was in his hide a lot, but now as often as not he's sprawled across one of his perches. Given the long lead time on AP enclosures, I think I am going to go ahead and order a 4x2x2 for him this week. By the time I get it I think he'll adjust fine to being moved into it.

I hope Spring weather comes soon for you - I know you are really looking forward to the new addition, and I'm looking forward to hearing about how things go.

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Originally Posted by Caitlin

Apologies, I really thought I had already responded to this! Since you'll be getting Ziggy's sister (or is it brother?) soon, I definitely don't want to ignore 'family' ;)

In answer to your question, Ziggy has been taking a small mouse every 7 days for about the last 6 weeks. I know carpets can take a pretty large meal, but as you can see in the recent photo, I think he is looking good. So I'm not seeing any reason to rush to bump up his meal size.

The gentle temperament Riley mentioned noticing in this clutch continues to hold true for Ziggy. That doesn't mean he hasn't had his moments. He's bluff-struck at me maybe 2-3 times altogether, which is just nothing for a baby carpet python. And every once in awhile I still catch him giving me one of those intense 'GOD I wonder how I can manage to KILL you' stares. You know what I mean, lol. I have several species of snake, and none of them except Ziggy have ever produced quite that same sort of look.

He's still a little nervous when handled, though settling down more quickly every time and relaxing into just exploring. He's even started sitting loosely coiled on my hand and calmly looking around for several minutes at a time, which is fantastic. When he was a wee baby he was in his hide a lot, but now as often as not he's sprawled across one of his perches. Given the long lead time on AP enclosures, I think I am going to go ahead and order a 4x2x2 for him this week. By the time I get it I think he'll adjust fine to being moved into it.

I hope Spring weather comes soon for you - I know you are really looking forward to the new addition, and I'm looking forward to hearing about how things go.

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Hahaha, no worries at all. Always good to hear from family :gj:. Once ****** (his name is still a secret and not 100% decided) arrives we'll be sure to let you know.

Thanks, I was thinking Ziggy looked bigger than my Bredli based on your pics. She's about 3 months younger, so still on fuzzy rats. It'll be cool comparing them as they age though since they're so close.

Only a few bluff strikes? Wow! Riley wasn't kidding about the mellow!! Fernie must have tagged me a dozen times or more the first few handling sessions, but she hasn't struck again since. She's so easy, not head shy at all.
I know that look you're talking about, my Borneo STP has that look perfected!

I'm still on the fence between AP and building my own, but I've got a few 3 footers so I've got time to decide (although not a ton of time if I go AP. I'm just so impatient and lead times seem to be getting worse...

Now that we're into March I'm getting excited. He could be here any week now :D

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Originally Posted by Caitlin

This is Ziggy, your snake's brother, at almost 9 months.https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...49f61cb4c2.jpg

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He can easily be eating rat pups around 20 grams

HE SHIPS TOMORROW!!!!!!

He'll be arriving Wednesday!!! QT enclosure is up and running and I can't wait!!!!

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

HE SHIPS TOMORROW!!!!!!

He'll be arriving Wednesday!!! QT enclosure is up and running and I can't wait!!!!

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Exciting! Try to sleep, :).

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

HE SHIPS TOMORROW!!!!!!

He'll be arriving Wednesday!!! QT enclosure is up and running and I can't wait!!!!

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:carrot::dance::pinkele::banana::bounce: (I think I know how you feel...:cool:)

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Originally Posted by dakski

Exciting! Try to sleep, :).

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I've kinda become a night owl as of late, but something tells me I'll be up bright and early Wednesday morning! :D

Actual footage of Craig every 90sec beginning at 8am Wednesday morning [emoji23]
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...e59050f58a.jpg


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Yay! I love new snake days!! Congrats again sir!

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Originally Posted by jmcrook

Actual footage of Craig every 90sec beginning at 8am Wednesday morning [emoji23]
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...e59050f58a.jpg


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Hahhahahaha, well played, sir :rofl:

...and it's funnier cause it's true!! I may just pull up a lawn chair and wait in the front yard :D

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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

Yay! I love new snake days!! Congrats again sir!

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Thanks my man!

Is he there yet?

:rolleye2::P:D

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Originally Posted by dakski

Is he there yet?

:rolleye2::P:D

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Just checked...not yet ;):rofl:

He's on his way!!!

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

He's on his way!!!

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Hooray! This is giving me flashbacks to last week -- I was refreshing the FedEx tracker every thirty seconds while I was waiting for Kuzco to arrive, LOL. :P

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Originally Posted by WrongPython

Hooray! This is giving me flashbacks to last week -- I was refreshing the FedEx tracker every thirty seconds while I was waiting for Kuzco to arrive, LOL. :P

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Yup, that's me too! I set up the alerts to get texts and still check the tracking every two minutes.
This is only my second time having one shipped, so still as anxious as I am excited.

He made it!!! The pics didn't come out the greatest, but there'll be plenty of time for pics...
He's awesome!!! He was calm and inquisitive without showing much defensive behavior at all. He was definitely worth the wait!!!!

Now I'll let him settle in...https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...eebcc42ab4.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...c0118980f2.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...0e7e98c03f.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...e264a6beba.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...900e074a3f.jpg

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Very nice indeed craig
Look forward to the progression thread

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Congrats dude! I’m green with envy over here!


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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

He made it!!! The pics didn't come out the greatest, but there'll be plenty of time for pics...
He's awesome!!! He was calm and inquisitive without showing much defensive behavior at all. He was definitely worth the wait!!!!

Now I'll let him settle in...https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...eebcc42ab4.jpghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...c0118980f2.jpghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...0e7e98c03f.jpghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...e264a6beba.jpghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...900e074a3f.jpg

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So beautiful.

Looks like you picked a winner! :love: