New Snake.

I just got back from the pet shop where I went to buy rats and the guy told us that they have the biggest ball that hes ever seen, when he pulled her out I had no idea they would sell it, Shes a little over 7 years old, 7.5 pounds and 61 inches long, shes huge. He only wanted $115 for her so I bought her right away.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...BallPython.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...allPython2.jpg

Wow, big girl! You should take a picture of her with something as a size reference (like a ruler)

nice catch! wanna double your money? lol


vaughn

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by kavmon

nice catch! wanna double your money? lol

---

Shameless Vaughn!

Wanna do better than double? :D :devilish:

-adam

adam, you know you were thinking it! i just said it first. lol


vaughn

I just looked at the ticket and the snake was only $100, when he told me that she was only $100 I couldnt belive it, ive been looking for a female but I never expected to find one this big or in the middle of breeding season. The guy told me she was all ready to breed but the male she was with didnt want to breed so I might get to breed her this season. Here is a pic of her with a ruler.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...ewithruler.jpg

Congrats on the find. That's awesome! She looks pretty relaxed there. Do you have any history on her? :D

She's a real monster!

She is really calm. The history is that a guy bought her from the guy I got her from today when she was just born and he just recently sold his house and stuck her and a male in the basement and forgot about them for a while, then he brought them in this week. The funny thing is that we were going to another pet shop (I know your in TN so I hope you know where im talking about) in Sevierville and then our plans changed so we ended going to that pet shop in Knoxville and we got her, so I guess it was ment to be:P:D:banana:

Sorry I was talking to Tiger about the history thing, she is really big, shes bigger that the breeder females at the pet shop so I am really suprised he sold her. I usually use a hook on a new snake just to get used to them but she bends the hook so I cant use it.:oops:

lol.. you need to get yourself a python hook! My hook doesn't bend under my 21 lb dumerils (her forward half anyway)

She's a little skinny for breeding this season, but on a good feeding program she'll be a monster for next year! Good score!

-adam

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Adam_Wysocki

She's a little skinny for breeding this season, but on a good feeding program she'll be a monster for next year! Good score!

-adam

---

I thought the female only needed to be a minimun of 1500 grams to breed and shes a little over 3500 grams. The breeder females from the place I got her from are all smaller in size.

How long is she ??

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by worldcupkeeper

I thought the female only needed to be a minimun of 1500 grams to breed and shes a little over 3500 grams. The breeder females from the place I got her from are all smaller in size.

---

1500 grams is a benchmark, not an absolute.

A 3 foot female at 1500 grams and a 6 foot female at 1500 grams are two totally different animals! ... One is ready to breed, the other is not.

Females need adequate fat stores for egg production but should not be too fat. Based on the buckled skin around the bends in the body and the seemingly loose skin along her sides, it really looks to me like she doesn't have the fat reserves needed to reproduce safely.

I have a couple of large 3000+ gram females that I intentionally kept out of my breeding program this year because even though they are large, they did not have enough weight for their length to safely be bred. Happens every year ... some just don't get the weight lost in the previous year back.

I would guess that if the guy you bought her from is breeding ball pythons, he knew that she didn't have the weight to go this year also and that's why he sold such a big girl in the middle of breeding season for $100? But that's just a guess.

It's a judgment call ... I'm certainly not saying don't breed her, she's your animal to do what you want with ... I'm just saying that based on those pictures I would personally wait until next year.

Good luck with her which ever way you decide to go! ;)

-adam

Shes around 61 inches, is there a way I can tell if she has enough fat, Shes been off feed since november.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by worldcupkeeper

Shes around 61 inches, is there a way I can tell if she has enough fat, Shes been off feed since november.

---

I sometimes go by 500 grams per foot at a minimum for young girls ... 700 - 800 grams per foot for older girls that have laid a couple of clutches in their lifetime .... there is no real exact formula for knowing what a healthy breedable girl looks like really ... you just know. They should be "filled out" ... not too skinny, not too heavy ... I like to say "athletic" :D with no loose skin or skin folds when they naturally bend their bodies ... they should also feel substantial and not hollow when you press your fingers into their bellies.

Developing follicles, ovulation, egg development, and oviposition take a tremendous physical toll on female ball pythons ... they really need adequate body weight to make it through the process.

I have a 6 foot girl that is 3800 grams that is sitting this season out because she just doesn't "have it" this year ... she was slow to get back on food after laying 11 eggs last year and she really needed the year off.

-adam

ok, when I held her at the pet shop I was noticeing that her belly was hard. Ill have to get more pics, when shes out she has no folds on the skin she looks pretty full, I didnt like the way the pics came out.

Maybe it's just the pictures then ... good luck with that! ;)

-adam

I just went to look at her and she looks flat, she doesnt have any folds in the skin but it looks like everything up top has rolled to the sides:P. Ill try to get pics of her on something hard and flat, the bed really wasnt a good place for pics.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by worldcupkeeper

She is really calm. The history is that a guy bought her from the guy I got her from today when she was just born and he just recently sold his house and stuck her and a male in the basement and forgot about them for a while, then he brought them in this week. The funny thing is that we were going to another pet shop (I know your in TN so I hope you know where im talking about) in Sevierville and then our plans changed so we ended going to that pet shop in Knoxville and we got her, so I guess it was ment to be:P:D:banana:

---

I'm in Memphis, so I'm on the opposite side (just about as far as we can get but still in the same state ;) ) It sounds like you really lucked out on her. Make sure you quarantine. I am ultra paranoid about bringing any new snakes into the house for that reason. You'll have to update us, on how she's doing, once she settles in.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Shelby

lol.. you need to get yourself a python hook! My hook doesn't bend under my 21 lb dumerils (her forward half anyway)

---

Just wondering (as you know I'm still relatively new to BPs and only have an 8 month old baby but I want to learn more) but why a hook for BPs? Our reptile guy personally keeps all kinds of venomous snakes (cobras) and he uses a hook for those when feeding.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Razaiel

Just wondering (as you know I'm still relatively new to BPs and only have an 8 month old baby but I want to learn more) but why a hook for BPs? Our reptile guy personally keeps all kinds of venomous snakes (cobras) and he uses a hook for those when feeding.

---

You don't need a hook for ball pythons ... LOL

-adam

Yeah thats what i was thinking.....

I only use a hook for the new snakes I bring in, I like to use a hook until they get used to me handleing them and so that I can get a feel for the way they act while being handled. When I see they are fine with it then I stop useing a hook.