Are retics really bad?

When I told people I was gtting a snake, I had everyone giving me opinions. the 3 I heard most that were good for a first snake were, corn snake, rosy boa, ball python.
Everyone also said do not get a reticulated python. They are mean, they bite, you can't handle them.
I would like to know what you retic owners out there have to say. I'm not trying to make anyone mad, but I would like to hear the retics side of the story. I can't believe that all of them are mean.

I don't know about mean, but they're eff-ing huge....for that reason alone not a good first snake.

I don't think too many people on this forum own retics. They are definitely not a first snake by any stretch of the imagination. Like any snake, some can be ornery and others can be quite docile. They are very intelligent, and from what I've read, command a lot of respect when handling, feeding, cleaning the cage, etc.

There's nothing "bad" about retics. What is bad is when people buy the cute little babies without a clue about what they're getting into. That would be like buying a baby tiger because they are SOOO cute!! Who wouldn't want a baby tiger? But they grow up into BIG tigers. Doesn't mean the tiger is bad...or even mean. Raised from a baby, a tiger can probably be very tame and lovable. But it is still a wild animal that happens to be dangerously huge and armed.


Corn snakes and ball pythons are also still wild animals...but they are not so big that if they "go wild" on you that you are in any danger. A mature retic, on the other hand...can easily kill an adult man if it felt endangered or decided to grab and constrict for some other reason. Even a defensive bite-and-release can maim or leave permanent scars from a snake that big.

Dangers aside, an animal that big requires a LOT of space to live in, very large prey animals to feed on, and multiple people willing and able to be there for both routine maintanance and for emergency handling.

Retics are reputed to be remarkably agile for such a large snake as well.

A retic is not something to take lightly, however there are many docile retics out there.. especially the tiger morph is known for being generally calm. Wild caught retics, on the other hand, can be extremely nasty, so it really depends on the snake's history.

The temperments set aside, they get huge:eek:


heres a video of a 22 foot retic i posted somewhere else on here if you wanna take a gander at how big they can get....

http://www.dailyhaha.com/_vids/Conan_Obrien_Snake.htm

there are dwarfs that dont get nearly as big... but i belive the dwarf line is still fairly new and they started out as wild caughts, i dont know what there attitudes are like so dont quote me on this causes i could be totaly wrong....but to me the words "wild caught and retic" dont sound good no matter how big they are ....someone correct me if im wrong...i need to go research :D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by The Cannibal Monkey

I don't know about mean, but they're eff-ing huge....for that reason alone not a good first snake.

---

Not all of them.....Super dwarfs average around 6'....that is direct from the master of retics, Bob Clark.

Retics are great animals....just misunderstood and feared....like just about every other reptile.

Definitely not a beginners snake! Its an animal that deserves the utmost respect from us and should not under any circumstances be taken lightly. If you wish to own one in the future, make sure that you have the necessary experience, space, man-power and financial means in order to be able to care for an animal that will live for a very long time!

I actually do own two retics, Yellowhead Tigers (boris&natasha). My 'tics are still very young, Natasha is about 4 ft, Boris 3 1/2ft. But they are unlike any other snake I have dealt with. Yes, when they're in feed mode, they can be extremely aggressive. But mine are hook trained, and once out of the cage are very docile. Even so, they are much more alert than other snakes. With mine, even when they're motionless, they don't seem to be still. I think the problem with that is, it makes it harder for us humans to pretend they're cute cuddly harmless critters. People apply human emotions to every other type of snake, burms are "puppy dog tame", boas are sweet, BPs cute and cuddly. But you don't hear people talk about tics that way. With Burms, boas and BPs, its easy to forget that these are predators that kill. For some reason, with tics, that fact is right in your face the whole time. Do they get big? Sure, but so do burms, so do BCCs for that matter. I even know people with GREEN anacondas, they're HUGE! But with all of them, its easy to overlook the fact that they're designed to be very effective killers. That's not something you forget with a 'tic. Does that make them bad? Not in my book. But I can tell you, I NEVER let my guard down with them. Any snake that gets to be over 8ft needs to be respected, none of them are harmless.

When I talked to Bob Clark about them he said Super Dwarves stay under 8'. Im guessing male will go around 6'. I'm thinking about getting a super dwarf coming up in may.

Lucifer's Mommy,

I did watch the link you sent. Did anyone else find that as unbelieveable as I did?
I'm new to snakes, but that was not a happy retic!!! She looked and acted very frightened, or at the least, very unhappy, she did not want to be there, and Conan was acting like an idiot over her!!!!!!
As soon as they put her down she settled a bit, but she certainly didn't look dangerous to me, there was only one dangerous life form on that stage, and it wasn't a snake.
Thanks for answering my questions everyone. I wanted to give retics a chance and was sure most of it was bad press, and yes, I do realize that they aren't beginner snakes. I'm happy with my BP.
Mina

Mina, you just have to sift through the hype and the truth. Retics are huge snakes and most definitely not for a beginner, however, if given the proper care and you have at least two other people with you at all times when you handle them, I think that they wouldn't be so bad.

That clip to me was infuriating. I don't like Conan to begin with so I wanted to break his face. O_O He had NO respect for her whatsoever and Steve Irwin did himself an injustice by playing to both the crowd and Conan.

I got to see Fluffy yesterday at the show. VERY impressive! She was one of the snakes that Karl said - come here, I want to show you something! LOL

I've never owned a Retic, but the ones I've encountered were not in good moods at the time! Definitely not a snake to be bought on a whim.

Most people buy these cute snakes as most snakes with the "cool factor" in mind, but the cool factor wears out quickly when you have this 8-10-12-16-18-20+ft snake in your home that feeds regularly on large rabbits to small pigs, poops like a horse, weighs 100-200-300lbs, and needs regular maintenance by 2 people to do it safely. And since most can't handle a snake this large, add to that it may have an attitude problem from lack of regular handling!!

Most of the Retics I've encountered have not been too large, maybe 6-10ft and they have all been rescues. It's a shame that snakes like Retics, Burms and Anacondas must suffer because of irresponsible keepers/breeders/sellers.

Sorry to come so late to this thread, but I thought I'd give my .02$ since we maintain a large group of Retics.

Captive Bred Retics are generally friendly creatures. We have about 20, and only one is ever aggresive, and even she is manageable.

The Retic in that video did not seem pissed off to me at all. Retics do that. They squirm around a little and hiss a little. Ball Pythons do it to sometimes, it's just not as impressive. If she was mad, those guys wouldn't have been able to hold her at all and someone would have gotten bit.

We have an adult pair of Super Dwarves that are under 6 feet and weigh less than 10 pounds.

We have an 18 foot female that is puppydog tame. Retics are the greatest!!!

-Adam
www.retic.org