saying...Hi

Hi every, I've been a visitor here and other reptile forums for a few weeks now and finally decided to join up. I've kept numerous reptiles as pets of one form or another in my teenage years. I kept a few boas and burmese as a teenager. Long story short, I got married at twenty-one, wife got rid of the snakes, rocky marriage, got divorced a couple months ago at twenty-eight and discovered a renewed love for snakes! Maybe this time I should find a woman that loves or even tolerates reptiles!

I will admit, I have not been much for on-line forums of any types. The reason I signed up here is, I want to learn more about Ball Pythons in general. I have one girl that is about three years old according to the previous owner that works at the local PetCo. He informed me that the best place to learn about snakes was on-line and told me about Kingsnake.com along with a few other sites. My only herp conversations have been limited to picking up some fish food and tank supplies from PetCo.

First, I was amazed to see how far the herp world as come in the past eight to ten years! I never thought I would see snakes being sold for $10,000.. :eek:. All I knew was pet store snakes that sold for $30-$125 around locally back in those days. I would love to buy a Spider or maybe an Albino BP, I've fallen in love with about ten other color morphs in the past couple weeks. Another snake I would love to own and most definitely will, is an Albino Boa.

I have a two bedroom townhouse and God willing can convert one room into a reptile room.
Sorry for the long post, I just thought I would say hello and break the ice.

Dan

hello fellow floridian!!

glad to see you're back in the reptile game! Yes there are so many different types of morph ball python, it's pretty amazing stuff now.

If you're looking to get into breeding ball pythons, prepare to do a lot of homework and make one of the best investments you've ever made.

LOL!!!! :P WELCOME! You'll fit right in! :yes: Sounds like you already drank the "punch"! Personal warning.... I was like you, I had NO idea what had happened in the world of "morph"... Especially with BPs... The more you learn, the more you want! I was a sworn Boa person.... I now have 3 BP.. And a HUGE wish list!:rolleye2:

Hi Nathanledet, thanks for the warm welcome.

I don't think I'm ready for breeding nor have I given it any thought to be honest. I simply would like to started with some pets and increase my collection as I go along. I'm still kind of worried about buying anything on-line, especially something live. Is this a safe way to buy and recieve snakes? Is this common and what guarantee is given?

Lots of people do it every day. Make sure the person you buy from has a good reputation (you can search them here, or search the Board of Inquiry on http://www.faunaclassifieds.com)

Most reputable breeders will stand behind their practices 100%. Shipping normally costs around $50 for priority overnight. If you've bought from a reputable breeder, and your snake arrives DOA, then a good business will ship you another or give you a refund without hesitation.

AdamWysocki runs 8ball Pythons and i have yet to hear a negative thing about him...he's on this forum daily and will get you a great snake. :gj:

Thanks, I will check out that link tonight when I get home from work. Any other information you can pass on please do and it will be appreciated, thank you!

Just a couple more question before I head off to work. Excuse my ignorance, but I noticed prices vary quite a bit on-line for the same snakes. Is there a reason for this? Do these prices include shipping and handling? Are these prices set in stone? I have yet to inquier with any seller and do not want to offend anyone as the new guy.

I'm heading off to work now, but will be checking back tonight.
Thanks for your help.
Dan

no there's nothing really set in stone. It's a free market, and prices decrease each year as more and more of that specific morph are produced. it's that whole "supply and demand" thing...You also have to do your homework and figure out what you want..do you want a quality snake from a quality breeder? expect to pay more for that.

A lot of ads will say whether or not shipping and handling is included. If you buy a snake for 35 dollars, you can almost guarantee they're going to charge you $50 for shipping and handling....


You won't offend anyone being a newbie. Everyone has to start some where...if you're scared to ask any one in particular, then just make a new thread here, or use the search function. you won't get bashed on for asking questions.

Welcome to BP.net! :handshake:


I'll second what Nate has said about having snakes shipped. It works very well and opens up a vast number of doors that would not usually be opened to you if you just bought locally. I was also very wary of it when I first started looking at buying a snake...but now I know better. ;)

As for the price variations you see....there's really no set-in-stone prices on snakes...just ball-park figures. Each breeder/seller sets their own prices for what they believe their snakes are worth and what they want to get out of it. Also, a lot websites are just out of date and may not have this year's prices listed. No breeder worth their salt will be offended at you inquiring about specific prices.

you get what you pay for!

this works in the snake world as well as the shoe world LOL - they may look the same but the genetics behind the snake, the quality of the place producing them, quality in shipping etc all have to be calculated into your purchase.

personally i have chosen to buy from adam at 8ball - after being on this forum for a year and watching everything all the breeders are posting, their prices - listening to what their customers are saying... i can tell you there are a few i'd love to buy a snake from!

i suggest two things. visit here often and have some patience. get to know who's posting what, who's selling what and eventually you'll find someone you resonate strongly with and want some of their snakes. most of them have websites so you can check out their stuff there as well.

so ya, prices vary... but just remember... quality does as well! ;)

welcome! https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...bellydance.gif

Sorry for the lack of response on my part guys, I work 60+ hours a week and it doesn't leave me with much time for chatting on-line. I appreciate all your replies and I'm really just looking forward to increasing my collection and owning these magnificent creatures.

Are males cheaper than females or females cheaper than males? As I wrote above, for now I have no intention of breeding snakes and just want some nice display-pet snakes. I have made a list of the Ball Pythons I would like to see in my collection some day and was wondering what would be the average price tag on these?

Spider
Piebald
Bumble Bee
Albino
Super Pastel
Clown
Caramel Albino
Albino Boa

Nathanledet, you mentioned that prices decrease each year as more and more of a specific morph is produced. Is there such a thing as a better time in the year to shop around? How much do prices drop on average each year and does it reach a bottom price at some point or after x amount of years?

I would like to buy a Spider or Albino in the next few weeks, would I be better off waiting till next year? If all we're talking about is a $25 reduction in price on a $1000 or $1500 snake, it's not worth the wait in my case.

Dan

Welcome to BPNet Dan. The best advice I can give you about online purchasing is take some time now to do the research and figure out which breeder you want to go with (especially for a higher dollar purchase). Ask around either in the forum or privately about different breeders, talk to those breeders by phone and get a feel for who you want to work with. Basically you want a breeder that will be helpful to a newcomer, that will be there before, during and long after the purchase as you are bound to have some questions/concerns as you go through the process.

Fauna BOI is a handy tool for looking up people and businesses. You can sign up for free and search by both the breeders personal and company name. Not just for comments about them but I always find it handy to see their own comments about others. The BOI certainly isn't the be all and end all of information but it can be a handy piece of the puzzle as long as you back it up with your own research, talking to people who have purchased from the breeder and your own take on the breeder.

http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/foru...play.php?&f=13

Best of luck with your purchase of your first lovely morph!

Hey Dan, welcome to the site! Females generaly run higher priced than males, but in certian morphs the females are less exspensve.

Adam Wysocki of 8 Ballpythons frequents this site and is a great person, with quality animals and killer customer service. Go to the Morph and Genetics forum and do a search for spiders and albinos. Adam has a few threads with some pictures.


And again welcome to the site!!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by newbpfanatic

Hi every, I've been a visitor here and other reptile forums for a few weeks now and finally decided to join up. I've kept numerous reptiles as pets of one form or another in my teenage years. I kept a few boas and burmese as a teenager. Long story short, I got married at twenty-one, wife got rid of the snakes, rocky marriage, got divorced a couple months ago at twenty-eight and discovered a renewed love for snakes! Maybe this time I should find a woman that loves or even tolerates reptiles!

I will admit, I have not been much for on-line forums of any types. The reason I signed up here is, I want to learn more about Ball Pythons in general. I have one girl that is about three years old according to the previous owner that works at the local PetCo. He informed me that the best place to learn about snakes was on-line and told me about Kingsnake.com along with a few other sites. My only herp conversations have been limited to picking up some fish food and tank supplies from PetCo.

First, I was amazed to see how far the herp world as come in the past eight to ten years! I never thought I would see snakes being sold for $10,000.. :eek:. All I knew was pet store snakes that sold for $30-$125 around locally back in those days. I would love to buy a Spider or maybe an Albino BP, I've fallen in love with about ten other color morphs in the past couple weeks. Another snake I would love to own and most definitely will, is an Albino Boa.

I have a two bedroom townhouse and God willing can convert one room into a reptile room.
Sorry for the long post, I just thought I would say hello and break the ice.

Dan

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Welcome to the site Dan!

Thanks, I'm sorry I haven't posted very much since joining. I work long hours and get home beat, ready for a shower and a bed. I did start a thread in Fauna asking similar questions and received some good information on the thread and in private message. I've also spent time chatting with a few breeders that have offered their assistance and advise this past weekend.
Thank you all!

I'm actually scheduled to pick up a 2006 Spider male and 2006 Albino male from a local breeder just thirty minutes away. Based on the prices I have seen advertised on Kingsnake and a few breeder websites, I think I'm getting a great deal on both snakes. The best thing about buying local, is that I get to see the snakes, hold the snakes and see them eat before paying. Even though I've been assured that thousands of snakes get shipped each year across country with a very low percentage of incidents. I'm still not totally comfortable in paying for something like this without seeing it first hand.

Thanks for all your help and I'll be sure and post pictures in the picture forum once I pick them up and get them settled. My next purchase down the road or as soon as I pay down my Visa will be a nice Piebald, those things are unreal in pictures! For this one, I'll probably wait for next years babies as I'll be better off financially and I've been told prices will come down further.

Thanks,
Dan

P.S
I was going to build some furniture style cages out of wood with a nice stain, but would I be better off with some of these plastic cages? I just don't think they would look very nice in my living room or bedroom. Maybe once I converted and dedicated the spare bedroom into a reptile room, but I would still prefer some nice display cages rather than pet store like black cages.
Any pros and cons to these?

the plastic cages would be MUCH easier to clean and maintain in general. I would think there would probably be a way to build somewhat of a frame around them, but honstly a grey or black cage really doesnt look bad, and with the morphs you're mentioning...no one is gonna notice the cage anyway ;)