debating on this pet-store find

Sigh :) My husband and I went to a Buffalo pet store over the weekend. They do not order-in and sell BPs, but if people consign them there, they do have them for sale. Well, there was a Huge female there. My husband popped her and sure enough, she's a she. She is literally the largest BP I have ever seen; around 5' but maybe a few inches longer. But.. girthy! Her girth exceeds the width of a beer can and then some. I swear, she looks like she has eggs in her. The only background that I have is that her former owner had her for 4 years, never bred her, and did not have any other snakes. I think that her fattiness could maybe be due to overfeeding?
She has some pretty drastic retained shed. All is fine, save for about 6 inches going from her nose down her neck. One retained eyecap. I explained how to remove those to them, but I am not confident that they'll follow through. I moved her in my hands and managed to Gently remove some of the shed on her neck (it did not go completely around her body anywhere, which is good.)
So.. the debate. I want her. I want to get her out of that place. I know that the $$ I give to them will go to the guy who consigned her there, not them; they might make $10 off of her. They are not the most stellar pet store out there but really, all of their animals were in fine condition and cages, besides this snake. It is not a case of "I will buy this snake and they'll just replace it with 100 more."
They want.. $80. I would of course Not even think of breeding her this year; 90 days' strict quarantine would definately be observed. I am thinking of purchasing her this weekend really. But I am of course a bit nervous, since I do not know the man who owned her, or her history, and of course a vet visit and deparasitization will happen if I do. Space is not an issue; $ is, but I have something that I can easily sell on ebay by then.
So.. I am mulling this one over! I feel bad for her of course, being there with the retained shed, but it is definately something that I could easily deal with. she eats fine and is eating live rats in their care. If I don't get her, I still plan on going down there and removing that skin, as that is just unacceptable. Your thoughts?

Is there any way you could find out aout her history from the previous owner? Perhaps the store could get in contact with him about it... Personally, in a case like this, I would buy her.

I've always been a softie for rescues. If nothing else, you will have rescued an 'underpriviledged' animal and give her another chance at finding a happy home in which she'll be loved and well cared for.

I say do it. :)

I am leaning towards it :) Now I just have to post a few breyer horses on ebay.
Edit: Gasp! My husband wants to get her too...

i would totally do it shell be more happier with you than those neglectful pet stores

If you want her, buy her Jen. She's not really a rescue coming out of a pet store but heck remember my two biggest females were pet store dump offs (ex-pets literally dumped off at a local private pet store). As long as you do strict QT with her and check her out well, she may be a lovely addition to your collection one day.

Since the pet store is selling her on consignment I'd definitely tell them that you want any available information on this snake from it's past owner.

you only live once!

If she is a nice female with size like that, then for $80 I would go for it. Has the pet store fed it/seen it feed?

Hi, Ginevive!

I was at our local PetCo today. They're charging $80.00 for CH babies. They've got a thermometer in the tank that reads 70 degrees, and the kid who covers herps says there's no hot-spot - and that the snakes won't eat. (Cheez, I wonder why??) I tried explaining some things he could try to help, but if the store won't spring for heat, it ain't gonna work.

I'd go for the big girl, if it were me . . .

~Bruce

Go for it!
Better in your care then someone who doesn't know proper care and could make her suffer any further!

As my my signature (and tattoo) say, CARPE DIEM!

I wish I had the ability to rescue a few that I have seen at pet stores recently, but space, time, and money are ALL issues. My girlfriend and I have been discussing what can be done about neglectful pet stores recently, and haven't really come up with much. I know that buying neglected pets from them only rewards their poor care, and offering "helpful tips" often goes ignored. Any tips?

I am going to have Mark call up today and tell them that we want her. :) I have a nice tub away from my other snakes that's just waiting for her (quarantine.) I will have him see if they have the number of the former owner, or at least pump them for info. She ad a really laid-back temperament as well, even considering the situation. They said that she is eating medium rats, live, in their care, and I do trust them on that. They are nice guys but it does bother me that they have a snake in their care with that retained shed; she needs a lot of humidity and moisture to get that off.

I would get her if I were you! A lady that big is hard to resist, especially if she's laid back.

I'm a sucker for adoption and it seems like, as you said, in this case it's not really feeding into the typical petstore problem of encouraging importation and poor conditions (even though she does have a retained shed). Whenever I visit a chain pet store I always look at the herps and the snakes always seem to look the most pitiful.

I have reserved space for two bloods this season...but my family and boyfriend swore to disown me if I get any more so no more rescue for me :(

If she looks healthy other than the shed and she eats well, it's probably a pretty safe purchase. Some of the most important things you already know- she was in an only snake household for 4 years. If she never ate, she'd be dead by now, and she hasn't had any other snakes come in contact with her to contract illnesses from (except maybe from the store she's in now). My biggest concern though, is that I hope that after you sell however many horses on ebay, that you have enough money not just to purchase her, but also for the vet visit and anything that the vet might happen to find. Make sure to look at her mouth before you purchase her. Depending on how they are keeping her at the pet store, she could be stressed and or too cool, which could cause some health problems that may occur even while she is in quarantine. I bet she is just fine and will be a great addition to your growing collection. :)

I say go for it. It's not every day that you see a huge female like that. And like everyone else said.... You'll make her more happy than any pet store.

-Matt

i would $80 can't go wrong for a large female. breedable females are not cheap this time of year and thats cheap