Derma Ball - Enter if you dare!

[rex322]

isnt there some sort of moral issue invloved here? im talking about if people do breed it, not for money, just intentionally produce these. taking away the scales, if im correct those are a form of defense for them. i mean, sure in captivity theres nothing to "hunt" them, but wont they get burnt easier, hurt easier and so on? with their heat pits missing, do they have a sense of sight or whats going on around them? wouldnt these missing features just make the balls life more stressful?

maybe im wrong, but hey, it makes sense to me. but if they can prove that theres nothing at all wrong with them, that they can live healthy lives, without any major issues then i guess more power to the people who want to breed them. as of right now, i think from what i know (and it aint much) that its kind of cruel. but who knows, maybe im wrong. just my .02 cents

[elevatethis]

I'm guessing no one complained when people bred man's best friend for certain traits such as scrunched noses that inhibits every breath they take (think: pug)...

Something about that just doesn't rub me right. If nature wants to manifest this anomoly here and there in other species, I just look at it as the way of the world. But to breed specifically for a defect that like...just doesn't sit well with me personally.

[xdeus]

wouldnt these missing features just make the balls life more stressful?

You bring up a valid point. It seems that most BP owners want to reduce stress as much as possible and given that these animals function primarily on instinct, one would think that the lack of scales and pits would probably be cause for a considerable amount of unnatural stress. Which might explain why those hairless dogs and cats always look so frightened.

[rex322]

Which might explain why those hairless dogs and cats always look so frightened.

nah, their just shaking cuz their cold

[strikerratt]

2 pics of the Derma Ball Python
Reptile Forum UK :: View topic - Scaleless Ball Python - The Derma Ball

[sk8er4life]

arent they very vulnerable w/out scales?

[frankykeno]

For me, personally, this is a very moral issue. A snake without heat pits? Missing scales? Should any attempt be made to reproduce this? For me it's a resounding no! For me this isn't a morph but a defect and morally I wouldn't breed any animal...snake, dog, rat, whatever that shows a genetic defect that impedes the creatures natural abilities. Reference the pug example (and if you have a pug please excuse the following) but I've always felt that in dog breeding the worst of this human excess is seen in breeds damned near ruined by human interference. @@@@@s unable to free whelp, dogs lives shortened due to hip failure far too early in life, and that list just goes on and on. Or you can look at this like de-barking a dog or de-clawing a cat. Yes many owners do this but personally it's not something I could do. Dogs bark, cat's claw at things and snakes darn well need scales and heat pits.

Just because we can...should we?

~~Jo~~

[xdeus]

It seems like feelings about the Derma ball were a little more divided on Kingsnake, but I think a lot of it was directed at the owner/breeder. From what I gather, the person that owns this isn't well respected in the ball python community and he is trying to find a morph to make a name for himself. He found this one in Africa along with at least one or two "regular" morphs. It does sound like he plans to breed this for the notoriety and money, but judging from the response on the boards it seems like this will only appeal to a niche (albeit controversial) market like venomoids.

[rex322]

unfourtunalty, the owner does plan on breeding it. For profit. the guy should just be happy if it stays alive. probly a result of inbreeding. if not, theres a bunch of inbreeding to come.

[Ginevive]

I am pretty divided on whether or not it should be bred. I would love to just come out and say "that's horrible, it should not be bred." But I would be a hypocrite, since I own hairless rats.
Personally, I would not breed that snake though. Just because, it has so many obvious defects. I think that as a society, we should ask ourselves why we like to breed animals (such as dogs, etc) who have such hideous deformities, and we treat them as exotic and rare.