Tips for choosing a healthy BP

[BPboy]

hello there! as most of you have probably noticed i am new to the forum.

A couple weeks ago I was at a friends house. And he bought a ball python about 4 months ago. As soon as he showed me his BP i was hooked. I couldnt beleive how friendly and non-aggresive this snake was. I knew I wanted one but i also knew i couldnt just go out and buy one, I had to do some research first. I have been doing alot of reading and learning about these lovely snakes and I think I am finaly ready to purchase one.

I have read a few things on choosing healthy Ball Pythons like: make sure there are no sores or bruses on him, make sure there are no mites on him and make sure his tank is clean where you are purchasing him from.

and now I am asking you guys for tips on choosing a healthy BP because of your personal experiences with them.


Thanks in advance!

[Stewart_Reptiles]

My tip buy from a reputable breeder and avoid pet stores, this will be the guarenty of getting an healthy well started animal.

[ChroniclesofYarnia]

Check the Board of Inquiry over at faunaclassifieds.com for the business or person that you are dealing with. I'm glad I did, cause I crossed some places off my list of people to do business with, and got confirmation on the guy I am buying my babies from.

[RoyalGuardian]

GA is totally right!!!! Petstore BP arnt as good as breeders. One reason is they might be captive hatched or wild caught and this is no good. Snakes that are Wild or CH are more stressed an prone to eating dissorders. They are generally more expensive too!

[juddb]

My tip buy from a reputable breeder and avoid pet stores, this will be the guarenty of getting an healthy well started animal.

Totally agree

[Seneschal]

Try to hold the animal first--if the spine sticks out a lot, that means it's too skinny, so it's either not being fed enough or it's off feed--not good either way. You don't want a chronic non-feeder or an underfed one, or worse yet one that's a hatchling that hasn't even started feeding yet!


Take a look at the eyes; if they're dented that means it's dehydrated, which may be just because they aren't taking care of the animal right or it might be that the animal's sick--either way it's not good.

While you're holding it, see if it's okay with being held or not; if you're looking for a friendly pet-snake you want the one that doesn't strike at you and is okay with being held for a short period of time. I wouldn't worry about it being headshy unless it's just ridiculously so--and if the animal stays balled up the entire time that probably means it's a bit shy. Look for an alert, robust animal--it's also good if you can see some muscle tone. Make sure they're flicking their tongue, too; it shows interest in its surroundings. Just like you don't want a shy or aggressive one, a snake that shows no interest in its surroundings and is lazy and lets you pick it up but just lays there without moving much might be sick.

Ask some general questions of the person you're buying from--the typical ones new pet owners ask, and see how they respond. If you have someone tell you a BP gets ten feet long, eats rabbits every other, and you can keep them ten to a tank, obviously they don't know anything about the snake so you don't wanna buy from them.

I'm not saying I know everything but that's how I personally judge whether or not to buy an animal--and for the most part it goes across the board for any animal actually (well...except for tongue-flicking and eyes with dents; if I found a cat that flicks it's tongue and has dented eyes I'd be more than disturbed!! XD))

Good luck on finding a great snake!!!

[BPboy]

thanks for the help everyone!

[frankykeno]

Go with a breeder over a pet store any day of the week. It's well worth the time to pick a breeder and have a snake shipped than get some poor covered in shed, likely not eating, probably stressed and dehydrated baby BP from some local pet store. Oh and the nice free case of mites that get sent home with you from the local pet death trap...that's free! (blech) Sorry I really dislike most pet stores for new owners, it tends to end badly more times than it works out. If you are lucky enough to have a top store that specializes in snakes and such like close to you, you're truly blessed (lucky dogs that live near N.E.R.D.'s shop...I swear I'd like to move there! LOL)

A healthy snakes needs a well informed owner with a proper enclosure all set up so that's where your pre-planning come into play.

Take a look through these forums at all the pics posted of healthy, well started hatchlings and ball pythons of various ages. There's no better way to tell you what to look for than that.

[BPboy]

I have been looking around and I can find a single breeder out here.

[rabernet]

There may not be a breeder near you that you can see your snake first, but there are some awesome breeders in Canada who could ship you a healthy, well started snake that you can choose through pictures - in fact, the bulk of my females were purchased online through pictures and then shipped to me. Several of our members here are from Canada and could recommend a few for you.


Just off the top of my head are a few of our members who might have snakes available:

Justin - o.c.d. - http://www.ocdreptiles.com/
Chris - Uncle Festae - no website, but you can PM him through here - he might have some nice normals available.
Corey Woods - http://www.coreywoods.com/

And then there's Mark and Jayne Mandic - Markus Jayne Ball Pythons: http://www.ballpython.ca/

If I left any members off who are breeders in Canada, my sincerest apologies! It wasn't intentional!