What kind of snake should I get?

[Kittycatpenut]

My mom finally said yes! On the conditions of me getting an A average on all of my school subjects, and that I teach her all about the snake I want. So, what kind of snake would you guys and gals recommend? The kinds I know most about are ball pythons, corn snakes , and king and milk snakes, but I would be open to any kind of snake around 6'-7' max with a decent temperament thats handelable, fairly easy to care for, and preferably eats rodents ( no garter or water snakes) , and is avaliable as captive bred that can fit into a 55 gallon or smaller tank, and don't exeed 200$ for the snake itself or need uv lights. Are there any more exotic snakes I should know about? I've heard about rosy boas, Hogg island boas, sand boas, brown house snakes, carpet pythons, rainbow boas, blood pythons, hognose snakes, and gopher snakes, but I don't know all that much about them. This will be my first snake, but I do care for leopard geckos which are supposedly higher maintenance than many snakes.

[Mft62485]

Being as this is BP.net, I would get a ball python. They are vary docile and fairly easy to care for. Also, congrats on being allowed to get one.

And for less then $200, you can get a base morph.

[Kittycatpenut]

It took a while and some help from my dad to convince my mom to let me get a snake. When I said I wanted a ball python she was like" don't those get huge?" It was hard not to laugh at her. She thought they were Burmese pythons. My number one choice is a pastel ball python, but I've read a little bit on the rosy boas and I'm starting to like them. I can't find much on them, but I've read they're good first snakes that are small, hardy, affordable, easily handled, and pretty. Time to hit Google for some more detailed info.

[babyknees]

Sand boas!! I love these little guys. They are cute and stay rather small which your parents will probably like. They're super goofy and do all sorts of funny things and have odd behaviors. They burrow which is really cool to see AND climb surprisingly well. Mine has a good personality but I've heard varied things about personality. You'd want to handle the snake before buying it to see how it behaves. They eat rodents and most of the ones I've seen either eat f/t or are easily converted. Here's some pics of my lil guy:




There's so many different snakes that fit your criteria; as long as you do your research you'll find the perfect cold blooded companion!

[Kittycatpenut]

I like sand boas too. They are weird little dudes. I held one at a petsmart and it kept trying to burrow into my hand. Is that an adult?

[babyknees]

Yeah, the last picture is him as of a couple months ago. He's about 3.5 years old. Females get bigger. It's adorable when they try to burrow into your hand. He'll attempt to burrow into anything.

[Mohegan]

Sand boas are awesome, though a couple I worked with were rather nasty little buggers. They can be really fun, though.

Ball pythons are of course a good way to go, and are relatively easy to maintain as long as you can keep proper humidity.

I also have a soft spot for milk snakes. I think they are just all around awesome snakes, and I highly recommend them for first snakes. They're very easy to take care of, and usually very easy to feed. They're extremely gentle...in fact, I can actually hand-feed more than one of my milk snakes. I have one that only has one eye (genetic), and he will take the fuzzy out of my hand like a dog. Great animals.

Rainbow boas are fantastic, as well, and I would also suggest looking into Irian Jaya carpets.

Good luck

[Kittycatpenut]

My current list is 1. pastel Ball python, 2. Sand or rosy boa, 3. one of the smaller carpet python species 10'-, 4. a kingsnake with a nice temperament and pattern, 5. larger kind of milk snake, 6. Anery corn snake.

Whatever kind I get , I will be getting it from a breeder or herp show next summer, fall, or winter. If I do have to get one from a pet store(not likely), it will be that petco which actually gives their reptiles proper care, including salads for the herbivores.

My geckos like to eat from my hands. If I hold them with one hand and a mealworm in another, if I bring it near their face, they'll snap it up. Also, if I set one of the geckos on a table, and hold a mealworm, they stalk it. Right before they pounce, they do that little tail wagging thing leos do. It is adorable.

[Mohegan]

FYI Irian Jaya carpet pythons are the smallest species widely available in the trade