Okay.. a few general questions

[TheaN526]

Someone walked into our store and wanted to buy a Red Tail Boa. He asked if he could place the new Redtail with his existing one and I told him that he needs to keep the new one in quarantine. While trying to explain this he got a little irritated at me. I told him it was to prevent the old snake from getting any diseases of the new snake(if any were found). I think he was just too annoyed and left the store without the Red Tail. I also told him that I didn't know everything and the manager who does know more will be in on Monday. I don't want to lie or try to make something up if I don't know the answer.

Can someone explain to ME again the importance of quarantine so I can explain it to new/existing snake owners(some don't seem to be aware of it)? Did I tell the person the right information? I have been reading A LOT of information about snakes from various books and it's hard to digest all the stuff in it.

Do you all house your snakes in their own separate caging area? I know that the store has a few corn snakes, red tails, and ball pythons together. Do they all fight for the best place in the cage? When I watch the corns they do seem to be "fighting". I don't think the books I read really touched on this.. Can someone clarify?

I know these are kind of stupid questions but I'd rather have all information so I don't look like I don't know what I am talking about. I'm still reading all these books and online stuff but some information really conflicts with the other.

[Hyper Joe]

What should be done and reality:

Yes, when introducing new snakes into your colony it is best to quarantine for at least 30 to 60 days. Some say up to 6 months!
No matter the time you choose the reason for quarantine is to make sure the newly acquired animal is free from any contagious infections, viruses and so forth, that could be spread to their current colony. For boa owners they are most terrified of IBD. IMO the common threats to a collection are mites, ticks, IBD and RI. If during that time period there are no signs of illnesses or other things I mentioned then moving forward to introducing to the colony is done.

Reality, some people that have one or few snakes/reptiles don't normally quarantine at all. Their initial look over at the store is good enough for them.

So depending on how much you want to inform your customer is up to you. Ultimately, it is the buyers decision on what they are goin to do. As long as you did your job on the information part then your good.

* To better answer your question you should suggest but don't throw it down their throat as if they don't do it you will hunt them down. *

Good thing you did your research and reading keep it up.

[Crazy4Herps]

I agree with Joe about quarantine. It's reccommended, but it mostly depends on how much you trust the vendor and how many others you have in your collection.

Really? Balls, corns, and boas, all housed together? That's not right. Snakes, even snakes of the same species, should be housed separately. They don't come into contact with other snakes naturally unless it's the breeding season. I highly suggest that you keep each snake in its own container, unless you have a huge enclosure, and even then, I think species should be kept separately. That further increases risk of spreading IBD; there are rumors that boas are natural carriers of IBD. Better not to take the chance, in my opinion.

[TheaN526]

Sorry I meant the species were in separate caging but with the same species of snake.. lol. I didn't mean the Red tails were with the boas, and so forth. Sorry to confuse you. I do that sometimes. My wording isn't correct.

[dsirkle]

Keeping new animals in quarantine and away from your existing collection is really very essential. I don't know how well it would go over in a pet store to give that advice to a customer but that is the accepted practice among knowledgeable keepers. Every once in awhile someone who doesn't quarantine brings home a sick animal and infects their collection and at a minimum incurs huge vet bills and at the worst loses their whole collection. About a year ago, one woman who was attempting to become a serious breeder had to destroy her whole collection which included some very nice snakes. She should have known better and it was a terrible occurrence that can now only serve as a cautionary lesson to others.

[Crazy4Herps]

Sorry I meant the species were in separate caging but with the same species of snake.. lol. I didn't mean the Red tails were with the boas, and so forth. Sorry to confuse you. I do that sometimes. My wording isn't correct.

lol, my bad. I've been really tired lately.