I Want a Big Snake!

[eracer]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Carpet Pythons.

[The-Jame]

do you have any carpet python's at all? I did think about these a while back but haven't had much info about them.

[Skiploder]

How much experience do you have with large snakes? My suggestion would be to start with a RTB, when you get into the really large ones it is a good idea to have a "spotter/helper" when caring for them, do you have someone to help with them?

Wow, I can't believe it took two pages before some one asked this question.........

I dont have much experience with really big snakes but yeah I do have people that can help me with large snakes

Learn on their large snakes before you even contemplate buying your own.

Burms and Retics may be a little too big for a starter,

BUT, you could go with a BCI (boa constrictor), Dumeril's boa, or a smaller species of Anaconda? There are two other smaller species besides Greens and Yellows that I forget the names of.

Those two species of anaconda aren't readily available.............and yes, burms and retics are too big for a starter..again, I'm glad someone had the common sense to point this out.

Really people, no offense to the OP, but when did we start urging people to go out and buy giant pythons without first asking what their experience level is?

To the OP: before deciding that you want something - like a RTB for example - make sure you already know the answer to the basic questions - cage size, rate of growth, outlay for food, etc, etc. How can you decide you want anything before you even know what wanting that entails?

This is a great place to opinion shop, but you are not going to get much on this thread other than opinions. Most stores aren't going to do anything but sell you what you want. What you really should do is hook up with someone, face to face, who keeps the animals you are potentially interested in but isn't trying to sell you anything. See if that person would allow you to come over and witness first hand his feeding, handling and cleaning regimen. After you've done all the research, after you've picked the brain of someone who really keep large snakes and has done so after the "coolness" factor wears off, take a couple of weeks and contemplate on whether or not (1) a big snake would be something you think you could handle and (2) whether you even want a big snake anymore.

[SnakeKB]

Big snake experience comes from time. You get a baby and raise it from there handling each day getting use to it's growth as it goes. But you have to be informed of how there temperament could be, feeding response, husbandry needs, length, girth, weight. Experience comes in time but the knowledge of the species gets you the experience without making so many mistakes. Another thing to consider is how strong you are? You will not be able to out muscle the snake but you still need to be able to move something that is 100lbs or possibly more. I honestly dont think someone who isn't athletic or just simply out of shape should get a large constrictor, that includes red tails. Without the proper stability muscles in your body will make the snake feel very insecure during handling. That will create the snake to wrap tight to hold on.

I'm pretty sure all snakes keep growing through there entire life. BCI red tails can reach 10ft but 8ft is more common for females. BCC boas reach 12ft but 10ft is more common. Male burms stay similar in length to the BCC but have a faster growth and weigh more. The weight of the snake is really what makes it harder to handle. 50lbs moving compared to 100lbs moving makes a huge difference. Carpet pythons would be a good choice for a long medium build snake or even a super dwarf/mainland cross retic. Males stay under 10ft and females stay under 14ft.

[The-Jame]

Thanks to both of you for what you've put and believe me this isnt something that I'm going to jump straight into if that's what you thought, I've always been fascinated by snakes and there is no "coolness" factor for me personally, I just love them. I'm quite athletic & strong, really I'm just looking to move up in size (in my first post I later conceded that I was being silly to think of such large snakes) I think the growth of a baby RTB or Carpet Python would give me the chance to get used to the snake also, but as I say I just wanted to get peoples experiences with large snakes. But I'm looking at getting a snake which can grow bigger, probably within the next ten months to a year.

[SnakeKB]

Sounds good. Whatever you decide on getting will be fun nonetheless.

[The-Jame]

Sounds good. Whatever you decide on getting will be fun nonetheless.

True, I mean you really don't appreciate how much beautiful snakes are out there until you really start looking, I'm never gonna claim to be the biggest snake expert but I am just starting out and I'm going to get the biggest collection of snakes that I can possibly manage haha

[Muddyredneck]

im one of the silly few who believe a HEALTHY male burm shouldent be out of the question, theres no reason for your 10 ft snake to weigh 120lbs.. a helathy male burm should be roughly 10ft and 60-80lbs i never understand why they are precieved to be so much bigger.

that being said tho if you havent even had a boa, go with something similar to what your looking for. for example a coastal carpet female should be between 9-11ft and around 20lbs of active intelligent snake so thatd be a good step tword a retic or a bci if your loooking for a burm because the attitudes line up for the most part. that being said though, thats only because u said u loved snakes i never suggest starter or begginer snakes because more often the case those are the ones who end up in rescues and on craigslist.. im a strong believer in get what you want and love it and learn with it but if your looking to expand your collection into giants you cant go wrong with a carpet or boa, my carpet is still a little spitfire and i love handling her soo much diffrent then my retic who tends to just veg on my shoulders

[The-Jame]

im one of the silly few who believe a HEALTHY male burm shouldent be out of the question, theres no reason for your 10 ft snake to weigh 120lbs.. a helathy male burm should be roughly 10ft and 60-80lbs i never understand why they are precieved to be so much bigger.

that being said tho if you havent even had a boa, go with something similar to what your looking for. for example a coastal carpet female should be between 9-11ft and around 20lbs of active intelligent snake so thatd be a good step tword a retic or a bci if your loooking for a burm because the attitudes line up for the most part. that being said though, thats only because u said u loved snakes i never suggest starter or begginer snakes because more often the case those are the ones who end up in rescues and on craigslist.. im a strong believer in get what you want and love it and learn with it but if your looking to expand your collection into giants you cant go wrong with a carpet or boa, my carpet is still a little spitfire and i love handling her soo much diffrent then my retic who tends to just veg on my shoulders

Thanks, and that's pretty much the same way I think if I'm honest, plus I still live at home and my mom doesn't want too many snakes haha , but for me I've been around snakes that are 6foot+ (my uncle has a king and rat snake) and my friend looked after his cousin's 7 foot rainbow boa for about a year so i can get plenty of help if it would be needed, but I'm sure I'll be alright aslong as I do the research before

[Slyther83]

If you want to keep a large constrictor you need to adhere to a strict set of rules. When you stray from this ruleset you put yourself at risk. Getting lit up by a 14-18 foot snake can require a hell of a lot of stitches.

These are just some of the basics that new owners should look into.

-You will do better if you get your first one as a baby. You will have more time to work with the snake before it gets too large and difficult to manage by yourself. Never handle the big guys when you are alone.

-Hook train your snake, let it know when it isn't feeding time.

-Read their body language, know when to back off. Sometimes they just aren't in the mood.

-When they get big you will generally want to keep their head facing away from you.

-Get a cage that you can easily maintain and will support a heavy constrictor. Some cages come equipped with a divider that allows you to partition off the enclosure without removing the snake. This is a great way for one person to maintain a large snakes enclosure, you just work them over to the other side and slide in the divider from the front.