Selling Ball Pythons to friends

[akaangela]

Selling a snake to a friend is a tricky business. What if you don't like the care they give them? What will you do? Can you turn and look the other way? What if they turn around and sell it? How would you feel (especially if you sold it to them for really cheap)? What if it got sick? How would you feel if they couldn't or wouldn't take it to the vet and it died? What about feeding? What if they power fed it or didn't feed it enough?

Giving away one so you can retain breeding rights on the snake is a very risky business!! It can ruin your relationship.

Bee there done that all all above accounts. The breeding loans went south in a HUGE hurry when they found out how much they could get from the babies. The ones I sold cheap was a bit different. They don't listen to me about the care but they do take decent care of the snakes so it is something I just grit my teeth over and vowed not to do again.

Depends on the friend and how well you really know them and if you have ever entrusted them with something as valuable as another life before.

What ever you decide good luck.

[mechnut450]

well if not a money issue and they trustable free snake and point out if they decide they don't want it later it comes back to you, they can't sell or trade it off.

[wilomn]

I am not so sure that gift and free are the words mean what some of you seem to think they do.

Free means at no expense, period.

A gift is no longer the givers, period.

A string of any kind makes any transaction neither free nor a gift.

Even something so well intended, in theory, a gesture as insuring that the giver has the snake returned in the event the givee can no longer keep it makes ownership of the snake by the givee impossible. If you can't do what you want with it, it's not yours, period. Wrap it up as pretty as you can, parfume it as you will, pretend it's anything you want, but if it's got any attachment, it's neither a gift nor free.

Period.

Proper terminology would no doubt save many a headache.