Quote Originally Posted by KMG View Post
What about a Borneo or Sumatran short tail? They stay on the smaller side compared to a red blood. Reds are usually the largest with the Borneo next and the Sumatran last. They are worth a look if you have not checked them out yet.

The girth of a blood python with the weight and strength that go with it is a very impressive force. My ball python is in no way comparable to my bloods in power and strength. Even a smaller male is not in the same ballpark as a ball. I cant even compare them to my six foot BRB which is super strong compared to my balls. Bloods are very unique animals.
I have considered them and they are a definite option for me. While I love the deep reds that the normal bloods express, I like some variations of the others two as well. It will come down to personality and my capabilities at that point. With them being strictly terrestrial and rather heavy bodied, I'd expect that sort of strength and even experienced it a bit when handling a bit male at a show. He didn't want to go back into the tub and even trying to guide his head was entertaining. Luckily he wasn't upset, just didn't want to be put back. I've heard of some smaller males being around 3.5-4 feet for bloods and maybe by the time I'm ready to get one, there will be either a smaller line available or I can pick up a smaller adult. Just want to make sure that I'll be ready before I jump into this as I don't like being unprepared. Jumping from corns and bps to bloods is a big leap and I understand that. Granted, my stepdaughters wanted me to bring home a big red male (only $100) that we saw at a show but they aren't here full time to help take care of him either. There is a good chance the youngest will also be helping with the snake since she likes her bp but has been drawn to the larger snakes such as burms and retics since I started taking them to shows. Nothing like loaning your camera to a 9 y/o and afterwards realizing that instead of bps, you have about 300 pics of snakes you can't safely handle alone...