first retic from a CL buy

[Ben_1984]

I am looking into buying a retic off CL, I was told its a female and about 4-6 months old. Looks pretty skinny and doesn't have a good shed. The owner is asking 150$ and says its a tiger. Any input if this would be a good buy or not. I am worried since the shed is bad might have health issues?

[PitOnTheProwl]

I see horrid husbandry right down to the heat rock........ SMH

[Ben_1984]

I see horrid husbandry right down to the heat rock........ SMH

Yeah . I kinda wanna rescue it before it gets worse.

[piedlover79]

if you do get the snake I'd keep it at least a full room away from any other snakes you may have. Id also take it to a vet right away. If you want to 'resuce' it by buying it that's a wonderful thing to do but expect it to cost you in vet bills.

[GoingPostal]

Yeah . I kinda wanna rescue it before it gets worse.

Can you afford to take this snake to the vet if it ends up in poor health? Do you have a proper setup, supplies and ability to QT this snake away from any of yours for several months? It's not a rescue if you can't put it in a better situation which is a mistake I see many on here making. Personally I wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole because it's not worth the risk to my collection of spreading disease/bugs or the hassle of paying someone almost normal price for an unhealthy poorly kept animal, probably spending a good amount of time and money getting it back to health (if possible) when I could simply buy from a good breeder and get exactly what I want.

[cchardwick]

Personally I'd take her in if that's the kind of snake you want. Have you researched keeping reticulated pythons? I have a 50% dwarf retic female, will probably get about 14+ feet instead of 25+ feet long. A full mainland retic may be more than you can handle if you don't have people that are willing to help once it gets older.

The attitude of the snake is the number one biggest thing that I would consider when dealing with small retics. I'd pick it up and play with it and if it shows any signs of aggression at all I'd pass on it. A stuck shed is no big deal, just get a tank or tub with underbelly heat with a thermostat and crank up the humidity. I'd even put several layers of wet paper towels over the snake until it sheds out. Retics like higher humidity, I keep my humidity in line with my ball pythons, just keep balled up damp paper towels in the enclosure at all times in one of the corners and keep a lid on the tank to keep the humidity in.

Check out this video, this will show you what you are getting into with a big retic. I found a local female on the internet that I really want to get, really outstanding genes, but I don't want to end up with a 25 foot snake, it's not a dwarf.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOZVL4H2Uqc

For sure that snake could use more food. I'd feed it small rats or XL adult mice twice a week until it gains some weight.

I'd also recommend wiping it down with reptile spray a few days after it sheds and then put it on white paper towels and check twice a day for mites. I'd recommend a quarantine for about a week and if there are no mites I'd feel fine with it. Make sure it doesn't have a respiratory infection too, no liquid on the mouth and no breathing problems.

A snake like that is a big responsibility but if you are up for it I'd say go for it!

[Eavlynn]

Taking in a rescue isn't always easy, but quite a few of my snakes are CL rescues, and I have absolutely no regrets. It's risky though, not knowing what the snake has been exposed to and could bring into your home.

If you're prepared and willing to take on the responsibility, I say go for it. But make sure you'll be able to house that beauty once she's an adult. Retics are beautiful, and can make great companions if you work with them, but you'll definitely have your work cut out for you. If you can provide her a home, and everything she needs for a long and healthy life, do it! The next person that thinks about buying her off of CL might not be able to offer her that.

[Ben_1984]

I would love having this snake. I also talked to ODA and some people that live in Ohio, since it is a restricted animal and will need to get a permit plus insurance once it reaches 12FT. I was told not to get ODA involved since I guess they don't want people owning snakes over 12ft and even with a permit they can and will come and take them, fine you and then kill the snake. I was also told just keep the snake hidden from social media and neighbors. I don't want that stress and not taking pics of a beautiful retic is not easy. So it's kinda a catch 21 on having one. either way it may get taken from me.

I think I would be able to take care of it. There are local expo's and snake shops that do sell big rats, and bunnies that are F/T. I also think housing it would be okay also, seeing that about an hour away there is a guy that makes custom vivs out of plastic( I think) . Bigger fear is the ODA

[bcr229]

She won't get 12' overnight. Most likely it will take 18-24 months for a mainland tiger female to get that big. You could always take her, get her healthy, and sell her out of state before she's big enough to need a permit.

If you are not a USARK member then you would either have to find someone who is to ship for you, or a nonresident member could travel to you from out of state and take her back home.

[Eavlynn]

Definitely not a good position to be in. If you got a permit from the ODA, what are the odds that they would harass you? Living in PA, I don't really know much about the rules and restictions in Ohio. We can keep anything here from corn snakes to vipers. Hiding a snake from a landlord is far different from hiding a snake from the state, and it could have serious consequences. If you were to buy the retic, I would urge you to play by the books. If you jump through their hoops, perhaps they will leave you alone. I'd like to think that any snakes seized from individuals who had permits were seized for a legitimate reason, like inadequate housing or something. But I also know some state agencies get their rocks off by ruining people's lives and killing their pets. It's not unheard of, just really unfortunate and incredibly cruel. It's a tough call, and I'm sorry you have to make such a difficult decision.

Hey, you could always slip over the state line to PA