Not a snake owner. Yet.

[Bassball Fever]

I am currently going through a divorce and I moved back to the state that I grew up in. I was talking to my daughter the other night and she brought up pets. She knows that I am a pet-lover, but I am not in a situation where I can have dogs or cats. She mentioned that one of her friends has a snake.

She called it a Rock Python and said that it doesn't get very big. Well, I Googled Rock Python, and I had to inform her that I consider an 11-foot snake to be pretty big. After talking with her some more, we figured out that she meant Ball Python.

I had never considered owning a snake as a pet, but after researching the Ball Python, I think it might be a good pet for me. I'm not sure when I'll be able to get one, but that's ok, I have plenty of research to do.

[paroxysm]

hey, welcome !! im ezra
i find snakes to be very relaxing.
i am mentally ill and being with my ball python completely changes my mood.

ball pythons are great for beginners.
honestly, my snake needs less attention than my cats or dogs.

hope you find what you're looking for!
feel free to ask any questions - everybody around here is very friendly.

[PitOnTheProwl]

Welcome and we are here to help.

[cletus]

Welcome to the forum. This is certainly the right place to be to learn about ball pythons and other species...

[Bassball Fever]

Thanks for the welcome! I have learned so much in the last 2 days on this forum. I can't wait until I can get my first BP. I think it's going to be a baby Pewter BP. Or a Calico. Or an Enchi. No, a Black Pastel. Or Mocha.

Why do I get the feeling that I'm going to end up with more than 1?

[PitOnTheProwl]

Why do I get the feeling that I'm going to end up with more than 1?

I suggest you just start off with a 5 or 7 tub rack. LoL

[ShaneSilva]

Thanks for the welcome! I have learned so much in the last 2 days on this forum. I can't wait until I can get my first BP. I think it's going to be a baby Pewter BP. Or a Calico. Or an Enchi. No, a Black Pastel. Or Mocha.

Why do I get the feeling that I'm going to end up with more than 1?

How can you not? They're like tattoos or potato chips lol

[bcr229]

As Pit said, get a rack. Actually get two, one big one to hold your collection and a smaller one with a few tubs to use for quarantining new additions.

[cchardwick]

Personally I'd recommend starting off with something like a King snake. They don't have humidity requirements, stay much smaller, so you can feed just mice, no need to buy expensive rats. And they will almost always eat, unlike ball pythons which can be picky eaters (some will only eat live rodents). I'd say a ball python is more mid range snake experience wise. Keep in mind that a ball python can get pretty big, up to six feet long and over 10 pounds. They can also live over 40 years. Here's a photo of a 5000 gram ball python (over 11 pounds!):

[Bassball Fever]

Personally I'd recommend starting off with something like a King snake. They don't have humidity requirements, stay much smaller, so you can feed just mice, no need to buy expensive rats. And they will almost always eat, unlike ball pythons which can be picky eaters (some will only eat live rodents). I'd say a ball python is more mid range snake experience wise. Keep in mind that a ball python can get pretty big, up to six feet long and over 10 pounds. They can also live over 40 years. Here's a photo of a 5000 gram ball python (over 11 pounds!):

I have some time before I will be able to get my first snake, so I have time to to some more research. I looked at King Snakes and Corn Snakes, but I'm much more drawn to the BPs. I actually like the size of the adults, and I'm not worried about the cost of the rats.

As far as the picky eating, I have been doing a lot of reading and it seems to me that each BP is different and it will be my job to figure out what will work for each one. I don't have experience with snakes yet, but I'm confident that I will be able to take care of a BP. After all, I have everybody here to help me if I get stumped.

I never would have guessed that I was considering a snake, but the more I read about BPs, the more I want one. I have some things in my personal life to clear up before I can commit to one. Once that is taken care of, I will be able to provide for one (or 2). I am hoping that next year at this time I will have everything ready and waiting for a new roommate (or 2).