New ball python over a year old and only 166 grams!

[zina10]

I think a distinction needs to be made!!

If there is a breeder that routinely and purposefully STARVES snakes or in any other form neglects them, sends out unhealthy snakes, lies, is dishonest, etc etc etc, then there is a problem. Even one single one of those things is a problem.

Has that been determined though ? Are all of the snakes from this breeder underweight, starved, sickly and neglected animals ?

Or is this particular hatchling one that didn't grow as fast , which there can be many reasons for, and those reasons don't have to be starving it, neglecting it, abusing it?

There are MANY terrible breeders out there. One only has to read the Fauna classifieds or Facebook FBI (feedback). The stories will make ones hair stand straight up.

I'm pretty sure I know which breeder is being discussed. ALL of my Desert Ghost animals have come from him. And I have no problem at all stating this. I have shared pictures and stories of all of my animals and have yet to hear that they look bad. I know for a fact they are amazing. Were they HUGE for their age ? Nope. Were they underweight or starved ? Nope. They are healthy, beautiful animals that are doing very well and are growing at a healthy rate, nothing stunted here.

Now, one could say I'm only speaking in that breeders defense because my animals are from there. But ...that is not my agenda. I don't have an agenda. I have several breeders I have bought from and that I trust and I am VERY VERY picky. I do my research. I have researched from years back. Spoken to other buyers. I have my own experience to fall back on. I don't owe that or any breeder anything, nor do I have undying loyalty to any one of them.

166 gr. IS small !!! However, the breeder HAD the size on the webpage. One has to take the time and ask the questions. There may be a reason it grew slower.

I'm also not saying that a breeder can't do something wrong to one person just because they've been good to others. I'm saying that determining whether a breeder is good or bad should depend on a whole lot more then one animal that is small for its size, esp. when that doesn't seem to be a common problem. People talk about bad experiences. Even if they only think they have been wronged. You find out real quick if someone does something wrong. This breeder has had a stellar reputation for well bred, nice and healthy animals and for not screwing people over. Would someone risk that by starving their animals knowing that buyers will talk about that? Maybe so, but doubtful.

Maintenance feeding is NOT starving. Its just an expression. All it means is that they are not trying to hurry the snake along. And no way would a snake in the wild grow at a rate then the ones in our homes do. There is a difference to feeding one to grow nice and slow and starving one. They look quite different from one another.

Power feeding is also an expression. People thought it meant to "force" the snake to eat more then it wants by "chain feeding". What it really means is to keep the snake growing at a incredible speed. It works with Ball Pythons, with Boas you will have them regurge and fail. Ball Pythons will grow quickly, but like Deb pointed out, it has been established through necropsies just how damaging it can be.

I'm not coming to the defense of THIS breeder. I'm saying to not throw anyone into a pot based on a expression and one small animal.

There are feedback pages. If someone feels wronged, they can certainly post on there. They can also question whether other people had a problem. At least in that way the breeder can present their side and other buyers can relate with their own experience. Who knows, maybe a pattern emerges in one way or another.


edited to say: Just want to point out one more time that maintenance feeding is not something that ends up with 166 gr. yearlings. All mine were bigger at that age. Obviously there was something else going on. A very small hatchling, slow to start, picky about particular food items, etc. Some take longer and then take off. This should have been discussed before the sale, that is for sure. Perhaps something can be worked out about returning the animal if there is dissatisfaction?