Picking up a BP today

[xexitenglishx]

I just wanted to ask some advice before picking up a BP today. I have been lurking the forums for a while and was originally going to order a baby BP from one of the breeders here but found a deal on craiglist that i cant really pass up. It is for a 2 year old male regular BP that comes with everything from the cage to the uth. The person is moving away and cant take him so i figured i would be the nice guy and take in a snake that might not have a home.
She said that he is very friendly and has no problems eating. He eats 3 to 4 regular sized mice but im not sure how often. What should i look for when i go to see him? I know to look for mites around the eyes and make sure his sheds have been ok ie no stuck eye caps or scales. Any other advice would be great.

Also when i get him should i move him over to rats so i only have to feed him 1 instead of 4 mice? How would i go about switching because i know BP are picky picky eaters.

If i get him today ill be sure to post up pictures!

[snakecharmer3638]

Sorry I don't have enough experience keeping BP's to tell you what to look for. I would say maybe also listen for wheezing when he breaths which could be a sign of a RI. I hope others with more experience are willing to help you out. GOOD LUCK!!

[frankykeno]

Just remember not all good deals are such good deals if you are taking on someone else's problem and you don't have enough experience to deal with it.

Look first at the snake's enclosure, that will tell you a whole lot about the snake inside. Is the enclosure clean. Has the snake been kept on proper substrate, offered hides, a clean water dish, a controlled heat source - that sort of thing. Look at the snake next. Does it have retained shed. Does it have an appropriate girth to length look about it. Does it have clear eyes, a clean vent, undamaged scales, no mites, etc. When handled does it feel muscular and in good healthy shape (watch how the owner handles her snake, let her remove it from the enclosure and observe their interactions - that'll tell you more things about how that snake was really cared for). When you handle the snake listen carefully for clear breath sounds - no clicking, wheezing, popping - no fluids or mucus in or leaking from the mouth - no crustiness around the mouth or nostrils indicating dried secretions.

Get as much information on this snake as you can as far as where she got it, when she got it, if it's ever been housed with other snakes, if it's been properly sexed at any point, if it's ever been ill, etc.

If you own any other reptiles make sure you fully quarantine this snake for a good 90 days or so. I wouldn't switch food types right up front. You need to let this snake settle in properly, take a few feeds from you first before you start messing with what this snake knows as being food. It's enough stress on a snake to change owners - I wouldn't add in the stress of an unknown food source right away, just my opinion.

Be ready for vet bills. You may not have any but if you take on other people's snakes, you take on whatever good or bad husbandry they gave that snake.

[Mochelem]

Look at the belly make sure there isnt any scale rot, or red spots, when I see snakes like that i also like to open thier mouths to see if it has any mouth rot or signs of it. You can do this by grabbing the snake behind the head and gently put a round ball point pen in its mouth sideways....

You also want to look for mucus on its mouth and open mouth breathing...

[Ginevive]

Are there photos in the person's ad? Maybe if so, you could post a link to the ad, and we could critique the items he/she is selling with the snake. If you're paying hundreds of dollars for someone's improper setup and a snake that is not worth much, it would not be a good deal. And photos would let us critique the basic health of the snake too; as in, is it rounded and not underweight, etc?
Mites are something to watch out for. Look in the water dish; are there mites floating in there? If so.. I would run! Not that they're untreatable.. but you could buy a parasite-free cbb snake from a reputable breeder and avoid the negative experience of mites.