Species outlook

[Madness420]

looking to get some thoughts in the area of predicting what species of snakes are likely to be in high demand in say... 5,10,15 years. there are a lot of ball python breeders out there, surely the market is going to saturate in the near future. then you have lager species being affected by the Lacey Act, which obviously makes trade difficult. also i wonder which breeds currently have few morph options but are soon to blow up like balls and corns. this is strictly a curiosity question i am not about to go buy any snakes suggested. i am striving for a future in breeding tho so it's something i would like to keep in the back of my mind. feel free to include lizards as well.

[millertime89]

Carpets and sand boas I think are going to be the next big thing.

[Madness420]

i actually looked into sand boas a little, but i dont know how i feel about them. the body looks neat but i am not a fan of their heads. i'v never actually seen one in person. i would have to hold some and see how i feel. i think its safe to say at this point i will deffinately be getting some carpets. it may be next year tho. i already have a male pinstripe ball python that needs some ladies so i'm trying to get a mojave and/or pastel big enough to breed this comming season. if i can manage a few jigsaw and/or lemonblast babies that would deffinately help fund the future carpets.

[pdomensis]

Hoggies perhaps.

[Will0W783]

It's really hard to predict. I've been working with snakes for the past decade pretty much, and I've seen fads come and go.

I think that there will always be a demand for ball python morphs; it is just a risky area to get into because the values of specific morphs change drastically within a few years.

I've noticed that carpet python prices have skyrocketed over the last 2 years- they went from around $100-150 for a nice JCP 2 years ago, to $250-300 for the same specimen now.

The giants are sadly going out of demand, as new laws make it harder to sell them and riskier to own them.

Venomous snakes are holding their value pretty steadily. They are not as expensive as the pythons in general, but seem to keep around the same prices year to year. Monocled cobra morphs are growing in popularity, and I've seen a lot of new western diamondback morphs recently. It's possible that these animals will become more valuable and popular, or they could go the way of the ball python, with rapidly fluctuating prices and market flooding.

[CK SandBoas]

I definitely think Sand Boas are going to be a major force, so to speak, in this hobby. There are so many new and beautiful morphs coming on the scene, like Splash, Paints, and hopefully Calico, if it can ever be reproduced by the few breeders that actually have them. To me, they are a very underappreciated species, and I love to educate others about them.

[Madness420]

the sand boas have awsome patterns and colors, i just cant get past the fact that they look like big fat worms lol. i'm keeping that option open tho. as for venomous, i am no where near ready for that. MABY one day. any advice on a non venomous snake i could get that would be a good size and have a bad attitude, so i could get some practice using a snake hook and grabbing behind the head without getting bit?

[Zoo Nanny]

I think if you were to see a sand boa in person and handle them you would change your mind. They are incredible snakes.

[Madness420]

i am going to an expo in november i'm sure somebody will have one.

[Will0W783]

Madness420, red - tailed green rat snakes are good practice for elapids, Amazon tree boas for arboreals, but the best bet is to find a mentor. I kept ATBs, GTPs, and ETBs before I moved into arboreal vipers and I got a bit of mentoring in the beginning.

[Will0W783]

Oh, one more thing. You shouldn't have to grab them behind the head ....that's a huge risk and sshould be avoided if at all possible. You want to get very good with hooks- be able to move snakes around on 2 hooks, be able to hook and tail without being bitten, and learn how to tube. The only time I've ever grabbed a viper behind the head was when I had to force feed a baby.

[Madness420]

what if i have to remove eye caps?

[Madness420]

or if i milk them to hrlp make anti venom

[marvelfreak]

Bloods are really starting to take off. New morph coming out each in the Reds and Borneo's. Only one real morph as far as Black bloods go. Just like with Ball though some morphs have shoot up while other just keep dropping.

[MDT]

or if i milk them to hrlp make anti venom

It is highly unlikely you will be supplying anyone with venom to help make anti venom...unless you work for a known source for venom production for US made anti venom (CroFab and Weyeth coral snake).

Listen to Willow, she is one of the more experienced folks on this board regarding hots.

[Madness420]

i doubt i will ever keep hots, i was just asking out of curiousity.

[Frisky]

Get yourself a nice big Texas Rat Snake. Fast, Aggressive and Take No Prisoners.

[Mikoh4792]

Get yourself a nice big Texas Rat Snake. Fast, Aggressive and Take No Prisoners.

He's looking for snakes that are high in demand.

[Madness420]

He's looking for snakes that are high in demand.

well i was also asking whats a good challenging non venomous snake that would help me practice safe handling of venomous snakes.

[Mikoh4792]

well i was also asking whats a good challenging non venomous snake that would help me practice safe handling of venomous snakes.

Don't know if any non-venomus snake can help prepare you for that, but king ratsnakes and scrub pythons are supposed to be nasty(if you manage to get a defensive one... since as with any kind of snake you can end up with one that is puppy dog tame). Scrubs have long reach and king rats are fast.

[BryanB]

I hope it will be any and all smaller boas 7 feet or less there is a tone to work with and colors to keep anyone's attention.

[Mikoh4792]

Here's a video of a cribo feeding. Seems to keep the owner on his toes.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=741311655940436

[BryanB]

That's funny