Found a pied needing "rehab", questions

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So today, I went out looking at snakes. New pass time on my days off....

I came across this guy, local pet store has her and shes beautiful, and heavily discounted because she will "only eat live". The store isnt allowed to feed live, and I would prefer to feed frozen myself.

Im tempted to get her, but shes a little grumpy because she had a bad shed and her head is still covered.

Is it possible to get a pied off live? Story goes the will strike frozen, but then drop it and ignore it. The vet gave her live and she ate right away.

http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n295/dmk_132003/Snakes/20160430_165237_zpsoykbiave.jpg

[Minkness]

It's very possible, just takes patience. I got one that would only eat live with his breeder, but when I got him I found the trick is to get a good CLEAN frozen one, then thaw it really good, and heat it up really hot. They use heat and scent so if it smells like a normal mouse/rat and not a filthy one, and is warm like it's live, there is little issue. Stometimes it helps to have long tongs and jiggle it around a bit. Took me a while to get my guy on frozen but he got it after a while then turned into a beast eater. But right now he's off food and throwing sperm plugs inhis water dish -shakes head-

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lol, ew...

Im tempted to see if they can do any better on price, they seemed eager to find it a home.

[Minkness]

I'm sure they will. Good luck and keep us informed!

[Albert Clark]

Bad shed or not that animal is worth it especially a female. Switching over to f/t can be problematic. The main thing is to triple check your husbandry before trying to switch them over. Some will never switch but the main thing is they are feeding. There are quite a few theories on the approach to use to get them to transition. I would give him what he wants for now and if you do acquire him worry about that later after he is well established.

[Sylphie]

She's stunning! I would take her no matter what she eats, especially if she's on discount! Like Mink and Albert wrote, the switching is possible, it will just take time. My 2014 female was eating only live too, but after a few months she started to take frozen/thawed (unfortunately I don't know the method as we needed to rehome her, and got her back only recently). Now the only thing she requires is the rats to be super super hot and she'll eat without problems.

Ps. I so envy you, in my country pieds are really super expensive and rare, and that's about low end pieds, I don't even metion a high white like this girl...

[RAD House]

I have two pieds. One has taken frozen thawed since I received him, even though the breeder had him on only live. The other, which I received from Albert, took her first unscented frozen thawed just yesterday. She was taking them with Albert pretty regularly before she was shipped to me. Needless to say I hope she is back on track. So what I am saying is that pieds will definitely eat frozen thawed, and I would not trust anything whoever told you this for snake information. I would not be surprised if her eating issues stem from not being in a secure environment.

As far as that particular snake looks, besides the stuck shed looks to be in pretty good condition from what I can see in the picture. Her body condition certainly does not look like a snake who has not been eating.

[Albert Clark]

I do think the earlier you attempt to begin to transition them the easier it will be. The correct husbandry is paramount and obviously that isn't the case here. The animal should also be well established in their enclosure.

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I just went and spoke to them again, apparently the price doubled since last time I was there and the District Manager doesnt want to budge, so theyre going to spend more money on vet visits to get it to eat rather than let someone take it home to care for it. Sad, but I will be in contact with them and keep trying.

[bigsnakegirl785]

Yeah I don't see why a morph would be less likely than any other ball python to eat f/t. It just takes time, patience, and creativity. My ball python ate live for 5-6 years before I attempted to switch him and it took another 1.5 years to get him to take his first f/t rat. Now, he eats f/t regularly. Sometimes he'll take it without a hot spot, but if he wants a hot spot, I've found heating the rat to 118-120F does the trick, if it's just a few degrees cooler he won't take it, but he'll act interested in it and put his face up to it. Below 100F and he won't even look at it.

That's really a bummer about the price change, taking the snake to the vet all the time is going to be counterproductive to getting it to eat on its own and will likely resulted in an overly-stressed snake. Stress can kill.

[Albert Clark]

Even at double the price the pied female is still worth it. I would see if they are willing to do a payment plan and snatch that girl up asap. Especially if you really want her. I would look at it as a investment for the future.

[macandchz]

oh you are so lucky to have found her! i told you that would be a good choice on your last thread. hope you get her! AL KNOWS BEST!

[Aaron_S]

Even at double the price the pied female is still worth it. I would see if they are willing to do a payment plan and snatch that girl up asap. Especially if you really want her. I would look at it as a investment for the future.

That depends on what 'double the price' actually is. If it went from $300 to $600 then it's still possibly a good choice. If it went from $400 to $800 I'd look somewhere else.

It's no longer a good deal and anyone can find a good, healthy, female pied that's eating F/T and no bad sheds for good price. Support the local breeder.

[Andy_G]

It's no longer a good deal and anyone can find a good, healthy, female pied that's eating F/T and no bad sheds for good price. Support the local breeder.

What this dude said. Much better to support the private local breeder.

[Albert Clark]

That depends on what 'double the price' actually is. If it went from $300 to $600 then it's still possibly a good choice. If it went from $400 to $800 I'd look somewhere else.

It's no longer a good deal and anyone can find a good, healthy, female pied that's eating F/T and no bad sheds for good price. Support the local breeder.
The price of 125.00 was the original price, so double that is still a fair price for a female pied in her state of physical condition. Oh! I agree wholeheartedly with supporting the local breeder. Absolutely. OP was asking for opinions on acquiring it at the original price so yeah that's what I think. 250.00 which is double is also a doable transaction taking into account that we are just looking at a picture. I would be interested in what type of health guarantee the shop provides.
What this dude said. Much better to support the private local breeder.

I agree with that but you will rarely find a deal like this for that species of animal. I sold pieds that I produced with a health , sex and genetics guarantee for 295.00 to forum members only. 125.00 is a bargain that most people would be able to handle. The animal could be a great addition after a proper quarantine period and be a solid project for the future.

[Minkness]

Did I miss where the price was posted? They have pieds at my local store for $499.99 up to $599.99. Even at half the price she would still be expensive.

[Andy_G]

I agree with that but you will rarely find a deal like this for that species of animal. I sold pieds that I produced with a health , sex and genetics guarantee for 295.00 to forum members only. 125.00 is a bargain that most people would be able to handle. The animal could be a great addition after a proper quarantine period and be a solid project for the future.

I really don't like people just looking for a bargain (NOT that I am suggesting that is what default is doing!) because it's all they can afford or handle at the time, Albert, and I am happy to explain why. There is MUCH more to consider than an excellent initial price point when it comes to the purchase of a snake. Here are a few that would be case specific;

If it is truly stuck on live, it may cost you the difference in the long run switching it over to f/t because live is more expensive and thawed rodents can't be refrozen or reused so you would have to pitch quite a few rodents if it's hard to switch over, and not 100% will switch over either. There is a chance with ball pythons in particular, albeit a very small one, that you may not be successful. Add in any other complications and a vet visit or two on top of that...and then consider that the only way you could afford the snake in the first place was because of how cheap it was...well...how good of an investment would it really be at that point? PERHAPS not as good of a deal as you thought at first?

In regards to what you charge and your animals Albert, even if you boosted that price to $350-$500 for a non forum member for example, I bet you wouldn't be letting anything go that has a bad shed, and it would (hopefully) already be on f/t, plus that person who might be breeding in the future is spending money with a breeder rather than a store and making a great connection in the process as well as purchasing from someone who would offer ongoing direct help if any problems came up. Being that the OP is relatively new to keeping, that's probably a much wiser choice than getting a cheap animal that could potentially be problematic?

All I am trying to say is this; instead of "rescuing" "rehabbing" or "investing in" something with known issues at a great price point from a pet store that will just be replaced as soon as it's purchased, continuing the "rescue" cycle as I call it, look into spending your money with a breeder that will sell you something that won't give you problems and something that you have a history on. Sometimes you will luck out, but usually you will get what you pay for.

[Albert Clark]

I agree with most of that. The onus is on the buyer to a certain degree to do his homework on the animal and that means asking questions and if at all possible bring someone who is more learned in the things to look for in a newly acquired specimen or grill the seller on the possible things that could be wrong with the reptile. Getting a guarantee in writing is another way to safeguard yourself in a purchase of a new reptile. Most big box stores have at least a minimal warranty against illnesses and death for a small window of time. That's why I relayed that I will want to know what the guarantee /warranty policy is of the store.

[RAD House]

I do agree with you in respect that the op may not have enough experience to really judge the condition of the snake. On the other hand a stuck shed is a pretty minor problem and would never make me think twice about an animal on its own. Also as far as the live feeding goes, I think that everyone should gain some experience with a problem feeder and a juvenile ball python that is just refusing frozen thawed is like training wheels. If they are eating juvenile balls are pretty voracious. I would certainly rather switch a young animal over an adult especially if it is a mouser. Not to mention I am also pretty sure any issues this animal is having is due to the lack of experience by the pet shop.

As for the quality of the animal it seems to be in pretty good shape. It is a high white pied with good pattern. I am not sure I would consider this a rescue. Buying from a breeder online brings it's own set of challenges and worries. I think the saying goes a bird in the hand is better than two in the bush.

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Thanks for all the info guys, thats why I came here to ask!


I have yet to procure the pied even tho in my heart I want to. I will say the location she is at is a better place that takes care of their animals well. I dont suspect there is any issues there, aside from some ignorance of a few lower level employees.

The story goes she was ordered from a vendor that "only feeds f/t" and now she inexplicably wont eat f/t. my thoughts were the feeder wasnt hot enough.

I would LOVE to deal with a local breeder, but the only one I know of is out of a flea market (and to me, seems a touch sketch since all but a few of his herps have NOT FOR SALE signs on them) but I dont know of any in the Charleston area.

[Andy_G]

Thanks for all the info guys, thats why I came here to ask!


I have yet to procure the pied even tho in my heart I want to. I will say the location she is at is a better place that takes care of their animals well. I dont suspect there is any issues there, aside from some ignorance of a few lower level employees.

The story goes she was ordered from a vendor that "only feeds f/t" and now she inexplicably wont eat f/t. my thoughts were the feeder wasnt hot enough.

I would LOVE to deal with a local breeder, but the only one I know of is out of a flea market (and to me, seems a touch sketch since all but a few of his herps have NOT FOR SALE signs on them) but I dont know of any in the Charleston area.

Breeders often bring NFS snakes to showcase their bloodlines...but I would be a bit leary of a breeder setting up at a flea market too!

[Aaron_S]

Thanks for all the info guys, thats why I came here to ask!


I have yet to procure the pied even tho in my heart I want to. I will say the location she is at is a better place that takes care of their animals well. I dont suspect there is any issues there, aside from some ignorance of a few lower level employees.

The story goes she was ordered from a vendor that "only feeds f/t" and now she inexplicably wont eat f/t. my thoughts were the feeder wasnt hot enough.

I would LOVE to deal with a local breeder, but the only one I know of is out of a flea market (and to me, seems a touch sketch since all but a few of his herps have NOT FOR SALE signs on them) but I dont know of any in the Charleston area.


Some great breeders in the Country will ship as well. It's quite easy to do.