Wild caught or captive bred?

[dannybgoode]

As per another post of mine I am looking at acquiring a Macklott Python.

Currently I know of two sources.

First of is my favoured reptile store. Hugely knowledgeable owners and give absolutely the best advice and are always there to support their customers. The shop is immaculate all the time and the livestock well cared for. However their Macklott's are wc.

The other source has some cb's they have bred themselves and in the photos they look nice snakes and there is a pic of the mum. That said I've never bought directly from a breeder and algorithm necessarily know a good one from a bad one. But, I do prefer the idea of cb to wc.

So, wc from a shop I really trust and want to support when I can or cb from a breeder I know nothing about (although I should cb macklotts are very hard to find as so few people keep them so I assume the breeder has a strong interest in them).

[RAD House]

Captive bred without a doubt. Not only is the chance of receiving a healthy animal better, but you are also putting the rest of your collection at a lower risk. Not to mention you are putting zero stress on wild populations by refusing to support wild collection. If you are nervous about the breeder just ask lots of questions. If they are respectable they will be able to field them all graciously.

[EL Ziggy]

I'd probably go with cb animal too as long as the breeder was reputable. Any reviews on the breeder?

[Minkness]

I would also go with CB because I have so many other little lives to take into consideration. Also, I am not yet confident I want to deal with the challenges of a wc animal.

That being said, if the WC animals have been captive for so long, and are otherwise healthy (have they been tested or treated for parasites?), and you would rather support the store than a stranger, that is fine as well of course.

It just comes down to your personal feelings on what works best for you.

Looking forward to seeing whatever you end up getting though!

[dannybgoode]

Thanks for your thoughts. I too am leaning towards cb's but am just a bit nervous buying from a breeder direct as I've not done it before.

I know the store have had their wc's for at least 6 months so they're not fresh off the boat so to speak and I know they quarantine etc also so I'm not too concerned about health issues.

I'll message the breeder also and they have a table at the forthcoming show so can catch up with them in person also.

[Albert Clark]

I am a firm believer in born free, live free. Too many captive bred specimens available. For those that are not that available as captives I would still be reluctant to purchase w/c. Too risky. For the unknown captive bred breeder you just need to search the fauna classifieds BOI for information on him. Research him with other breeders as well. Just my thoughts. Good luck with the decision.

[SnakeyJay]

If CB is available then I'd go that route personally, even tho you've got a good relationship with the shop. To me the pro's of CB versus WC would be worth looking at this new supplier.... Obviously certain species are only available as WC but these days those are few n far between. :)

Can't wait to see some pics with whatever source you choose to get them from! :)

[SnakeyJay]

Thanks for your thoughts. I too am leaning towards cb's but am just a bit nervous buying from a breeder direct as I've not done it before.

I know the store have had their wc's for at least 6 months so they're not fresh off the boat so to speak and I know they quarantine etc also so I'm not too concerned about health issues.

I'll message the breeder also and they have a table at the forthcoming show so can catch up with them in person also.

To be honest they should only just be coming out of quarantine now at 6 months in my own opinion.. I know others have different ways of quarantining but for something WC I'd expect 6 months of quarantine before going up sale.

Not doubting the quality or the knowledge of the people you know there mate, in case it comes across that way. :)

[dannybgoode]

To be honest they should only just be coming out of quarantine now at 6 months in my own opinion.. I know others have different ways of quarantining but for something WC I'd expect 6 months of quarantine before going up sale.

Not doubting the quality or the knowledge of the people you know there mate, in case it comes across that way. :)

They may have been in quarantine that long. I've only been issuing l using the store since December and they've had them on display since then. How long they had them before I don't know but can ask.

Paul and Chas are up there as some of the very best reptile shop owners in the uk. No BS and a genuine care for the animals they sell.

As it is they'll still get a good chunk of cash off me anyway because whilst I've got the kit to get the next snake going when I come to upgrade the viv etc it'll be them I buy off anyway...

[SnakeyJay]

They may have been in quarantine that long. I've only been issuing l using the store since December and they've had them on display since then. How long they had them before I don't know but can ask.

Paul and Chas are up there as some of the very best reptile shop owners in the uk. No BS and a genuine care for the animals they sell.

As it is they'll still get a good chunk of cash off me anyway because whilst I've got the kit to get the next snake going when I come to upgrade the viv etc it'll be them I buy off anyway...

Sounds like they'd have had them long enough then mate, so do you have any pics of the CB and WC to compare? :)

[dannybgoode]

Not good ones! I do have a couple of other snakes on the list though so a Macklott is not a done deal!

Decisions decisions. I reckon I can only get away with one more for now so have to choose wisely :)

As a fairly cryptic clue about one of my other choices. Given I want pure locality types in their 'wild' markings I have seen a fairly uncommon sub species of a pretty common snake which I've seen in the flesh and is just to die for...

[SnakeyJay]

Lmao, go with your heart... If it's an opportunity that may not come again then go for it. :)

[dannybgoode]

It's not super rare. Just unusual to find pure locality. I'm just waiting to hear if the snake has known lineage before making a decision.

As I say it's quite very pretty little thing.

[SnakeyJay]

Good luck with it mate, hopefully it's the one you want :)

[pet_snake_78]

So far my luck with WC and parasites is over 90%positive. You need to do more than one fecal with at least a couple weeks between then. I've had some test negative then positive. I've even treated, got a negative, though I had it, then have them turn around and test positive again restarting the whole process. Some things like hookworms tend to be pretty easy to get rid of, others like coccidia you can think you have beat then .. surprise it's back!