Who buy's them??

[NewLineReptile]

Hello i have seen some of the high end snakes for sale and some snake's sell for like $3,000 +. Beside's breeders who would go out and drop 3,000 + on one snake. Don't get me wrong if life was easy i would probably buy one but what i would like to know is there alot of people out their that just drop $3,000 for a pet snake. And what make's these snakes worth that much.

How many of you would buy a $3,000 + pet snake?

Maybe some high end snake breeders can help me out with this question

Brandon

[lordkovacs]

talk to Corey Woods about that...he's got some KILLER stuff. I think I saw one (which I'm told is like orgasmic almost! haha) that was $11000. that is eleven thousand dollars for those that can not decipher numbers. HOLY CRAP. I can barely afford to buy two BRB's on a teacher's salary. damn. so $3000 almost seems reasonable...ALMOST. lol...

[marisa]

I would!!!

There are some species that I would drop MORE than 3,000 for. At present, my boyfriend and I both want a somewhat middle end snake, and we are thinking around 1000, and even at this point we don't even like anything higher than that really even if we had a million bucks! LOL :). 3000 is a more, but even at that the REAL high end snakes are worth 10,000+ Should they be? I have no clue nor do I care. If you want what you want, then ya gotta pay the price! :)

How many people would buy a 100,000 car, a ferrari or whatever? Lots. They are car hobbyists just like we are reptile hobbyists. :D

Marisa

[lordkovacs]

I would guess some rich Torono businessmen wouldn't mind having one in their office as a phalic symbol...haha... just an idea.

[LadyHawke]

if you give me 3000 i'll buy it!! LOL

[Invictus]

I will gladly sink $3000 into a snake when I have it. Snakes like Womas/Blackheads are extremely expensive, but extremely worth it in my opinion. Now, some of the designer ball pythons I just don't get. I realize they are rare, but come on.... I've even seen one advertised on here for $40,000 CDN. (Many of you have seen it... it was very recent.) NO OFFENSE intended to the person who posted it... it's a gorgeous snake. But 40 grand? That's 1/3 the cost of a HOUSE! I wish the person (Can't remember offhand who it was) the BEST of luck. If it sells, TELL US so we know where the party will be!

[CDN-Cresties]

I dunno if i would spend that much $$$ on a snake, but i guess if i had the extra cash i would. :D

-Steve-

[Jeff_Favelle]

Simple. Its not people that buy "pet" snakes. Its an investment. And pretty much the most lucrative investment outside of drugs, except snakes are legal!

Its not the average Joe-Blow that's going out and spending $10 Large on a Ball or Boa morph. Its the professional breeders that are. Heck, some people think its crazy to even spend $20 on buying a reptile for a pet? What do you say to them? Its all perspective man. I can't believe people pay $150,000 for a car that can be out-performed by a $45,000 car. Why do people buy $750,000 7-bedroom homes when there's only 3 people in the family? But I digress.....


Its not the every-day 15 year old who wants a snake for a pet that buys an investment snake. Heck, out of the 3,000 members here, I bet there's only 60-80 people that have ever actually bred anything (INCLUDING Leopard Geckos and Beardies!). They aren't buying Ball Morphs. Nope. Its the breeders who have bred snakes and lizards for years and want something different. I have bred Ball Pythons for 8 years now, why would I go buy another normal one when I have had hundreds pass through my hands? They all start to look the same. Don't get me wrong, ALL snakes (actually, all animals) are cool. But If I can trade 10 baby normal balls for something different (say a Pastel) then why not? Doesn't cost me anything if I produce 30 Balls in a year. I just trade some in for a different (but not better) model. No biggie.

You see, if you bred a $200 animal (say a boa) and it had 15 babies, then that would be $3,000. You didn't work 8 hrs a day for 4 weeks straight to earn that money, so in a sense, it doesn't hurt too bad to flip it back into your hobby, right? Well $3,000 can buy you a pretty cool snake. Now say you bred those. Well they produce you 10 babies @ $3,000 and now all of a sudden, you have $30,000 to play with and float back into your hobby. Its funny money. No real work was involved. Just you, doing your hobby, doing what you love. How cool is that? Very cool.

So to summarize: these expensive snakes are not meant for the novice herper who goes to the pet store and buys a 10 gallon and a Leopard Gecko and a hot rock and a UV light etc etc. These morphs are bought and traded by people who have made reptiles their life. People who have made money from the hobby and don't really want to buy anything other than more snakes. And let me tell you, I'd rather own a Clown Ball Python than 250 MORE Rainbow boas!!

But why would snakes surprise you? so many more things surprise me. Why would people spend hundreds on Beanie Babies? Why do people spend thousands on their Star Wars collections (gay). Why do people buy a new PC every 3 months to play the latest Unreal, Doom, or Quake games? Why do people spend $4,000 on a car stereo system when all it sounds like it white noise at that volume? Why? Because people want to and in the Free World, we seem to have disposabl income to burn.

[NewLineReptile]

Invictus.... that is more like what i was trying to say like the ball python's and boa's go for so much cash. And what i wanted to know was if it is mostly breeders that buy them. Or is there alot of people out there the buy them for a pet and not to breed.?

Marisa.... i can see someone paying big buck for a high end car Because the car can be used for many of things and if it dies you can always fix it were as the snake will sit there in its enclosure and look at you waiting for you to feed him and if he dies there is no fixing him...lol

Brandon

[lordkovacs]

well put Jeff.

[NewLineReptile]

Thanks Jeff you cleared it up for me but all i really wanted to know was is there alot of people that don't breed or anything buying these snake's not why they buy them i could not get the word's out for the question i am asking

Brandon

[lordkovacs]

go check out corey's new ad in the class. section, canadian, snakes. $10500. gorgeous snake though... and i'm sure worth every penny and then some. but it can't be just breeders buying these snakes. if it were, then who would buy all the babies, and the babies babies, etc.?

[Linds]

Well put Jeff :D

Originally posted by burmese python
but all i really wanted to know was is there alot of people that don't breed or anything buying these snake's not why they buy them i could not get the word's out for the question i am asking


For the most part, as stated above, the high end morphs are traded and sold amongst other high end breeders. Of course you do have the occassional hobbyist that will aquire one as part of a collection... not to breed, but these are few and far between. Typically these investment quality animals are purchased by breeders.

[sapphire_moon]

I know that if I had the extra cash just flying around I would think nothing of putting 3000$ into a snake. But then again I am a budding breeder.....sometime in the future that is, when I feel I have enough knowledge and money to breed! Herps are very addicting, almost more than tattoos!

[NewLineReptile]

Thanks Linds :)

sapphire_moon i know what you mean about addicting like tattoos i have 25 tat's my self

Brandon

[Mr.Lizard]

I recently saw blue tree monitors going for 50 grand at a show in Orlando and there was also an albino Nile which I believe was going for twice that.
No way I would spend that kinda money....that's more than my house! Then what if your power goes out in the dead of winter?!
Not that I think people are foolish for investing that kinda money into an animal....people think I'm nuts for spending a few hundred on an animal they wouldn't even want in their house.
There are a couple of guys at my job that spend thousands customizing their cars with audio equipment and paint jobs...that's not for me either. But if that's your thing,go for it.:)

[Zoe]

I guarantee you, if i had the money to, there is a LOT I would buy!
However, I wouldn't spend much more on "morphs". First of all, why are mutants so special? lol, but seriously, all you need to do is wait a couple years and then the morph you like is more affordable. Just look at albino boas! Bred in such haste, now they are hardly high end animals and many are missing eyes. They are beautiful, but I would tend to go for the animals that are expensive because they are darned hard to breed/keep, like ETBs, GTPs, rare morelia, etc. I, for example, would spend much more on an Amazon Basin Emerald Tree Boa, than I would on an albino tree boa :D

Zoe

[boa]

super salmons,ghost boas,snow boas,well worth the cash for a pet very nice show peices and not only that hupfully they produce one day and then you will have some screamer's. 3000+ in my eyes well spent.

[lordkovacs]

i agree with zoe about hte morph comment. i mean, they are attractive, just not as, IMHO. at least in the snakes I am interested in and know. cheers,
MIKE

[python_diva_06]

if i had the money i would so but a 10,000 dollar snake...THAT WOULD BE FIRGGIN' AWESOME!!

[Lisa]

For some it's a status symbol and they won't be keeping it in a cheap rubbermaid either. A custom display cage with lots of glass to be able to see the snake is the way to go.

If i had money to spend and wasn't interested in breeding, then sure, i'd buy one.

[Colonel SB]

I would thats for sure...I'm not a big time breeder & I'd drop that kinda money in a heart beat.

[jaybox_reptiles]

i no a guy that gave 5,000 for a lusistics hognose butthe snake is awsom it is pure white and looks like a cobra it is awsom but i dont no how and y some one would spend that much on a snake

[lakeridgekennel]

There is a loop hole! Check the pound for snakes. I got a blackheaded python for $70 because they had know idea how much they are worth. it diden't have papers but it was just a good tame snake. they might not be captive bred but it was a good snake. In conclusion Joe-Blow has know idea about the price but herpers do so check the pound for snakes. alot of pounds only charge for vet check and food and basic husbandry ect ect.