Sexing?

[snakefein]

Hi i have a male ball python on order and am getting one tomarow. The one that i am getting tomarrow is at a pet store get to pick out of a few different ones and if the owners dont know the sex or them how can i try to get a good idea of witch one is a female

[Big Mike]

Welcome to the site.

First off...getting a snake from a pet store is generally not a good idea for a variety of reasons.

Second, the only way to effectively tell the sex of a ball python is to have it popped or probed...which should only be done by someone with proper experience to do so.

[snakefein]

thank you

[mykee]

Another way (which is not even close to 100%) would be to look at the tails from the cloaca back. In males; tails tend to be thinner, and females; thicker. You would see a difference if you compare the two.

[snakefein]

thanx again and i read in a book about what your saying it was somethin about a hemoipenial bulge because it houses the sexual organs at the base of there tails, around the area of the vent and the tail tapers fast after the vent on the males

[snakefein]

sorry for flooding but i forgot to say somethin. Is the info correct from the book or is it misleading and isnt that easy

[mykee]

When I picked out my first two balls from a pet store, that's all the info I had and I picked out a male and a female, exactly what I wanted. HOWEVER, this method is NOT 100%. I got lucky. If you want 100% accuracy, pop a baby, or probe at any age.