VI Reptiles Ball Python

[VI Reptiles Snr]

Hello everyone - well everything seems to be going along fine now. We took a car trip to Nanaimo on Saturday and took the Ball Python to a true reptile vet. He helped us a lot and we learned that actually Snakey is doing better than we thought. We are now using some special soap on the rot and then some polysporin 2 X a day. I paid for the visit and VI seems a lot happier now. Snakey ate a mouse a couple days ago and the vet was happy about that. He told VI that he shouldn't feed him too large prey as it would be too hard on his system. He doesn't need any more injections of Baytril and the Vet really helped VI's confidence. He has decided to keep Snakey and work with him. He came out from his bedroom and announced that Snakey was drinking out of his bowl. It was great that VI finally found a vet who he can talk to in person and trust. Not that the vets where we live weren't good - they were doing the best they could with the information they had. I also feel a lot better, and it was well worth the 2 hour trip there and back and the $65 vet visit. Anyways, just to let you know that VI was really frustrated and scared that he would lose Snakey, but I tried to tell him that we had to try our best to get him the best medical help.


Anyways, we'll keep u posted. The vet said it will be about 4 weeks probably before he has shed the rot and will be pretty well healed.

Thanks.

VI Senior.

[BornboreD]

I'm glad that you are trying your best in getting him "the best medical help". However, know what would have been a great idea??

You/your son doing your best at;

1. Doing thorough research BEFORE getting the animal.

2. Setting up a proper enclosure with proper furnishings, temp gradient, and humidity levels BEFORE purchasing the animal. This would have happened if Step 1 had happened.

3. Purchasing a healthy animal from a reputable breeder. This also probably would have happened if Step 1. had been followed. Not too mention that a reputable breeder is the best source for Step 1.

I'm glad that the vet said it will be fine, and I sure hope that your son makes a TRUE commitment to the proper care of his Ball. Hopefully this has been a learning experience for you both, and the proper precautions will be taken if and when your son/you decide to get another herp.

Also, your son is doing a bang up job of keeping us updated. Hadn't you noticed??? Read the forums (Step 1.), You'll see.........................:rolleyes:

Colin

[malaysianbloods]

Hi although i have been taught to respect my elders, when you bought your child a snake you should have made sure he knows what he is doing and you should have been willing to take the responsibility of taking care of the animal if he was unable, because you are the one that helped him to get it. Let alone take the animal to the vet right away when you found out it was sick. Even though you most likely have a full time job you sould not have bought the animal unless you know you are going to beable to care for it properly and take it to the vet when needed. You oviously can't count on your child to do his research, so you should have done research yourself and if you would have been checking up on your child to make sure he was doing things right, then maybe all this might not have happened. But atleast you finally got the snake to the vet and it is doing better. Sorry about the disrespect but what you did was pretty irresponsible of you.

[Slannesh]

Glad to hear Snakey is doing better.

Guys, slamming VI's parents is totally pointless and really goes to illustrate the point I was making in that big thread about "thinking about leaving" when I was talking about the level of respect that sometimes gets displayed around here.

How much interest did YOUR parents take when you first started getting into herps? I had to move out before I got any myself.

We were ALL new once, and I SERIOUSLY doubt there's a person on this board who has NEVER made any sort of husbandry mistake either through ignorance or inexperience.

Yes, it's very important to do the research and the resources are much more easily attainable today than they were 10 years ago that's for sure.

VI Senior: My advice to you is twofold.

1) Try not to take some of the comments people have been throwing your way too personally. Most, if not all of us really just want what's best for any herp and seeing the common mistakes of inexperience time and again gets some people's hackles up. As I said before I applaud you for taking enough of an interest in your son's interests to sign onto the forum to even look around, let alone participate. It's a whole lot more than mine ever did :)

2) Snakey's been through a generally unpleasant experience. Learning from it is the best payback you can give him. Basic herp husbandry books are now fairly common. I would make them the first requirement before any future herp purchases. Some have several editions, try to get the one with the newest printing date as the older ones often have inaccurate or just plain wrong info. Herpetology is still in it's infancy and many of the 'truths' we all cling to today will very likely be the "You've done WHAT to your snake?!?" In several years. It's an ever evolving hobby.

Even if some of us forget, we all know the excitement and enthusiasm of getting into this hobby. Mistakes get made and thankfully in this instance they weren't of the fatal variety. Please stick around and continue to contribute to the community. I really wish more parents would take even a passing interest in what their kids are doing in general.

[BornboreD]

I wasn't slamming anyone...........

VI has argued many points and much advice that has been given to him. Those that he has not argued, he has made excuses for. Some of these excuses do try to shift the blame onto the parents at times.

How old is VI anyways?? 14 isn't he?? In my opinion, a 14 year old should be alot more smart, mature and repsonsible than he has shown. He's even gone as far as posting advice to people regarding similar issues to those that he has had problems with, let alone the advice that he gives is just regurgitated from what people have told him in just the last week. Does a 14 year old really need Daddy's help that much?? Dad's just as much to blame........the fact that he has never made mention of everyone slagging his kid goes to show his real level of interest, and proves that he himself hasn't bothered to read these forums in any in-depth way.

Respect is only given when it's deserved. I repsect herpers/future herpers, that show repsect to the animals that they keep.

Colin

[BornboreD]

In no way are my above posts meant to be malicious. They are only worded so strongly due to the strong feelings that I have towards the issues.

I have seen to many kids, teens, adults get herps, or any other exotic pets infact, on a whim just cause they're "cool". I think most people here know what I'm getting at.

These are the kind of people that end up having the animals die quite quickly, or let them loose, or try to give em back to the store or just give em away to anybody for that matter.

It is within' these people, that all blights on our hobby, (in some cases LIVES :)) manifest.

It is because of these people that so many sick, diseased WC animals are imported every year.

It is these people's fault that we hear stories about Burmese pythons roaming suburban neighbourhoods eating poodles, or living wild in Florida National Parks.

It is these kind of people that cause insurance company's to deny coverage of our collections, or our homes should there ever be a fire!

I am in no way trying to discourage newcomers to the hobby, as long as they will be an asset to it. I myself have had problems in the past and still have questions to this day. I offer help when I have something to add that I've learned from my own experience.

VI asked for help, he got it from the more knowledgable members on this forum. He did not heed or respect the advice and where it was coming from. He then proceeded to give advice that he had no business giving. He also made a post about "giving up" on his ball and getting a new one cause maybe then things will be better!!! Quite honestly, it has tried my patience, and I believe many others as well. To me it is a sign of great disrespect to the animal, the hobby, and this forum.

Then again maybe I'm a big jerk and Herp Nazi!!! :D :p

Colin

[Slannesh]

Let me ask you a few questions then Colin....

Think WAAAAY back to your absolute first herp.

1) how old were you?

2) did you know EVERYTHING there was to know about it before you picked it up?

3) Have you EVER made any sort of care or husbandry mistake with any herp you've had?

You say you weren't slamming anyone and yet here I am being sort of offended on VI's parent's behalf. I don't know the kid or the parents... So obviously your posts haven't been as friendly and helpful as you think.

I realize that VI hasn't been as receptive as he could have been to everything he was told, but c'mon give the kid a break, he's 14. This is an internet forum not a University classroom. As to the comment about him just regurgitating the advice he's been given in the last week wouldn't you say that's a GOOD thing? Since it's the correct advice for the problem given by people who are knowledgeable on the subject. Now if he was giving bad advice that would be a whole different thing. But you can't complain that he doesn't listen to advice in one breath and then get mad at him for giving good advice in the next can you? Makes very little sense to me.

We all care about our herps. It's unlikely we'd be here in the first place if we didn't. VI made some mistakes, then made a couple more and eventually worked his way around to getting his snake the help it needs to survive and hopefully thrive in the future. In my mind that puts him a step above everyone who's just let a pet die rather than take it to the vet because it was too expensive or inconvenient.

I don't know about the rest of you but at 14 I wasn't a terribly responsible person in general... Are you even supposed to be at 14? I dunno. But I really don't think it's doing anyone a service to continually jump on new people who come here asking for help and then with the advice they need they are also forced to chow down on a giant helping of attitude as well. How many people in the last 6 months or so have showed up.... asked a few questions and then disappeared never to be heard from again? More than a handful. It's almost universally because of the attitude they get from the same group of members in almost every case.

There are different ways to do things in this hobby. Some take a lot more work to get right but that doesn't make them "wrong" the ongoing debate about Ball Pythons being kept in Tanks vs. Rubbermaids is a perfect example of this. Yes, rubbermaids are easier. Are they better? No. Just easier to get the same results. People can and do raise perfectly healthy BP's in tanks.

My whole point here is respect is a two way street and it's earned by both parties. Just because you were here first doesn't entitle you to any more respect than any brand new user. I know it's annoying to have to answer the same question 10 times a week every week. But if it bothers you all that much then why post in those threads at all? It's getting really sad to see the attitude around here outweigh the good advice and i'm sure it's costing us a lot of potentially great long term members because of it.

Now this is obviously a bigger issue than just VI and his parent(s) and i've gone way off topic already and for that I apologize but it's something that i've noticed that's getting worse and worse as time goes on and i'm trying to be part of the solution instead of part of the problem :)

[pinoiballer01]

I was just wondering why would you guys make a big deal out of this. Cant you see that VI senior just drove 2 hours just to get the snake the care it needs. I know you guys love your animal and all but why are we attacking their integrity. I think we should just be happy that the snake is doing fine now and stop this forum right here, right now. Please lets stay with the topic and not jump on each other.

[HeatherRose]

Slannesh's posts are bang on (as usual!). I'm glad to see that things have finally taken a turn in the right direction. The last thing we need is for you to leave the forum (I probably would have by now, seeing some of the responses) but to stay instead and suck up all of the knowledge that it and its' members have to share. I can see where everyone's coming from though, as I'm passionate about my animals, but I think we forget that we might have all been in the same boat once...

[VI Reptiles]

Mom, dad paid the bill :D I gotta pay him back though.


Thanks

[brutus]

your moms on here too! Thats family support! hey VI, a little advice from me, research all you can, as you have been, but next time do it prior to getting an animal. Don't let all the negativity sway you. These people on here all have the animals best interest at heart, and as you can see some are very passionate and strong minded regarding proper husbandry. I myself am buying some female balls, but I won't take possession until I have all I need. I ordered my stuff throught the states, and it should be here soon.

Good luck

Mark

[VI Reptiles]

Its actually just my mom..... She doesnt mind reptiles, My dad doesnt mind reptiles but he doesnt want 50 reptiles........


VI Reptiles

[wizbit13]

Hey VI. This has probably been a long and hard few weeks for you, but im glad everything has been sorted out now, for your sake and the snakes. I can see why people are getting a little pissy around here with whats gone on but the snake is on route to a good recovery now, so lets give the lad a break and help him on his way to bringing up this snake and any others he might be getting in the future the best he can.

Regards

Adam

[HeatherRose]

My dad doesnt mind reptiles but he doesnt want 50 reptiles........

hehe...don't worry, I'm sure you can 'fix' him ;)

[tonyj]

Well done VI R Snr! I hope that 'Snakey' is now on his way to a full recovery. Good luck to you all.

I can't feel too sorry for you having to make a 2 hour drive anywhere on the Island though. We drive 14hrs just for the pleasure of doing that very thing.

Slannesh; Great well thought out replies! There really is an abundance of negativity on this site, with a little arrogance thrown in here and there. We really should remember where we all were when we started out, and who helped us out: and we don't need any kind of Nazi on this site.

Diplomacy: The art of telling someone to go to h*ll in such a way that they look forward to the journey.

[VI Reptiles]

you dont have to be sorry because for some reason it wasnt boring for me and I felt alot better after. Also the drive back it was snowing and we did a couple fish tails because of the ice but luckily my dads a good driver and he got us back on track :D


VI Reptiles

[BornboreD]

Regurgitation of the facts yes can be a good thing, but it's annoying to see someone do it when they themselves have not even followed their own advice, or had any success with it. For example, I reply to general husbandry questions that I can answer through my OWN EXPERIENCE, such as feeding, enclosures, heat/humidity levels, because these are things I know about. You will never see me, or have seen me give advice on breeding, or medical treatment due to the fact that I honestly don't have experience with either. Whenever I post advice I make sure to state that I'm not an expert, and that I'm only sharing what has worked for ME in the past. VI posts advice that he doesn't know about, have experience with, and in some cases had only been within 24 hours of receiving the advice himself.

Yes, I was that young before, and was much younger than that when I first got into herps, and yes I have made the odd mistake as well. The only two that really come to mind are; buying green anoles when I was 11 or so, from a chain pet store. Most people can probably guess what my experiences with that were........... The second being that when of my Tokays died unexplicably and unexpectedly, months after first getting it. I don't even know if that was a husbandry mistake or not due to the fact that my other Tokay that I got at the same time is still doing well. I suppose to was due to keeping both in the same enclosure, and not realizing at the time due to their age that may possibly have both been males. In fact whenever I think back to that, I believe that was probably the case.

VI was shown great respect by most members at first, but many people not just me quickly lost patience and respect for him and his plight. This is not a case of being mean to newbies either. If you read the forums, you'll see that 9 out of 10 newbies are treated well, and that I myself treat them that way, if the help relates to something that I have actual experience and success with.

I am glad they took the snake to the vet, and am glad that he says he's gonna stick with it. I wish him/his parents all the best of luck.

There are many members on this board that are close to that age, and all of them come across more mature/respectful, when giving and taking advice than VI has.

Perhaps I was abit cranky when I made my earlier posts. I will admit I could have been nicer, or worded it better but nevertheless that is how I feel, and will continue to feel that way.

Colin

[VI Reptiles]

VI posts advice that he doesn't know about, have experience with, and in some cases had only been within 24 hours of receiving the advice himself.

I leave a place for somone to correct me if I am wrong. I think a person would not be smart to go with one answer that says no or yes. I would want atleast 5 yes's before I go do anything.


VI Reptiles

[oliver]

YA VI REPTILES

[fErReTs]

Glad to hear that your sons snake is doing better . All that matters is that the snake is getting proper medical care and is on it way to recovery . Everyone makes mistakes and you learn from them . The past is the past and there is no going back in time to fix your mistakes , so think about the future and what you can do to avoid them . Good luck with Snakey and hope all goes well .