new bp owner

dylanb · 08-29-03, 10:43 AM

Hi everyone,
I just purchused a beautiful captive born juvenile (2-4 months) ball python. Unfortunatley my only option was to get him from a pet store. He looks really healthy, has striking colors, and ate at the store before I bought him. Here's the problem. He was being housed in a 20 gallon tank with dirt substrate, a tiny water bowl, 2 additional juvenile ball pythons and 4 other hatchling columbian boas. Like I said he looks healthy but I am worried about his past and some of the nightmare ball pythons I have heard about. So could some experienced bp owners tell me if this seems ok. And I would also like to know if you guy's have had lots of trouble with your bp. sorry for the long post I want the best for my bp. I greatly apperciate your time. One more thing I have had him for 24 hours and he has be exploring his cage the entire time. I have never had a snake do this. Thanks again.

Dylan B

Big Mike · 08-29-03, 12:00 PM

Take it to a vet, get a fecal sample (poop) and take that with you for testing. I'd say there is a good chance that it would have some parasites of some kind.

Getting a snake from that pet store was not your only option. Most reputable breeders will send snakes. It's also a case of you-get-what-you-pay-for. A captive bred & born snake will cost more than an import or captive hatched...unless you really got ripped off by the pet store. You might have paid less at the pet store but you will have vet bills to make sure that the snake is healthy.

Well now that you have him, lets make sure you are taking good care of him.

Tell us about your set up; size, type of heating and temperatures, substrate etc.

snakehunter · 08-29-03, 03:30 PM

when i brought my two home they roamed for a long time, and then hid all day, and came out at night the next few days

mykee · 08-29-03, 09:44 PM

DO NOT take your snake to a vet, most vets are USELESS when it comes to exotics, and reptiles specifically. What you should do is go to a vet and ask if they do fecals for reptiles. If the answer is yes, ask for a bottle that you can bring home and collect a poop sample to bring in for analysis.($34 at my vet). IF the analysis comes back positive for a parasite, then LOOK HARD for an exotics vet. Even then, ask around, as most vets, again, know next to nothing about snakes. I wouldn't worry too much, unless he is losing weight, while still eating, he's probably fine.

killaclown · 08-29-03, 10:30 PM

yea hes right but you have to be real close to your pet store , I trust mine for quality food but i dont buy pets from there.Oh S!@#
did you buy from petco? If you did you got ripped and take that mite infested WC back.!!!

sapphire_moon · 08-29-03, 11:06 PM

Killaclown.......we all know that your gonna get yelled at for mentioning a pet store's name badly.......but you are right, they suck for animals in fact I went there tonight and had to rant about it.....in this thread.....

http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/showt...threadid=24062
And sadly enough killaclown, they aren't WC....I actually contacted the people that breed the BP's for MOST of the P. CO petstores, and they are just bad breeders

He is right, take it back get your money back, and find a good breeder, there are plenty of good breeders right here in these forums that you can talk to....And I'm sure they would be happy to ship to you..

lilyskip · 08-31-03, 11:22 PM

okay, here's the thing. I know that mykee says not to go to a vet, but IMO it's really important that you find a good reptile vet and take your snake in for a checkup. The vet research really should have been done beforehand, esp. since wyoming might not have too many exotics vets. If you can find one, it's a good idea to go in and have the snake examined, and BRING A FECAL. People who buy dogs and cats bring them in for checkups (it's pretty common), and snakes and other exotics should be the same way.

You shouldn't have any problems if it's healthy, so you need to get it checked out. Not to mention if you don't, and it *is* healthy, and doesn't eat for whatever reason, you will freak out wondering if it's sick. Do it for the snake's health and for your peace of mind.

Just because it's from a pet store, it doesn't mean it's going to be an unhealthy snake...if you checked it closely, it could be just fine. But please take it to a vet, just to make sure!!

mykee · 09-02-03, 02:05 AM

Lilyskip, I understand what you are saying, and in a perfect world, I would agree with you. Bring your snake to a vet, he will get the help that he needs, and all is back to normal. This is not a perfect world. Fact is that MOST vets, know next to nothing about reptiles in general, and might possibly HARM the snake, rather than help it. Case in point, I brought one of my balls to the et some time ago, (first and ONLY time). Turned out to be a VERY MILD case of scale rot on his belly ( no thanks to my 'vet'). The vet told me that he had a systemic infection, proceeded to inject him with a B Complex shot, and to FORCE FEED HIM THROUGH A TUBE!!! STUPID!!!! Because of this little fiasco, he refused to eat for 4 months after this appt. I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND NOT taking a snake to a vet, unless you have heard good things about them from a fellow herper. Bring in a stool sample, do not let the vet examine your snake until the sample has come back positive for a parasite. Just my opinion, and I'm sure that many, many people on this site will agree.