hey all!

[Grizla]

so i'm going to a reptile expo to next saturday to pick out a snake and i am just super jazzed about it! at this point all my friends and family are a little worn out and i've watched roughly 20 hours of reptile vids on youtube and given my parent's king snake viv a deep clean, so i thought i'd join a forum and chat at you guys. i'm hoping for EITHER a high white king snake with interesting spotting or a coral ghost corn. i do have a larger tank i could set up for a bull snake (love their chunky heads!) but i'd need to talk to someone who owns some and maybe handle a few before i'd be sure if i wanted a bull snake- (some very conflicting reports on temperament/smell/size). one thing that i'm a little nerverse about is i have no idea how much any of these snakes cost. i understand each breeder has different conditions and overheads, but it does make it hard to plan- can anyone offer me a rough guesstimate? like, is a spotty high white king more or less than $200?

[jay's reptiles]

Hatchlings go for about 99$. Sometimes more.

[EL Ziggy]

Welcome and best wishes Griz. I've kept kings and bulls and they're both awesome snakes. Bulls do get quite a bit larger though. I haven't done too well at finding the animals I've wanted at expos but you should be able to get a really nice king, corn, or bull for $200.

[Grizla]

Originally Posted by jay's reptiles

Hatchlings go for about 99$. Sometimes more.

thank you! i've budgeted to spend about $100-$150 on the animal itself, so it's reassuring to hear i'm not living a total fantasy!

[Grizla]

Originally Posted by EL Ziggy

Welcome and best wishes Griz. I've kept kings and bulls and they're both awesome snakes. Bulls do get quite a bit larger though. I haven't done too well at finding the animals I've wanted at expos but you should be able to get a really nice king, corn, or bull for $200.

the larger size is one of the things i like about bull snakes- big enough to be cool, but still a low fuss colubrid. one of the snake options i'm looking at is a corn with a lot of pink showing (like a coral ghost) and there are enough morphs with pink expression that (fingers crossed!) there ought to be something at the expo. we get the expo over at the raceway 3 times a year- if they don't have what im looking for this time, i'll try to be strong and wait 'till the next time!

[EL Ziggy]

Griz- I love my bull snakes. You're right about the being low fuss critters too. They're super easy to care for like most colubrids. My female is a little over 7ft and about as thick around as my wrist. My male is 6ft but not quite as girthy. If they don't have what you're looking for at the expo you can always find some really good breeders online.

[Grizla]

Originally Posted by EL Ziggy

you can always find some really good breeders online.

i know logically that people ship reptiles (and fish!) though the mail every day and it's not a big deal, and almost always ok, but my less logical side thinks it seems so risky! if i can't find what i'm looking for i might be frustrated enough to go for it, but i'm not there yet :P

your bull snakes sound wonderful! most of my hesitation is because i've never met or handled a bull snake, i've only seen pics and videos- if im lucky maybe a breeder will have an adult at the expo, for a first hand impression.

[Grizla]

back from my shopping spree! there was a beautiful spotty California king, but it was hypo for a few extra genes which drove the price up- there were a few perfectly nice (and cheap) ghost corals, but right next to them was an amazing bright sunrise rat snake! i didn't even know those were a thing! got a really cool looking snake- and he's from last year, so he's well started too! i'll post a pic as soon as i figure out how!

[cmyinstl]

Congrats! Looking forward to pics!

[Scubadiver59]

Heck, you just reminded me that I missed the reptile show at Richmond Raceway (VA)...now I'm upset!!!

Glad you got a new friend though!

EDIT: Well, there is the All MD Show on 4/8 ... but to drive through Baltimore? I wonder if I can borrow Trump's bullet-proof limo...???

Originally Posted by Grizla

back from my shopping spree! there was a beautiful spotty California king, but it was hypo for a few extra genes which drove the price up- there were a few perfectly nice (and cheap) ghost corals, but right next to them was an amazing bright sunrise rat snake! i didn't even know those were a thing! got a really cool looking snake- and he's from last year, so he's well started too! i'll post a pic as soon as i figure out how!

[Grizla]

http://i.imgur.com/zcwUJPS.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/6WAN8rI.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/ohrP3qJ.jpg

still haven't figured out hoe to resize pics, lets see if these links work!

[EL Ziggy]

Congrats on the very nice rat snake Griz! Another beautiful colubrid. I haven't seen the sunrise morph before. I'm looking forward to seeing his progression.

[Grizla]

Originally Posted by EL Ziggy

Congrats on the very nice rat snake Griz! Another beautiful colubrid. I haven't seen the sunrise morph before. I'm looking forward to seeing his progression.

thank you! he's got some very light checkers on his dorsal scales, they look like they're made up of tiny red freckles, im interested to see if they darken!

[Grizla]

Originally Posted by Scubadiver59

Heck, you just reminded me that I missed the reptile show at Richmond Raceway (VA)...now I'm upset!!!

Glad you got a new friend though!

EDIT: Well, there is the All MD Show on 4/8 ... but to drive through Baltimore? I wonder if I can borrow Trump's bullet-proof limo...???

there were some venders at the raceway that had neat looking critters, but it wasn't very big, and every(snake) vender i talked to said they were almost out of stock- unless you wanted a BP or a gecko you'd probably have better luck at the july show. i know i'll be there, looking for just the right king snake!