interesting situation

joe&beth · 09-01-03, 07:50 PM

Ok, this is the deal. In August of 02 my wife bought what she was told was a baby albino ball. However, after looking a lot of pictures of balls and then looking at pics of albino burmese we have all but decided what we have is a burm. Now the quandary we are in, we both like her temperment and predictability but............. neither one of us wants to work with a giant snake. (she has grown at least 12 - 18 inchs in the past year, currently 43")

We are debating about selling or trading her for something of a similar temperment that max's out around 10'. If I post some pics of her would ya'll be able to identify her? Also, being that it would appear the dealer got it wrong on the specis, odds are the sexing aint right either. Is sexing something we can do? (my wife is a vet tech) OR..... do we take her to the NCCVM? (where she works)

She eats well, appears both healthy and content and we want her to have a long, happy life but, just aren't ready for a 18' house pet. (hey Beth, wheres the dog?) Also, of we end up selling or trading her what are ya'lls recomendations in the 8-10 foot range with similar temperments?

One last question, at what size range do you graduate them from mice to rats?

Thanks,
Joe

ohh_kristina · 09-01-03, 08:06 PM

if you want a snake that is in the 8-10 foot range, get a colombian BCI. they are good snakes. I have a baby BCI

Bryce Masuk · 09-01-03, 08:12 PM

I can identify what you have Its a burm Because if you bought a ball you would be paying big bucks and wouldnt buy it as a pet they are investment snakes.
Doy uo know 100% what sex it is if they told you it was a female ball it could actually be a male albino burm they stay around 9-12 feet

Jeff_Favelle · 09-01-03, 09:19 PM

You seriously mixed up a $50 for a $5,000+ snake? Holy moly.

But yeah, if you weren't planning on the Burm, its going to be too much to handle. They get big and they get big fast. And if you aren't into big snakes, it will be no fun. Of course every reptile experience should be fun, so I'd either take it back (and slap the seller silly) or sell it and do some research into getting an animal that suits your needs/capabilities! Best of luck!

JF.

BurmBaroness · 09-02-03, 07:52 AM

If you in actuality bought a burm, it must have not eaten very much AT ALL if it only grew 12-18 inches in the last yr. I think that is almost unheard of. I got a neo burm in as a rescue, very sick with RI, which took several different antibiotics to cure, and months of treatment, who didn't eat but maybe 10 times the whole year, who managed to grow to 4ft. You need to post a pic, so we can see the snake in question. I can't imagine a burm not growing any more than that in the first yr, even if it was starved.

daver676 · 09-02-03, 09:40 AM

This wouldn't possibly be a hoax post, would it?

Dave

JasonBrennan · 09-02-03, 11:38 AM

Two things:
1. Post a pic. Balls and burms look nothing alike (VERY easy to tell apart).
2. Jeff, where are you seeing albino burms for $50????????? I know that they have come down in prices over the years, but the cheapest regular price I have seen is in the $100 - $125 range. Please tell us where all the $50 albino burms are hiding!!

Invictus · 09-02-03, 12:10 PM

A 43" 1-year old burm? I VERY highly doubt that. They are BORN around 24" if I'm not mistaken, and I've personally never heard of a 1 year old at less than 6 feet. (And I believe many people here have reported their yearling burms at over 10 feet, even for males.) But yes, please post a pic as most of the people here will be able to tell you inside of a microsecond what species it is.

joe&beth · 09-02-03, 12:12 PM

I can assure you this is not a hoax post. We are simply new snake owners that have a decision to make. I love my snake! I think it is the coolest (next to my horse) pet I own. It is very easy to deal with and docile enough that my 7 yr old daughter carries it around constantly. I admit...I was uninformed when I made the purchase and believed someone that I didn't know. I should have known better but had hoped the "professionals" would make a better representation (no insult intended toward anyone here).

My biggest inquiry is how to determine ball from burm. Is it the markings? From everything I've seen what I have is a burm. But for all I know there is more to it than just pattern. I plan to take it in to work and have it sexed. If it is a male, do they really max out around 9-12 ft.?

As for feeding, my snake has never missed a meal. I may have screwed up and not been feeding enough. When I realized that after one meal it was looking for another I bumped it to two and so on. All part of the learning process. Thankfully, my snake never got too thin, just a little hungry. I'm not really into powerfeeding anyway. It has actually grown closer to 2.5 ft than the number that was earlier posted. BTW, at 3.5 ft. is it time to move on to rats?

Thanks for any input,

Beth

JeffT · 09-02-03, 12:19 PM

Wow that sucks. Well how much did you pay for him/her? A burm is very cheap, 50-125 but an albino ball python is about $5000.
Do you have any pics of the snake?

BurmBaroness · 09-02-03, 01:59 PM

I still believe it is a ball, tho a pic would help. Burms and balls have totally different shaped heads, as well as markings. The idea of a burm only growing 2.5 ft in the first yr is still pretty ridiculous sounding to me(no offense), unless it was very sick/not eating. Burms with proper feeding grow 6-8 ft their first yr, with normal, NOT powerfeeding. Post a pic, we'll be able to tell right away what kind of snake you have.

BTW, if it IS a burm, and it's not been getting rats, it IS thin. And probably VERY hungry. Ball pythons are encouraged to take rat pups usually by the time they are big enough to eat an adult mouse, which is usually right from birth. A burm is usually started on rats right away.

Gareth · 09-02-03, 03:23 PM

wow sounds weard to me my dads ball python is 1 yr old (male) and is 39 inches and my 1 yr old Male burm is 106 inches must be a small burm or a good size yearling ball,

Wrath · 09-02-03, 04:15 PM

post pics for ID

Jeff_Favelle · 09-02-03, 04:27 PM

Quote:

2. Jeff, where are you seeing albino burms for $50????????? I know that they have come down in prices over the years, but the cheapest regular price I have seen is in the $100 - $125 range. Please tell us where all the $50 albino burms are hiding!!

Are you serious? I am seeing them for $50 CANADIAN now! That's like $35 US!! Check the queensnake.ca classifieds or the US python classifieds. They are everywhere.

matrix1829 · 09-02-03, 04:39 PM

are u sure it is a burm, she should of grown alot more than a foot in the pas year. in the first year it should have reached a good 6-7 feet long!!!!!!!