my new GIANT albino burmese python!!!!!

[Stefan-A]

Okay, so how much of that was intended to be taken seriously? I don't want to get preachy, unless it's absolutely necessary.

[brandon0133]

what are u refering to?

[Stefan-A]

Well, it'll probably reach about 3 meters within a year and a half, the garage better be properly insulated because the draft will kill it, the snake will end up weighing as much as a full-grown man, you can't count on it being co-operative despite it being managable now (just wait till it's 3.5 meters and hungry) and I can't think of any good reason to want it to take live food instead of f/t. And just planning to sell it or give it away when it gets too big is just irresponsible.

This is what I meant about getting preachy, but I don't mean to provoke you.

[drache]

better you than me, Stefan
I have this unpleasant tone of accusatory hysteria that creeps in with my preachiness
that's why I try to restrain myself and leave the preaching to more reasonable individuals with some modicum of emotional restraint
that being said - I totally agree with Stefan, Brandon
the only thing I cannot refrain from adding is that I am amazed at the casualness with which you acquire and "get rid of" snakes

[Lori P]

Thank you Rhea and Stefan. Holding my tongue now.

[Lulu Bennett]

Well, it'll probably reach about 3 meters within a year and a half, the garage better be properly insulated because the draft will kill it, the snake will end up weighing as much as a full-grown man, you can't count on it being co-operative despite it being managable now (just wait till it's 3.5 meters and hungry) and I can't think of any good reason to want it to take live food instead of f/t. And just planning to sell it or give it away when it gets too big is just irresponsible.

This is what I meant about getting preachy, but I don't mean to provoke you.

Im sorry Brandon, but i agree with Stefan. why on earth would you want your snake, who will be rediculessly large in a year or two, to start eating live food. i will just start thinking anything that moves is food! and god forbid a young child tries to cuddle it!
As for the size. Should that not be something you thought about before you bought him. Stefan hit the nail on the head, it will be 100% irresponsible if you plan on getting rid just because you didn't think of the size before you bought it.
I have just had to adopt a boa because a 15yr old didn't think about what he was getting himself into.he just saw it as being a big snake and it getting him the popularity status. the poor snake hadn't eaten in ages. see this is why i am not chuffed when i hear about these stories.

i am sorry brandon but just take time out and try thinking about what you are planning on doing.
Lori, sorry but i am not the type to keep my mouth shut with something i am so passionate about.

P.s brandon please dont think i am having a personal attack at you. i am also p***ed off at the store for not checking any knowlege of the buyer and also about the people that do NOT consider the welfair of the animal in question.

[anji1971]

Brandon, I just replied to one of your other threads about this matter, so I won't repeat myself. Just suffice it to say that people are VERY concerned about all this!

[RZL36]

I know what it is to not be able to control my snake buying tendencies. I know what you are going through. The best thing to do is limit the buying to colubrids and reading as much as I possibly can about them beforehand. Boids and pythons are just too hard to maintain (and boring really). I'm not gonna give you **** for buying snakes, but keep in mind that burmese pythons eat like an alligator and sometimes just eat the alligators. They also have a reputation of being entirely unpredictable, but it's a free country and you can keep what you want most of the time. If you think that is giant, you ain't seen nothing yet. I would take it back or sell it.

[brandon0133]

ok heres what happened,,i used to have albino when i was a kid,,it got about 6ft and my mother made me give it away,,scared her,,,anyways this lady wrote me on craigslist and said she had two snakes that she needed to get rid of,,,she said one was sick and she did not have the money to care for it,,,and the other was a really nice 4 ft ball,,,,so i really wanted the ball and seeing the sick albino i had to take it home,,she said i had 2 hrs to come get them both or someone else would. now i know i have the money to care for the snakes so i decided to get it,,i did not know they grew 25ft long,,lol,,,i knew they got big but not that big,,,so yeah i jumped the gun. but dont sit there and think im just going to let it go in the back yard or something, whatever i do decide to do with my snakes will be a responsible decission. im taking the snake to the vet soon which will not be cheap and alot of people cant afford so maybe this snake would have died if i was not here to care for it. now i know im not the most knowledgeable about these kinds of snakes. that's why im asking everyone. i like the snake and would like to keep it but how many people can keep a snake over 14ft long? and as for live food i just thought it was more interesting to see it eat something live, i did not think about it wanting to attack anyone that moves,,which thanks for that advice and i now see why i should not do that.

[Cazador]

Hi Brandon,

I can see that people are concerned for your safety and the welfare of the snake, but for many people, this is an example of what's wrong with the pet trade industry. Here's a typical scenario: Somebody digs a gravid female out of a burrow (or raids her nest), and the babies arrive. Then an importer in the U.S. imports a few hundred of them to make an easy profit. When they arrive, they're dehydrated, malnourished, and often filled with exotic parasites. A pet store owner gets a "good deal" on the price if he buys 20 Burmese pythons at a time. Of course, he's able to make a good profit and pass along some of the savings to the customer when they see those cute little 1.5' long pythons. They have no idea how long they'll live or how large they'll grow, but he buys them anyway. After a few years, the owner finds out what the future holds, so he/she loses interest and stops caring for it. The next thing you know, he/she is trying to give the python away to somebody else who doesn't realize what's in store for them. Only now, the he/she is doing something much worse. Not only has he/she stopped caring for their giant snake, but they're passing off a large and potentially dangerous creature to the first person that shows interest, regardless of their ability to care for it (or protect themselves from it) in the years to come. Ultimately, this snake has to be euthanized (or passed to someone else) because it becomes too large and difficult to manage by one person.

Obviously, this scenario isn't the only possibility, but when people hear this type of account over and over, it makes a bad impression. People see the irresponsibility of others in the reptile trade industry, and fear for the safety of those they know (like you), fear for the welfare of the snake (which never should have been imported in the first place), and detest when they see one reptile owner taking advantage of another (as in the way you came to own that snake... how the lady said you only have hours to act, without caring if you had enough knowledge about pythons to provide adequate care).

I followed the link that Reed provided and then followed another link from there to read about a 15 year old Colorado male who was killed by a long-term, pet python of similar size to yours. I recommend that you read it, Brandon. If for no other reason, it will help you understand how powerful and dangerous these snakes are, and it will help you understand why your friends here, are concerned. It's not for the soft of heart, though.

Rick
The Keeping of Large Pythons