You know... I am thinking...

[Ophiuchus]

I think Royal Pythons make great pets but they live very long...

Is that a bad thing? More for your money, man!

 

[Danyal]

yes and no, if the snake dies after five years then it's due to owner negligence yet alot of begginers would consider it to be an old snake but if the snake lives for 20yrs+ it could become rather boring to the owner leading to negligence, sad but it does happen.

 

[Ophiuchus]

if the snake lives for 20yrs+ it could become rather boring to the owner leading to negligence, sad but it does happen.

That also can be chalked that up to the owner's poor researching, since the longevity of BPs is pretty common knowledge, and someone should take that into consideration before getting one.

 

[TheBloodyIrish]

Almost every snakes out there, even lizards live for a long time. The same apply for fish. If someone want a short-lived pet, they should go with an insect or a rodent with a short life-cycle. And no, rabbits don't count. I got a drawf rabbit living in my basement that is about 20 years old now and still going without any pain or health problems.

Sure some animals die in captivity really easily, but if they are taken good care... they should be able to live 15+ years.

 

[Brooklynella]

Why so many people recommends Ball Pythons as beginner snakes if most of the beginners are not experienced enough to deal with the nature of Ball Pythons? Is it because it is cheap?

I was thinking about this while I ran into many caresheets recommending anoles, iguanas and so on as beginner lizards. I find that anoles are not beginner pets, but rather "disposable" pets under the mindset of many people if you pardon the choice of word.

I know cornsnakes are excellent beginners, I never had problem with them.

Why do think Ball Pythons are NOT a good beginner snake?
For that matter, what makes a Corn Snake a good beginner?

 

[TheBloodyIrish]

Why do think Ball Pythons are NOT a good beginner snake?

For that matter, what makes a Corn Snake a good beginner?

Corn snakes are easy to obtain, making it more accessible. They are relatively docile, even if it is a wild one; although most of them are captive-bred. I find that when people talk about them being nippy, they are usually referring to the rat snake hybrids or the mislabelled king snake and milk snakes. They are extremely adaptable to the variety of microclimates; thus more hardy, unlike some reptiles where you have to replicate their microclimate closely.

I would actually suggest a Children's Python over Ball Python from personal experience. They are similar to corn snakes and fairly hardy. Ball Pythons are good beginner snakes, but they shouldn't be recommended as someone's first snake, more like a second or third, UNLESS they really want to keep a Ball Python. Most beginners, although they got the textbook smart, that I have met are not prepared to deal with the random fastinings. Knowing about it and having it happened to you are two different things.

I would actually rank in no order it as this way in my opinion:

Novice:
- Corn Snake
- Children's Python
Beginner:
- Milk Snake and some species of King Snakes
- Ball Python
Intermeditate:
- King Snake
- Carpet Python

I only threw in the Carpet Python since people bring them up when they are talking about Children's Python.

 

[Brooklynella]

Corn snakes are easy to obtain, making it more accessible. They are relatively docile, even if it is a wild one; although most of them are captive-bred. I find that when people talk about them being nippy, they are usually referring to the rat snake hybrids or the mislabelled king snake and milk snakes. They are extremely adaptable to the variety of microclimates; thus more hardy, unlike some reptiles where you have to replicate their microclimate closely.

I would actually suggest a Children's Python over Ball Python from personal experience. They are similar to corn snakes and fairly hardy. Ball Pythons are good beginner snakes, but they shouldn't be recommended as someone's first snake, more like a second or third, UNLESS they really want to keep a Ball Python. Most beginners, although they got the textbook smart, that I have met are not prepared to deal with the random fastinings. Knowing about it and having it happened to you are two different things.

I would actually rank in no order it as this way in my opinion:

Novice:
- Corn Snake
- Children's Python
Beginner:
- Milk Snake and some species of King Snakes
- Ball Python
Intermeditate:
- King Snake
- Carpet Python

I only threw in the Carpet Python since people bring them up when they are talking about Children's Python.

Sorry, i'm a bit confused. You haven't explained why Ball's aren't a good novice snake, now you've put them even further down the list.
Why aren't Ball Pythons a good novice snake??

Children's Pythons may be great snakes. I wouldn't know because i've never seen one. I've seen thousands of Ball Pythons though; pretty much every pet shop has one, so I wouldn't recommend that someone pass up owning a Ball to look for a Children's they may never find.
Lastly, Is it better for a novice to buy a Corn snake that may be nippy? I mean, I think it's a bit much to expect a newb to figure out if a particular snake is a hybrid or not, no?

IMO, Ball Pythons are among the best choice for a novice snake keeper, along with several king snakes too (Florida and Cali in particular).

 

[TheBloodyIrish]

Sorry, i'm a bit confused. You haven't explained why Ball's aren't a good novice snake, now you've put them even further down the list.
Why aren't Ball Pythons a good novice snake??

I didn't put them further down the list.


1) I gauge where a pet is meant to be novice or not by how many times people complain about it. Every week, I had to deal with abandoned Ball Pythons at a reptile rescue centre ran by an old friend of mine a few years ago. Most owners abandoned them because they can't get them to eat. And surprisely most of the owners already know that they fast, just that they are too anxious to wait for it to end. Not to mention most of the Ball Python forums are littered with "HELP! I am worried about it fasting, it already been 4 months!" or "HELP! I can't get it to eat!"

It is one thing to abandon your pet because you can no longer take care of it because of relationship issues or moving, but it is another if you end up abandoning it because you were not prepare to deal with its needs.

2) Not to mention the majority of Ball Pythons in petstores, where most novice snake keepers get their Ball Pythons from are either wild-caught, long-term capivity or farmed. A corn snake is less likely to be wild-caught, and even then they are really docile when wild-caught and easy to convert.

3) Even the captive-bred ones in stores are often live-fed. A Ball Python is difficult to convert to a different diet. I would have to say, that based on personal experience and observation, about roughly 30% or 40% of the live-fed simply refuse to convert to f/t mice. Now if you're a novice, would you be wanting to spend months trying to convert it? No, unless you're really dedicated to it.

A good novice pet is one that is compitable with human nature. Humans like having redimentary schedule, so find a snake that doesn't fast.

Children's Pythons may be great snakes. I wouldn't know because i've never seen one. I've seen thousands of Ball Pythons though; pretty much every pet shop has one, so I wouldn't recommend that someone pass up owning a Ball to look for a Children's they may never find.

Just because a reptile is common doesn't means it is a good beginner. Tell that to all the experienced Tokay gecko owners. They will just laugh. I have never seen a Blue-Tongued Skink in a pet store before, but I would recommend them as a novice lizard along with house or leopard geckos, even though it may cost an arm and a leg to get them in your area.

Besides if you want a good quality reptile at an affordable price -- go to a local or nearby reptile show.

Lastly, Is it better for a novice to buy a Corn snake that may be nippy? I mean, I think it's a bit much to expect a newb to figure out if a particular snake is a hybrid or not, no?

I am just negatating all the myths about aggressive corn snakes. A lot of people complain about them, but when they post a picture of it -- oftentimes the morphs of the agressive ones are a result hybridization with a different species of rat snake. Albeit it not their fault since those hybrids are rare and expensive, but once in awhile you get an idiot that can't identify the morph and sell them as a normal corn snake to unsuspecting buyers and end up in the wrong hands.