The effects of ball pythons on the reptile community

Originally Posted by klsl

I think there is alot of price gouging with the newer morphs and only your large breeders can afford them. Everyone goes wild over them for a while.... When prices do come down, like they have this past year,(Not on all morphs, but most.) Before long the new morph is not worth half of what you paid for it. Be prepared to spend some high bucks for a pet! I'm NOT a breeder. However, the ball python that I paid $2000.00 for last year, for a pet, is now selling for 1,000.00. That's ALOT of money I could have saved on my Albino Ball, who is a sweetheart!

Prices of things go down as they have been in the market longer. That is the same in the ball python market as anything else in the world. How much were plasma tvs when they came out? How much are they now?

Originally Posted by Bill & Amy

Prices of things go down as they have been in the market longer. That is the same in the ball python market as anything else in the world. How much were plasma tvs when they came out? How much are they now?

Aint that the truth Bill!! For those of us that remember when CD players first hit the market back in the early 80's, they were $800-$1000 each.

Personally Balls are not my thing but they are beautiful animals whether in their natural form or one of the many mutations we have created.
As for being a positive or negative on the industry/hobby; I see them as both.
Everyone has something special that will flick their switch and give them interest. For some new people that has been the Ball, others are always looking for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and they see the Ball as that pot of gold. The more interest in the hobby there is from all sides the better off we are.
On the negative side there are things like the bad rap Balls have gotten for feeding and health issues. As we get more into CB balls the eating issues seem to be fading though WCs are still keeping it going. The health issues on the other hand seem to go hand in hand with some of the genetic Ball morphs, I believe I read of Spider balls having some issue along these lines.
As for “Investment” and the “high dollar morphs” it is only a worthwhile investment if you get in at the beginning. After a few dozen people are producing any given morph the prices drop as supply rises and the demand drops. Eventually this cancels itself out regardless and you have snakes which once cost $15,000 costing $100. This too is both good and bad for the hobby. It inspires people to try and eventually weeds out those who were just in it for the bucks.
Over all I think BPs have and end neutral effect on the hobby as a whole since like all things they have both their good and bad points.


John E Dove

I would like to add one more thing to this post since it keeps coming back from the dead.

A lot more has changed in the "age of the ball python" than just the proliferation of ball python morphs. The internet has become a huge part in the changing of the reptile keeping hobby in the past decade. In my mind the original question could also be posed as "how has the age of the internet changed the reptile hobby?". Yes, it has introduced more people to the hobby, but how many are actually keeping responsibly? In an age where people want things faster and faster, how many "internet experts" do we see go from getting their first "pet" to being "breeders" in a few months time? How many of these people will still be keeping reptiles 20 years from now? Additionally how many of these new breeders want to breed their snakes for a hobby, and how many think they need to in order to fit in with, or show off to, their internet buddies?

I see way to many people get acquisition fever and end up getting more reptiles that they know how to care for. Collection should be built up slowly over time as the keeper becomes more adept at keeping reptiles. Yes keeping reptiles can be a lot of fun, but for a newer keeper too many animals will turn into work, and can kill your "passion" (man I hate that word) faster than anything else.

Almost all the changes I have seen in the last 10 years or so have been negative. Increased regulations, increased numbers of unwanted reptiles, and so on and so on...Yes it is nice that reptiles are more main stream. But if the newer keepers are not responsible, we will continue to see more and more regulations until it is nearly impossible to keep reptiles.

I guess I just miss when keeping reptiles was something the weird kid down the street did. Before it was an industry, when it was more about discovery than equity.

Here's a different angle. I see the Ball Python craze as the greatest risk to our hobby ever. Consider the following:

1. When Kathy Lee Gifford's clothing line was exposed for ties to child labor
2. When the Chicago meat processing facilities where exposed and the effect on the Beef Industry. Some people thought that veal was an animal.
3. The recent Veterans Administration scandal's effect on the Bush administration

What were to happen if the press covered the plight of the imported baby ball python on it life in Ghana, through its trip to the US and finally its death at the hands of an inexperienced keeper?

Anyone remember the four phases of exotic pet keeping? I think that it appeared in Reptiles magazine or a similar publication.

Sometimes, having a species too accessible to the pet trade isn't a good thing.

Mitch

Originally Posted by shrap

Those sound like reasons to not like humans to me.

And humans never were one of my favorite species......

Originally Posted by Behmfamily

Here's a different angle. I see the Ball Python craze as the greatest risk to our hobby ever. Consider the following:

1. When Kathy Lee Gifford's clothing line was exposed for ties to child labor
2. When the Chicago meat processing facilities where exposed and the effect on the Beef Industry. Some people thought that veal was an animal.
3. The recent Veterans Administration scandal's effect on the Bush administration

What were to happen if the press covered the plight of the imported baby ball python on it life in Ghana, through its trip to the US and finally its death at the hands of an inexperienced keeper?

Anyone remember the four phases of exotic pet keeping? I think that it appeared in Reptiles magazine or a similar publication.

Sometimes, having a species too accessible to the pet trade isn't a good thing.

Mitch

That made no sence whatsoever to me.

Originally Posted by IloveSnakes1234

That made no sence whatsoever to me.

He's just saying that once something gets really big it tends to attract a lot of attention. And that this attention is almost never a good thing.

Originally Posted by garweft

He's just saying that once something gets really big it tends to attract a lot of attention. And that this attention is almost never a good thing.

Thank you.

Having worked at a shop that specializes in herps for over a year, and being at/working at many shows I have had a good deal of real life exposure to the problems with ball pythons. My main worry is neglect. Now people who will neglect an animal will do it no matter what, but ball pythons are these beautiful, well tempered, low priced, decent sized snakes that people buy just for the hell of it. They are sort of like anoles, in that at most pet stores the "bad crowd" is attracted to these inexpensive animals which are thoroughly starved, torn up from leaving live feeders in cages, and just generally messed up and then they get dumped off on pet stores and rescues who didn't sell these assholes an animal in the first place. So whether that is more of a rant against people who sell animals just looking to make a buck, or towards an animal that cant help how cool it is, I don't know. But i would have to say that ball pythons have had a negative impact on the herp community.

Originally Posted by kepster57

Having worked at a shop that specializes in herps for over a year, and being at/working at many shows I have had a good deal of real life exposure to the problems with ball pythons. My main worry is neglect. Now people who will neglect an animal will do it no matter what, but ball pythons are these beautiful, well tempered, low priced, decent sized snakes that people buy just for the hell of it. They are sort of like anoles, in that at most pet stores the "bad crowd" is attracted to these inexpensive animals which are thoroughly starved, torn up from leaving live feeders in cages, and just generally messed up and then they get dumped off on pet stores and rescues who didn't sell these assholes an animal in the first place. So whether that is more of a rant against people who sell animals just looking to make a buck, or towards an animal that cant help how cool it is, I don't know. But i would have to say that ball pythons have had a negative impact on the herp community.

personally, with what you have said here, it sounds more like Bad keepers/store owners have had a worse effect on ball pythons in the herp community, than the actual animals themselves.
No offense of course, but.... your statement dosnt really state why ball pythons have been negative. at least, not from the point of view i see it at. ^_-