Best first snake

Steve, while I agree it makes a huge difference if a snake is feeding I still think a ball is a poor choice. Most people looking to get a snake want to handle it alot. Even an established feeding ball can have a world of problems. Even though it is established, when you buy it you take it out of its established environment and put it in a new setup, with most likely different humidity and temp levels(even if only a little bit off a snake will notice the difference. Then you start taking it out of its cage everyday and trying to feed it, good luck. Ball pythons stress over nothing, let alone all these changes. I have worked with 100's of different ball pythons, and have only ever seen two that ate every feeding day unless in shed. Most shut down for the winter, which freaks people out if they arent prepared for this. Yes corns would normally too, but if you dont drop the temp they will normally keep feeding, whereas a ball will do it without any temp change, and sometimes even before sexually mature. I have seen some captive bred balls, that still live in the same place that ate great for about 6 months, and are now 4 years old and still not over 1500 grams(females) because they will only eat a few times a year, and freak out if you try to feed them, let alone handle them. And these are captive bred animals that have never been moved out of the room they were born in!!!!! Just imagine if you changed their environment how much worse it could be. I know there are exceptions. From time to time a miracle happens and you can go out and get a ball and it feeds and doesnt stress, but thats not often in my experiance. All in all I think there are tons of snakes that make a much better first one than a ball. This is just my opinion, and I know there are many who will disagree, but this is based on years of experiance with this species, and these reasons are why I am not a big fan of BP's. Take care, Dan M.

I have to say, since a Ball Python was my first... well... python .. That BP's DO make good first snakes. You just have to understand their needs. and not stress if they don't eat. and not stress them out trying to GET them to eat. They will eat.... in their own time.

They do make good first snakes, but i would call them... an advanced beginner snake. because if you get them from the wrong people ( crappy breeders/wild caught/chain pets stores) they can be horrible pets to keep. Best to get them from someone who knows the species well, and works with all of their animals very often.

They're hardy snakes, and will do fine even if they miss a winters worth of meals. ( its not FUN, not technically good, but the snake rarely suffers any long term effects because of it) Again, Husbandry is key, and watching your snake and monitoring its weight is a great idea, and can tell you if your animal is losing weight because of not feeding. So long as it isn't substantial rapid losses of weight, they're fine.

They're kinda like Betta fish, leave em alone with all the stuff they need, and they're set. Mess with them(trying to get to eat when they don't want to) and change things around constantly and they're hard to get back on track.

BUT, thats not to say you cannot handle them and theyre no good for it.
when you have a very well tempered animal, they're wonderful to hold, and usually tolerate it pretty darn well.
of course there are always some animals who would just rather hide( weve all got some!), and those, are best left alone, but ive got a few critters here that seem to enjoy ( as much as a snake can) exploration, and a change of scenery.

They're a snake you need to go and check out. Visit the persons facility/home and play with the animals you're going to maybe take home. thats really the best way to determine which animal will be the one for you. if you don't like them in person, check out something else. There are so many different species of snake out there, and SO many different colors and temperaments, you're BOUND to find the snake that is 100% perfect for you.

ball pythons are great first snakes. it is what i chose to start with. they are very non-aggressive, feed very easy, and usually don't mind being handled. mine hate when i put them up. they are easy to care for and do not require a lot of work.

Is not a certain species IMO. It's a snake that you like enough that you will continue to care for it when it becomes 'boring'. Its the snake that you will do more then the minimum for and will go above and beyond to care for it and meets its needs.

Dan,

Good points and I do tend to agree with you. If people are open to suggestions I usually will try to steer them away from a ball as a first snake for the very reasons you point out. However, after a person has been educated about the downside and they still have their heart set on a BP for their first pet, I think that it is more important that they be sold a well established ball python rather than trying to talk them into something else.

My vote is corn snake. They're hardy, have easy requirements, stay relatively small, are tolerent of "beginner husbandry" and mistakes, readily eat, are very docile, affordable, and come in a zillion color and pattern mutations that there's pretty much something that would appeal to anyone.

^^Nothing can be said that tops that, so I'll leave it go.

I think red tailed boas, ball pythons and corn snakes are some of the best beginner snakes, it all depends on what you like really, big snake, small snake, best tempered snake, its just a personal preference.

I myself had a cornsnake first. I wish I had never gotten her. She is flightly and hates to be held. She is too quick and makes people around me like my spouse frighted. Balls are my second snake. They are calm..slow...and very entertaining. They at least are visible...my corn spends all day under the bedding. But yes....people need to do LOTS of research before buying any snakes.

Originally Posted by romad119

Is not a certain species IMO. It's a snake that you like enough that you will continue to care for it when it becomes 'boring'. Its the snake that you will do more then the minimum for and will go above and beyond to care for it and meets its needs.

I'd give you some karma for this statement if i could.

I voted corn snake, mainly for temperament, ease of husbandry etc. Plus there are lots of affordable morphs to choose from.