• Responding to email notices you receive.
    **************************************************
    In short, DON'T! Email notices are to ONLY alert you of a reply to your private message or your ad on this site. Replying to the email just wastes your time as it goes NOWHERE, and probably pisses off the person you thought you replied to when they think you just ignored them. So instead of complaining to me about your messages not being replied to from this site via email, please READ that email notice that plainly states what you need to do in order to reply to who you are trying to converse with.

  • IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ!! About the Google Adsense ads being displayed

    =====================
    Posted 08/15/2025
    =====================


    Yeah, I know. They are a pain in the butt. But they pay the bills to keep my server running. Just a fact of life, I am afraid.

    Want to get rid of them? Simple. Just become a Contributor level member or above and they will be gone. -> Please click HERE."

    Is that too much for me to ask of you to keep this site running? Well, sorry about that. I too wish I could get everything for free. But alas.....

    =====================
    Addendum: 01/10/2026
    =====================


    Google Adsense ad revenue for December, 2025 was just $30 over the cost of the lease for the server running this site. So, in effect, the money providing the incentive for me to continue running this site is coming SOLELY from the paid memberships and sponsorships here. Which honestly ain't much....

I think I want a BIG snake...

RobNJ

RobNJ

New member
Joined
Nov 2, 2010
Messages
871
Reaction score
76
Points
0
Age
46
Location
Allamuchy, NJ
So I love all snakes, am mostly into ball pythons, but am truly fascinated by HUGE snakes. I have a 9 foot female red tail and she's a good 40+ pounds, but I am more and more wanting to get a bigger snake. Of course I'll pick one up as a baby and raise it on my own.

I guess I'm looking for advice on how to prepare for this...feeding, upgrades in caging, suitable habitat, etc...aren't an issue. Would it be a good idea for me to try to hook up with someone local with BIG snakes to get a feel for the handling of them?

Also, what are the pros and cons of owning such a large animal? And what are the pros and cons of particular species...retics, burms, rocks, amethystines?
 
youre gonna get a thousand different opinions and thoughts on this subject.

in my opinion, as long as you are on your own, know you will be dedicated to this animal for 20-30 years, provide it a close to perfect as possible microenvironment, always have regular availability to food (particularly big prey items later in life), you buy cbb, you buy a baby, buy from a very reputable breeder directly, and handle frequently, any snake is fine, be it a corn snake, ball python, or retic.
 
Thanks Ryan! I will definitely spend a lot of time researching before I commit to anything. And I definitely will not be looking for any $50 albino burm on Craigslist...an experienced, reputable dealer is the only way to go for me.
 
Helenthereef said:
Common advice I've come across is to only have BIG snakes if you will normally have more than one person around during handling.... just in case.....
Click to expand...

:iagree:
this is the main reason I will never own one.

great thread! I'm looking forward to more responses!
 
Helenthereef said:
Common advice I've come across is to only have BIG snakes if you will normally have more than one person around during handling.... just in case.....
Click to expand...

That is for sure...I think of all things, that is one of the easier ones for me to cover.

AbsoluteApril said:
:iagree:
this is the main reason I will never own one.

great thread! I'm looking forward to more responses!
Click to expand...

Me too! Any advice/info to come along would be so valuable to me.
 
one tip I heard from some retic keepers years ago was having a feeding door/slot on the side of the cage separate from the opening of the cage; then drop the f/t prey in through the side that way it really helps them learn not to associate you with food.

I always like retics. I've heard they show the most intelligence out of all non-venomous snakes.
 
I have all small snakes right now.....most of my snakes are under a year old. Brazilian Rainbow and all Ijs and jcps.....I own two 4 foot jcps.....the other day i ordered a Male JCP.....around 6 foot, abit longer and a heavy weight. I see some of these 10 plus footers and im awe stricken. Theres some big boy owners on here....they will surely help you...good luck. But im with April. If i need 2 people just in case? Definitely not for me.
 
AbsoluteApril said:
one tip I heard from some retic keepers years ago was having a feeding door/slot on the side of the cage separate from the opening of the cage; then drop the f/t prey in through the side that way it really helps them learn not to associate you with food.
.
Click to expand...

I'm sure it's an urban myth, but too many times have I heard the one about the guy who walks in to his retic's room holding a rabbit and ends up with the snake attached to his own head..... :rofl:

So I'm SURE that the feeding slot is a minimum requirement!
 
Retics are my true passion. Like Ryan said your going to get 1000 different opinions on this. Mine is as long as you are a responsible/knowledgeable keeper, then you will have know problem keeping a large snake. Hook training is a necessary safety precaution. No need to have a feed door. They are just an overall great snake to have.
 
Also I wanted to add...if you buy a cage with a center divider then you wouldnt need someone there everytime you clean. Just slide the divider in and your on one side and the snake is on the other.
 
Just curious, which one or ones do you like better? Or are you just browsing to see what catches your eyes more. Good luck with whichever you decide to get.
 
I'm just browsing for now and doing my research...I'm not in a big rush to do this. I'm not too familiar with all the names of morphs, but some retics are gorgeous, others I'm not too crazy about. I like normal and albino burms a lot. Anacondas are a big no-no in Jersey, so that settles that. And I really do love the look of amethystines.
 
Tigers and supertigers man.....beautiful retics. I had a bad experience with a big snake once man...scarred me for life i think. African rock python....this brotha was HUGE...im gonna say 10-12 ft. Body like a muscle on steroids. My boy wanted to play a BAD BAD trick on me. He was in an enclosure...and handled him with these hooks. Put him on the floor this thing snapped at me.....thats fine but this thing came at me again...flinging himself at me....again and again man...i screamed like a little girl and RAN. Finally as we got him under control that peice of.......BLEW his bowels all over me. I know african rocks are nasty ill tempered but...big snake like that get a hold of me? wooooow. I believe thats when my dislike of big snakes settled in. He finally turned the snake in to some wildlife cop from upstate ny.....
 
Well your friends an idiot for playing any kind of trick with any reptile. The rock became defensive when he was put on the floor. That could have ended very bad... I'm glad he turned it in because obviously he's not a responsible keeper.
 
Twisted sense of humor....Very twisted sense of humor. So lets talk about them tigers and SUPER tigers. Those are PRIME retics man IMO. And even the one on your Profile pic. Beautiful animal. Again...i would love to get into retics but...I enjoy the size of a carpet or IJ. I feel comfortable with them. The newest one i got now im getting more used it. Love the power he got on him. Curious fellow though. He dont like just chillin wrapped around me like the female. The female first does some squirming but she relaxes over my shoulders and watches TV with me.
 
Big snakes are cool but the novelty wears off quick.I have a 20ft tiger that is a joy to work with but a chore with cage cleaning just because of the size.I have a 14ft rock that I take out with my stepson.She is not mean,just big.She will get aggressive outside in the yard.My solution...I don't take her outside.All snakes require attention but BIG ones require more.(and food...big rabbit in...big pooh out:ack2:)2 people is always the rule(if not more)If it tickles your fancy,I say go for it.Just take precautions and have a mind set for the long haul.As in "Will I be able to keep a snake that is gonna get huge?"It's not as easy as it sounds.
Not trying to discourage you,but it is a commitment.
 
Would like to add one more thing.....BIG snakes are like a marriage......easy to get into...hard to get out of.:D
 
Back
Top