BTW I love your little signature quote



I think it would be awesome if we could put together a pedigree program for BPs... but I think that we are probably many years away from that.



Apparently there is something of a pedigree program for corn snakes, so maybe when BPs have been messed with for as long as corns someone will put one together.



Until that happens, the best thing you can do as a consumer is a lot of homework. Some breeders take a lot of pride in giving you as much information as they themselves have on the origins of their breeding stock, the parents of the offspring they hope to sell you. Those guys give me much more of a 'warm and fuzzy' feeling when I do business with them... but that's also because I like to try to avoid a lot of the inbreeding trends that are SO common in the reptile trade in general. Other people are either blissfully unaware of that, or are not worried by it.



If you are likewise concerned about inbreeding, then make an effort to purchase unrelated pairs for your own breeding projects, and to ask breeders about the relationship between the parent animals of any offspring you consider purchasing. Some breeders may have developed a knee-jerk answer of "they're not related," so just be subtle and friendly and ask about their business and what lines they're working with (how many females they like to hold back, etc).



It's a buyer beware, but I would be lying if I didn't also admit that that is just a little part of the shopping thrill.



~Rebecca
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0.1 Dumeril's Boa '04 (Courtney)

1.2 Ball Pythons

[1.0 '05 Orange Hypo (Specter)]

[0.1 '05 Het Orange Hypo (Sylvia)]

[0.1 '03 Normal (Sue)]

0.2 American Pit Bull Terriers (40lb darling lap dogs:Brandy&Mara)

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