Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So my bag of 10 import babies comes in tomorrow. I'm excited!
Wish me luck!

I'll post pics once they've settled in a bit and are fully hydrated and such.
-----
"What is man without the beasts?
If all the beasts were gone,
men would die from great loneliness of spirit.
For what happens to the beasts,
soon happens to men.
All things are connected."

-Chief Seattle (Duwamish Tribe)

Mine to,I can not wait....Good luck with yours..

First of all i am not trying to be a "you know what" here but: Just out of curiosity, why would you import ball python into the already flooded market?
-----
Thanks
Chad Ramsey
onetonyj@yahoo.com

Because we can...

OH! i see now now! thanks for the clarification!
-----
Thanks
Chad Ramsey
onetonyj@yahoo.com

Because most humans are self serving and ignorant, because they can....

I put that because I really did not want to get into another "saturated market" or" the rights and wrong of imports" discussion everyone has their own opinion and I do not think I am ignorant because I chose to purchase them. I respect the fact that some people think it is not a good idea, but I would never bash someone else for doing it.

Was not aimed at you BUT more towards us ''We'' stupid humans

New blood, possibility of new morphs, you can never have enough normal females, possibility of new lines of an already established morph, and to support Ghana's economy while also supporting our hobby.
-----
"What is man without the beasts?
If all the beasts were gone,
men would die from great loneliness of spirit.
For what happens to the beasts,
soon happens to men.
All things are connected."

-Chief Seattle (Duwamish Tribe)

There are so many "different" lines of normals here in the states already that i am sure there are plenty to choose from here. An honest question: what do you HONESTLY think the chances of "discovering" a new morph in a bag of parasite infested imports is? I personally think that the trouble would not be worth it at those odds. I am all for boosting the economy were it is bad, but these guy are not as stupid as we would like them to be. At this point in the saturated ball market, they are on the look out for the, odd ball, possible morph, or what ever we are looking for in the imports. So i assume that you and anyone else that are acquiring import "from the source" are getting JUST picked over, left overs of the new morh: Parasite Balls!

By the way, im not an anti morph preaching fool, i guess i am just a pessimist that would like to see the import business slow down a tad for the sake of the wild animals sake! I am breeding and keeping morphs myself.

And honestly, with all sencerity, good luck and if you do with that 1,000,000,00 to 1 lottery drop me a line i would love to it!
-----
Thanks
Chad Ramsey
onetonyj@yahoo.com

sorry for the horrible typing, i have not ahd my coffee yet!
-----
Thanks
Chad Ramsey
onetonyj@yahoo.com

I received mine last year mite and parasite free, if early enough they are not parasite balls. I do not think the market is flooded. Yes there is alot of morph and I am sure many many more to come.It is an experience that I have enjoyed and also many other people, like king of spades said, it helps the economy here and there. I was able to sell all of the snakes I wanted to sell, and help educate people about ball pythons. I would say that even thou there are many people in this hobby, there are even more that are still afraid of snakes. For every 10 people I talk to maybe 1 likes snakes. So untill everyone is into snakes I do not think it will be saturated. Yes some morphs have come way down in price but there is still a ton that have not and more that never will come down.. I guess to each there own.

I just figured id put my 2 cents in too...lol...

In the past 3 years we have gotten in well over 2k imports, which i know isnt alot comapred to some big rollers... but i think it is enough to have an idea on what to expect..

Odds on getting a morph are, well almost none, that is an already known morph. You will however see cool stripes, black backs, granites , harlequins and other aberant patterns. The odds of finding a het red, cinny, pastel, or any other "not that obvious" morph are like hitting the lottery. Exporters have kingsnake and computers and they know they can get more for cool looking snakes and visable morphs. Years ago your odds were 1k times better. If anything cool comes in they normally get sorted out by the importer and sold for more. This year we got a very high male count, but that isnt always acurate. You will get good looking healthy babies if going through a reliable sorce, plus its kind of like christmas

As far as "parasite balls" go ... Well where do the parasites come from. Since ball pythons dont nurse on their mothers i have never seen snakes born with parasites. 90% of internal parasites come from the food they eat, and the imports that come in now are all still in first shed or just out of it, and have never eaten, so internal parasties are not an issue with CH, they can be with imported adults or Bush babies however. As far as external parasties mites are not native to africa and you will never see a mite in an imports that has never been in contact with any other animals. Ticks however are common in Africa, but very unlikley on CH since they are hathced in Captivity and not crawling around in the jungle. Out of the 2k or so we have gotten in we have lost a handful, maybe 15 or so. We never have any problems with any parasite internal or external and the babies we get in always thrive. In my opinion there is not much of a difference between CH and CB other then price.

Once again these are my opinions and facts from my past with CH ....

Good luck to everyone that is getting them in. As long as they are set up properly they should thrive...
Just a tip --- Hydrate them right away, soak them all in warm water. Then when you set them up give them damp paper towels so they can shed, thier first sheds can sometimes stick due to shipping stress and dry air.

Kim
N.A.R.C

good info thanks
-----
Thanks
Chad Ramsey
onetonyj@yahoo.com

Kim, parasites are also ingested through contaminated water much more then through rodents, these hatchlings are contaminated with their first drink of water and no chemicals we can throw at these will rid them completely.

What kinds of parasites are we talking about? Please elaborate - now I'm curious.
-----
"The python has, and I fib no fibs,
318 pairs of ribs.
In stating this I place reliance
On a seance with one who died for science
This figure is sworn to and attested,
He counted them while being digested."
~Ogden Nash

jenny.thegreenes.org

"If you're happy and you know it,
Bomb Iraq!
If you cannot find Osama,
Bomb Iraq!
If the terrorists are frisky,
Pakistan is looking shifty,
North Korea is too risky,
Bomb Iraq!

Yes that is possible, but i have never found any parasites in the imports we have recieved. The animlas come in very dehydrated, and are very thirsty when they come in. I wonder if they dont recieve water before being imported. I know with 2 importers in particular they are shipped the second they hatch. That is interesting i never thought about it, ill have to ask one of the importers next time i talk to one.
Thanks Kim

You are right about the water, there are many parisites that can be picked up through their drinking water. I could bore everyone with the details of how they keep babies there before they hatch. But to be honest the majority of the exporters in West Africa realize that we don't want them to hydrate them, so they don't offer water at all. My guys over there know I won't buy them if they water them. So they figure, hey it's just one less thing for them to do. But keeping this in mind the later the hatch the more likely they have to water them because the hatch slows down and they can't fill the orders as quick. So the older babies might be a couple weeks old and have drank water several times before they get shipped. That's why I don't play the game of waiting on CH babies. I buy them early and even if I pay a dollar more I really don't care. By the way if anyone does have a problem with later babies, flagyl or panicur will solve it without any problem at all. Good luck with all the babies everyone! Brian (BHB)

www.myspace.com/bhbreptiles (for fun people)
real website coming later this century!

Opps, I mean before they ship, not before they hatch. My bad Brian (BHB)

Nice job Kim. That was well stated and it's clear that you've had experience to back up your opinion. Keep up the good work! Brian (BHB)

www.myspace.com/bhbreptiles (for fun people)
real website coming later this century!

Ok.. Its interesting to see opinions of someone that has no experience.

These babies dont have parasites. SO these arent "parasite balls"

Getting morphs in. Last year I know of at least one guy that bought unopened bags from ballroom pythons that had a yellow belly in their bag of 10. Stripes, black backs and other "morphs" are in there too. These guys in africa are going thru so many balls so fast they dont have the time to pull out morphs that arent worth over a a hundred dollars to them. Plus you think they can catch every yellow belly or cinny etc? Some just dont look that different, plus some are in sheds or burried etc and they are grabbing them by the hand fulls.

Gravid females? Morphs hatch out of these all the time. My friend just hatched out a striped pastel from one 2 days ago.

The importers going thru the bags? Well I know most that are selling unopened bags or crates are NOT going thru the bags, they dont hav time. Its not worth it for them. They have their crate of morphs that the exporter already pulled and that they paid extra money for. They dont have time to look thru thousands of balls. They are opening the crate at the airport and pulling unopened bags from the crate and putting them in a shipping box and shipping right there to the buyer.

So, thats how it goes.. Now if you want parasite balls then buy bush babies or med/adult wild caughts.. they are loaded with them!

if you ask how i know etc? Ive been importing balls for over 10 years, before bhb and most of the other big boys were doing it!

hope this helps.

Beau

Honest do you really think that your going to get a new morph???...I know many people advertise the "Possibilitiy" of getting something new, and they say that "they won't peak at your sack...I mean come on, You really think the exporters don't have thier eyes open for weird and different ones, or that the people importing them are going to let a new morph slip threw for dirt cheap...I really doubt that...

I think many of the prices for each bag are reasonable, and you would be getting your money's worth of NORMAL Male Ball Pythons, but Really...Come on, That whole "Ooooo You could get a Morph, Unsorted....Get yours today...more than half will for sure feed...ect...ect.." It just cracked me up to see adds like that...

Best of luck with those new imports...
-----
Executive Reptiles
Amanda Kingsbury & David Kendrick
www.executivereptiles.com

Of course people that buy these bags don't think they are going to get a morph (at least I hope they don't). But you never know what the next new thing will be. How many people thought the Lori ball would be anything(besides Lori of course)? Or even the Mochas, YB's, Spot nose, cinny... My point is there may still be plenty of co dom morphs that have yet to be discovered who's super form could be crazy but does not look much different from a normal. New things seem to be found every year so you never know. The odds are very low but it's not like these people are being ripped off. The worst thing that can happen is these people get normals for $15 each.
-----
John Vandegrift

beautifully written
-----
Thanks
Chad Ramsey
onetonyj@yahoo.com

I paid for normal females and I want normal females , if I get a possible het fem out of it thats just icing on the cake, still the price is great and a good deal.

You would think buying a gravid female would be the best play. Its more expensive way to go, but at least no one peaked at the babies...

I totally agree , with the new blood and possible new morphs that these imports carry inside of them and the prices are great , I have just purchased 0.5 normal imports and I cant wait to get mine , you can never have enough females , my first vision rack is almost full I will only have 4 tubs left once I get my new females in , to me female imports are the way to go, good luck everyone.

Congratz on the new babies! Can't wait for pictures

~jenny
-----
"The python has, and I fib no fibs,
318 pairs of ribs.
In stating this I place reliance
On a seance with one who died for science
This figure is sworn to and attested,
He counted them while being digested."
~Ogden Nash

jenny.thegreenes.org

"If you're happy and you know it,
Bomb Iraq!
If you cannot find Osama,
Bomb Iraq!
If the terrorists are frisky,
Pakistan is looking shifty,
North Korea is too risky,
Bomb Iraq!

I got my call yesterday and set up my hatchling rack this morning - this time of year is kinda like Christmas for ball people. Sometimes you don't get the best present - and sometimes it's fun to see what other people got. And I might not get "an official Red Ryder, carbine action, two-hundred shot range model air rifle, with a compass in the stock and 'this thing' which tells time" but any snake is a good snake even if its a bunch of normal males

.

Good luck to you!!!
-----
Tosha
JET Pythons

n/p

n/p

I ordered from Ball Python South, and from what I've heard, quite a few people had good experiences with them last year.
I'll find out tomorrow
-----
"What is man without the beasts?
If all the beasts were gone,
men would die from great loneliness of spirit.
For what happens to the beasts,
soon happens to men.
All things are connected."

-Chief Seattle (Duwamish Tribe)

I'm just getting back into reptiles. I had a lot when I was a kid/teenager. This is the first time I've ever ordered any imports, but I'm very pleased with them. I wasn't expecting any new morphs or anything like that, but $200 for 10 females shipped is a great price. All of mine seem to be in great condition except for one that looks to be a little dehydrated and a few of them are having a little trouble with shedding, presumably because they've been so dry.

Here's one of mine:

I have five coming 0.5 normal balls tommorrow and I cant wait the snake looks great, I just went out and purchased a 20lb bag of aspen bedding ran out, I will be putting mine into my first vision rack that I purchased back in march , it is almost full now, I have two projects that I am working on albinos and piebalds and these new five imported females will be part of these two projects, what are you keeping your ten lot of 0.10 normals in? and good luck.

Exciting isn't it? Good luck with your's. At the moment, I've got mine in various plastic storage tubs sitting on the utility room counter. I'm planning to build a much nicer rack system soon.

Who did u get yours from?

I believe their business name is "Global Exotics". I'm new to this scene so I don't know any of the importers. I have no complaints though. The babies look great.