Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Today i went to see the first litter of burmese and confirmed that i am getting one. I have a pair of boas so i have experience with boids. i guess i wanted soemthing bigger. hehe. Anyway i wanted to ask a little question. I decided on an albino. They are all the same price. Some have bright yellow and some have very light yellow markings. What would be considered as best value for money?

Personally, I am surprised anyone pays money for burms considering how many are available through various adoption programs throughout the U.S. Right now, we have 6 burms at my facility that I can't give away which is a frustrating trend. But, to answer your question, the burm that has the best value is the one that you are most interested in.

Rob Carmichael

>>Today i went to see the first litter of burmese and confirmed that i am getting one. I have a pair of boas so i have experience with boids. i guess i wanted soemthing bigger. hehe. Anyway i wanted to ask a little question. I decided on an albino. They are all the same price. Some have bright yellow and some have very light yellow markings. What would be considered as best value for money?
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Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm
Lake Forest, IL

Welcome to the club!

I'm sure Rob's answer "the burm that has the best value is the one that you are most interested in.") wasn't what you wanted to hear. However, he is right. Let me try to explain.

If you are only attracted to the snake for monetary gains, you will not care for it like it will need to be cared for. It will be dispensible to you, sooner or later, regardless of it's monetary value.

Now, as for which flavor of albino would have the best monetary value; in general, the one with the brightest colors and best markings. Colors & patterns (markings) go hand-in-hand.

Another thing is that albinos typically lose color as they age, becoming duller. Look at the parents and judge by that.

Rob also makes a good point when he talks of rescuing or adopting burms. The problem I've ran into with this is cost. Adoption fees of $75 and up has kept me from rescuing a few. Too bad I don't live closer to Rob.

I understand first-hand that these places need to cover their costs as funding (donations) are hard to come by. Some are like Rob, in it to do a service for the creatures that we love, while some are in it to boost their private collections or make money. I definitely recommend trying to find a reputable adoption service in your area.

Hope this helps. Ask away if you have any other Qs.

Take care!
HH
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Due to political correctness run amuck,
this ol' hillbilly is now referred to as an:
Appalachian American

I agree with the other guys and here's why: True market value is determined by what someone is willing to pay for something. I'm new to Burmese Pythons, but I breed corn snakes and bearded dragons. I'm not a big breeder, I just have one female of each and have a nice popular line going. My science students like to hear about my breeding projects and they often buy our babies. Anyway, corn snakes are funny because there are so many morphs. Yesterday I was doing a reptile show and one child told me he had a "hybino" corn snake (a cross between a normal and an amel). Never heard of that one! I breed Sunglows because I happen to like the color. Sunglows used to be worth $70 as hatchlings and some still sell them for $50. I think most people sell them for about $30-$40. Determining the value of a pattern of an individual snake goes by what people like. The striped corns are more valuable to others, but I don't care for them, so they're not valuable to me. I have a huge amel corn snake that is priceless to me. He is part of my wildlife presentation and is great with kids. Priceless.

As for Burms, I just received a free one. The lady couldn't give him away to anyone else...zoos, our Serpentarium. To tell you the truth, I wasn't quite sure I wanted him, but we made a family decision to accept him. I do understand wanting a hatchling of your own. I think the concern of others on the board is that instead of thinking of value, think long-term commitment to a really big animal that is dependent on you for 20 or so years of care. So pick something *you* like so that you will fall in love with it, care for it and keep it 'til death do you part. I hate to sound like a sicko, but I'm glad I got an old snake. Mine is about 10 and I'm OK with that. That was what my level of commitment was at this point. I can commit to a decade or so of a really big snake and then see what I want to do. I had to be honest with myself and see if I could do 20. I have a young boa and I can commit 20 years to him if I need to-he's only 6 1/2 ft. When I'm 60 years old, I can drive a Cadillac with him in the passenger seat like little old ladies drive around their Pug dogs with an I heart my boa bumper sticker! Just kidding!