Reptile & Amphibian Forums

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They both make great pets. And the size depends on the species. Bulls and sonoran gophers can get quite large, but so can some of the pines. Many of the western gophers stay smaller, but some can still hit a fairly decent size. They all make great pets though. Havn't seen a pit I didn't like. Andy
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Andy Maddox
AIM: SurfAndSkimTx04
MSN: Poloboy32486@hotmail.com
Houston Herp Key
The Reptizone

Burgundy baby, With your blue eyed soul, You play the hits and I'm on that roll, Capricorn sister, Freddie Mercury, Jupiter Child cry

Thanks Snakeguy. After posting my question I tried to find an answer in the archives and they were all saying that pines and gophers can be a pain in the butt, that they have bad temperments, are picky eaters, and are aggressive, etc. Sorta discouraged me. So have they improved since all that was written?

MissHisssss

They both make great pets. Bulls and pines, from the ones I have, have been very nice and gentle. My northern pine Solomon hung out around my neck chilling out last night for two hours. He also has fallen asleep wrapped around my hand before. My Stillwater hypo bull is about the most calm snake I have ever had. My white bull was hissy when I first got him, but is now a big dope who loves to be handled and taken out.

They all can hiss, but once you pick them up and they feel supported well, usually they calm down and do better with handling than milks or kings, IMO.

From what I have seen, gophers remain a tad bit smaller. My Applegate San Diego is about 5 ft at the most, while my biggest pine is over 6 ft.

Hope this helps!
Billy
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Genesis 1:1

Pits got the rep for being agressive, bad tempered, etc. way back when the only ones available were wild caught. They are actually defensive rather than agressive. And the rep for a bad temper comes from not being subtle when expressing their fear. After all, it takes a bit of self expression for a 3 pound snake to get the attention of a 2000 pound bison that is about to step on it.

There are individual differences among the Pits. Some can be nasty, as in every species. But most are great snakes, and with work and handling, even a wild caught adult can tame well (personal experience). Captive raised babies, whether pine, gopher, or bull, are a joy.

As for size, almost all adults are in the four to seven foot range, with older, extra large individuals even longer. More southern populations in relatively fertile areas tend to get bigger than the more northern populations in less fertile areas. The smallest I've seen were Great Basin gophers from Wyoming, which were adult by three feet long. More southern GB gophers get as big as other Pits, though.

I think black pines are a little more mellow and Florida pines are a bit less mellow than the average Pit, but that's my opinion. YMMV. And even the Floridas aren't that bad compared to a number of other species of snakes that are fairly common in captivity.

PITS RULE!

Paul Hollander

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Yep, nothing like an Iowa bull to put on a hissy-fit show as you walk by the cage. If I had one coil and hiss as I walked by I would make a point to stop and pick him up just to show who was boss. I never got bit and within a few seconds of being off their bellys they would settle down and were very calm and handleable. When I had black pines (man I miss them) they never showed defensiveness after about a year old and were always readily handleable. I think the pits settle down a lot at about 3-4ft in size. I think it has to do with the mentality of "I will fear no evil for I am the evilest SOB in the vally" thing.

I have never heard of any pit being a picky feeder. I am sure there are always certain individuals that have their own persona but what is more typical is that pits will feed VERY aggressively and will be prone to over eat if allowed. The bulls where I came from feed heavily on striped gophers and will go into a burrow and feed on an entire litter in one feeding and then once that is digested will start looking for the next unsuspecting gopher family so they are accustomed to large meals. As far as aggression, what Paul says is true, they will typically show a defensive stance ( and it can be quite the show) rather than an actual act of aggression. Once they realize they are not going to be a meal themselves they will often settle down and be quite handleable. I have encountered 5 ft wild bulls as thick around as my wrist in the middle Wyoming that you would think were going to tear you limb from limb but once you got them up off their bellys they handled no worse than CB cal kings (except without the musking). The main warning I would give about pits that all on this board will probably agree is that they are addicting. I have not had any for several years and I am "jonesing" every day.