Reptile & Amphibian Forums

thats not true as long as i have a male burm no matter what i will keep him because i will get too attached to him by the time hes full grown. You see i had no emotional attachment to my other burm i olny had it for 1 month. I was just getting used to it. Also no offence you guys give great advise but i love burms to death and i want one and no body can change my mind. I am not scared of a 20 foot burm id just rather have a smaller 10-12 footer. Also most of you have many and i mean many herps. When i get this burm i will only have 2 , the burm and my Bull Frog i found 3 years ago as a tadpole in a creek. So you see i can devote all my time and money into only 1 animal which will be alot easier than alot so i can handle it. I have read alot obout these , have had a red tail and ball pythons before and am ready for a burm. In fact i still have the red tail but it lives with my dad now its mainly his i dont consider it mine but i reaised it for 2 years. I think i can handle a burm of most size. Most of you say i cant handle it if something happend well im not a small teenager i am 6'1 and 165 pounds and very athletic if i knew how id post a pic... but thanks very much for all your help i really appresiate it but i am very determined to have a burm and no1 will change my mind. Also thank you for telling me about Bob CLark i will either buy it form him LLLReptile or petimart... thanks,
mike

Thats your problem, you think that it is strength and not fearing it. Its not. Sorry to say 165, not that big, and a snake is the perfect preditor and will be alot stronger than you. Until you understand what people are trying to tell you, no one will be on your side. The post below says get one but it also says he did the research. Again, you say you dont want a snake bigger that 12 ft, guess what if your male grows bigger, you will get rid of it and say I did not know it would get that big. I dont doubt that you love these snakes, but work your way up or do some more looking into.

I just got my first burm myself in July so I am not against it at all. Only problem I see is you extremly underestimating these animals. You can own one at your age but have respect for a large constrictor dude. At 6'1" 165 you'd be short work for a hungry determined 15 footer. I'm 6'4" 200 lbs and don't own but have held an 18 footer and it was no joke. She dwafted me. Maybe some of the older guys here are warning you against it but myself (23 yrs) am kinda more in your age group. I can tell you that you might be thinking in haste about this undertaking. Have fun and do what you like but learn more first. Try to find a big specimin somewhere you could handle n get a feel for. That is what taught me some respect.
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What does all this 1.1 ball and the like mean?
Anyway I got 1 4 1/2ft ball & 1 4ft burmees!

Man, you know that I have tried my hardest to support you and to defend you and back you up, but you have continuously asked questions and ignored repsonses to questions that any beginner that has even the littlest bit of knowledge would know. I want preach no more but I do wish you would reconsider this course you are choosing. I if you do go ahead and get one then do yourself this much atleast. First off. Buy a couple books. Go to Big apple herps. They are a large assortment of books. Buy one and read them and it will make incredible differences in your knowledge. Secondly do not buy any snakes from a petstore. Petstores will tell you what ever you want to hear just to make a sale. If you tell them you want a male then you will get a male, regardless if it is actually a female. Go with a breeder. Look into Mike Wilbanks at constrictors.com also. He has a good reputation. Todd

stay small? Really, do you? If so, then you are definitely NOT ready for a burm. One of the biggest burms I have ever seen was a massive male that was fed a maintenance diet. You mention you are a strapping athletic young man; I'm sure you are but you are no match for even a small sized adult burm. Even a 10' burm becoming suddenly threatened will put a whoopin' on three people your size (and I can say this from personal experience). Your utter disrespect for the potential for harm that these animals can inflect tells me that you are not mature enough, at least at this point in your life, to take on this type of responsibility. It is also my observation that you continue to ask questions that have been answered many times (and it seems that many of these answered questions were questions raised by you). If you don't want honest answers, don't ask the questions....you really set yourself up with that last post (and it took everything inside me to bite my lip and shut up; which I did).

You really should consider a big but not too big of a python or boa. I would be happy to recommend a few and here they are: 1) coastal carpet python; can reach a tad over 10' and are hugely impressive as adults 2) Boa constrictor; still nothing can beat a big boa for temperment, hardiness and docility 3) Borneo short tailed or red blood python; big sausages that give you the feel of a 12' burm w/out the size 4) Olive Python; one of Australia's largest pythons and one of my favorites. All of these snakes are big but can be managed by a big athletic guy like yourself....with these snakes, you won't have to worry about having a snake that could potentially become too big. I keep all of the above and would HIGHLY recommend any of them.

But, if you are bound and determined to get a burm, you probably should have kept the one that you got rid of; she was your responsibility and no one else's but that's just my .02....and probably worth less than that. If you already have the male burm, start learning proper husbandry and handling techniques, talk to the experts, read as much as you can (there is much more information in the form of books/journals/mags than input on this forum) be OPEN for advice (and not childish) and THANK those who give you good solid and experienced advice; you have no idea how good you have it on this forum.

Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm (IL)

Amen, Rob! I don't think a more eloquent and persuasive post could have been made (not that it would have deterred this particular lad anyhow....sadly). I've been reading his various posts, and the arguments on feeding costs, e.t.c. - and I really can't think of anything to add that hasn't been said several times already.

I don't post much here, but have been absorbing (like a sponge) the information that yourself, Damon and many others have freely given. I know that this is the wrong place to post this, but I would like to thank all of you for providing all who will listen with wonderful information that has obviously been garnered through years of experience.

I'm currently working as a Network Administrator, have experience with snakes - both large and small, and have plenty of room and the necessary facilities to provide a Burmese with a nice home. Consequently, I'm looking to purchase an Albino Laby very soon.

Thanks again!

Jay M. Dougherty

Here is Bertha. Rob`s big burm.
This is a lot of snake for one person
to handle. I would take his advice
and pic something a little smaller.

There was one thing that I want to say something about in your post, and its the "SIZE" thing. I don't think the "eating" part is the concern. If your like 8' 300 lbs. a big burn can still KILL YOU...might not eat ya, but once your dead, does that really matter? Let's say an 18 footer grabs a hold of you, i dont care how big you are, you aren't going to be able to do much. I'm not discouraging it, but again you need to do a little more research before you get one.