Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am just a beginning snakekeeper; I haven't even gotten my first snake yet (as I haven't finished building the cage). However, once I have finished, I was wondering where good places to buy the snake might be. I went to our pet store, but you have to order the snake since they don't keep them there in the store, and they only have one kind of boa (as far as I know), and they don't even know exactly what species it is. I'm also looking for something that isn't too expensive, as my mom says she's not going to "spend a fortune" (she promised to buy me the snake if I built the cage). Anything located in the Cincinnati area would be great. I'm not really an enormous fan of ordering living things off the Internet.

Just make sure you have all the proper heating equipment, thermometers and a rheostat to control it all. That's part of getting your cage set up. In reality, you can often expect to pay more for the cage and setup than for the snake.
That's not something you can compromise on--they MUST have a heat source, and you must be able to monitor the temperatures. Also, be sure that your cage is large enough, and built very solidly, so that the snake has enough room (judge by its adult size), and so that it cannot escape, and also cannot injure itself trying to.

Some inexpensive snakes which make good "first snakes" include African House Snakes, corn snakes, and garter snakes. The first two are rodent eaters, and extremely easy to care for. Garters eat fish, worms, and frogs in the wild, but many can be scented over to eat rodents. If they refuse, earthworms are probably the safest dietary mainstay, and are very nutritious. Many types of fish can cause a dangerous thiamine deficiency if fed often, including goldfish.

I would look first for a local snake breeder to buy your snake from, and second to mail-order. If there is a reptile show in your area, that would also be a good place to look for your snake. Expect to pay between $12.00 and $30.00 for your snake, depending on the species. (12 for a garter, 30 for a normal corn, and African House Snakes I've seen somewhere in between).

If you want a garter, get a captive bred animal. Wild-caught animals are easy to come by with this species, but they will require a vet trip for deparasitization right away. This is why it is best to buy directly from a breeder. You will have the animal's history, and FAR less chance that it has any illnesses or parasite problems.

do not buy frome a pet store most are not good to there snakes.buy from a breedder,join a local herp society to find a breedder close to you. hope this helps

>> I'm not really an enormous fan of ordering living things off the Internet.

What does the Internet have to do with it? The best place to buy a reptile is direct from the breeder. Most breeders have web sites so you can see pictures of what they're breeding. So what?

If you buy from a pet shop or animal dealer you stand a very good chance of getting an animal with a disease of some kind.

Your best bet if to find a herp expo in your area somewhere. You will have a large number of animals to choose from and you will get to pick out your animal by hand. Go to the Events link at the top on the Kingsnake main page and look at the list of upcoming reptile shows. There are several upcoming shows in Ohio. I don't know if there are any coming to the Cincinnati area, but check the list. (Also be aware that a few shows in that area have been cancelled lately due to Monkey Pox scares - call the people putting on the show and find out).

The next best thing would be to buy directly from a breeder/dealer. I have always had good luck with Glades Herp (listed on the Importers/Exporters list on Kingsnake). Just make sure you get a captive bred/born snake.

There are several major breeders in Ohio as well. You could easily get in contact with one of them and get you snakes shipped within the state.

I have no problem with buying from a reputable dealer online.
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Chris Harrison

You guys are right; there's nothing wrong with ordering off the Internet. I guess it was just something I didn't find too appealing, what with the boxes, and long delays, and such-and-so. I now have just three questions:
1) How do they ship snakes and other living things? Not in a cardboard box I hope?
2) I don't like to pay exorbitant shipping charges. Do they charge lots of money for the extra insurance and padding, or whatever they do to make sure the snake stays alive?
3) How would I go about finding a good, reputable breeder who sells online and doesn't live so far away that the journey for the snake would cost a fortune?
I've gotten to work on the cage. The frame is complete. Now I just need to put on the walls, and make the door. Looking forward to geting a good snake that I can have for years to come.

1. In a cardboard box. Sometimes with styrofoam insulation. Ask the person doing the shipping.

2. Again, it depends on the person doing the shipping. There are two basic ways to do it. Less expensive animals during moderate weather conditions can be shipped UPS overnight. That's cheap. More expensive animals are usually sent air freight (Delta Dash or the like) and you'll have to pick them up at the freight terminal of your local airport. That can be more expensive.

3. I've never really found a breeder that's bad. Dealers vary a lot more, from really good to outright crooks. So I'd suggest dealing with the former. A lot of them have links from kingsnake.com, actually, or have ads in the classifieds.

"Looking forward to geting a good snake that I can have for years to come."

I have to laugh reading this because I bet a month won't go by after you get your first snake that you will be wanting more. Welcome to the world of addiction. Hey at least it's not crack.
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International Snakes Meetup
International Herpetology Meetup

It just happens I live in cincinnati, ohio there is a great place called animail house in mt heathly on hamtion ave right by UDf that is great I can give you more info if you e-main me @ codyblueblue@yahoo.com they take good care of ther animales as far as i have seen iam very picky person most of the other stores around here like the mails and jacks dont know much on the care they tell the wrong info they act like they know

Hiya! Congrats on your first snake to be. No one mentions Ball Pythons...sigh. They also make a good first snake. Best bet is to do like the others have mentioned, and find a local herp breeder. Captive Born and bred is best, IMO. For a first snake, I would want to handle it, or at least see it in person to get a "feel" for it. Also, shipping will cost you as much as the snake for a normal anything. Average is $12-$40 for a normal corn, garter or ball. Shipping is about $35 from what I've read. If you aren't as concerned with the personality of your snake as much as what it looks like, then internet is fine. You can get a beautiful, biatchy snake. Expo's are GREAT for finding animals. Prices are awesome, no shipping, and you see the animal in person. I paid $45 for my first ball from a breeder (normal), $25 for my 2nd at an Expo (also normal), and $12 for an albino corn baby.
Good luck, and expect to become addicted!
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1.1 Ball Python
0.0.1 corn snake
0.0.1 Bearded Dragon
0.0.2 fish
1.2 cats
3.1 kids
1.0 husband

I highly recommend finding a Club or society in your area and purchasing from them.........otherwise yoour only choice is to find a breeder and pay the shipping costs. I would not purchase from a breeder that ships to your door via UPS. You want a shipper that treats your animal properly during shipping. I am getting ready to purchase a Bullsnake from Cherry Farms. These are very nice animals. Easy to house,grow very fast,can get to 7 foot plus,usually tame,and easy to feed. They are my favorite snakes and I have been keeping snakes for 44 years. You can get them for less than a $100 and not nore than $150. Ball Pythons are extremely cheap and also easy to care for. However you may go nuts when they decide not to eat for 6 months. I have never experienced this problem more than a couple months myself. Howlarge is your cage? Tell me more about your cage. Materials used?ect?

I am wondering how you ship snakes, do you use airlines exclusivly? I am just asking because I use airborne to and from my door regularly. I have found they are as good as the airlines and 1/2 the price. I ship out usually after 4:00pm and my customer gets their package before 10:30 am. I first tried them because roundtrip to the airport is about 5 hrs. for me. I have 4 shipments already scheduled for this week alone on three different days (some coming some going). If I had to drive to the airport every time there would be a lot of cages not getting cleaned.lol. I had my motley boa shipped here from Utah,thru airborne, and never even thought about it. Not tying to start a fight, just a quetion and maybe a view of the other side of the coin. Craig Kade (sorry to get so far off the original question, good answers from every body)

My cage (albeit unfinished; I really need to get to work!) is a 4x3x2-footer, with a shelf about six inches from the bottom (maybe a little more). I believe the wood I bought is pine, and I sure hope it doesn't turn out to be cedar! Originally I was planning a cage with a big shelf on top, and another on bottom, and a small "hide" shelf between. But then I realized that that design made no sense whatsoever. Now I've built this one, and it seems like a good thing for an arboreal snake. That is, once I've got it fully furnished.
So! I guess now I have another question, which might be better suited in a whole new thread, but I guess for convenience I'll put it here too: What kind of arboreal snake is the easiest to take care of? And what heating option is good for arboreals? And as an aside, what kind of varnish do you recommend using?
Thanks,
Nathanael