Reptile & Amphibian Forums

There's a pet store just a couple of miles from my house. I think that the store is somewhat new, but I'm not absolutely certain. I found them listed here on kingsnake.com. I'm looking for a first snake, and they have two that I like. One is a ball python, and the other is a California Kingsnake. They can't (or won't) tell me the history of the python. The owner says that the kingsnake came from someone who lives in a neighboring town about 30 to 40 miles from here. He said that the guy was selling three of them, but he didn't know where the guy had gotten them.

The first time that I visited, the python looked pretty good. I visited a second time about a month later. They told me that the python had escaped and been loose in the store for two weeks. The python was holding his mouth open and had a cheesy-looking substance all over his mouth. He's on a sand bedding, and sand was all over his mouth. Even I recommended that they get the snake to a vet. The owner wasn't there at that time, and the guy at the store said he'd try to persuade the owner to get help.

I'm not writing all of this to criticize the store, but I have a couple of questions. Would you buy anything from this store? I'm certainly not going to buy this python, but would you consider the kingsnake to be suspect also based solely on how the store had let the python get sick? Would you consider buying frozen mice from this store? Undoubtedly, this place would be my most convenient source for mice, but I'm already paranoid about whether I can keep a snake alive. I don't want to reduce my chances by getting a snake or mice from a questionable source.

Thanks

Would you buy anything from this store?

Definitely not. Any petstore that would leave a python that conspicuously sick out on display and for sale doesn't deserve your business. That sick python tells you that they don't care a damn about their animals, just the sale.

Would you consider buying frozen mice from this store?

Once again, no. If you do remain a customer, you are giving positive feedback that says "you guys can abuse your animals all you want and I will still keep you in business".

Buy your mice online. They are cheaper, and you aren't supported an owner with no scruples.
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Chris Harrison
Central Texas

I don't think buying frozen feeders online is cheaper. $20-30 must be paid for shipping alone (according to the frozen feeder suppliers I've seen on this site).
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http://www.theherpzone.com

I pay less than a third of the price including shipping from an online Company than I do from my local pet store. I still buy them from the local pet store from time to time, but I would go broke if I bought all of my feeders from a pet store. I just paid $124.42 including shipping for 100 sm pinkies, 100 fuzzies, 100 hoppers, and 50 rat pups. My local pet store charges 1$ for pinkies, fuzzies, and hoppers. I know the rats are much more than that. That would have cost me $315.00 with tax just for the mice. You definately save with some of the online company's.

Chris,

Thanks for the comments. After I made that post, I went back to the store to see whether anything had been done. The guy working there told me that they took the snake to the vet immediately after I noticed the mouth. The vet confirmed that the snake was sick, and the vet still has the snake. That snake had escaped his cage, and the vet thinks that it may have sipped some cleaning fluid somewhere or eaten something that was poisoned. I've already told them that I won't buy a python there because they can't tell me where they get pythons.

I looked at the store's other snakes, and they still appear healthy. One kingsnake that was about to shed in mid-August had clearly shed when I was there a week ago but is getting a little cloudiness in his eyes as if he's going to shed again. If a kingsnake is shedding every two months, is that a sign of good health? I've asked the guy to save the skin when the kingsnake sheds. I'm anxious to see whether the shed comes easily.

The guy doesn't like handling snakes but seems happy to learn more about taking care of them. There are things that I've learned just from reading. I thought the shedding kingsnake needed a bigger water bowl, and the guy immediately got a dog's bowl from the shelf, filled it with water, and put it in the cage. This bowl will be big enough for the snake to coil inside.

Obviously, I'm concerned, and I'm still not ready to trade with this company. On the other hand, the guy has a good attitude and listens to me even though I know only what I've read. My life would be much easier if I could deal with a store three minutes from home instead of one that's forty minutes from home. However, you've confirmed that I need to be skeptical of them. I'll likely continue to drop by and monitor what they are doing.

Thanks again,

Bill