Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ive currently have 5 snakes, none I would consider difficult by any means..started with a corn, then a ball, then a bull, then a RTB, then a Russian Rat. All are well kept for, and doing wonderful. And tend to add 1 snake a year (been keeping snakes for about 6 years..havent bought one since the Russian Rat last July from Tim Spuckler, so Im over due)

Im looking to upgrade my collection this summer/fall..and the Australian reptiles have had my eye for about 3 years now..Ive done a ton a of reading and followed this forum closely, and am still no closer on a decision. Bredli? Woma? Coastal? Jungle? Blackheads are out of my price range, along with most Diamonds Ive seen for sale. An Olive would be my #1 choice, but are illegal in the county I currently reside..oddly enough if I moved about 7 blocks south into the neighboring county I could have an Olive. Oh well.

Which do you guys think would be the next logical step in my progression and which is a good intro into Australian snakes.

I know ultimately the decision is mine to make, but after all the reading Ive done, i feel input from people who keeps these snakes is a good idea. Im mostly looking for temperament and hoping to avoid feeding issues.

Essentially looking for an intro into Australian snakes, but skipping the Childrens and Spotted (smaller) snakes

Why would an Olive be illegal, but a Blackhead would not?

Honestly, no idea. Blackheads arent on any list Ive seen for Douglas County, Nebraska. (Omaha, essentially). General rule of thumb according to county/city laws is worded pretty much as "Any snake the generally gets over 8'" but coastals and columbian boas, both which can exceed 8' are indeed legal and sold at the Omaha Reptile Expo. (Go figure)

But they also have a "list" naming the big 5, and several other species, unfortunately Olives are on that list.

I dont make the laws (as vague as they may be) I just try and follow them.

Actually went to see if I could find it online...hope I dont get no one has an issues with me copy and pasting this ..

"Omaha City Code

Please note as of January of 2004 that the Omaha City Code regarding pets has changed. The Nebraska Herpetological Society was able to get the snake length limit increased from 6 feet to 8 feet. This means that several snakes that were banned under the old limits are now permitted. The list below has been updated.

What this city ordinance means is that the following types of animals are not permitted to be kept in Omaha: venomous lizards, lizards that exceed 5 feet in length as adults (it does not matter what the actual individual size of the animal is, if the average length of adults exceeds 5 feet), venomous snakes, snakes that exceed 8 feet as adults (again, hatchlings of these animals are not permitted).

Specifically, the following animals are not permitted in Omaha (Please note: this list may not be exhaustive, and you should consider the above types of animals for evaluating the legality of any animal not included in this list):
Venomous Snakes

* All Species

Non-Venomous Snakes

* Paupan python (Apodora papuan)
* Peruvian black-tailed boa (Boa constrictor constrictor)
* Guyana red-tailed boa (B. c. constrictor)
* Suriname red-tailed boa (B. c. constrictor)
* Argentine boa (Boa constrictor occidentalis)
* Green anaconda (Eunestes murinus)
* Yellow anaconda (Eunestes notaeus)
* Oenpelli python (Liasis oenpelliensis)
* Olive python (Liasis olivaceous)
* Amethystine python (Morelia amathystina)
* Bar-neck amethystine python (Morelia amathystina sp.)
* Boelens python (Morelia boeleni)
* Burmese python (Python molurus bivittatus)
* Tiger reticulated python (Python reticulatus)
* Reticulated python (Python reticulatus)
* Dwarf reticulated python (Python reticulatus)
* African rock python (Python sabae sabae)"

My vote goes to Jungle Carpet Python. I just picked up my second one at the Rocky Mountain Reptile Expo and LOVE them! Awysome feeders and BEAUTIFUL!!!!

If you're looking for beauty and size go with the Jungle Carpet. If you're looking for a mellow snake with a great appetite and ease of care go with the Woma. I have both and they're a pleasure to have.

Without being able to get an Olive, I have to admit the 2 snakes you mentioned are probably at the top of my list. I have a cpl questions regarding both if you have time to answer them, Id appreciate it.

Ive heard JCP's can be finicky eaters having trouble going from mice to rats. Is this an issue you've run into? My BP has been a total nightmare when it comes to the mouse/rat thing, she even refuses African Soft Furred rats...only eats mice..when she feels like it. More a headache then anything. Curious if this is a huge issue with the JCPs.

As for Womas.. what is the general size for them? Ive seen size estimates all over the place regarding them. I know each snake is different, but just looking for a rule of thumb. Ive seen everything said from 4' to 8'. Which is quite a big range even for the different sexes of the species. Would like to narrow that down some if possible, unless the range really IS 4' to 8'.

Thanks!

I have run into the same problem with my Ball Pythons. That's shy I got rid of most of them and am switching to carpets. My two current carpets are feeding machines!!! However I do have to say, I raise my own ASFs and feed them to my carpets as well and haven't tried switching them. I don't think I'll have to worry about it. When my female is full grown, I'll just feed her all my retired breeders.

Yes, my JCP only eats mice. I got him as a yearling and the person that had him before me fed only mice. I tried rats, but he refuses them. But, if you buy the JCP as a baby you can start them off on rats.

My woma is about 5 1/2ft and 6-7 lbs. They're medium sized pythons. They normally max out at 6ft. I'd say it's very rare but not impossible to see a woma over 6ft.

Good luck on your decision, you can't go wrong with either one.

The best solution for making sure your carpet will accept rats is simply buying them young and starting them early. I've only had 2 that were difficult to get them eating rats, one was a jungle and the other an irian jaya, with both I simply offered them nothing but rats and after a while they were hungry enough to take them and i had no problems after that.

The only Aussie snakes I have are JCPs, and I have nothing but good things to say about them. Mine are great eaters, beautiful display animals, and (relatively) easy to handle. This '09 female is still a little cage defensive, but she is growing out of it.

Too bad Omaha has such restrictive ordinances. I live in Lincoln, and only venomous are regulated here. By the way, there is a local breeder of green tree pythons who produces some really nice animals. Not quite Australian, but...

First thing, BEAUTIFUL JCP!

Yeah, Omaha is kind of wierd, sad thing is if I moved just a few blocks south into Sarpy (Bellevue, Papillion area) there is no regulations (not sure about venomous in Sarpy.) And I would have an Olive right now.

I know of the breeder of GTP, never been introduced tho.

May I ask where you got your GTP?

Oops..make that...

May I ask where you got yer JCP?

Thanks, she is starting to color up nicely.

To answer your question, she was bred by Max Johnson. Feel free to PM me if you would like more information. He produces some really nice animals, and was a pleasure to deal with.

I spoke briefly with our local GTP breeder at the Omaha reptile expo in April. Really nice dude, and he had some sweet looking animals at reasonable prices. I can provide his information too if you ever need it.

MZ

Sent a PM

I would definitely say JCP. They're perfect.

As far as feeding goes, try to get them on rats as soon as possible. I have a JCP that made the transition nicely. I have one huge Coastal Carpet that eats big jumbo rats, but I have a coastal female that still will only eat mice. Feeding for her means a big huge pile of mice. Pain in the ass for me.

Coastals are nice too. But JCPs are really great.