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Pythons are more approachable. Anacondas are so huge-normous. Pythons are juu-ust ri-ight (for sitting with while you read a book or hugging or draping).

Last edited by wish-ga at 24-Nov-2005 23:22

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~~~ My fish blow kisses at me all day long ~~~

pythons own boas.

Pythons are juu-ust ri-ight

There's plenty of boas that stay even smaller than the smallest pythons. Boas, in general, also tend to have much better personalities.

Boas also give live birth, which is a more effective reproductive method than laying eggs (which pythons do). That explains why there are more species of boas than pythons, and also why boas live in tropical, subtropical, and temperate areas throughout the New and Old Worlds and pythons live primarily only in tropical areas and only in the Old World.



Last edited by Cory Addict at 25-Nov-2005 02:18

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

Boas, in general, also tend to have much better personalities.

That's a load of crap. It varies from snake to snake.

Boas also give live birth, which is a more effective reproductive method than laying eggs (which pythons do).

Why is it more effective? Viviparous reptiles produce less young that are more advanced, while oviparous reptiles usually produce a larger number of young that are smaller.
A female boa will carry young for a longer period and slow her down a lot, increasing her chance of being taken by a predator. A female python can simply leave her eggs if she's under attack. The main disadvantage would be temperature fluctuation, which she can control to a certain degree.

That explains why there are more species of boas than pythons, and also why boas live in tropical, subtropical, and temperate areas throughout the New and Old Worlds and pythons live primarily only in tropical areas and only in the Old World.

No it doesn't

The size of a boa's litter and the size of a python's clutch (of a species of comparable size) are roughly the same. There's only a few species where pythons lay more eggs on average, and there's other species where the boas have more neonates.

You're wrong, Dave.

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

That's a load of crap. It varies from snake to snake.

Here's a comparison of personalities of three species of boas and pythons availble in the US...

Red-Tail Boa - Usually good
Rainbow Boa - Excellent
Yellow Anaconda - Very good with handling

Carpet Python - Crappy
Ball Python - Excellent
Reticulated Python - Crappy

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

i thought pythons were types of boas....

or maybe i'm just thinking of how they are both constricters...

Whoa theres some weird opinions on this one, im gonna have to refute one in particular, sorry cory addit but im gonna have to pounce on you here .

Your quote:

Here's a comparison of personalities of three species of boas and pythons availble in the US...

Red-Tail Boa - Usually good
Rainbow Boa - Excellent
Yellow Anaconda - Very good with handling

Carpet Python - Crappy
Ball Python - Excellent
Reticulated Python - Crappy

Ok heres something from my experience , bearing im mind ive actively and regularly worked with over a 1000 species of snake lizard and turtle over the years, and have direct and prolonged experiences to the species you mentioned, usually of several specimens from each species.

Red tailed boas.- Ive never seen a more susceptible species to boids disease, they can drop like flies, Not all are even-tempered, but overall yes a good snake, but still to big for the kiddies.Lots are horribly inbred to promote red colouration on the tail and head. Still one of the best "pet" snakes.

Carpet pythons- trickier to keep , but some are smaller, temperament varies from downright vicious to totally placid. Some are prettier than red tails too.

Rainbow boa, humidity sensitive, often too nervy to be handled, and downright nippy at feeding times.Nice size, but too fragile for beginners generally.Some are positively reclusive. Very pretty but a lousy choice for most people. The trade kills them by the thousand. Not a good pet.Some specimens have heavy melanin in the skin especially when older ,which makes them dark and unnappealing,some are drop dead gorgeous though. Martyr to protozoan infections.

Ball python, not especially likely to bite, easy environmental care, only difficulty can be feeding , cos they prefer gerbils and gerboas or naturally coloured mice rather than lab raised rats and white mice. Often solved problem by exposing brain tissue of mice. They scare keepers with their long fasting periods.I found them to breed really easily.Not a live bearer, but easy for an egg layer. A bit shy.Perfect size for most people.

Yellow anaconda.Bloody mean, nice size if a bit big for many, likes water so this equates to more cleaning.Easy to feed, generally not great for handling.Not the best display animal but pretty colour.Will be more than a lot of keepers can handle , but a damnsight easier than a green.If it can be compared with another snake in the python team it would probably be a blood python, stocky, and just as mean.Blood pythons can actually be easier to house, but the keeping is very similar.

Reticulated python. Magnificent, beautiful, consistantly bad tempered. Vast size and housing requirements.Not really a fair comparison.Compare it with a green anaconda, and Id go for the retic. ( I like not being injured). I think an anaconda is more likely to commit a life threatening attack especially near water, whereas a retic though equally capable of killing your sorry butt, is more likely to give you a severe bite and leave it at that. Id go for a burmese python over either species if I wanted a big snake a bit less likely to put holes in me.

Draw your own conclusions from that, as I said they all have pros and cons its impossible to choose. That incidentally is only a tiny selection of the genera you can buy from both camps. There are better examples you can get more suitable for pet ownership from either genera.


If a beginner wants a pet snake its much better to check out the ratsnakes and garter snakes first. Rough green snakes are cool pets theyll even get by on insects rather than rodents if you find that aspect of it upsetting.I would emphasis anyone wanting a reptile pet is better off with smaller species to start with . Folks wanting to start with a moderately lage snake could consider bullsnakes and pine snakes, not great tempers, but they eat well, and are unlikely to be able to constrict you even though they will probably try at some point.

Even some of the larger iguanids can be downright aggressive, and monitor lizards can be skittish, have awesome bite power, and frankly their poo stinks, only savannahs and dwarf species are suitable for most people, and the price of dwarfs can be outrageous! Dont overlook the skinks and gecko's, some of them can be among the very best reptile pets, and like the snakes , not all of them need uv lighting, although bright vivaria at least during the day are a bonus.

I generally find a lot of people who keep really large snakes tend to be a lot like people who keep really large catfish etc. A bit e to overexaggeration about how great owning one is, and a bit keen to recommend them to others without really thinking. So take the whole thing with a note of caution.


Last edited by longhairedgit at 05-Dec-2005 05:55

Are they at all like other species, where personality is unique to the individual but there are many behavioural characteristics common amongst that species/breed/type?

For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett

"If a beginner wants a pet snake its much better to check out the ratsnakes and garter snakes first. Rough green snakes are cool pets theyll even get by on insects rather than rodents if you find that aspect of it upsetting.I would emphasis anyone wanting a reptile pet is better off with smaller species to start with . Folks wanting to start with a moderately lage snake could consider bullsnakes and pine snakes, not great tempers, but they eat well, and are unlikely to be able to constrict you even though they will probably try at some point."

Another good beginner snake is the corn snake. Easy matainence, not partcularly large, and docile. Im not keen on rough green snakes as first time snakes. I have never had the opportunity to own them, but from what I have read they do not like being handled and can be tricky to keep for a novice. Theyre mostly wild caught, insectivourus, and can be challenging to get feeding in captivity.

I'll do graffiti,
If you sing to me in French.

Additionally, even Garter Snakes that are handled frequently have a tendency to defecate and musk when they are first picked up.

I really wouldn't recommend North American Colubrids as beginner snakes - most of them are very nervous and jumpy. Kingsnakes and Cornsnakes are some of the few I consider exceptions to this, as they tend to be very calm and are not e to biting or defecating on their owners.

I consider the best beginner snakes to be Rosy Boas, Ball Pythons, and Sand Boas. They are all relatively easy to maintain and almost always have excellent personalities. Even if they are frightened, they prefer curling up into a ball with their head in the middle rather than biting.

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

Lol, cornsnakes are ratsnakes of the genus elaphe, and at least nobody died from being crapped on by a garter snake, sure it stinks, but it washes off with swarfega or oxygel . A lot of snakes can musk you if the urge takes them, its really not that bad, it can bring the odd tear to the eye but its hardly shocking.

I did have a red sided garter that crapped on my neck prior to my going on a date once, that was pretty annoying.Needless to say, I crashed and burned .

Ill agree with you on the rosy boas, sand boas , with only a small hesitation on the ball python though, as some people just will not leave them alone and they can get a bit shy. People tend to think the rolling up is cute or funny and dont realise they are stressing the animal.ball pythons get just big enough 4-5 to give you a painful bite if they want to, ive been caught a couple of times when trying to encourage a pair of tricky feeders, and I bled like a stuck pig.They always let go though, and I didnt have to wrestle the animal to get my finger back.

I'll concede the point on the rough greens, they shouldnt really be handled, it stresses them, more a "just leave it in the vivaria and watch it " species. Nice thing about them is you can have nice planted vivs with them. Its when people keep them in bare tanks you get the feeding issues. the mentality of a rough green is quite a lot like that of a small arboreal lizards.They need the cover. They are quite widely captive bred now. Theyre easy from the point of view of being small, you dont have to give them rodents , although the odd small pinkie mouse wont hurt, and they cant really hurt you.

Its probably worth stressing that snakes and other reptiles dont really have a true " beginners species" certainly not as far as children are concerned unless they are unusually mature and wise individuals (bet you dont know many of those huh). But for adults who dont mind the odd nip, and the odd stomach complaint, and who have the sense to provide good housing and leave them alone for extended periods of time, alls groovy

Last edited by longhairedgit at 07-Dec-2005 19:38

Durr I should have known that. Snakes were an obsession of mine as a little girl

I'll do graffiti,
If you sing to me in French.

I did have a red sided garter that crapped on my neck prior to my going on a date once, that was pretty annoying.Needless to say, I crashed and burned .

I am sorry that happened. Was bad at the time but at least it is a funny story to tell. Did you tell the girl what it was or did she think you were a bit on the nose just generally?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~ My fish blow kisses at me all day long ~~~

I did have a red sided garter that crapped on my neck prior to my going on a date once, that was pretty annoying.Needless to say, I crashed and burned .

Red-Sided Garters actually have some of the best personalities among the genus. I used to own two of them (both wild-caught), and they tamed very easily. The worst pets among the Garters though are the Ribbonsnakes - They are extremely nervous (often panicking if someone gets within a few feet of their cage) and will sometimes even regurgitate their last meal on you if they have eaten within the past couple days.

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.