feeding...

Question
i cant decide which snake to get. which would you recommend for a 14 year old beginner. i not a fan of feeding rodents but will if the snake would be good for me, i could feed it something else as a baby so i dont have to cut up the rodent or will eat the rodent whole as a juvinile but wont grow over about 5-6 feet long. Thanks!

Answer
First, let me say that if you keep snakes you will almost certainly have to feed rodents, but you will never have to cut them up.  And you will never have to feed live animals, as purchasing pre-killed frozen rodents and thawing them is not only the safest for your snake, it's also the easiest and least expensive for you.  

That said, I recomment that you get either a king snake, a corn snake, an iran jaya or west paupan carpet python, a jungle carpet python, or a children's python.  

Corn snakes and king snakes are colubrids.  They are probably the easiest to care for, as well as the least expensive.  They come in a wide variety of colors and patterns and don't ever get too big, averaging about four-five feet.


Personally, I prefer the boids (boe-ID).  The boid family includes boas and pythons.  The three types of pythons I listed are going to be more pet-like animals as they are less wiggly, but keep on mind that when you get them as little babies, they are often a bit nippy (not to worry though, they'll tame right down and their little teeth aren't even long enough to break the skin).  Children's pythons are the smallest of the three pythons I listed, with average adult sizes of only three feet.  The carpet pythons will not often exceed six feet in length.

I'm including some links so you can look at the different snakes available and get a sense of what you should expect to pay, as well as a link to a few forums that will give you a chance to talk to people who keep various kinds of snakes.  It's really a matter of preference, and the more you know the better equiped you will be to make your decision.

Forums:
http://moreliapythons.com/forums/

http://www.bobclark.com/bcforums/

Breeders:
http://www.exoticsbynature.com/

http://www.spitfirereptiles.com/indexsrc.html

http://www.acreptiles.com/

http://www.bobclark.com/

http://www.newenglandreptile.com/

http://www.proexotics.com/

The breeders I listed are all good people who really know the industry and are safe to buy animals from online.  I absolutely recommend that you buy from one of them rather than buying from a pet store because you will get a better animal for a better price.  They'll all be happy to help you and to work with you to make sure you get exactly what you want.

When you decide what you want, please don't hesitate to contact me again and I'll help you set your enclosure up and make sure you get off on the right foot with these wonderful animals.  I wish you the best of luck and hope to hear from you in the future.