Back with more (apparently) stupid questions

I’m honestly so reluctant to post, but wanna know as much as I possibly can and the only way to do that is to ask questions.

So I posted a few weeks back about wanting a ball python, but it was afraid of teeth we decided we’re gonna go through with a python.

And I’ve been browsing them on here and I’ve seen a couple breeders say that orange dreams have bad personalities and they don’t know why they try to do this or something about the feistiness of a piebald. I asked around locally and got looked out like I was an absolute idiot and was told to go home and do my research before I came back.

Which is exactly what I was trying to do

So do different morphs have different temperaments I know each snake is completely individual on its own just like any other animal but are there inherently grumpier morphs?

Second, I don’t know Morphs, I don’t know what that means. I know that means you know that this one was bred with this to create this and apparently in my town if you go into a reptile store, that’s not a big box store you need to know that or they’re gonna trt you like trash. No I have been noticing a pattern in the snakes that I like I prefer the patterns of a spot nose in HET I don’t know what any of that means, though. I know it’s a pretty black and yellow python.

I really wanted to buy locally because if I have something shipped, I don’t know when it will get here because we’re not looking at anywhere under 90° weather for at least another two months so while shopping in stores is there anything that I can say that is not gonna make me sound like I’m an idiot I mean, I am an idiot. I’ve never owned a snake before this is all new to me. and I really just wanna give whatever I decide to get the best life possible because this is a super long-term commitment.

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You are certainly not an idiot!!! Period! I’m so sorry you have been treated so badly Heather! You are doing the right thing by asking questions! If you just jumped into reptile keeping without asking questions and being prepared, that would not be a responsible thing to do. But you are responsible and certainly not an idiot!

There are people here who are way more qualified than me who can and will answer any question you have. I hope we have not made you hesitant to come back to this forum. If so I apologize. :folded_hands:. You will be getting advice soon! :heart:

Edit to add: there are no stupid questions! The only thing I do want to say is make sure you locate a reptile vet in your area in case you ever need to get medical attention for your ball python. This is very important.

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Cudos to you for actually trying to do research BEFORE you buy any animal. Don’t fear asking questions here, you won’t get flamed. And you’re not an idiot, you’re ignorant. That’s not the same thing as stupid. Ignorant just means you don’t have knowledge about a subject, that can be fixed through education. Stupid, well, as Ron White says, you can’t fix stupid.

A morph is what we in the reptile hobby call a (visual) genetic mutation. MorphMarket calls them traits. This is coming from a hobbyist, not a geneticist, so bear with me on the terms: A normal (wild type) ball python basically has two pigments, yellow and black. The black part of a ball python just has the black pigment. The brown part of the ball python has a mix of yellow and black pigment. One of the very first ball python morphs to be discovered is Albino. In ball pythons Albino means it’s missing the black pigmentation. So where the black would normally be, shows up as white and where the brown would normally be shows up as yellow. An Albino looks like a yellow and white snake. A short time later the Axanthic ball python was discovered. In ball pythons Axanthic means it’s missing the yellow pigmentation. So where the black would normally be is still black but where the brown would normally be shows up as a very light black, or silver (gray). An Axanthic looks black and silver (or gray). Albino and Axanthic are two examples of morphs or traits as MorphMarket calls them. Through selective breeding, breeders were able to combine those two morphs in one ball python. It was lacking both black and yellow pigments and basically looked white. This combination of two or more morphs or traits is commonly called a combo in the hobby. Some combos people gave new names, which sometimes is more of a marketing ploy. The combo of Albino and Axanthic in ball pythons was given the specific name Snow, because it looked pure as snow and it was cute to call it a Snow ball python. There are over 200 different ball python morphs that have been discovered over the decades and when you start combining them you get millions of different combos. So that explains what the hobby terms “morph” and “combo” are. There you go, a little less ignorant. :wink:

As far as the genetics go, well that’s another explainer all together. In ball pythons morphs come in three different categories: Dominant, Incomplete Dominant (some people INCORRECTLY call these Co-dominant) and Recessive. For now I’ll just say Dominant and Incomplete Dominant morphs are very easy to create in offspring and Recessive morphs are more difficult (time intensive) to create. Because of that, ball pythons with Recessive trait(s) tend to cost more than ones with just Dominant or Incomplete Dominant trait(s). There are MANY YouTube videos explaining ball python genetics. Find a few and dive in. Different content creators explain it a little differently, but still correctly, so don’t give up if you don’t understand from watching just one. The really good ones use drawings or props to explain it. It can be explained here in words, but it’s more difficult than in videos. Maybe someone will give it a shot, but not me, at least not right now.

Oh and whoever told you certain morphs have certain (negative) personalities is full of beans. There is no connection between a morph and personality. For the most part, the morphs generally just change the color or pattern, nothing to do with personality. I say “most part” because there is a Scaleless Head morph that can generate a totally scaleless BP. And the Spider morph (and some of its related morphs) comes with a “physical malformation in the inner ear rather” that causes a “wobble”, or balance issues. And some known combos can generate big eyes or tiny eyes. And some combos are outright lethal to the BP.

Everyone has their favorite morph(s) and combos of those morphs. I personally love the Dreamsicle combo which has the two traits Lavender Albino and Piebald. Throw in a little Enchi and BAM, gorgeous, at least to me.

I fully encourage you to do as much research in advance and definitely get your enclosure setup and fine tuned BEFORE you get an animal, I know it’s hard, but it’s right. There are MANY ball python specific channels on YouTube from people that have been keeping, breeding and creating content for years. Those are the ones to watch. Unfortunately, there are also fly-by-night knuckleheads putting ball python content out on YouTube that aren’t giving the best guidance. You should be able to determine the difference.

Don’t be afraid to buy from a (reputable) MorphMarket breeder just because it would need to be shipped. Most shipping is done overnight to minimize travel time and the sellers know to monitor the weather and take appropriate action (heat packs or cold packs) as necessary.

And don’t be afraid to ask questions here. Folks here absolutely LOVE to educate without judgement.

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I’ve never heard of any morphs being more or less inherently defensive/aggressive, defensiveness is based on how well a snake has been accustomed to humans. The only morph issues I know of are morphs that cause physical deformities or inner ear disruption- which causes uncoordinated movement. On MorphMarket’s Morphpedia all morphs with known issues especially in Ball Pythons are already listed, so you can freely do research into them to know which ones cause issues :slight_smile:

Also, here no question is a stupid question. It’s good that you want to learn and if someone is treating you badly because you asked a question, you are likely to not get good advice from them anyway. The only thing we’d do here is offer constructive criticism if it is called for.

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See and i didnt even think of that but i do know my regular vet doesn’t work on exotics, so thank you for reminding me to look!!!

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Others have given you a wonderful intro to genetics, so I just want to pipe up on the rest - anyone who says that certain morphs have worse attitudes is completely pulling your leg, to put it kindly, though that’s not the phrase I’d actually prefer to use. I suppose it’s possible that an animal’s morph might have a small (like, 1-2%) impact on attitude, but in my experience, temperament comes from two things: genetics (not as in morph, rather as in what were the temperaments of the parents) and how much time the breeder/keeper who has the snake currently has put into socializing them. Animals with smaller breeders who take the time to handle their babies are almost always going to be better-tempered than babies produced by bigger breeders who only ever open their tubs/enclosures to feed them. If you get a baby that is defensive it is quite easy in my experience to tame them down with regular handling, and if you get a calm one, as long as you continue handling it, it will stay that way. I have bought a couple of ball pythons as adults who have remained somewhat defensive, but not a single snake that I got as a baby and grew up is defensive.

There are absolutely morphs that cause health issues (the spider complex, super black pastel/cinnamon combinations, scaleless, etc.) but health is not the same as temperament, though you do probably have a stronger chance of a snake that is not in good health being a bit more defensive, just on account of the fact that pain/discomfort often causes moodiness, in pretty much every species.

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You are very welcome Heather! :smiling_face_with_three_hearts::folded_hands:

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As @halfmoonlakeherps said above, do not hesitate to check out the ball pythons listed on MM. There are thousands of ball pythons there. I have purchased more than several ball pythons on MM. I have never had any issues whatsoever. You can pretty well evaluate the breeder by checking out the reviews. This is not a foolproof way to determine a good or bad reputation but it’s a place to start. The more reviews the more established the breeder is as well. FedEx overnight shipping to your nearest FedEx hub is the safest way to have your animal shipped and held for pickup. Easy peasy!

But I want to warn you! You will have a hard time choosing just one! Been there done that! :joy:

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You’ve gotten good answers already, but I just wanted to be one more voice chiming in to say you are absolutely NOT an idiot. People just don’t know what they don’t know, and you’re new to snakes, so it’s completely normal and understandable that there’s still a lot you’re learning. I’ve been keeping snakes for around 5 years now, and there’s still loads of stuff I don’t know. I also know very little about astrophysics, ancient languages (besides Latin, and I don’t even know much Latin anymore), engineering, car mechanics, painting, and a whole host of other subjects that just haven’t been relevant to the life I’ve lived thus far. Not knowing that stuff doesn’t make me an idiot, it just makes me a fallible human like everyone else. I reserve the word “idiot” only for the wilfully ignorant.

I’m really sorry you were treated that way by your local shop. In my opinion, pet shops, especially specialty pet shops, should be jumping at the chance to educate people who come in wanting to learn, and it’s really crummy that the people at this shop seemed to care more about stroking their own egos than helping a potential customer…which is also a really awful business model.

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Suggestion: find a reptile rescue. Vet them to make sure they’re legit. Look at the ball pythons they have available. If there are any you’re drawn toward, check out their “personality” and research their (presumed) morphs. If all this checks out, there’s your snake.

I’ve never gotten a reptile from a rescue, but the fact that so many BPs are at rescues makes this a pretty sensible looking option.

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First, never be reluctant to post your questions here. Seriously, we all want you to succeed and the best way for that to happen is for you to ask and get the answers you need
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As more than a few people have already commented, but 100% worth repeating just to help remove any doubt - there is ZERO credible correlation between a specific morph and increased/decreased aggression/placidity. I have heard it all in the past forty-odd years and none of it pans out. I have OD animals that are so calm I will hand them over to toddlers without a second thought. And I have ODs that are huffy and grumpy and no one but me gets to handle. It is all down to the specific animal. There does tend to be a solid link between parent behaviour and offspring behaviour, and this is one reason it is good to talk with breeders and get an idea of the specific animal you are buying
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“Morph” is a hobby slang term. Generally it is accepted to be a shortened form of the word ‘morphotype’. What it really is, is a term used as shorthand for the appearance that the genetic mutations cause. Understanding the different morphs is pretty much just a matter of memorization. Some of them make perfect sense - Spider was originally called “Spider Web” because the pattern was spider-webbed in appearance (and the name got shortened because that is what people do LOL). Others probably make no sense at all unless you understand their history - The Enchi morph has reduced patterning and higher yellow colouration but the name has nothing to do with any of that. It is named after the town of Enchi in western Ghana where the original animal with the mutation was collected from
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Then in all honesty, you should not be buying your animal from that store. A good store will answer your questions. This is another point in favour of talking to breeders because the ones that care about ore than $$$ will be happy to chat with you and make sure you get what you want/need. An option if you want to buy an animal in person is to attend a reptile expo and talk to a breeder there. This has up and down sides however. You will have the chance to see the animal in person (up side) but unless you looked up specific breeders before you went you cannot know for sure if they are good or sketchy (down side). Also, depending on how busy it is, a breeder may not be able to spend a lot of time talking to you because they also have to be able to help any other customers that come up to them. One way to help mitigate that is to let them know when you approach that you have lots of questions but you are happy to wait if someone else comes up that needs attending to
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Good breeders are more than happy to hold the animals until it is safe to ship. Yes, it means waiting, but that is time that can be put into making 100% certain you have everything else you need and getting it all set up just right because…
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The best way to do this is to prepare prepare prepare and not get the animal until you are 100% ready. And just in case you are wondering if I practice what I preach, I made both of my kids write full research reports on animals they wanted before I allowed them to get them LOL
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**^^^ :backhand_index_pointing_up: :backhand_index_pointing_up: :backhand_index_pointing_up: ^^^

THIS!!!**

So very much this
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I understand that everything probably feels overwhelming right now. We have all been there. And that is why everyone here keeps emphasizing that you are doing the right thing by asking these questions. You want to succeed. But more than that, we want you to succeed

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Amen to that a thousand plus times! :folded_hands::+1::wink::clap:

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Taking notes for the future… :face_with_monocle:

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Yeah so actually. You have. Brain cell!! You should celebrate… dont delete it tho. If anybody treats you poorly when you try to get more info on ANYTHING, it’s a sign they are not a good place to find GOOD info, if any at all.
Since the most recent comment was August, I assume you’re good rn. But I felt like being reassuring anyways. Good luck and congrats! I hope you do well!