I need help. I don’t know who to buy from. This will be my first Ball Python. I am in the process of getting housing. Now the tough part is getting the actual snake, who woulda thought. Now the thing is my budget is $75-100. I am in the state of Arizona. Thank you for the help again.
We try not to favor a breeder over another or make recommendations, so my best advice is to go on Morph Market (Market Place) and do a search using filters such as price, you can also find breeders in your area and will be able to read what customers say about various breeders.
Finally here are some tips on how to buy
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Check the breeders reviews on their profile. Also, a lot of breeders have a Facebook page in their profile, check reviews there as well.
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Please make sure to read the sellers profile before even considering a snake. It took me 3 sellers (and weeks of very few and sometimes no responses) until i found a reliable seller. It was very discouraging but dont let that deter you from the hobby. You will find the perfect match! 
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I’m a wee bit confused!!!
why exactly… wouldn’t we want to share what we know about where to buy from (rather than …where not to buy from)?. Talking about the good guys surely can’t offend anyone?
I know plenty of great breeders who deserve our support,… as they live and breath qualtity, education and standards. What’s wrong with naming these guys? 
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Because this is the Morphmarket Community which is obviously part of Morphmarket (the market place) so we cannot in good conscience promote one of our vendor/member over another, that would not be very fair nor would be very partial to others that would be left out. Nothing worse than a community that shows favoritism toward some of it’s members.
Instead we would rather have people go on morphmarket and do their due diligence, search animals, read reviews, research sellers. 
And there is always the private message system if you feel compel to do so.
We are not about promoting or self promoting but instead about healthy intelligent discussion regarding reptiles just like we do not allow review here about breeders negative or positive
- No ratings or reviews about buyers or sellers. This includes “unboxing” type posts which inevitably include either promotional or review type content. Those involved in transactions can use the MorphMarket Rating system or should use the Facebook FBI forum.
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This is just a personal opinion, and I don’t mean to be confrontational about it at all, but if we as a forum want to look after our peers… we should allow for open and honest discussions like this. How on earth would a newbee find honest feedback/answers otherwise? I do see the issue with paying businesses on the main page, but…
This is basically at the heart of what we do as a forum… in a way.
MorphMarket or not. You just have to go with your gut. You shouldn’t talk crap about one breeder, so you can blow smoke up another. You can and can’t entirely rely on reviews. Some people that leave good reviews may just be friends with them to start. So, naturally its going to be good. Or a bad review could be an isolated incident. Breeders are humans and make mistakes too. No point in trying to bury them for it. Just have to pay attention, read the breeder info, and make your own decision.
Besides, showing favoritism will only start arguments. The one breeder that everybody likes, will also have people that doesn’t like him/her.
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I know you are not and this is why I take the time to explain why, if we encourage people to recommend others and show favoritism it will not be long before we start having the opposite threads “who not to buy from” and at this time (and we have talked about it) we prefer not to allow feedbacks (positive or negative), time will tell if something along the line of the FBI or BOI will be implemented here but that a whole other discussion.
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Correct me if I am wrong here. On Morph Market the purchase is verified before you can leave feedback. On the forum you can say things…without the purchase being verified. Not saying people would lie, but better safe than sorry. Imagine being on the receiving end of negative comments from an unverified purchaser. A single misinformed post could damage a breeders reputation.
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At this time the community does not allow any type of feedback (again it may change over time) on the market place a seller shows an animal sold to which enable the ability for each party to leave a feedback/rating, @john will correct me if I am wrong.
I have no intention to offend any breeder. I do look at all info about the breeder form Morphy market to Facebook even youtube if they have that. I was more looking for recommendations, because there are so so many breeders.
@stewart_reptiles’s answers are pretty spot on.
The simple answer as to why we exclude rating-type posts on MRC is because if we allowed positive comments, then it follows that there would be negative feedback too. And moderating all of that is messy and a lot of work to try to dig out the facts of what happened. This is what the FBI was for, although it’s gone now, and we have discussed the possibility of hosting something like that but decided against it for now.
On the market site, inquiries leading to a transaction can be rated. Buyer are still allowed to leave feedback on any inquiry, but those comments are private and seen by MM staff only. Those feedback are taken “with a grain of salt”, but can be useful when a number of different folks are saying the same thing.
I would like to add a feature to the marketplace which lets a user search breeders and filter by rating, location, etc.
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I agree with the others on here. I wouldn’t try to tell you who is a better seller versus another on here just because it could get messy. But as far as this being your first snake just filter them out on morphmarket for your budget and see what catches your eye and just research the seller before you buy. And you say that your budget is between 75-100 but does this include shipping? Because you need to account for that also. It also wouldnt hurt to buy from a local breeder so you dont have to pay for shipping. Sites like craigslist always have listings for reptiles, especially bp’s.
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We’re new to morph market and have bought 2 snakes from 2 different breeders. Both transactions went smoothly and communication was great. The snakes were healthy and ate a day or 2 after arriving. I would like to eventually purchase a bearded dragon.
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I agree with the person above talking about shipping. I have never paid less than $50 for shipping, so if your total budget is $75-$100 you will have to buy locally. Also, at that price you will be getting a normal. I would say you are better off just finding one on Craigslist. There are many people rehoming if you are not concerned about getting a hatchling.
I have purchased from six different breeders on Morphmarket and I have never had a bad experience. Some seem more “friendly” and open to questions than others, but all animals have arrived alive and well. But again, for that price I think your best bet is local.
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In the current climate of breeder “clicks” and high school level gossip that happens quite a bit in the reptile hobby, especially ball pythons, I think it would be hard to recommend a breeder. Because if you open it up to recommendations you could potentially give bad advice based on someone’s popularity, not the best fit for the buyer. In the range of 75-$100 almost any breeder will have value to the customer/new keeper. I think the MM structure is nice because you can look at your budget, and then look with your eyes to see what you want. I’ve purchased animals from “popular” breeders that were a nightmare to deal with and small time breeders that were awesome. Send the breeder a message , and gauge how they respond. Check out ig and /or facebook, and see what people are saying and then make your own decision. Hope this helps.
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@nathan_e Craigslist is the worst place in the universe to buy a pet from. I have seen snakes in the worst conditions on Craigslist. Not to mention the danger factor in going to meet someone you know absolutely nothing about. Stick to a reputable small or large breeder. If you can’t afford $60 for overnight shipping, you can’t afford vet care in the case of an emergency.
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I understand that animals get posted when they are in horrible condition sometimes but then why would you buy that animal? You cant completely put down craigslist because there are good breeders who post their animals to that site. And just like alot of things there are always risk to things, its just up to you to use your best judgement. But i do get where your coming from
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