I love my Calabar python…but sence the are all basically wild caught I dont recommend…mine was a fresh import…but I can not get him to switch to F/T…& I get him 3 live rats pups @ a time…about every 3 weeks. (Nest raiders) plus he is kinda never out unless your up @ 3am…lol. He is so different…& sweet to be fair.
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If youve never had an opportunity to hold a Calabar python…& you can…DO! Very great calm prehistoric snakes. Their scale structure is different & you can tell. Nicknamed Rino snakes for their skin. ( the scale fibers cross instead of lay in straight fiber) laymen term
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Wicket…my Calabar was the 1st Id ever held. It was a tiny show with import distributors. I wasnt gonna to get him…he just came into the country…but when I held him I instantly fell head over heels!! He has been a pain in my butt to feed ever since!!! Lol lol 
… worth it. Like having a weird sand boa…you keep like a ball …sorta …lol
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Tikal…my Broad banded bamboo (lacti)
My Vote…Bamboos!! Very rewarding…nice displays…& good eaters. Easily handled. Bees knees. Lol
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& honestly kinda alot of the kingsnake/ milksnake/ ratsnakes…wont adult fit a 2 foot…realistically. GBK…yeah…Mandarin rat…kinda depends. Depends on sub species. A bamboo…yes. all 4 main subs offered for sale
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Ill always give rosy boas a shoot out too
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I never thought about Calabars. Those pictures are making me want one except that most of them are WC. I have a phobia of snake mites and parasites, I realize that is ignorance on my part but I’m a weeny! Lol! 
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Rosys are great! I only have one. He is undoubtedly the most laid back snake I’ve ever had. However not all of them are that way of course.
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That’s a gorgeous unique animal! 
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I would like to recommend Arizona mountain kingsnakes. I even have a caresheet for em.
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I just read the care guide, job well done! It would be hard to beat a pyro in the looks department, without a doubt!
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Rubber boas have this too. They will both also hide their heads under their bodies and wave the tail around if startled as a defensive tactic. The level of convergent evolution between these two species is ridiculous
The one animal I did lose during quarantine I still have in my freezer waiting for me to skin and process with my Dermestids because their skeleton is so weirdly cool
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Well mites are a possibility with any new snake, WC or CBB, just depends on the place they came from. I have been lucky that nothing I have brought in has had them, but I still practice pretty strict quarantine. As far as parasites… These are definitely a hazard of WC but if you are good with what you are doing then they are not a huge hazard. My protocol is to focus more on establishing the animal first and foremost and worry about clearing it unwanted guests later. In my experience, the stress of establishment coupled with the stress of medication often results in a decline in the animal. We need to remember that in the wild these animals live with the parasites pretty much all their life and the goal of the parasite is not to kill the host, so them carrying them is not generally life-threatening. Once the animal is well established then they are better able to take a dose of meds
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So this is normal . I found a dead coral snake and had it in my freezer for probably 2-3 year, thawed it and looked it over before getting rid of it. It was really interesting.
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We will NOT discuss the number of freezer pets I own
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Ok that is probably a good call
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That makes a lot of sense about the parasites. Aren’t most wild caught only treated externally anyway before they are sold?
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Thank you for that!
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@t_h_wyman
That GBK looks awesome, that locality is a top contender.
I haven’t read much about black milk snakes, but those seem like a fun species.
I just looked into rhino rats, those seem like they could be a very good option for me.
Calabar’s are a dream snake for me, but right now I’m not really interested in getting something WC. Those seem like an advanced species, which can be fun, but it’s not exactly what I’m looking for right now (but they are high up on the wishlist, lol).
@slpocrnich Your two snakes are awesome, I love their colors.
I feel like I would have trouble keeping the bamboo rat snakes due to their cool temperatures. I could probably put them in my basement, but then I’d never see them. Thanks for the advice.
@ashleyraeanne I read through your care sheet a couple times already this week, lol (it’s a great resource and very well written). Those are a super beautiful species, really not helping my bank account, lol.
Overall, thanks everyone for the help. I have a ton of species to look into, which will keep me busy. But, a dream snake for me has always been an albino milk snake. I absolutely love the colors of milk snakes, and they seem like the perfect medium-sized snake (handleable, active, great feeders). Before I was always limited by the cost of a PVC enclosure. But now, I’m in a different financial situation, so spending $200-300 on an enclosure is reasonable now. So, I found a nice milk snake on MM, updates soon to come…
I’m planning on getting a female, and this year, getting one or 2 other species of snakes. Then, I’ll save up for adult enclosures and males for them all. So, this thread will still be a huge help for me and I’m going to be referencing it a lot. If anyone has any more input, it will still help.
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The albinos are very pretty and so are the tangerines as well……
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Honestly, they are not advanced at all. The most difficult part is getting them to feed and that is not much of a challenge. I have only had one animal that refused to adapt to captivity
The only thing about them that might turn people off is that, since they are nest-raiders, they pretty much have to be fed live. Even that is not a huge challenge, just take a handful of mice fuzzies or a couple rat pups, drop them in a bowl that is high enough to keep them contained, and set it in the cage. The snake will take care of the rest
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