Are we trending towards no more old school grow to be large retics? Almost every add you see on MM is a dwarf/super dwarf or a percentage mix. I like the d/sd but my preference is a mainland that’ll grow to be large and not have “just a little jampea” in it as if it’s a little bit of pepper. Lol
A lot of the animals that I see on MorphMarket are mainland without any dwarf or percentage like that. Especially stuff that has high dwarf percentage is definitely more rare…. I think the people that are looking to make a quick buck might be more prompt to advertise any more percentage due to morph localities. But people were breeding, high end dwarfs and super dwarfs are in this for a long game approach.
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If you dislike anery then you’re probably fine. But anything with it has a pinch of SD in it.
Sd/D Retics are becoming more popular because of people who can’t maintain a large mainland and love the species. I personally can’t because of back issues and a lack of properly trained friends willing to work with a potentially dangerous animal. A 10ft snake is about the limit for me as I can’t handle more than around 30 pounds.
I did research on my animals before purchase to know they’ll be in that size range. I’m not looking into purchasing an animal and needing to re-home it because it outgrew my limitations.
The downside is that a lot of the animals being sold with varying % can still become large animals if not properly bred or being powerfed as well.
It’s a little bit of a hot button issue because people into these animals typically prefer to breed for immediately passable traits and not a line bred trait like size. So in a way the % doesn’t matter much in many cases. The breeder’s reputation and how they are being bred is much more of a concern.
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I mean…I still see lots of mainlands currently listed on MM. And the majority of animals I see with dwarf/super dwarf blood are under 50% dwarf/sd lineage, which in most cases still means it will grow to be quite a large snake. So it’s not like it’s hard to get a big retic if that’s what you’re after, there’s plenty of options available.
That said, yes, the smaller localities are becoming more popular and more readily available, and I expect that trend to continue. I think the reason why is pretty obvious. The average person (even the average snake lover) simply cannot accommodate a snake that gets 16+ feet in length and can weigh over 100 pounds. That’s just not an animal most people can comfortably and safely provide for. I love big snakes, and although I would love to own a giant constrictor…I have no place to put it. I literally do not have space in my condo for an enclosure large enough for a huge snake. I don’t have a ton of upper body strength. And I don’t live with someone who would be willing and able to help me safely handle/manage a huge snake. So, it would be irresponsible for me to get an animal like that. And I’m hardly alone in that. I feel like I probably just described a lot of people.
So it’s not really hard to understand why a snake with all the beauty and intelligence of a retic, but that grows to a more manageable size, would be appealing to a lot of people. I don’t think big retics are going anywhere in the hobby, but dwarves and super dwarves just have wider appeal to more people, because the average person is not equipped to care for a giant snake.
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