oh for sure! I’m very excited to finally get one after researching for months!
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Some Selayer’s will stay under 10ft, but usually those are males or a very small lineage.
When you’re looking try and find a seller that has records of their lines. If you can go back to the grandparents of the hatchling you’re interested in and see the adult sizes through the generations, that will help you determine the potential size of your retic. Obviously small moms make small hatchlings but coming from small grandparents also can contribute to that snakes overall size.
Just make sure you get pics of the parents, a lot of people will take pure male Dwarfs or SD and breed them into mainland females the get those desirable morphs and usually those hatchlings will be big snakes.
There is some good topics in the giant snake section on here that are good reads if you’re looking into Dwarf/SD retics.
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Absolutely, I’ve been doing as much research as I can, I have even joined a few FB groups. Thanks Man!
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Of course, you have any questions or want to talk tics shoot me a DM.
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Dwarfs usually get 10 to 14 foot range, males a little smaller. Also depends on what locality it is and how often you feed.
That’s not entirely true. If you have a SD/Dwarf retic from small bloodlines that have been produced by quality breeders, you let your bloodline do the work of keeping that snake small.
You don’t want to feed your snake less to keep it small, that’s not the idea when owning a Super Dwarf. I feed all of mine good meals every week, and they grow slow because they are from solid bloodlines that have small parents, grandparents and great grandparents. More about the line than feeding less.
Reach Out Reptiles has some good videos on the subject too.
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with I’d say it’s mostly true. Your post mostly relates to SD’s. He claims that dwarves get 10-14ft, such as selayer and jampea. Some are much smaller, but 10-14 actual feet is about what one could expect from a dwarf.
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No, my post relates to all Dwarf or Super Dwarfs. Like I stated above, let the bloodline do the work of keeping that snake small. You get a Dwarf with large genetics, from a ■■■■ bloodline, it will reach the lengths you describe. You get a Dwarf from premium genetics, that snake will stay small. I’ve seen and worked with mainland males that were smaller than some 50% Dwarf Jampeas. Doesn’t matter on the feeding regime, it’s 80% genetics related when you’re talking about size.
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Jrc has it right. There’s a lot of factors but genetics and dam size are the primary.
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A maximum adult size of 10-14 actual feet measured via software is a quality dwarf bloodline, that size is reasonable for even a pure jamp/ selayer.
One thing to take into consideration is quality super dwarf and dwarf lines are considerably less girthy. This is sometimes overlooked but makes a huge difference in how manageable they are. My male is about 6 foot but is not as thick as most of my adult female ball pythons. And also I agree with @jrc_retics feeding really doesn’t have much of an effect on siZe. I feed my pair weekly always have you don’t starve a sd into being small. You start with a quality line and you fed them normal they will stay small because of there genetics. With all that said a 9 or 10 foot female super dwarf/ dwarf is still a big freaking snake and a huge responsibility. You should only get into them if your still prepared for a big snake.
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This I feel is very overlooked. People hear Dwarf or Super Dwarf and associate that with manageable. If you don’t know your way around large pythons, there is nothing manageable about a 10-14ft snake without experience doing so.
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That is a very true statement, that is why trying to get some hands on experience with larger species that are more active is crucial. But even after that nothing can truly prepare you for owning a retic of that size. Even working with a retic of that size. Handling is not the only thing that has to do with care and maintaining a large python, obviously it’s important you know how to work around one to be able to maintain one
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This is why my fiancé and I are waiting until our boa girl Bessie is full grown, to see how well we can handle a big snake.
If we both feel we can handle a retic after that, we’ll probably look into getting a dwarf/superdwarf. I’d love to breed them someday.
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For anyone that isn’t prepared, the insane feeding response of super dwarf retics, especially as they approach adult size, can be quite frightening. Mine aren’t aggressive at all, but man, they want to eat anything that comes near them. After they realize its not food, they are ok, and pretty easy to handle.
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Have you tried tap or hook training? It’s when you open their enclosure and you don’t have food then you tap or pet them on the head with a hook or tap their enclosure. It teaches them that you don’t have food and makes it easier to handle or clean their enclosure.
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Yes, mine are more or less hook trained, doesn’t make them any less aggressive at feeding time though.
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I concur it does not 
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Can confirm: even SuperDwarf Retics have insane feeding and breeding responses. Even a small SuperDwarf can cause serious damage with a bite. I went to give water to one of my 7ft SDs and was struck in the forearm. I did not pull but he did when he wrapped. Got him out and realized I had massive lacerations with torn muscle and nerves. Went to the ER for it. Got stitched back together and had minor nerve damage.
That’s from a “manageable/small” sized Retic. It’s still not a beginner species or for anyone who can’t handle that.
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