How do i convince my mom to let me get a ball python?

Question

i know the care requirments or the ball python and i get paid 20$ a month so it would take saving up but i am willing to save. in two years i can get a job then i will have more money even if its just minimum wage. i really dont understand why my mom wont let me because she loves snakes and so do i and it would be in my room its whole life except when i feed it which would be in the bathroom. i know shes worried because she thinks i might chicken out on feeding it mice since im a vegatarian but i'll buy th mice frozen and thaw them. please how do i convince her to let me? i absolutly love snakes and reptiles and well all animals for that matter. is 20$ a month enough to feed it?

Answer 1

20$ a month should be fine for food, i wrote my mom a long letter because she wouldnt let me get my ball python either, it may sound stupid but it worked for me. She went from completely hating the idea of having a snake in the house to not minding at all. Make sure to include every positive thing about you and your BP in the letter. Let her know that the ball python is one of the most docile snakes. They dont bite, eat weekly, dont smell (if you clean), and arent loud. They are very easy to take care of and love to be held.    

Hope i could help.

Answer 2

Well I was in your situation once too well more of a year ago! It took me months to convince my parents to let me have a snake. But hey..I got some.

1st: You have to show them that you are responsible to take care of your room and yourself. Which means you don't need all of their help.

2nd: Do ALOT of research on the snake that you want and in your case, a ball python.

3rd: Explain to them everything, what the requirements are for the snake.

4th: Give them a few days to think about it and during that time, you still and always have to show responsibility of yourself.

5th: When your mom give you an answer, if its a yes then that's good but if it is a no then just give her a few more days to see that you can do this yourself.

Remember that this snake will be yours. Do your best to take care of it. Your mom will understand. Your mom does have every rights to say no to you but you just have to prove to her. Tell her that the feeder is already dead, and there is nothing I can do to save its life.

I just want you to know that taking care of a snake isn't all easy as some people think. They do have to be handle often and there are certain times you shouldn't handle a snake too. Plus they do rasie your bills because of heating. If it isn't around the right temp. then many things could happen to the snake. So please do all your research before getting a snake, for your sake, the snake's sake, and your mom's sakes too. I would recommend you to inform your mom about the bills too because if it goes up and you didn't' tell her...things aren't going to end so well.... trust me, I didn't tell my parents about how the bill is going to go up until I got yelled at and was told to give away my snake...but with much convincing again I got to keep him. =]

Research had change my parents' mind.... =] I hope I could help!

$20 is enough for fuzzies if you find it once a week. It's only 89 cents for a fuzzy from a local pet store so you would have alot of money left over. But please remember that you must be dedicated to the snake. It will be with you for a long time. So when you turn 16 or something, you might get bored because it doesn't do anything or whatever. And always remember to feed it every week. So basically, don't slack off when owning a pet or snake.

Just email me of you need anything!

Answer 3

Ball pythons are notorious for not eating....

You might want to try a corn snake first if you have never had one before.

Answer 4

I would look on the internet and see if you can find what it takes to care for one of these animals.  How long do they live?  Some snakes can live for 20-30 years or more.  What happens when you grow up and get a job.  who will care for the thing if you go out of town or on vacation.

Answer 5

tell her you want one

tell her they are good pets

they are easy to maintain

all you have to do is feed it a rat every week and clean its cage!

Answer 6

shot gun and maskin tape usualy work well

Answer 7

$20 a month is enough to feed a ball python.  Even as hatchlings, they only eat once a week.  However, be sure that you buy your baby from a reputeable person, and that it is captive born and bred (cbb), and not captive-hatched (ch).  Snakes from a pet store could be either one--if the pet store folks aren't sure, then it is probably ch.  Keep in mind that you will need to not only have all of the equipment set up and ready first, but also have enough saved for a first time vet visit.  (Around $30-$60 if you find a decent ARAV member veterinarian--don't settle for a vet who doesn't have a lot of reptile experience).

Also, buy a GOOD and RECENT book on ball python care (check the copyright dates, get something less than 3 years old).

Now, ball pythons can live for as long as 30 years...what will you do with your snake when you go off to college?  

Finally, if you are going to get a ball python, you must be prepared for the fact that it might refuse to eat frozen/thawed rodents--at least at first, if not forever.  It can take time for a ball python to accept thawed prey--it doesn't smell the same to them.  Ball pythons can be picky eaters, and will often come to prefer just one type of prey.  I breed ball pythons, and I have 16 of them right now.  Out of those, 2 of them will NEVER accept frozen/thawed prey, and 1 of those will not even accept pre-killed prey--it must be live.  2 others only very rarely accept f/t prey--they usually refuse it.  And one other will sometimes strike and constrict f/t prey, but then leave it uneaten--he only eats it about half the time.

So, that's 5 out of 16 of them that I can't feed f/t and expect them to eat it.  I have had 4 other snakes start refusing food, and only start eating again when offered live--I can usually get them to take f/t again after a while.   That means only half of my snakes will eat f/t rodents every single time without a problem.

All but 3 of them ate only live when I first got them, and I had to work with them by first offering them pre-killed food, and then patiently offering f/t until they accepted it--the animals must eat every week whether they accept a new food or not.  They don't experience hunger the way we mammals do, and will simply refuse to eat at all if they can't get what they want.  I've always had an easier time switching them to new food if they're used to eating every week on the same day.  "They'll eat whatever you offer when they are hungry" is never true for ball pythons.

Can you handle feeding live rodents to your snake, or even more difficult, killing them yourself beforehand?  If you are a ball python owner, you may have to do this.  Even if you buy a snake that is already eating f/t, you may have to do it at some point in your life.  If you can't do that, then you shouldn't own one of these snakes--a less fussy eater like a corn snake or African house snake would be a better choice of pet.

Oh, and it's a rare ball python that will eat after being moved around--you probably will need to feed your snake in its cage, and not in your bathroom.  The advice of moving the snake to a 'feeding cage' is good for aggressive feeders like corn and house snakes, but it's not appropriate for ball pythons--they are usually too shy.

Answer 8

The reason why she might not want you to have it is because Ball pythons get BIG and alot of the time people get babys because they are so small and cute only to sell them/give it to a petstore a few years later because they are 6ft and too big for the hanldler. If its your first time having a snake them i recomed something alot smaller such as a cornsnake or rosy boa. Also when you get a smaller snake you feed it smaller foods. If you cant stand the sight of feeding rats(you will eventually have to feed rats and when its older even cute lil bunnies) then you can even get a garter snake or rough green snake which are both good and small snakes that eat bugs, worms, and garters eat goldfish which makes a good pass time to watch.

Answer 9

tell ur mom that ur the one responsible and that she doesnt need to do any work and that u have everything covered

Answer 10

Well for starters, how about trying the following:

#1 Cleaning your room and making sure that it STAYS clean and tidy.

#2 Making sure that your homework is done and handed in on time.

#3 Sweep the floors in the living room and kitchen without your parents asking you to.

#4 Wash and/or dry the dishes.

#5 Do not fight and argue with your sisters & brothers.

#6 Eat what you are given and don't whine or make "yuck" faces when given it.

#7 Don't talk rudly to adults

#8  Always share with other kids.

#9 Go to bed when you are told to.

#10 Research the pet and breed you want to be 100% certain that it is the right one for you.

# 11 Ask them about getting this new pet in a nice way and don't beg and whine about it.

I’m 100% sure that if you give those a try, they will see that you are serious about wanting to add a this pet to your life and family. :)