how hard/how much does it cost to take care of a burmese python?

Question

well i have been wanting one for about 4 yrs now but havent gotten around to actually buying one i had a 10 gallon tank but i know in a matter of moths it will grow out of it i just wanted to know on an avarge how much should i expect the care of one will cost me from vet visits living to feeding.

im aware of how big it growns and the dangers but i love them there so beautiful ive always been interested in them.

Answer 1

Burmese are very easy to care for. The only *big* tricks are to make sure that they always have water available to them and that they don't get too cold.

When small, a 6" Burmese will go through a pinky eery week or 2. As they get older, progress them upwards through larger and larger feed until, as adults, they can take a large (4 or 5 lb) feeder rabbit. If you don't keep feeding larger, their head won't develop and you'll end up with a big snake with a small head.

And when you're feeding, don't just open the cage and toss in a mouse (or whatever). Take the snake out of the cage and play with them, get them 'warmed up' a bit. Then have someone put the mouse, hamster, guinea pig, rabbit, etc. in the cage. Then you put the snake back in it's cage (tail first is usually good) and let it 'find' dinner all on it's own. If you just open the door and throw something in, pretty soon the snake begins to associate "Door open - motion - food" and it's only matter of time until you get nailed ☺

My last big Burmese was a bit over 20 feet long and about a foot in diameter when I had to get rid of her. She was going through about two 5 lb. feeder bunnies (however much they cost today) every 2 or 3 weeks during growth phases and the annual vet trip was around $25.

HTH ☺

Doug
PS: If you're interested in a large cage, drop me an e-mail.

Answer 2

A friend of mine had a Burmese and he had a cement pool built, complete with filtration and all. The pool was about 12 by 12 foot and about 6 foot deep built in a two car heated garage without vehicle doors installed. He also spent a small fortune in getting the garage escape proof.

He never fed live prey, after it was full grown he fed it piglets that weighed about 20-25 lbs once every 4-6 weeks.

I would say he spent about 30-40 thousand dollars over a 15 year period before a local zoo contacted him about adopting it because their Burmese died.

Once the zoo adopted the Burmese he got a gator, now that was fun to see eat piglets and chickens.

Answer 3

i have to agree with a previous poster even though you have knowledge, more than likely you still have no clue as to what it really entails with keeping a large boid, start with a columbian and see how to care for larger snakes prior to attempting a BURM, retic, rock python or anaconda. at full size it takes several adults to handle these giants. and a 10 gal tank would not last more than a month or so they can be 4 to 6 ft within the first year a 40 gal breeder would not even last more than 18 months or so, if you check out some of the sites i will list below for their care sheets most of them state the burm is for advanced snake keepers. please be careful and know what your gettin in to prior to purchase. best of luck and happy herping
ps you never stated whether or not you have kept a snake, so i assumed you have not.
i own 7 snakes
2 columbian boa's
2 brazilian rainbow boa's
2 ball pythons
jungle carpet python

Answer 4

ive been keeping large boas n pythons for a number of years and are quite demanding tanks for a fully grown python are really expensive most people use a room.ive mine in my snake room but i was jus to keep one python it would cost a few hundred a year including feeding,cleaning andvet visits.i would opt for a common red tail boa constrictor to get used to large constrictors.these while costly will not be as costly as the python and are stunning snakes.visit http://www.anapsid.org for info on both

Answer 5

One thing you need to understand when it comes to large breed snakes, is they do grow and they are long time pets. They can still be dangerous even if you handle them all the time. Just like any other animal, they can snap and attack so do your reading and ask a vet about them before purchasing.

Answer 6

I think you should check out this link. I know you said that you realize how huge they get and everything, but this article really puts them into perspective. Also, if you've never owned a snake before, I definitely don't think you should start out with a giant snake.