Novice, advice on Woma and Brendli

[zicarus]

Sorry in advance for the wall of text but we just want to make sure we are going about this the right way...


My gf and i have spent a few weeks hours each day researching pythons and what would be a good beginer to start with. The ones we came up with were
diamond, woma, bredli and blackhead. We have mainly handled the woma when visiting breeders and shops and have found them to be so laid back and placid and from what we have seen in real life and in videos they have the best personality we find the head bobbing and tail waging to be so funny.


We haven't had much dealing with a bredli but saw one today and they seemed placid as well but trying to find someone that does have them so we can see what they are like it is a hard choice between the two only concern being a novice is that the bredli are not a small snake when fully grown from what we have read.
Im not going to name any stores but we spent all day driving around from Thomastown to Hoppers Crossing and then on to Ballarat then finally back home to Sunbury previously we have been to stores in and around the city as well, collecting as much information we could about these pythons and also about vivs.
So far all have said the size we would need would be 4Wx2Hx2D some say to use a click clack and some say not to but to give plenty of hide holes/places and one at the warm end and also at the cool end, we have set aside about $800-900 for the viv we had a quote today for a fully decked out and automated one for $750-800 - the ornaments.


The only thing that is confusing us is the price for the woma we have had people tell us $250, $450, $600 and $750-900 the average price we have seen is about $350- 450 price isnt a problem but i also dont think anybody likes to be ripped off at the same time.
We were in a shop today and we were asking about the woma and we kept getting pushed toward the blackheaded and they didnt want to talk about the woma at all after looking i did notice out of all the small ones it was the most expensive at $750. From photos on the net we have seen what we want to get and that is the one that has more of an orange/yellow head and dark bands just need to find out where it comes from its either QLD, S.A or WA.


So so far we are waiting for our licence forms to be sent out so we can fill them in also we have two books on order the ones stated by members here, We plan on running the viv for about 1-2 weeks to make sure all is working fine, and also have back ups of things just in case, found a herp vet that we can go to if needed, set up a bank acc dedicated to our hatch-ling also pet insurance.


If anyone could shed some light on the price variation of the woma and if we have missed anything, we want to do this right first time around oh and also if anyone knows of a good snake breeder, we will be seeing one in Ballarat in a week or two.
Any advice is much appreciated...
Cheers

 

[reptalica]

Try Totally Reptiles in Greensborough for a Woma, they have about 3-4 in stock. As always everyone has their own opinions as to which is the better breed. I can only speak for Woma's as I have four of them. They are hardy, generally great handlers, excellent with their food and don't get too big and recently are on a basic licence in Victoria. They r also a gorgeous looking specimen with many and varied colourings and patterns.

Oh and that enclosure price seems way overkill for what u need. Trust me u wont be needing the Taj Mahal. A 4 x 2 x 2 up to a 6 x 2 x 2 is ample for a full sized Woma.

Hatchies are better suited to a click clack or tub i.e. sistema or starmaid etc.

more of an orange/yellow head and dark bands just need to find out where it comes from its either QLD, S.A or WA.

Sounds like an Uluru, Boodarie or Sandfire but definately not an SA.

 

[amieserovski]

out of all of them i'd go for the woma if you're concerned about size

 

[Lawra]

Hi not sure about other states but in qld a license is obtainable in about 15 mins online.

I bought a woma a couple of months ago and I must say he's the best I paid $400 but I think price varies depending on where you are.

I also agree with everything reptalica said

At the end of the day it came down to gut feeling for me. I handled 4 woma hatchies from the same clutch and decided on Steve, even though I really wanted a girl. Although I think I got one: he hates mouse fur and arm hair, and gets cranky if his tank isn't cleaned immediately after he poops lol.

Your future baby sounds like he/she will be in very good hands

 

[Jacknife]

If you want to know anything about Bredli let me know, I keep 3 atm and live just in Footscray, not far from Sunbury.
I can also build you a custom enclosure for much much less than $700-$800...

 

[Boondocker]

Another vote for woma here.

 

[snakeprincess]

Another Vote for Bredli....I have 4

 

[zicarus]

Thanks for the help and advice we are most likely going to get 2 maybe a woma and a bredli, my gf concern about the bredli was the size as she saw videos and pics of some fully grown i think it was a bit intimidating, but as i said you grow with the snake and from what ive read it does take some yrs for them to get to that size.
Ive seen some hypo's that have amazing patterns on them i just hope with in the next week or 2 we get to handle some.
As for the licence i cant see of any way to get it on line and we had some trouble getting it sent to us as the law changed this year and the woma came down to a basic licence this year
Reptalica it looks like the sandfire was the one that we saw.
Im pretty much well set on the bredli, now i just have to find one that picks me sounds stupid but ive always let any pet i will own sorta come to me or show interest.
Thanks Badsville its good to know that there is someone with experience close
One thing ive noticed is that ive never seen 2 snakes in one viv im guessing there is a reason for this i take it its not a good idea let alone 2 different breeds. And one last this is there any sort of meet in melbourne/vic that anyone knows of?
Thanks again for everyones help

 

[harlemrain]

Keeping pythons in the same enclosure whether the same or different species is never a good idea, you run the risk of injuries or worse. Particularly for womas as they're reptile eaters haha

Welcome to APS, nice to see someone doing a lot of their research before purchase I have a woma and he's pretty much bomb proof so you can't go wrong there, but bredlis are a good beginner snake too, as you say, you grow and learn with them.

Goodluck, be sure to post pics when you have him/her!

 

[zicarus]

Yeah true until u said that they do hunt reptiles not a good move at all, and i can understand the risk of injury especially if on gets a little cranky last thing we want.
Just been advised today that we wont receive the forms until the end of the month and once filled out should expect our licence to reach us by the 3rd week of august at the earliest
But i suppose that gives u more time to research further and also get fully set up so that we are well ahead of their needs, so hard holding them u just want to take them home with you lol..

 

[harlemrain]

That blows, here in NSW I think it took all of 20 mins to get approved & licensed

 

[zicarus]

In a way its good it removes the temptation to just take one home then rush to get set up. now we can focus on the viv and designing the inside as we want it to reflect the bredli's natural environment i know there are different views on click-clack to large vivs, but from what we have read a researched a larger viv eg 4x2x2, (but being climbers i may change the dimensions so its taller and a bit thinner) is ok as long as we give ample spots for him to hide in to feel safe and secure, we will use a click-clack to start with until he is settled.
We are thinking of a 3/4 rock wall(fake) on all 3 sides branches as they are arboreal with hide spots up high as well. We a researching if a fiberglass material is ok to lay over the carved foam model ( i have had yrs of experience working with fiberglass) as long as its left out to fully cure 3 weeks to cure and will airbrush with the right non toxic paints as that's what we will make the rock structures out of, and that way we can have parts that fit in to provide hide spaces, as well as fake/silk plants for him. iIm not sure if i should use a red sand as a substrate or coconut fiber, i know pine chips and one other wood is toxic to them i have it in a print out.
I think we just want a nice natural viv for him to play in, as well as looking nice at the same time.

 

[ronhalling]

Good to see another Herper doing all the right research before jumping in the pool and being overwhelmed, I won't make any suggestions as to what snake to buy because that is always going to be a personal thing and too many suggestions from too many people just becomes confusing, Please if you can help it do not keep 2 snakes in the 1 enclosure, in the beginning it might look like a nice setup and they might get along famously for a couple of years but you never want to find 1 day that instead of 2 snakes you only see 1 very fat snake, it happens all too often. your choice of enclosure size looks to be good for both the Woma and Bredli but before throwing money away on buying some over priced shop models you should give it a go building your own enclosures, there are plenty of examples and tutorials here to help you and the glowing sensation of pride in seeing the fruits of your labour being lived in happily by your pets is all part of the wonderfull journey that is Herping, If you decide that you do not have the werewithal to make your own then you should deffinatly take up Badsville's offer to build you custom enclosures, I am sure that he would be able to build you 2 enclosures for the price you were quoted for 1 in the shop and by working with him you will still have input into what you want or need in your enclosure(s) he can also give you some invaluable advice on what snake would also suit you and your gf. You mentioned "pet insurance" i am sure we would all like to know where you got that from as i am sure everyone here has run up against a brick wall as soon as we said that our pets were snakes or lizards, it would appear that their idea of a pet has fur not scales. Again i congratulate you on all the research you have done WTG ............................................Ron

 

[zicarus]

I am speaking to badsville and have seen a photo and they look great.
I will never put two together the only way will be if they are both in a click clack so we can lock them away in the viv. Ive got my heart set on a bredli and my gf is thinking about one as well but she has always talked about the woma and id prefer her to get that.
And re the pet insurance what I was meaning is its something I want to get but ringing around at work this afternoon and no one is willing I even tried the rspca no go. So much for their moto all creatures great and small.

Sent from my GT-I9305 using Tapatalk 4 Beta

 

[ReptileJimmy]

Bredli ! Sure they get pretty large, but by that time (many many years) you will be much more experienced and ready to handle them. I am also fairly new to the trade with a 2 1/2 yr old Bredli, and have not been struck at. As for the others, I really have no idea haha. As long as you have a nice cage for them, I think a Bredli will be a great pet !

 

[Hamalicious]

I have 2 black heads, 2 womas, a bredli and a diamond, so i may be able to offer some help on this topic haha.

Firstly, all 4 species are great snakes. The Black heads and Bredli's do get very large so Food and housing are things to consider. A 2.5-3m snake will need a large enclosure and large food items. Womas and Diamonds arent as large but still get to a decent size. Both have great personalities but the Woma's are much easier to care for. If you're considering a Diamond PLEASE do as much research as you can on DPS (Diamond Python Syndrome)

A big difference between the two, other than colour and pattern, will be their enclosure. Woma's are ground dwellers and need a long, wide and low enclosure, Diamonds are arboreal so they like a tall enclosure so they can climb. If you start with a hatchling though, i absolutely recommend starting with a click clack and setting up an enclosure when they are around 1 year old.
Some people will put young snakes in adult size enclosures. Maybe it works for some people but i have had nothing but problems when i do this so now i keep all hatchlings in click clacks and move them into an appropriately sized enclosure. I upgrade the enclosure as they grow and either move a smaller snake into their old enclosure, sell the old enclosure, store it or just get another snake haha.

The last thing i will say is, do not, under any circumstances, keep two snakes together. If anyone tells you that it's fine, it's because they have been lucky enough to not have any problems YET. Cannibalism, fighting and stress are just some of the things that can happen between the snakes while you're not watching. Other problems occur when one sick snakes very quickly becomes two sick snakes. Im sure there are even more possible problems that i haven't mentioned.

Good luck with whatever you choose, you're certainly on the right track and in the right place.

Hamish

 

[reptalica]

That blows, here in NSW I think it took all of 20 mins to get approved & licensed

And that was how long it took for the fax to go thru.

 

[zicarus]

Thanks Hamalicious, from what has been said here and come to think about it, we have never seen 2 snakes in one viv out of all the stores we have been to that tells u something there. And we will never do it the only time would be if they were in separate click clacks and purely for locking purposes such as when my daughter visits aged 7 and my son 11 i know the temptation for them will be too great and i would feel better knowing they are locked away for their own safety more worried about the snakes being stressed out and getting hurt than the rug rats lol.
As i said before my choice is a bredli, yes it will get big but ill grow with it and i dont have a problem in giving it everything it needs so it is a happy snake, dont really want a grumpy one.
Its just a matter of finding ones that ive seen that i like the look of, but im not in a rush( well i am ) but i want to pick one that when i see it wow comes to mind (yeah that sounds a little vein) haha.
But all the members here have been so helpful im glad i found this forum, funny enough it was from another in the UK i was browsing for research that had a link to aussie snakes