Beginner and new to Australia - couple of questions

[FrostFG]

Hey everybody!
I moved to Australia(Townsville) a couple of months ago and after I visited Billabong Sanctuary I decided I realy want a snake. Since I am new to this country it is kind of difficult to figure out how everything works and and I might ask some stupid questions. So please be patient (and also with my english )
What I am looking for is a snake that just catches my eye, that grows to at least 1,5 - 2m, still juvenile and affordable for a student. I kind of felt in love with Aspidites melanocephalus, but I seems it is rare.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspidites_melanocephalus A snake of the Morelia complex is probably a good start - later on maybe even a Morelia viridis.
1) I need some kind of permit to have snakes as a pet. I know I can do it online and I will do it this weekend or next week.
2) Where do you guys order your enclosures? Depending on the size I am starting with a plastic box (for really young snakes) or a medium size timber/glassfront enclosure.
I found that: [DELETED] Is something like that a reasonable price in Australia? Back home they sell that stuff on ebay for almost nothing - maybe I just haven't found the right page?
3) The most important thing: the snake. Where to you actually get your snakes? The local PetHQ just sells 2 different overpriced minisnakes. Any comment about the type of snake?

Please post anything that could be helpful for me, but please keep this thread clean so I can use it for further questions.

Best regards

 

[driftoz]

for snakes check the fors ale thread plenty of private breeders with good prices better than most pet shops

 

[Kitah]

Black headed pythons/Aspidites melanocephalus aren't rare, but the number of hatchies/juveniles around will vary with the time of year, as you would expect! Personally I love the black and gold jungle pythons- there are quite a few great breeders on here with some absolutely stunning animals!

1. A link for the licence- Keeping wildlife for recreational purposes (Department of Environment and Resource Management)
2. No idea about enclosures for snakes sorry
1. One recommendation I can make- don't but any animals from pet HQ! the best store I've come across in Townsville for pet gear, fish and birds is Petbarn off dalrymple Rd. PetHQ from my experience often has sick animals, the staff don't know what they're talking about etc. That and their childrens and spotteds are way overpriced! (used to be $399 for a standard spotted, and $499 for a blonde spotted). The best bet would be to check out the for sale forum on here- a lot of breeders will quite happily pay to ship an animal to you (you have to pay, though its not that expensive- still cheaper than buying something from pet HQ for example, and far better quality!). You've also got a bit more piece of mind because the breeders can help you out with enclosures, and if you have any problems etc.

 

[Serpentess]

You can find the odd enclosure in the the For Sale section of this site: For Sale (Food, Accessories and Services) - Aussie Pythons & Snakes

You can buy snakes from many breeders around the state. You can find some of these breeders on this site as well: For Sale (Snakes) - Aussie Pythons & Snakes

Search google for some other breeders in your area, if you can't find what you want.

Anyway, BHP's aren't very rare, they're not even on a restricted licence... sometimes you can find some pretty cheap hatchies if you're lucky.

 

[spongebob]

To get local help and advice join your local herp group:

North Queensland Herpetological Society Inc. - Home

 

[FrostFG]

To get local help and advice join your local herp group:

North Queensland Herpetological Society Inc. - Home

Ahhh, thats awesome.
Thanks for the hints, even though I still don't know were to get the enclosure.

It seems many people have a pair (male and female) of snakes. Is this recommended? Can I make sure they don't breed or is this not in my hands?

 

[Pythons Rule]

look up herptrader too sometimes you can find some nice looking animals for dirt cheap and also enclosure/snake deals. depending one how much you can afford to spend on a python will determind which type but if you check out WIKI in this site you will find out every question you need to know, there is lists of breeders, reptile vets, sepliers etc also species list with loads of info on size etc. BHP's are everywhere and if your after a hatchy you'll be looking at next year when there ready for sale, you could get yearlings now though and they will grow to 2 - 3 metres in length as adults. there price is around $700 - 1500 depending on locality your after but sometimes you can get very lunky and get them for $400.

 

[townsvillepython]

hey mate welcome to townsville DW Reptiles for local enclosures not sure on price i build my own. i know someone was selling coastal carpets for $80 each in the paper today North Queensland Herpetological Society Inc. - Home in the for sale
bhps $650

 

[nico77]

Mate most things have been coverd already , but enclosures . If you start it off in a click clack (plastic tub) you can look around at the salvo's or second hand shop for a cheap tv unit and add some glass slides and convert it to a enclosure quiet easy if your handy with your hands , if your not to handy with your hands and preffer to get 1 made try ringing some local shopfitters or cabinet makers and get some prices . Dont forget about heating for the snake you get you will need a heat mat or heat lamp so you can have a good temp gradiant from 32 at one end of the enclosure to about 28 at the cool end .
oh yeah welcome to australia .

cheers nico

 

[Jungletrans]

Dont get a pair unless you want to breed . They are solitary animals and will sometimes eat each other if kept together [ outside mateing season ] so you would need 2 cages .

 

[Kenshin]

your on the right track, you should be able to find someone up there that will build you enclosures or failing that you can knock one up yourself

if your not that handy you can convert tv units and other furnature into good enclosures quiet easily thats what i used to do when i was a kid and i was not by any means handy nor did i have much cash

blackheaded pythons should be relativly easy to get your hands on and so are the jungles theres a heap of people that have hatchlings availible at the moment

 

[FrostFG]

plug in dimmer in townsville?

Hey everybody!
After all I started building my own enclosure

The only part that is really missing is a plug in dimmer for the Par38 lamp. Can someone please tell me who sells those things? I tryed about 10 shops and some of them haven't even heard of plug in dimmers. Any ideas? (I am hanging around in Townsville).

 

[Polycarp]

making an enclosure is real simple.. it needs to be secure, have a heat source at one end with a cage around it (so snake doesn't wrap around and sear itself to the bulb), ventilation and hides for the snake to feel secure. I made one from a TV unit I picked up from ebay for $50.00.. the fake rock is styrafoam blocks covered in tiling grout/pva glue mix, the plants are fake bought at the two dolla shop, and the branches were from the side of the road..

 

[FrostFG]

I guess you didn't see my last post? The picture shows the enclosure I made. But as I said, I really need a dimmer!

 

[shellfisch]

I really need a dimmer!

Welcome to Australia, and the addiction!

Try The Herp Shop - Australia for your heat fittings, light cages etc.

You can order online or over the phone, it generally only takes a few days to arrive.
Your enclosure is looking good!

 

[FrostFG]

Thanks, I'll post a pic of the final enclosure in the end.
Checked the HerpShop, and they actually have one. But $95 made for 1500W... They are about $25 on ebay, but since I don't have an Australia ebay account I am still hoping that there is a shop in Townsville were I can get them. However, is looks like I have to order it there

 

[shellfisch]

They are about $25 on ebay

$25.00 INCLUDING postage?? And can be used in Australia...??

 

[FrostFG]

No, without shipping. It is produced by Green Hand Eco Products in NZ.

 

[Kenshin]

hey frost looking good, just remember to seal the inside of the enclosure to guard against water and snake waste, also i highly recommend siliconing all the bottem edges as nothing shts me more then snakes pooing in the corners

 

[FrostFG]

Thanks, used some sealant for the wood already and I used silicon to attach the plastic tracks for the plexi. You are right, I should definitely use the remaining silicon for the edges.
Looks like that at the moment: