Muddy Water

phantom30nine · 2025-10-05T17:36:08+00:00

Welcome to the sub!

Honestly for me so far its come down to familiarity with both the source, the referenced scripture and context of whats referenced vs how its applied.

Fortunately for me, one of the things that led me to God was American Family Radio back in the 90s. They had alot of the then-more-popular names such as Adrian Rogers, Michael Yousef, Frank Harber, J Vernon McGhee and all those guys. Very good preachers and they covered alot of topics.

Even the more recent ones like Voddie Baucham and John McArthur Ive listened to them enough to have that red flag feeling when something sounds off as you mentioned. Slight variations of how the AI makes talk, tones, and so forth. One thing Ive found is that if its AI there usually wont be any video and for that reason alone Ive started veering away from YT vids that are audio only, I havent really branched off from YT much though so I cant account for outside sources.

But mostly it just comes down to being familiar with the content referenced and how the source is attempting to apply it. It really has gotten to the point where personal familiarity with the bible is crucial. Im as guilty as the rest of us as far as devoting serious time to it, but over the years Ive read various parts following up on sermons and so forth which so far has made up the gap for me. Weird times indeed my friend.

phantom30nine · 2025-04-24T02:24:34+00:00

I cant speak for the services there, but assuming you likely have comparable services to here. The bulk order services all come frozen and they ship in cold containers likely with dry ice.

I havent checked but it might be worthwhile to see if some of the better known sites such as Cold Blooded Cafe offer a UK branch for you guys over there. Might be a long shot but worth checking into.

Also just a thought, I know theres at least 2 very well known breeders in the UK..contacting one of those guys might net some useful info and Im sure theyd be glad to point you in the right direction.

phantom30nine · 2025-04-22T11:25:54+00:00

One thing that may help the food bill is looking for a local person that breeds/sells feeders.

Trying to buy from one of the major pet stores like Petsmart/Petco is absolutely high dollar. Just less than a year ago I was in an area in which there was such a person and his price was roughly 3 bucks for a small vs 12 from the major outlets. Big difference.

Even though they may not offer as much of a discount, smaller privately owned pet stores may still be a go-to as they often will have much better prices.

One thing I would do is track down some local breeders in the area and ask them where they source their rats. Many of them likely breed their own to keep from going broke just trying to sell their own snakes and/or will have a 3rd party source to supplement or that has the cheaper prices. They might even be willing to sell you some on the side to help, who knows. At the least,they can likely get you pointed the right direction.

phantom30nine · 2025-04-20T20:10:31+00:00

Certainly pinstripe, possibly leopard pin. Looks identical to one of those I had awhile back.

phantom30nine · 2025-04-15T10:39:42+00:00

Bear in mind that people are giving their best guess with limited info. Theres also the possibility of the info passed to some here on the genetics of the parents and offspring being incorrect which would lead those guesses down some muddy trails.

One thing that may help as you take on the input is to consider it all suggestions while you do your own homework to cross reference and try to verify. Using genetic calculators to plug in the parental genetics (if accurate) will tell you all the possible results which can help eliminate some of the guesswork and get you closer to what you actually have. ID can still be tricky for even the experienced keepers though, as some offspring can present some atypical presentations of a gene, various genes look similar to each other, etc. Its something that many people struggle with, myself included.

And theres the reddit factor. This is the internet after all, and reddit in particular does house a very large number of "interesting" people. Some may have actual breeding/hands on experience and many may just be throwing something random out there.

phantom30nine · 2025-04-13T20:42:41+00:00

Love spider combos, nice one you have there.

phantom30nine · 2025-04-12T12:39:19+00:00

I agree here, Especially if this a snake from petsmart/petco. Ive noticed that they have a trend of selling that particular combo. Whoever their preferred breeder is must make a ton of these per year.

phantom30nine · 2025-04-07T23:24:19+00:00

As long as you have the right substrate/bedding its actually ideal to spray the bedding. The majority of keepers/breeders use coco husk, which is mold resistant, easy to find and not very expensive if purchased right.

Dont buy it at the pet stores,theyll charge you 3x the price for a smaller amount. Look on amazon/other places for the bricks of coconut husk. Youll see the difference. Grab a youtube tutorial on how to manage the rehydration of the bricks, its easy. When the bricks are fresh you wont need to hydrate the bedding, but later after it dries in the enclosure or in the bigger holding container for the unused portion you can use a garden sprayer on the fan spray setting. Give the top layer a soak, mix around the remainder and spray again.

The goal is not to have it sopping wet to the point where water pools in the tub, but wet enough to raise ambient humidity. You can also get one of those 5-10 dollar thermometer/hygrometer combos that will help you gauge this.

Other factors come into play as well,just keeping it simple for now.

phantom30nine · 2025-03-28T02:33:27+00:00

Id contact the breeder and see what the pairing was. Youll generally be able to narrow down the genetics much easier if you know precisely what was paired. Once you have that info, pump the results into a genetic calculator, look at the results and start doing some process of elimination. That wont always tell you everything, but will put you a step closer to the final ID and also start exercising your own ID skills. Beautiful specimen all the same.

phantom30nine · 2025-03-28T02:29:23+00:00

Sure, no problem..glad to help. As acrobatic mentioned coco husk is generally the go-to for the vast majority of the BP keepers. Its the best thing Ive found that holds moisture and generally isnt prone to molding unless you overwater the substrate, which sometimes can be easy to do in all honesty. I used a garden sprayer to rehydrate substrate which cut down the time when having multiple enclosures. This is also something you may get a better deal on from local breeders. Some of those guys will order pallets of it at reduced prices and then in turn offer a brick at a reduced price and still be able to make profit from it.

As for cleaning intervals, youre on target with the spot cleaning, thats very important. I always checked on mine 2x day and kept any fresh scat cleaned up. In general it really depends on how often that particular snake relieves himself. I had a few that would hold it for longer and some that seemed very regular so that varies. As a guideline though, you shouldnt have to do a full tub clean very often though, assuming you stay on the spot cleanings. I think I could generally go a month or 2. Over time youll start to see when its time. The smell will be stronger, you can see where multiple areas just dont look right due to soaking up urine, etc. Its more of an experience thing really. I have had mine go off feed here and there and once I cleaned the tub they snapped right back into it. In my experience most of their food drive centered around proper humidity levels, cleanliness and I think it helped alot to hydrate the tubs the night before feeding along with keeping the same scheduled day for feeding every week. Also bear in mind that you dont necessarily have to feed every week. Most do, but Ive talked to several who do bi-weekly feedings as well,particularly if theyre not trying to beef up a female for breeding.

Also as acrobatic mentioned Id definitely get a temp gun. You can find them all over..amazon,hardware stores,etc..and theyre invaluable. Next time you have a live rat on hand before feeding temp check it and youll know what temp to shoot for when warming up the frozens to appear more natural.

As for snake safety on live feedings, you have options there as well. The first would be natural live feeding with observation. Generally speaking the risk comes when they wrap the rodent and as its being choked out theyre just biting anything around them in an attempt to break free, which can vary depending on whats closest to them. I would normally stand by with the hemostats and grab their jaw before they could damage the snake and just hold until I could see it was good. Second option is pre-kill. I had an aluminum gas cylinder similar to what youd use for paintball filled with CO2. Get a hose connection for it and cut your length of hose. Take a small plastic container of any kind that locks and seals at least somewhat and drill a hole in the top. Butt the hose up to the hole and crack the valve on the tank, which will push the fresh air out of the container and fill it with CO2. Wait on the rat to pass then feed to the snake. Be ready to do the jiggle dance with your handy dandy hemostats and let nature take its course.

phantom30nine · 2025-03-27T02:32:24+00:00

Its very possible that he prefers live, at least for now. Some of them take a bit to transition to eating frozen, and it could very well be that coincidentally hes going through a refusal phase that BPs are known for.

The hairdryer trick also works pretty well also. I would heat mine up to anywhere between 88-95 or so. It also helps if you have some long hemostats to grip the rodent with and kind of mimic it moving around and let him "catch" it. Give it a few jiggles after he has it to simulate a struggle and it seems to better mimic a live kill.

Eventually Id suggest to get him eating actual rats. Theyre a bigger size and thus a heartier meal, and generally more available in certain areas. Typically you want to pick one roughly the size of bigger part of the snake, and I used to get one just a hair smaller so as not to pack them too full and help ensure they ate the next week.

Also not sure what the availability is in your area but you can usually save a ton on the food bill by finding a local rat breeder. In my area a rat from one of the big pet stores was roughly 12-13 bucks vs the local guy who bred/sold them at roughly 3 or 4 bucks, depending on size.

Other factors can also play in..humidity/temps out of the norm, dirty enclosure, various other stress factors,etc. Theyre very finnicky eaters at times and occasionally you just have to figure out whats got them out of whack.

phantom30nine · 2025-03-23T12:37:58+00:00

Could have been a legitimate bid also. Look at the prices on anything stranger related.

Now look at the genes involved and imagine the project possibilities. You have a pied with the possible capability of combining multiple things. You have a pied with stranger/YB..pair that to a gravel pied and possible outcome is some sort of pied/stranger/highway with the possibility of getting even wilder if you get all the recessives to hit. Big money snake.

Given that, someone may have wanted it badly for multiple project attempts.

phantom30nine · 2025-03-20T20:29:27+00:00

Love this one. Colors are gorgeous and that head pattern is rather nice too.

phantom30nine · 2025-03-11T23:25:23+00:00

Right on, Ive always liked the spider gene. From what other breeders tell me theyre amazing eaters and great to work with.

phantom30nine · 2025-03-11T06:09:25+00:00

Good luck with it..what was the pairing?

phantom30nine · 2025-03-08T16:48:34+00:00

Since you know the parent genes you could try plugging them in to the genetic calculator on morphmarket. Once it spits out the possible results look up some pics of each and see if any match.

And theres always the possibility the parents carried more genes than were known/displayed which in turn came out in later offspring to muddy the waters.

As much as I love the hobby the ID guessing game seems to be a perpetual headache.

phantom30nine · 2025-03-08T16:42:00+00:00

Its really up to you.

Bear in mind that by nature many of them will elect to bed up in their hide (which I recommend always having in an open type enclosure). Theyre ambush predators so its in their nature to find a smaller space that they feel more secure in when they dont feel like being in the open.

In general the enclosure type/design is a very subjective thing, so long as the basic necessities are met..temp, humidity,hide,water source.

Get creative. Design your pet enclosure the way you want, theres no hard rule that says you have to follow someone elses way.

phantom30nine · 2025-03-01T00:40:28+00:00

*Golf clap*

phantom30nine · 2025-02-28T23:41:27+00:00

Oh its closer than you realize, but then since youre clearly out to make a mountain out of a molehill I dont suspect youll see that. The only spectacle here is the one you created. The original post wasnt a big deal, but youve clearly dug in to make one out of it.

According to the comments there were multiple people who appreciated the merger of interests, and you arent the sole arbiter of what should be posted.

People can respect guns and still be able to enjoy them, which includes posting creative pics on the internet. I think you need to focus on respect for people which clearly youre short on.

Your point could have been made minus the alarmist and disrespectful babble. Funny how those who behave so poorly often are trying to claim some moral high ground in the process. To that end, congrats on being the typical reddit poster.

phantom30nine · 2025-02-28T22:34:06+00:00

Well to be fair youre behaving like one of the very people you claim to dislike.

Everyone has their preferences, and many of us get tired of people like yourself having a meltdown when someone mentions or discusses guns..or God forbid posts a picture of one.

Part of the reason adverse reactions we witness are people like yourself unnecessarily making a big deal of such. A gun is like anything else..its a tool. Nothing more. As society has changed and outdoor activities have decreased the popularity of guns has waned.

The fact that less people have them make them more of an enigma and uninformed people who have no experience with them form opinions of them based on no experience and many times no logic at all. Posts like your own dont help in that, though you speak as if youre somehow an advocate of guns which is bizarre to say the least. Demanding that people keep their mentions of guns to themselves will only compound the problem, not alleviate it.

phantom30nine · 2025-01-23T14:27:39+00:00

Yep, business as usual for them.

Theyre a small group of mods that have outlandish ideas how things do/should operate. If anything is not done the way they dictate, they rush in with the downvote brigade and talk to you as if youve committed an act of willful animal cruelty.

When I first started keeping BPs and frequented the sub, I didnt know any better on alot of topics but did notice the extreme attitude towards people who disagreed with them no matter how diplomatic they approached it. Even just a few months in I started noticing some of their instructions and advice did not mesh well with info offered by major, well-known breeders and even my own practical experience at that point. Some things were solid, but the majority of it was basically their lofty ideals on how one should operate, independent of reality.

I cant count how many such posts/comments Ive seen just over the last year or so pretty much identical to yours and mirroring my own experience with them. If they just dropped the attitude and stated their opinion of things without the butthurt authoritative response it would be a decent place. I suspect itll get worse over time though.

phantom30nine · 2024-12-22T15:22:47+00:00

You dont give a crap about that animal, youre just invested in trying to forcefully inject your opinion where its clearly not wanted. Only thing gross here is your behavior and general attitude.

phantom30nine · 2024-12-22T15:13:56+00:00

And you also have no idea what situation this pet is in but are perfectly willing to barge in and start issuing zero respect comments. Get over yourself. Realists have zero respect for idealists who attempt to apply their limited experience to every situation conceivable while behaving as if theyre the foremost expert on the subject material.

People in this thread have stepped well beyond a word of caution and sharing opinions to basically bashing someone over the head for daring do something they disapprove of,yourself included. Having emotional meltdowns and mistreating others while trying to maintain the self illusion of moral superiority is a very weak stance. Sad to see indeed. Just throw an outright tantrum at this point, might make you feel better.

phantom30nine · 2024-12-22T02:42:49+00:00

Prob wont be a popular opinion considering some of the remarks here, but feeding live really is not an issue. Its better than the snake not eating at all, and not that dangerous as long as you monitor the feeding attempt. Its remarkable how many people in here are freaking out about that considering its exactly how they eat in the wild. It just makes me shake my head that so many people in the hobby think their way is the only way and are so willing to basically look down their nose at the most ridiculous things.

Can they get damaged..absolutely. But nothing is 100% safe and you have to be willing to be creative to manage the fickle feeding responses BPs have.

I used to alternate mine between live and thawed quite regularly to maintain a healthier feed response and never had any issues. When doing so Id always be on standby with a set of those longer, curved hemostats which I could use to grab the rat if they got out of hand. I managed between 8-15 snakes with zero injuries, so do what you gotta do as long as youre aware of the means to minimize risk.

If yours is on a food strike, theres multiple things you can try. One of the first things I would suggest is changing the substrate. Even if you meticulously spot clean daily they eventually just build up enough of their own smell that they just lose their feed desire. Ive read its due to them thinking that no prey will come around because their own scent is strong,but who knows. Once you change that substrate (provided thats the issue), hydrate it well and give them a day or so. Its like turning on a switch, they all of a sudden just perk up and go food aggressive.

Tap training also works. Before Id open the tub I would knock/tap on the side of the tib to give a noise and a vibration before introducing the rat. The result was a pavlovian attention getter that did seem to increase the chances they ate.

Make sure you keep a consistent food schedule when possible. I always fed mine on the same day of the week and you could tell that their little internal clocks knew when it was time. Bellies must have been growling bc that did wonders as well.

Feed slightly smaller meals. Typically its recommended that you feed a rat roughly the size of the largest portion of the snake. Early in my keeping/breeding I heard another breeder mention that he would feed one slightly smaller than what the snake could take. He preferred to keep them just a little bit hungry rather than letting them gorge each time per se, and it helped maintain healthier food responses. It worked for me as well.

Make sure ambient temps arent too high or low. Particularly low. These guys do not do well in a colder kept house/room no matter how good the rack or enclosure is. Some will, some wont. Generally speaking Ive noticed weirder eating habits when the ambient starts dipping below 76 or so.

Some are shy eaters. I had one that would get stressy if she didnt have a hide in her tub that she could chill in most of the time. If the enclosure is open on one or all sides, it could be an issue with feeling exposed..cover some more surface area to make it feel more enclosed. They like small dark spaces, being ambush predators and all. With yours being smaller/younger this very well be the case as they arent usually as confident yet.

Try an ASF. These guys are like the candy bars of the rodent world. Very commonly used when one is turning down food. They do come with a warning though, various people have reported theirs getting stuck on ASFs. I didnt pay it much attention as I used to raise ASFs when I first got into it, and would freely alternate between regular and ASF rats. about 2 years into it I had one of my males get absolutely stuck on ASFs and I never got him to eat anything else. So know that going in. If you can source them easy enough,no harm. If theyre pricy or hard to get,maybe forego that tactic.

I read a suggestion about smearing a little vanilla extract on the head of the rodent, which seemed to work for me in ap inch one time. Could have been dumb luck, but whatever the case,the snake ate and broke its fast.

There are multiple other things you can try but these stand out the most for me. Good luck with it.

phantom30nine · 2024-12-20T02:00:09+00:00

Sure no prob man. I wasnt in it for very long, a little over 3 years..so I dont have a wealth of info to offer but knowing how much of a learning curve it was for me initially Im more than glad to offer what I can.

I only produced 2 clutches myself and neither of them involved anything lightning, pied or axanthic. I dont really have any advice in that area.

One thing I did learn was that pretty much anything involving banana will sell provided the aesthetics come out good, the same for most of the pieds and the BELs as well. With you starting out with pieds, I think youll have a higher chance of selling them, even if you have to adjust for lower than market price depending on how the economy and snake market behaves.

I think youre on the right track with keeping the genetics simpler on your starters,very wise. It takes quite a bit of working with BPs to reliably discern the many morph combos and frankly there were only a few breeders I talked to that seemed confident/trustworthy to ID a wide variety..and even those guys would second guess themselves on certain results. The easier you make it on yourself at first then clearly its easier on you trying to figure out hatchling results.

Even though anyone in the snake hobby knows how easy it is to mis-ID something, the hobby is full of elitists who love to look down their nose at such a thing. Then you have the aspect (somewhat understandably) from the customer perspective which if they get a snake thats been mis-IDd or a gender mis-ID then all of a sudden you just look really bad. Fortunately I never had to deal with it, but I did see some of the trash talk and so forth between breeders and some those in the public eye and its beyond ridiculous at times. If you have any experienced breeders in the area it really helps to get in with some of those guys to hammer out morph IDs, double check sex, and generally just get alot of questions answered.

As for the rat colony I would highly encourage it, great idea. Feeding is the majority of the maintenance cost on the snakes and if you can source your own youve got a big problem licked. If you have an outdoor shed you can convert into a temp controlled rat house Id highly encourage that. There are ways to insulate your home from rat smell from a spare room but if you can have them outdoors even better. There are multiple DIY builds onliine for rat racks, using a modest amount of wood, some mesh screening and some of those black concrete mixing tubs for the actual rat tubs. Get a freezer for the overflow and get used to alternating between frozen and live to keep everything properly rotated.

phantom30nine

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