I too have seen many adult burms that are very docile and extremely handleable as long as you treat them with a big dose of common sense!
But then again you never know for sure what you are going to end up with.

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Merlin,
What's Life Without A Little Magic!

True, as in the case of my little girl Mable. She's 12ft long and we estimate her length to be 24ft at adult. She's currently dinning on baby bunnies 2x a week. Mable is one of the getntlest snakes that we have.

Before you buy, please let me tell you about Mable and her family. My fiancee purchased her from a breeder in Florida nearly a year ago. Her mother and father were sent to live at the local "zoo" and 90% of her clutch mates had already been flushed down the toilet! My fiancee paid $50 for a genetically traceable burmese python who was at that time just shy of 2 months of age and only a 1 1/2 ft long and being fed the wrong sized prey.

Mabel, her clutch mates and parents aren't a unique story. Nor is it unheard of for Burmese pythons to be dumped at petstores, at zoos, animal rescues, or at county shelters where 9 out of 10 are immediately euthanized because of their size and strength. Not to mention flushed down toilets or dropped outside somewhere where they kill small livestock, small pets and even small children because of the actions of people.

Please, don't get me wrong. If you have your heart set on getting a burmese python or any large snake, go into it with you eyes wide open. Real soon, we'll be building Mable's perm. enclosure - 45ft long x 38ft wide and we've just got to figure out how to temp control her eniviroment before beginning to build.

Not everyone goes to such large lengths for a snake, nor am I saying that they should or that I take better care of mine over someone else's. But if you do the math, 2x adult length, it mounts up to a large enclosure for a large snake.

Black Ball, man you gotta start looking at the dates on these posts,lol you are confusing the s*** out of me. but I think you got the rule confused, its supposed to be the area of the floor in the cage should equal the length of the snake, i.e. 8' snake=4'L X 2'W cage, but most adults are comfortable in a 8'L X 3'W=24' square foot area, a 45' cage seems a little big and it is going to be difficult to maintain proper temps and humidity, but if you can get those right your burm is going to be real happy, lol.

Let me hit this from a rescue POV-
We have 4 burms right now- 16 ft, 14 ft, 11 ft, and 9 ft.
WE ARE SET UP TO HAVE UP TO 15 SNAKES OVER 12 FT.
THAT OUGHT TO TELL YOU SOMETHING!!!!!

I love burms, I love retics, I love 'condas, I'm not such a fan of AfRocks...

They are very big, very powerful and I know that it doesn't make that much sense but its true- my husband is 6 ft. and almost 400 lbs of muscle- we have a burm that can pull him to the ground- she requires AT LEAST 3 people to handle- and whats really bad- SHE'S NOT AGGRESSIVE. She's never bit- never struck- NOTHING. Shes just huge and strong as an ox- you know, most snakes are a bit flexible, softer- not her- she's solid as a rock- theres no give in her body, no place to grab on to.....

I very strongly suggest you visit a rescue in your area- tell them you are thinking about getting a burm and would like to handle one of theirs. (I also reccommend a donation for thier time- I know how much it helps)
I've had several people come here looking for "somethin' big" and leave with a red tail or ball python- after holding our big girl. (we call her Big Bit**).

On to the cages- We have lots- we just built a set of 4- we call it the cube. The total of the 4 cages is 7 ft tall, 7 ft wide, and 7 ft deep- each of the 4 measure 3 1/2 X 3 1/2 X 3 1/2- built like alcatraz- no escaping allowed!!! There is a padlock on each cage for safety as well.

Now- on the positive side- I love burms with a passion- I've never been bit by an adult but I know my animals and I give them time to know me. (and I'm fast) They have struck many, many, MANY times.... I was bit, however by an 8 ft boa- It cost around 1200 $ to get my thigh closed up and put back together.....

they are beautiful creatures- but look at all sides
Beth

Hi Beth
This is an old thread, but IMO your post should be added to the Burmese Python caresheet! It is VERY good advice from first-hand experience.
I was impressed.
(Wow that must have been quite a bite by that boa!
I guess I missed your intro thread, so welcome to HC!

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Andrea

An old thread but it was a nice surprize to see that old picture of my Burm Dubious and my son together. We miss Dubious dearly but as others have mentioned, he was very expensive to feed and without the financial ability to feed him as much as he demanded I feared for my son's safety; especially after being bitten as if I were pray and realizing the strength and power of this guy.

For the record, Dubious now resides at Everglades Outpost and takes part in educational shows. It took me about two years to find a suitable place that was willing to take in and care for a regular Burmese python. My son and I have visited him 3 times since we surrendered him to the zoo which is an hour and a half away. After seeing that photo I think we are due for another visit...I miss my baby.