• Posted 12/19/2024.
    =====================

    I am still waiting on my developer to finish up on the Classifieds Control Panel so I can use it to encourage members into becoming paying members. Google Adsense has become a real burden on the viewing of this site, but honestly it is the ONLY source of income now that keeps it afloat. I tried offering disabling the ads being viewed by paying members, but apparently that is not enough incentive. Quite frankly, Google Adsense has dropped down to where it barely brings in enough daily to match even a single paid member per day. But it still gets the bills paid. But at what cost?

    So even without the classifieds control panel being complete, I believe I am going to have to disable those Google ads completely and likely disable some options here that have been free since going to the new platform. Like classified ad bumping, member name changes, and anything else I can use to encourage this site to be supported by the members instead of the Google Adsense ads.

    But there is risk involved. I will not pay out of pocket for very long during this last ditch experimental effort. If I find that the membership does not want to support this site with memberships, then I cannot support your being able to post your classified ads here for free. No, I am not intending to start charging for your posting ads here. I will just shut the site down and that will be it. I will be done with FaunaClassifieds. I certainly don't need this, and can live the rest of my life just fine without it. If I see that no one else really wants it to survive neither, then so be it. It goes away and you all can just go elsewhere to advertise your animals and merchandise.

    Not sure when this will take place, and I don't intend to give any further warning concerning the disabling of the Google Adsense. Just as there probably won't be any warning if I decide to close down this site. You will just come here and there will be some sort of message that the site is gone, and you have a nice day.

    I have been trying to make a go of this site for a very long time. And quite frankly, I am just tired of trying. I had hoped that enough people would be willing to help me help you all have a free outlet to offer your stuff for sale. But every year I see less and less people coming to this site, much less supporting it financially. That is fine. I tried. I retired the SerpenCo business about 14 years ago, so retiring out of this business completely is not that big if a step for me, nor will it be especially painful to do. When I was in Thailand, I did not check in here for three weeks. I didn't miss it even a little bit. So if you all want it to remain, it will be in your hands. I really don't care either way.

    =====================
    Some people have indicated that finding the method to contribute is rather difficult. And I have to admit, that it is not all that obvious. So to help, here is a thread to help as a quide. How to become a contributing member of FaunaClassifieds.

    And for the record, I will be shutting down the Google Adsense ads on January 1, 2025.
  • Responding to email notices you receive.
    **************************************************
    In short, DON'T! Email notices are to ONLY alert you of a reply to your private message or your ad on this site. Replying to the email just wastes your time as it goes NOWHERE, and probably pisses off the person you thought you replied to when they think you just ignored them. So instead of complaining to me about your messages not being replied to from this site via email, please READ that email notice that plainly states what you need to do in order to reply to who you are trying to converse with.

first time Hogg Island Boa Breeder

Maybe some good will come of it. Maybe I can just keep the babies and see what I can make out of them.
I just enjoy animals and love how these two snakes look. The coloring they have is so gorgeous. If no one else wanted these, I'd keep them because I enjoy how they look. Maybe I'll get a surprise with a baby that pops out.
 
those of us that try to preserve true hog isle locality boas (yes, it is a locality of BCi, not a subspecies) do our best to ensure the lines are 'pure' hog. You have to trust the person you buy from and get as much history/generational information you can get.
It's a hobby for most of us as well : )
 
A mutt may show majority of hog gene's but could still carry that red tail gene. Also if they were crosses with red tails wouldn't they be much larger? These two are quite small, about the same exact size as hogs.
 
Colombian red tails can be as small as 4' and as large as 11' (reportedly) when adults. Your boas appear to be the same build and length of a pretty typical Colombian boa.

Hog Islands can exceed 6', but 6' is pretty typical.

I know you really, really want these animals to be Hog or mostly Hog, but they simply are not. I'm sorry, but they are not.
 
You yourself could have a nice looking mutt since you are relying on someone who may be trying to make a quick buck with a lie. It's not hard, so all I am saying is how do you find out 100% for sure?
And can you ever really trust the person giving you this info?

Sorry, not trying to be rude in any way. I'm just trying to figure out what I can do with these snakes now. Regardless I'll have babies. I just need to know what route would be the best. What are my chances of just making more pretty snakes for my own enjoyment?
 
You're going to just breed these animals to breed them anyway, so anything we tell you is irrelevant.
 
This is a photo of a Colombian boa at 7 years old (she is nearly eight now). As you can see, she is not a monstrous animal. Properly fed Colombians do not become obese, overstuffed sausages.

DSC01539.jpg
 
Jacob, what you are engaging in at the moment is called "rationalization". Also a couple of other really interesting defense mechanisms. You're making the psychology student in me try to peak his head out.

Beyond that, to whatever list you have made out of people with pure bloodlines of Hogs, you can add me to it. When I bought Hog Island boas, I made sure that I went to reliable breeders that could directly trace their stock back to Bob Sears. Bob was the first person to ever import them into the US and he collected his animals directly from the islands and flew them back himself. It's a pretty solid bloodline if you can make sure the animals came from him.

Even if they were $300 a piece, which I think you went against that somewhere in this thread that you seem to be adding to at a pretty maddening pace, it's not a horrible loss. It's an expensive lesson, sure, but make it the lesson worthwhile. You can't just throw money at something and assume it's gonna work out later. Invest some time and thought into what you're doing before you invest the money.

What you do with those snakes is your choice, of course, but I can pretty well tell you that nobody is going to want the babies for anything more than pets, and that's if you're lucky. Getting rid of that litter of snakes is going to be a chore that will probably cost more money than it produces.

Chris
 
All I am asking is there anything else I can breed these with to make pretty babies? Regardless of being "crosses" or not.
I just want to know what I can pair them with to make more pretty snakes. I don't care about making more hogs, that is out the door. I just am simply asking WHAT can I do with these to make more beautiful snakes? Do I cross them with other morphs or breed them together and make more of these? I am just asking for some help. I need to do something with the hand I have.
 
Honestly, in my opinion, there is nothing you can do with them that would make truly desirable babies. Breeding for yourself is great, but you have to figure out what you're going to do with the rest of the babies after you make the ones you want.

Also, don't assume that pure Hogs are small, I have an absolutely pure 12 yr old female that is a solid 7' and around 18 lbs.

Chris
 
PrismaSandBoaMorphs said:
All I am asking is there anything else I can breed these with to make pretty babies? Regardless of being "crosses" or not.
I just want to know what I can pair them with to make more pretty snakes. I don't care about making more hogs, that is out the door. I just am simply asking WHAT can I do with these to make more beautiful snakes? Do I cross them with other morphs or breed them together and make more of these? I am just asking for some help. I need to do something with the hand I have.
Click to expand...

The answer from most people in this thread is "No."

As I've said.

Some people would breed them, sure, I would not.

I would set them aside, resell them, do more research into breeding and boas themselves and then decide on what I want to do.

I've had boas for six years and am just really settling down with breeding projects this year. I tried two years prior and was not really as ready for it as I am now.

Boa breeding is also a crap chute. Just because you put two together and they breed does not mean the female takes, the male is sterile or any other thing that can and does go wrong with boa breeding. Boas are not nice enough to read all the books and watch all the videos we have.

I do not think you thought this through beyond just wanting to make snakes.
 
JCCS said:
Honestly, in my opinion, there is nothing you can do with them that would make truly desirable babies. Breeding for yourself is great, but you have to figure out what you're going to do with the rest of the babies after you make the ones you want.

Also, don't assume that pure Hogs are small, I have an absolutely pure 12 yr old female that is a solid 7' and around 18 lbs.


Chris
Click to expand...

True story, I've seen her in person. Gorgeous girl.
 
Ou are acting as if I have to defend something. All I am asking is that someone tell me what I can do with the snakes I currently have. You can't tell me they are worthless because they are crosses. I'm asking what should I breed them with for best result since I am breeding them anyway?
 
You wanted advice, you got it. Then you got pissy because it wasn't the advice you wanted to hear and talking about subjects of which you know nothing about. That would be getting defensive. I've said my piece on what I would do if I were in your shoes. If you don't want the boas, I would find a home for them with someone who does, just don't try to represent them as pure Hogs.
 
Jacob, respectfully, I would have to agree that it's probably best not to breed these animals. The market is glutted with lower-end or cross-bed specimens from too many species as is (for example, look at the countless male ball pythons in need of good homes), and these (the ones you did not keep) would just be more of the same. Again, said with utmost respect -- I'm terribly sorry you did not purchase the animals you thought.
 
personally I avoid buying crosses (except my hypos but that was because I got into them before I realized they were locality crosses as well). Some people don't care if a boa is a cross and will buy the babies only for their looks (some call these 'designer boas' others call any morph a 'designer boa'). Others put importance on it and will not buy crosses.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top