Expo snakes and tarantulas.

[theoneshogun]

I will be attending my first expo on October 27th in Massachusetts. I'm seriously interested in picking up a hognose snake. Can anyone give me an idea on how much they sell for (western from the cheapest morph to the more expensive ones) and how i should look for one? I hear the cheaper stuff sells first and I'm not sure whether it's best to bide my time or jump on the first reasonable price i see. I'm also thinking of picking up a few more Ts. Any suggestions would be great, thanks.

 

[Thistles]

Hoggies go for $50 for a normal to thousands for a morph. I've seen people selling normals for over $100, but I'd never pay that much. At expos, the cheapest stuff is pretty much ALL that sells in the morning. All the good deals are in the afternoon. People wait until the vendors are willing to haggle at the end of the day. I'd make a circuit of the show and make a note of who has what for how much. If the prices are reasonable, get the critter before someone beats you to it. If not, wait until late in the day and try to negotiate.

That said, all the expos I've been to have been relatively small. I'm not sure about how things work at the bigger ones.

 

[theoneshogun]

Ill take that advice but if possible id like to pick up a tri colored or anery morph if i see something at the right price. Any other insight would be appreciated.

 

[pitbulllady]

Ill take that advice but if possible id like to pick up a tri colored or anery morph if i see something at the right price. Any other insight would be appreciated.

You ARE aware that "Tri-Colored Hognoses" are NOT a morph of Western Hog, right? They are an entirely different species from any N. American Hogs, different genus, actually.
I'm with Thistles, though; if you see a must-have animal, get it right away before someone else snags it. If it's not that unique, then wait until later in the day to haggle with the dealers. If sales are slow, dealers are generally more than willing to cut a deal with you, so that they have one less animal to take home and feed. If possible, I'd suggest showing up early and sticking around all day until closing time. I've found that making frequent visits to a vendor's table and looking at and talking about a particular animal will show just how interested you are in that animal, and they might be more willing to make you a deal on it. If it's a Repticon show, or one in which there's a USARK auction after the show, stick around for that, because you can really get some deals bidding on animals at their auctions, and it's for a good cause.
Tarantula availability is very unpredictable at reptile shows. I've been to some shows where there were lots of T's and other inverts, with a good variety of species and sizes, while at others, there were just a few bedraggled-looking Rosehairs. There's just no way to know until you get there, but I've learned not to be too disappointed if there are no inverts aside from feeders.

pitbulllady

 

[theoneshogun]

I wasn't aware that the tri colored were of a different genus, and welcome the information . I'm not sure about an auction yet but the doors open at 8am and i plan to stay the whole 8 hour day. If i see a snake at an unbelievable price i'll snag em early but i may make rounds towards the end to see if i like anything. If so i'll try and haggle a bit of a save, wouldn't mind picking up a king/milk/corn snake either and i know they sell relatively cheap.