- Today I'm gonna talk about
what I think might be the next big reptile project.
But before I do that, I've got a challenge for the boys.
You know that we're always trying to educate
and bring people over to the side on reptiles.
I can think of no other better way than to get
three perfect strangers, to hold this snake, Neo.
You guys can do whatever you want, but don't come back
until three people have held this snake.
- Let's try to get the trucker, pumper, dude.
- Look how pretty she is out here.
Oh, he's got dirty gloves on.
- All right, Mike, you take the lead on this one.
- Why do I gotta do it?
- He looks like his holding snake right now.
- Big 20 footer.
- Before we start talking about the next new project,
we have to go back and really talk about
the first real project,
which of course was albino Burmese pythons
in the early 90s.
That was the first investment quality snake
that ever hit the reptile hobby.
And this is what started the reptile hobby explosion.
- How you doing? - You like snakes?
We're challenged to get strangers to hold snakes.
- Oh no, not right now. I'm working.
- Okay. That's fine. - Doing great.
- Thank you for your service. - Does Bill Count?
- Dude we need to hire that guy.
He turned down having fun for work.
Nobody does that for us.
- Let's face it. Not everyone can have a giant snake.
And Sunrise is only about half grown.
They can get 18 foot, 200 pounds.
So when they were really exploding on the reptile market,
it was amazing. In the end, it wasn't really for everyone.
That's not to say still they aren't
an extremely popular snake,
it's just not everyone wants a giant snake.
- Hey what's up? How you doing?
- You like snakes?
- Not really.
- All right. All right. This challenge sucks.
- You wanna hold? You wanna hold the snake?
No, you don't wanna hold the snake.
- My dad hates us.
- So after the Burmese market kind of calmed down
and the craze for Burmese pythons simmered down a bit
leopard geckos were the next thing that kind of hit.
A lot of people started getting rid of their
Burmese python collection and keeping leopard geckos
because obviously it's a lot easier to keep a leopard gecko
than it is a Burmese python.
- Excuse me! We work at The Reptarium.
Are you interested in holding a snake?
We'll pump your gas and wash your window.
- We tried. - We tried.
- This was before there was a ton of morphs
of leopard geckos but they really started to come on
and people started to work with them and it started to take
over as the biggest project in reptiles.
- Dude. - How you doing?
- We're from The Reptarium.
It's the reptile zoo right there.
Are you interested in holding our snake?
- Sure. - Yes!
- That's one. - That's one.
- All you have to do is just throw it around your neck.
- Oh my God. You're gonna neck 'em?
- This is Neapolitan, like the ice cream.
- It's a reticulated python.
- Eventually she'll get about 25 feet long.
- 25? - Yeah.
She's only about six months old now.
- Mike's exaggerating again. - What is she right now?
- We're really bad at measuring.
- We don't understand.
- It's like they're like purple almost.
- They're typically red, which is weird.
- Jesus, Mike, shut up.
We've been standing out here for hours.
- Thanks again. - Yeah, no problem.
- There's so many layers to how the reptile hobby exploded,
but the next one certainly was the ball python.
We all know that ball pythons are still kind of the king
of reptiles when it comes to having pets and investments
but really it all started with the piebald ball pythons.
Now there are a handful of projects working before that,
but once Pete Kahl produced the piebald ball pythons,
they sold for $25,000 per piebald ball python
and that kind of set the entire thing on fire.
Ball pythons went from snakes
that most people didn't even care about
to a snake that everyone wanted.
- Do you wanna hold the snake?
- No, that's alright
- No, I don't like them anyways.
- Maybe we get a girl scout cookie table thing going.
Everybody pulls up. - Yeah.
This gas station-- shut up, dude.
Let's go to this vape shop.
- I don't even know what I did.
Jay walking!
(car engine revving)
- Do I want hold a snake?
- Yeah, we have to get three people to hold it.
- Yes! - That's two.
Do you guys wanna hold a snake too?
- Yes!
- You can take pictures, videos, all that stuff.
- You're good.
I'll just place it right in your hands like that.
- Perfect. - There you go.
- She really wants your watch.
- And there were so many morphs of ball pythons.
Of course, albino ball pythons were kind of next iteration
Highs were popping, people wanted them so bad.
And then albino ball pythons came for sale for $15,000.
And people were standing line to buy them.
I think I bought the second or third
one ever sold for 15 grand.
And it was absolutely incredible.
And then the morphs just started
rolling in over the next decade.
Ball pythons, definitely reign supreme.
- You go next? - It matches your outfit.
- So eventually she'll be about 25 feet long.
- It's a pied reticulated python
- I meant that. That's four. - Let's go tell pop.
- All right. We win. - Well, yeah, you're back.
I told you not to come back unless you got three.
Did you get three?
- We got four. - You got four?
You guys are overachievers. Good job guys.
But stay in the ready. There's more to come.
- What? - Now don't get me wrong,
along the way, there were plenty of other projects
that were really popular.
The albino tricolored Honduran milk snakes
really were super popular.
Not too mention (indistinct) and hypos
and even albino Nelson's milk snakes.
So there were colubrid projects that were kind of popping
and still are, you know all the animals I'm talking about
still have a huge market.
It's just that they had their heyday at one point.
And then after that, they kind of calmed
down and became a little bit more mainstream.
- Mike! Mike! I'm blind! - Mighty thick pee you had
going on in there, dude.
- I gotta make sure I had nothing in my teeth too, you know?
- I'm blind, Mike, help! Help! Mike!
- What are you doing? - I can't see!
I can't see! Mike! Where are you? Please!
Oh. What happened?
- You put a blindfold down and you started screaming
that you went blind.
- Oh, like, Mike! (laughing)
- Today, we're gonna play a little game.
We're gonna have a little blindfolded challenge.
So we're gonna put this on Noah.
- Mike! Mike!
- We're spin him around a couple times
and I'm gonna take him to a cage, figure out the animal.
One rule though, nothing that bites.
We don't wanna get bit no more. 'Cause I'm sick of bleeding.
- Where am I? - Let's do this.
- Two, three-- (dramatic drum music)
- I'm not, it's really dark.
- Okay, just put your arms down, I got you. I got you.
Go, go, go, go. - Terrifying.
- Okay, stop. Give me your hand.
- Please don't put it somewhere naughty.
- Just reach, reach, reach.
- Okay. It's a snake and I felt a tongue.
Lemme tell by the pattern.
- You can feel colors? - Yeah, dude, you can't?
Little bit of orange, green
- Wow. Almost spot on.
- I gotta feel the undercarriage.
- Oh, hang on.
- Whoa. Whoa. Is it gonna bite me?
- No, she's-- it's--
- What? - It's moving.
- I feel like it's an Anaconda.
- Oh, really?
- Naperdita! Am I right?
- I guess you're half right. - Yeah!
- And certainly the hog-nosed snakes were a huge thing
and still are to this day.
I would actually say from a colubrid standpoint
they're about the closest thing to a ball python
I can think when it comes to the market.
Still lots of production out there.
Lots of different mutations and people love them to death.
(Noah laughing) - You like that?
All right, come with me.
(Mike laughing) - Grab my hand.
Watch out. There's a wall.
There's a wall. Duck, duck, duck! Good, good, good.
Stand up. - This is so terrifying.
- We're almost there. We're almost there.
A little to your left.
Oh, sorry, sorry. Here we are.
Give me those keys, Mike. Oh, oh, sorry.
- Pull my hair a little bit though.
- Thought you liked that.
- Yeah. It's like what?
- You're gonna have to bend down to your knees.
- Hang on a second. Pause.
(Noah laughing) What kinda video is it?
Oh, is there something I can grab?
- Yeah. Reach forward.
(dramatic drum music)
Straight down. There you go.
- What is that? What is that? What is that?
- I don't know. I don't know. - Is he gonna bite me?
- No, he's good. - Oh, I felt the tongue.
- Yeah. It has one of those. - What is this right here?
Is that his finger? - Yeah.
- I'm trying to find his head.
- Oh. Oh, there he goes. - That's a flat tail.
- Bye bye. You can't touch him anymore.
- Was that Hiccup? - Ding, ding, ding, ding!
- Yes! See, that's weird. - Look at him.
- Oh. Yes!
- Now I don't think that this is gonna be
the next ball python project
'cause ball pythons are absolutely amazing.
But there is something really unique about cape file snakes.
I'm telling you, they are just absolutely bizarre.
One of the more bizarre animals I've seen in a long time.
And the thing is they're so high in demand right now
that the price is going up and up.
And even with the price going up
you can't seem to get them, they're completely sold out.
It took me two years to get the ones
that I have in this group.
And I've been searching for more,
and everyone I talked to was like,
"Sorry we're sold out for like the next two years."
So the popularity of the cape file snakes.
Because of their interesting texture and the fact
that it almost like they have bone
on their dorsal, just very interesting animals.
I think they're gonna be an unbelievable popular project.
That is, if you could ever get your hands on it.
- So we have to spice this up a little bit.
Cause Mike and I-- - We're here.
- Oh. So we have to spice this up a little bit
because Mike and I both got it right.
So you really put the challenge on me, Mike.
- Sorry. I'm thinking of something while I'm spinning.
- Whoa. Hey, hey. Oh no. No!
(Noah screaming)
This is like the dark roller coasters.
I hate those roller coasters.
(Noah screaming) Oh my God.
We should sell that experience.
- [Mike] That. - [Noah] Stick.
- Well it's a little bit farther out. Shouldn't have ran.
(Noah yelling)
- What, what? - Hang on, hang on.
- What? I felt it. - It might be in a bad mood.
- I felt it.
Wait a minute. Dude, wait. Is this Lucky?
- No, I would not do-- We said no snakes that bite.
- I know, but I can't trust you.
- Go up there.
- Underbelly? Smooth. Top of the belly, also call the back.
(Mike groaning) What? What is going on?
- [Man] I would guess if you keep going,
you're gonna, you're gonna find out.
- Mr. Nubbins? - No.
- No, that's down there. I don't know what's up there.
- Are you, are you done guessing?
Are you giving up? - Oh, I know.
It's the diamond python. - You got it.
- Woo.
Here we go.
- Here we go. - Here we go.
- Off into the wizard, the wonderful wizard of Oz!
All right. This one is a duck.
Plug your ears, misters. Plug those ears.
Somebody agrees with me.
- Wait. - Shut up.
- We're not doing him. - You're doing what?
- I can hear it. - You're cheating.
- It's not cheating. It's a blindfold jail.
- You're not supposed to use your ears.
- [Man] I don't think he's gonna bite.
- I don't think he's gonna bite.
- Don't think he's gonna bite. I don't think he's gonna bite
- Don't say it like that.
- What? Don't say it like what?
Do you give up? - Is he standing right there?
(Noah laughing)
- Maybe. He's a good boy.
- Why'd you pull away like that.
- I-- 'Cause you touched me in my shoulder.
It freaked me out. - All right.
- You want me to lead you? Why don't we ask him?
Do you think Mike should give up?
(shuffling) Oh. Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa.
- Noah! - Yes. Yeah. I think that's--
I think that's yes. - I'm done with this challenge
- Okay, um, you gonna put him back? Oh. Good boy.
- Thanks, Tabasco. - Thank you, Tabaccy.
- Go, go, go. - That was so much fun.
- Hope you guys enjoyed today's video. If you did,
there's a playlist that you can watch all kinds of videos.
You can also hit that subscription button.
It would mean a lot to me.
Also hit that like button while you're down there.
Have a wonderful day, Reptile Army.
Remember be kind to someone and I promise--
- I'm outta here.