Questions about breeding season timing

[Anatopism]

New to the forum, and actually new to Ball Pythons. I've worked with plenty, but never owned one myself. We have an assortment of other snakes (couple burms, coastal carpet, childrens python, florida king, a couple dumerils, and an argentine boa), but we've recently fostered a ball python and he's really started to draw me in.

That said, we (the boyfriend and I) are picking up a female het pied tomorrow, and we get a free het pied male from the breeder's next clutch. The numbers I know, aren't terribly promising, and the female will only be about 200 grams when we get her (lots of growing to do), but it is still a project I'm very excited about, as this will be my first time breeding any sort of reptile.

My question is, I've noticed 'breeding season' typically starts in October. Is there a reason everyone starts cooling in October? Is this when their season would begin in the wild?

Is it possible to create the cooling period, and start a breeding season in a different part of the year (say, march, or july)? I'm not saying this is what we will be doing, I just am curious as to why. Is it just easier to create the cooling off period, due to it getting naturally colder in most parts of the country/world due to winter, or will ball pythons actually not breed, regardless of cooling, if you try to do this at an abnormal time?

Thanks for the input, I appreciate any help and suggestions =)

Brit

[Domepiece]

I believe that yes october would be the normal start of the breeding season in the wild. Also some people breed year round and some breed even without cooling so yes it is possible.

[mc5guy]

I think some of the ball python go off feed in the winter, so that is the best time to breed them? In the summer they all back to eat, and most people want them to gain weight. I have never breed before, this is my guess.

[snakesRkewl]

I think some of the ball python go off feed in the winter, so that is the best time to breed them? In the summer they all back to eat, and most people want them to gain weight. I have never breed before, this is my guess.

They don't go off feed when they start to breed they get hungrier and go on a feeding rampage till they eventually slow down and stop eating and then glow and ovulate and go through the egg dropping period and then hopefully back on feed.
I'd get really disappointed if my females stopped eating in October.