Entirely new to this.

A bit of backstory for anyone who cares: I've been wanting a snake as a pet since I was 11. This intensified even more when I was 16 and dated a chick who had a ball python. Her BP was chill and amazing. I wanted one, much to the chagrin of my parents. My mother is terrified of snakes and refused to let them into the house. Fast forward: I just turned 23 yesterday and my mother, in her attempts to become the "cool parent", decided: "Hey, I'm going to buy you a snake." Upon hearing this news, I instantly researched every. possible. thing. [emphasis to show how hard I researched] that I could and dropped money on a vivarium and the gear needed. I've got everything I need, used this site and a multitude of others to get the tank to where it needs to be. Special thanks to this thread and this thread. I really couldn't have done it without this forum.

The cool side is hovering on 78-80 and the warmer side is hovering on 89-92 with about 50% humidity.
http://i.imgur.com/47dYhFa.jpg

Humidity is a bit low here, but I can add more of the moss to it, right?
http://i.imgur.com/MH4SPd7.jpg

Overall set up.

I just want to make sure everything is okay before I actually get the snake. I'd hate for me to be doing something wrong.

IF I have everything fine and have ball-pythons.net's seal of approval, where is the best place to actually buy a snake online?

I live in Saint Louis, Missouri and the next RepCon is a fair time away. I'm not looking for any special morph, the classic will do; I'll love the snake no matter what [s]he looks like. - But daddy's gots bills to pay and classic morph is the cheapest.

Also: First post; Hi everybody!

I would try your local snake/reptile Facebook forums to find a breeder nearby. You should be able to find a classic male without breaking a sweat. Heck, post up a WTB ad for a classic male and I can bet you'll have plenty of responses.

Welcome to the forum!

Looks like you've done your research in regards to the terrarium setup. It looks good. I'd suggest to moving the Acurite thermostat more to the left so it'll be closer to the edge of the terrarium so you know exactly what the temp on the cool side really is. From the photo, it looks like it's more in the middle. If you need to create more humidity during sheds, you can always put damp moss straight in the hides.

On finding the snake problem, I'd definitely scavenge for sale threads here. There's a lot of good small/medium breeders on this forum. You can always ask people's opinions if you need some feedback about a seller. If you're looking for some decent website, look on the left hand side of the forum when you scroll. You can also check out faunaclassifieds.com or kingsnake.com forums but don't forget to check the BOI (board of inquiry). If you're into auctions you can check out reptilering.com. What BCR suggested definitely works too. Just post a wanted ad and see what happens. You might be surprised and find yourself a pretty morph.

Good luck on your search!

http://i.imgur.com/785fMPj.jpg
I had a bad angle on the previous shot. Looking at it, I guess it is a bit far right. I'll move it closer to the left.

Also, my humidity is steady at 45%. I feel that's pretty low - even though I have the moss in, I can't seem to keep it up. Should I be doing something else to help it? - I also have foil over the far sides of the top [It's not completely covering the top - I know it still needs air circulation].

I know that I'm fighting an uphill battle with having a glass vivarium AND a lamp - but... *shrug*

45 isnt bad. Just make sure to put damp moss in the snake's hides during shed to keep the humidity up. With glass tanks, keeping good humidity is always going to be an uphill battle. I'd suggest for you to start save up some money and invest in a PVC enclosure like Animal Plastics.

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I actually planned on getting an Animal Plastics enclosure when my BP grows too big for my 20 gallon. I didn't want to start too big. I'm also just very nervous, and obsessively trying to make everything perfect for my new pet. I'm treating the thing like it's a damn child and I haven't even acquired it yet. Call it paternal instincts; I'm just really excited and want everything to go right.

Welcome and congrats on your mom's change of heart! You might be surprised how well it goes. I'm a mom and while I loved watching snakes on shows I was very afraid of them in person. My son "surprised" me one day when he brought one home. A friend of his had a girlfriend going to college and was looking for a home for her ball python. He was about 21 at the time, brought it home w/o asking and after the first week he realized he was afraid of it. Long story short..I accepted the challenge to myself being an animal person and 2 years later (yes it really took that long haha) the fear was completely gone. My collection now stands at 13 snakes and 4 lizards. I will forever be grateful for him not asking me if he could have it. I would have said no and would have missed out on finding out how wonderful they really are. Tell your mom to watch out for the addiction with them lol. She might surprise herself. They are truly the most incredible animals :)

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Originally Posted by Juliemay13

Welcome and congrats on your mom's change of heart! You might be surprised how well it goes. I'm a mom and while I loved watching snakes on shows I was very afraid of them in person. My son "surprised" me one day when he brought one home. A friend of his had a girlfriend going to college and was looking for a home for her ball python. He was about 21 at the time, brought it home w/o asking and after the first week he realized he was afraid of it. Long story short..I accepted the challenge to myself being an animal person and 2 years later (yes it really took that long haha) the fear was completely gone. My collection now stands at 13 snakes and 4 lizards. I will forever be grateful for him not asking me if he could have it. I would have said no and would have missed out on finding out how wonderful they really are. Tell your mom to watch out for the addiction with them lol. She might surprise herself. They are truly the most incredible animals :)

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My son decided that he wanted a snake. He decided that he wanted a ball python. We told him if he researched and came up with half the money, we'd put up the other half (he's 15). All the while, though not afraid of snakes, I was grumbling to myself and wondering 'why?' 'what is the POINT, they don't DO anything'.

Yeah. He brought his snake in. 4 weeks later I went out and bought myself one.

First of next month, we're likely to have another snake.

It's a thing. The addiction bites HARD when you realize how cool and EASY they are once they're set up.