In light of skyrivers recent thread I thought it might be kinda fun/interesting/beneficial to share some experiences of the harder lessons learned.
I started with my first male ball python in 5th grade, within a few years with the support of my mom I had several other reptiles including 2female ball pythons. My bedroom had a nook with a built in desk that my dad took out and we did a built in in wall cage about 5 1/2x3x3 ft cage with sliding doors. It was a very naturalistic setup with multiple levels, large branches, waterfall and a misting system. The trio lived in there for several years but one night my big female Mia that was just a touch under 6ft escaped by pushing her way between the plexiglass doors. Our house was built in 1959 and had the old underground hvac system, of course my vent cover wasn't on because we were remodeling and she ended up down there under the house. We of course assumed the worst till almost 2 full months later when my mom heard my Legos moving around on my floor. Took a trip to the vet the next day to get checked out. She had a minor RI and 9 eggs in her haha. Less then 2 weeks later she laid. Shortly after we replaced the plexiglass with 1/4" tempered glass on steel track that she couldn't bend.
