What do you get out of having ball pythons?

I love to watch him as he explores the world. Orey's only 7 months old, and it's neat having a little baby around. I like watching him explore and squeeze my hand like he's putting me in danger. Watching him shed, and seeing how vibrant he is after is an amazing feeling - when all of that shed comes off in one piece it's a great big A+ to your husbandry :)
I enjoy knowing I can give him a comfortable home where is is generally stress free, and feels safe enough to be outgoing when he's being handled. I enjoy watching him slither around my living room, head up and all wiggly... then beelining for under the couch :P

It's not an "exciting" or interactive pet by most people's idea of a pet, but to me he is fascinating, and a living work of art.
I'm also fascinated by his body - it's completely different than ours, and I think it's more interesting to keep a pet that isn't a mammal.
(Well my boyfriend's a mammal so I guess I DO already have one of those for a pet :P)

It could just be me but with my friend's snakes they always go the person they're more used to being handled by. For example, if it's me and my friend in a room with the snake and I'm holding the snake then the snake will attempt to go to my friend. However, say it's me, the snake and one of my friend's brothers or sisters or somebody the snake isn't accustomed to in the room, the snake won't try and leave me, he'll just sit calmly wherever he settles and if I give him to another person then he'll try and come back to me. They were quite used to being handled by me before but they seem to move around on me a lot less since I looked after them over the summer when my friend was away, especially the boa, George, who I handled first when he was just a few weeks old. To conclude, I do think there is some sense of attachment from the snake to people that it "knows", I don't think they neccesarily love their owners but I think they are comfortable being held by them and would much rather be held by them than by someone they don't know. I think snakes just have a certain charm that makes them enjoyable to look after, a charm that is very hard to ignore, maybe it's the hope that we can undertand them better, or the fact that's it's gratifying to be able to look after something that is almost comepletely dependent on you well, honestly, I don't know what it is.

Just my 2 pence (I know it's usually pence but I'm English).

Oh, and just one question: wheres the Union Jack smiley!?

:salute:Sam

Now I remember what the question was going to be originally! Do you like the new account? People were thinking I was a girl so I made a new, more obviously male account. Off-topic sorry, just ignore this. Why am I posting this? Never mind.

At this time, I get the joy of watching him grow up.

I like them mostly because they are not cats or dogs. When you want to just care for them they like it, and when you want to handle them they tolerate it. My wifes dachshund always needs attention, and I don't always want to give it. I've always been fascinated by reptiles and amphibians just took me twenty years to decide I wanted to care for them for another 20-40.

Yes, I've been getting a lot of flack for wanting to raise a ball python. My very "ick-i-fied" friends have been desperately trying to convince me that having a snake is not socially acceptable.... Good grief people, I'm not doing this to be cool or envied. I'm not researching thermostats and substrates so I can brag to my co-workers. Ball pythons fascinate me; pure & simple. I admire how they are so fragile & strong at the same time.