It's been over a year since I got my first and only BP. I am always stumped by how undeservingly lucky I have been with him.

I'll be the first one to admit that I'm one of those people who did everything "wrong" to start with. For starters, I got him from Petco on a whim. I had kept him in a huge 55 gallon aquarium with two huge hides, using dial thermometers and an unregulated, high-heat UTH. Fed in separate enclosure, bathed him frequently, and handled him probably waaay too often. And much more.

Gradually, I figured out all the things I was doing wrong... but I figured them out the easy way. There were never any consequences for my snake. I have yet to experience any of the things that first-time keepers often do, either from husbandry mistakes or just BP's acting up.

Everything I know tells me that something should've gone wrong somewhere along the way. Although, that's not to say I never had any scares of problems! Just about every week I see something that makes me irrationally worried about that darn snake. Ex.; "Oh my god! I heard him breathe! He's probably dying from RI!!!!" or "I just saw a spec of dust in the water bowl! IT MUST A MITE INFESTATION!)

Has anyone else experienced such unrealistic luck, or alternatively, unluckiness? Of course I'm not complaining, but sometimes I feel like I'm being rewarded for my initial mistakes. I know there are keepers who did everything right the first time, yet their BP ended up struggling for life. How unfair and contradictory is that?