Max and Saffron say hello!

[saffherp]

Hey everyone! I wanted to make a thread to introduce myself here. I'm Max, and I recently adopted my first ball python, Saffron.

I'm new to owning my own snake, but not new to husbandry in general. I've handled and cared for ball pythons, rat snakes, axolotls, leopard geckos, degus, and tarantulas for about 8 years at this point, mostly in an educational capacity. (Think nature centers and wildlife safety programs). I'm finally at a place in my life where I can start owning large reptiles of my own, and I couldn't be happier!

Saffron was sold as a banana morph, but I'm pretty certain she also has spider in her, and possibly sugar, though I can't be sure -- morphology is not my strong suit at this point. (Due to the spider, I personally don't plan to breed her in the future.) If anybody here can identify what specific morph she might be, I'd love to hear it! Based on her weight, she's about 3 months old. She is eating rat fuzzies like champ, no problems feeding so far. I'm about 90% certain she's a female, but she's not super happy being handled, so my attempts to sex her for certain have been minimal. Here she is:



I also own a gray tabby cat named Eeyore (5 years old) and a sweet mongrel named Sadie (10 years old).

More about me:

I'm a graduate student studying English. I started my college career as a biology major, though, and I planned to become a herpetologist. Unfortunately, science doesn't favor the mathematically inept A lot of my scientific interests still show through in my work though, both creatively and academically. I'm also physically disabled, and I've found that caring for my pets helps me remember to care for myself. They've saved my life on several occasions, so I strive to give their lives as much comfort and enrichment as I can in return.

Finally, I like to connect with others by sharing music. I've linked my playlist from 2020 down at the bottom of this post. I would love to know more about all of you, so please link me songs that remind you of your own animal companions, or ones that signify a special moment in your journey! Additionally, if anyone else here has an interest or career in English or literature, I'd love to connect.

I'm excited to become part of this community and to get to know more people with similar interests.

Here's the playlist:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2E...d4b3cafcf74c39