How many of you have BP's and don't plan on breeding?

[The Hedgehog]

I've come to the conclusion that I really don't plan, (Or want to right now at least) to breed BPs. I started with my little normal to make sure I could properly care for her, and so far it's been great. However, I love showing people my Setup/Snake and I get great joy out of it. Even if it's showing pictures of my setup/snake to people and telling them about how awesome of a pet they are.

I realized I love the different morphs, however I don't plan on breeding to get them. I'll probably end up with a MAX of 3-5 snakes, but mostly just for showing people and enjoying a few different morphs as pets.

Does anyone else feel this way?

P.S. I know there is a lot of joy in breeding animals, especially when you produce something really cool and a lot of work comes out in one little egg. However I don't know the people or have to time to search for buyers and take care of that many snakes. Maybe one day in the long run I will breed, but not now.

[Evilme5229]

At first when I started off, I just wanted a pet. Than ofcourse I wanted to breed; got 3 snakes. When it was time to breed, I didn't. I literally waited for 3 years and one day the itch started again and had my first clutch this year.

I think that its something that might hit you at first, than get lost, than come back again. You never know. I have 14 snakes now, I love having company coming over and me showing them off lol. I love the shock factor. They are my babies and love them, above all they are my pets first and anything else is pure overjoy.

Its pretty easy to find someone to sell your snakes too. One start would be your feed store, online at kingsnake, or even look at your local reptile stores. I was lucky that my distributor provides me with my feed, new snakes, etc.

[zina10]

I don't really plan on breeding the BP's. Not saying that I won't sometime in the future, but I don't buy them while planning on it.

I do like certain morphs for their beauty, and although they are more expensive, I still plan on getting a few, even though I won't recoup the
investment through breeding.

Back when I first started with BP's I really enjoyed keeping them as "pets". They were in display cages and got handled frequently. They never hissed or bit. They weren't head-shy. They ate frozen thawed and were always ready to eat. My point is, while I see and understand why breeders keep them in tubs, it can also be done in cages where they have room to roam and are displayed.

That said, my cages were 4 ft. Neodesha professional snake enclosures, not glas tanks. It was very easy to provide the correct belly heat and humidity, and also very easy to keep those cages clean. There were hides in both cool and warm ends, and even large branches to climb on, which even the adults would do!

My BP's would come along for educational Presentations and were a favorite with people, so tame.

I used to love sitting in front of the cages, just watching the snakes in a somewhat natural environment. Many times the BP's would hang out in "the open", calm as can be. They would "investigate" every time I open the glas door.

So yes, they "work" well in a display kind of setup, when done right. And to me, that is part of the pleasure of keeping snakes. Sadly, thats also the reason why I can't (or won't) have 20 or more

[Vypyrz]

I have no plans for breeding in the forseeable future...

[Alexandra V]

When I first got mine, I only wanted him as a pet. I kind of want to breed now, but it's going to be a while until he's mature, so I have lots of time to think about it. I'm not going to go all out on breeding though. I just want to breed to play with genetics and because I want to keep many snakes as pets. I'm not going to be breeding my second generation, so I'm only starting because I'd rather breed my own pets than buy.

[ballpythonluvr]

I don't plan on breeding. I only plan on keeping my bp as a pet.

[Evilme5229]

The cost of tank cages would drastically would make up more space than is needed; not to mention the cost lol. I like my snake rack, I see them roam all at once.

[Valentine Pirate]

At first I told myself that I don't have the time to breed due to college and work and other life concerns, but I hadn't considered breeding for fun and not for profit. Now that I've got a pair of snakes I'm perfectly happy having them as pets, and if it hits me when they're old/big enough that I might want to try, I will. Definitely isn't my priority in owning snakes though, they're my loved pets

[zina10]

Like I said, to each their own
I see the need or practicality of racks/tubs. I know they work, and work well.

My point was just that cages, even larger ones, CAN work just as well. I simply love the display and if done right,
there is no negative effect on the snake. I've kept all mine in display cages (not glass tanks), and they were all great feeder, healthy,
tame as can be, and absolutely not shy, either.

I do not put "human emotions" on my reptiles, but I do enjoy providing at least a small "natural environment" and I like to look at it, too.
It does take up far more room, it costs more, it takes more effort, it might not be as practical, but it CAN be done right.

For some people that keep them as "pets" and don't worry about breeding, for people that only have a few snakes, it can be an option.

That said, I prefer to keep hatchlings in small tubs on papertowels, until they are well started. It makes it easier to get them started and keep an eye on everything.
I also kept my rescues in tubs, because they were nowhere near my own personal collection, and they were sometimes sick or non-feeders that needed a very quiet and specialized
habitat (higher heat, etc)

Only my own personal "pets" were on display.

My Angolan Python is in a 4 foot display cage from showcages.com
She was hard to get started on feeding regularly and until she did, she was in a tub. She is now in her cage, and would eat every other day if I let her ! She has hides in both warm and cool end, some branches and her waterbowl. She is doing fantastic.

[The Hedgehog]

The reason I asked this question is I do infact love other morphs, and as said, I will never get my "Investment" back if I don't breed them. However I have 2 other python morphs I just want to have and to be able to show. A BEL (Black or blue I don't really mind either way, however blue is just drop dead gorgeous) and a BumbleBee. I figure those three, possibly one more in the really long run would be pretty awesome to show to everyone.