Most sought after, and most unwanted morphs

[SeeTheCityLights]

I may start breeding in the future once I get a morph or two (or five...)
What are the most sought after morphs? What are your favorites? What is generally wanted by the BP world?
Also, what morphs does the community not want? Any crosses that are over-done, so people don't want them as much, or anything like that?

[JLC]

I'm sure there will be plenty of folks that will happily give their answers to your questions. But you shouldn't expect any sort of consensus among them. Opinions and tastes differ wildly among all the different BP morphs.

Here is MY opinion on the matter. I believe (very, very firmly believe) that if you want to succeed at breeding these beauties, then you need to breed what YOU are truly passionate about. If you try to breed to please "the market" you'll burn out long before you ever get there.

For one, the market changes and fluctuates over the years. But most importantly, it takes genuine passion for the animals themselves to put up with all the work and effort, cost and heartache that comes along with breeding for profit. And those few that manage to make a profit without the passion do so at the great expense of the animals' well being. That is never pretty.

[SeeTheCityLights]

I'm sure there will be plenty of folks that will happily give their answers to your questions. But you shouldn't expect any sort of consensus among them. Opinions and tastes differ wildly among all the different BP morphs.

Here is MY opinion on the matter. I believe (very, very firmly believe) that if you want to succeed at breeding these beauties, then you need to breed what YOU are truly passionate about. If you try to breed to please "the market" you'll burn out long before you ever get there.

For one, the market changes and fluctuates over the years. But most importantly, it takes genuine passion for the animals themselves to put up with all the work and effort, cost and heartache that comes along with breeding for profit. And those few that manage to make a profit without the passion do so at the great expense of the animals' well being. That is never pretty.

Good to know, thank you!
I have been in the horse industry my whole life, so I know that there are certain breeds of horses that people want for certain riding disciplines, so I didn't know if it was kinda like that in the BP industry. I have always loved BP's and think morphs are absolutely fascinating, so I'm really excited to learn about it all.

[Qetu]

The spider combos are my favorites.. once I get into breeding, that's where I'm putting my focus. but not for profit. I want to learn more about the genetics and maybe someday become an artist like those I look up to. I've only been apart of this community for about 3 years and already, I've seen a massive fluctuation of morph prices. SOO, i definitely agree with JLC, find what you love and produce that. After your collection and knowledge has grown, im sure you'll figure it out from there

[OhhWatALoser]

Piedbalds are one of the top morphs most people love, but about what they were saying above, I never plan on owning a pied, they just don't do it for me. So you would never get a sale out of me. If I was looking to have the best stock for selling, I would own pieds, but I could care less.

High quality pastel combos are always in demand. when choosing pastels, be picky about the pastel. Lesser/Butters are pretty sought after also. Enchis jumped it in demand since people found out they make the pieds look better. Actually enchi makes everything cool it seems.

[Christopher De Leon]

This is a lil odd...but im not a single gene Spider fan,yet ive never come across a spider combo(bee)i didnt love! I have a female spider just for making various bees. Ill be working on bumblebees or flamebees soon,just because thats what I want to produce.

[Simple Man]

I'm sure there will be plenty of folks that will happily give their answers to your questions. But you shouldn't expect any sort of consensus among them. Opinions and tastes differ wildly among all the different BP morphs.

Here is MY opinion on the matter. I believe (very, very firmly believe) that if you want to succeed at breeding these beauties, then you need to breed what YOU are truly passionate about. If you try to breed to please "the market" you'll burn out long before you ever get there.

For one, the market changes and fluctuates over the years. But most importantly, it takes genuine passion for the animals themselves to put up with all the work and effort, cost and heartache that comes along with breeding for profit. And those few that manage to make a profit without the passion do so at the great expense of the animals' well being. That is never pretty.

Words of wisdom right here! I have a few projects that are both business and personal interests of mine. Almost all of my entire collection is made up of things I personally want to work with moving forward. It's a lot easier to spend time feeding, cleaning, breeding, and building a collection that you're passionate about. You constantly see people entering and exiting this hobby/business because they aren't passionate about what they are doing.

Regards,

B

[nikitajane25]

I agree with the admin. There's new morphs being dicovered or created all the time. So find the morphs you like and fiddle around see what you come up with =] when breeding morphs its not all about the money. I look at ball pythons as art, with all the colors and tones, and the different things you get when breeding. They're beautiful

[meowmeowkazoo]

Albinos will ALWAYS be popular. A big part of that popularity is that they are an affordable morph that even non-breeders love to get just as pets. I think part of the appeal is that you can get an "albino" version of pretty much every kind of pet. It's something that people are familiar with, that they understand.

Piebalds are also pretty popular, but there are some people who love them, and some who don't like them. They're also much more expensive than albinos, which makes them less popular choices for people who aren't into breeding.

Pastels are popular as pets, as they are pretty much the cheapest morph you can get, and they are bright and colorful.

Spiders are also fairly popular as pets, as they are affordable, and have a very unique pattern.

So really I would say that albinos, spiders, and pastels are among the most popular morphs, taking into account the people who buy them as pets (not breeders).

BUT...the beauty of the ball python market is that MANY of your customers will also be breeders, which means that any morph will sell if it's a good example of the morph and the price is reasonable.

So in the end, you should find the ball pythons that really excite you, that you like to look at.

Unless you buy adult breeders (which are pretty expensive), you'll be caring for your snakes for at least 2-3 years before they make any eggs for you. So it's important that you like the snakes you start out with.

[ball-nut]

Currently, enchi and combos are very popular, along with clowns, pieds and a few others.

By the time you raise a pair or so of each they may be not so popular as people may have thought along the same lines as you and slightly flooded a market all thinking they have what everyone wants... Then you all start competing... Then the price reflects the over saturation and thus no longer desirable.

Find a morph YOU like, hunt down the best examples you can possibly find with a look you like such as reduced pattern, busy pattern. And selectively breed them to eventually create a look that is more unique in a morph market where many look the same.
This will benefit you more in the long term as it shows you are more dedicated than others and you think about which pairings you consider.

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