Please allow me to introduce myself!

[Swayback]

My mom blames my dad...there's a famous family pic of me dangling a big earthwork and grinning ear to ear! I was maybe 2...
Dad says I got it from moms brother...he was scaring my mom with pythons back in the 60's!
Who Evers "fualt" it is...Thank you!

I've had the creeper crawler gene since before I can remember...literally my first memory is of lookin at crawl fish in a stream!

Herp Highlight reel:
Around 4th grade I got into a fist fight with guy that was tellin people that snakes can kill you with their poisonous tongue sting (wtf) AND their deadly tail stinger too! He even had a teacher in his side!
This had nothing to do with hatchling corn snake in my pocket...😈
I even managed to get KICKED OUT of Boy Scouts for a similar offense...
they made me sit on the porch til my folks came, they asked us not to return...how sads that!?!

Around that time, my dad and I constructed a large outdoor snake cage, much to moms delight! Now no more snakes on the loose!
It was too big to accurately grab a snake in it, but sure enough if you'd reach in, you'd come out with a snake! Or 2 or 5...gripped tightly by their mouth...probably not the best husbandry there huh...live and learn! Poor snakeys...

My crownin achievment as a child was landing a gravid northern water snake...I just thought she was huge...but wouldn't eat...their always super feisty anyway...a month later I come home from school and she's hollowed out but there's 5 little copy's of her whippin around the cage!
I managed to nurse 2 of the 5 thru...mama wouldn't feed so I released her... The first baby tackled an earthworm that was as big as he was and suffocated...2 never fed...2 made it thru the winter!

That winter I realized that wild snakes belong in the wild!
The 2 survivours were released that spring!

Flash forward to present...Now the famous family pic is me, at 30...in my boxers at 9am...covered in creek scum...with that same beaming smile, as a 4' water snake writhes about in my grasp...in 30 years I haven't come too far I guess...course the first pic was at the farm...this one is in my suburban backyard...and you can't see my horified neighbor gasping as I scramble Down the bank and back up...in that condition at 9am on a Sunday morning...oh well! 😱

As an adult I've never attempted to kee a wild snake more than a week or so before I cut it loose in a better area...I like to think I've become a local Steve Irwin of sorts...The list of people that calls me for herp removal is ever growing...as in the ever perpetuated ignorance that surrounds the magnificent, benevolent creatures!
I always telling one of these fools around here "you better not mess with my snakes! Or your messin with me!" I'm 6'2, 190...big n hairy...kinna scary...

Well my 11 year old has taken an interest!
Now thanks to him...
I BOUGHT a BP!
First snake I've ever bought!
Ive never allowed myself one, you see, long ago I recognized the hoarding gene in my family, it's expressed in me too! But I don't hoard...I collect!
A few houseplants...and I turned into a tropical plant collector...a few succulents...I became a cactus collector...
I never allowed myself to buy a snake for fear of where it might go!

Sooo...here I am...spending hours a day readin up on balls...they've never really interested me before...too small...too common...now with 2 kids and a mortgage...those traits don't seem so bad...and balls are far from plain these days!

To be honest, my heads spinning...trying to figure where and how this hobby will fit in...I'm trying to temper myself, I know better than to go all out...I'm starting small...and gunna see where things go...and try not to go overboard!
Its a nice romantic thought...ill breed bp morphs! I can just have all the snakes I want! They'll pay for emselves!
But I know it ain't so easy! Now is it?
But i also know that nothing is more rewarding than doing what you love!

so for now I'm reading a lot! Learning a lot and Dreaming too much!

I hope you guys can help me with the learning curve, and will bring into the fold...a lot of you sure know your stuff!

Im sure many of you have similar stories, and are living my dream, I bet it was your dream too!

I know I get long winded...if you read this autobiography, then thank you!

i look forward to whats no doubt going to be an interesting journey...hopefully one that leads me to clutches of little multicolored multi patterned beauties!

[artgecko]

Welcome to the forum! I just entered the hobby this time last year and now I'm up to 7 snakes, so I totally understand the fear that you'll add a lot more. It's very tempting to buy what you like and there are so many pics of snakes for sale online that I like.

My advice to you would be to hold back for at least a couple months and make sure that your husbandry is good with your current BP and that you continue to enjoy him/her. Then, when you're ready, I'd look up good breeders in your area and /or check out a local reptile show. In any case, getting a BP from a breeder is a better experience than getting one at a local pet store and you'll be glad you went that route (you often get a much better snake at a much better price).

If you are planning on breeding, check out this article. It has wonderful advice for anyone considering breeding to profit or just break even.

Also take note of the fauna BOI. It is a forum that allows you to read feedback and do searches on sellers you see online or at shows before you buy.

Please do a lot of reading on the quarantine process and how to treat common problems (like mites) before you bring another snake home. I always quarantine in a different part of the house for at least 2-3 months and I also always pre-treat for mites, just in case.

You may also want to look into other species too, you never know what you'll end up liking and you may find something that you enjoy even more than BPs... A reptile show is a good place to do this due to the variety. I started with sand boas and hognose, then jumped into boas and finally BPs. I enjoy the boas most of all due to their personality, but they do get larger than BPs, so caging and safety (and buying the right subspecies / local) is a must.

Good luck with your new-found or at least re-incarnated hobby. The folks here on the site have always been very helpful to me and I'm sure you'll get a warm welcome.

[Swayback]

I'm hoping to restrain myself until next spring, for just the reasons you mentioned... I find it hard to believe that I'd lose interest...I don't think husbandry with be an issue either...
I also know that jumpin in with both feet...can land you in the deep end!

I bought peanut from the local expo...actually from a local breeder, I think he's just cutting his teeth on breeding...I've tryied to contact a very professional appearing breeder that's about an hour away...no response!
No response from the seller either...not a good sign, especially since I text him asking to buy feeders to feed the snake I bought from him...
What I'd like is an apprenticeship with a breeder, I'm a very hands on learner, we'll see if I can get any help locally but this place has already been a great help!

As I mentioned...I've never considered keepin a BP... Boooring!
The big guys always appealed to me more! Retics...red tails...I used to think "why would anyone want a constrictor that's less than 12'?"
Well now I get it!
Much to my surprize there are now stunning morphs of them too now!
After a couple of weeks of study...and contemplation...I think I would be very pleased to house and breed a collection of BP's!

I think I've got the bug...

[artgecko]

If you're planning on going to another expo for your next purchase, you might want to check out the BOI first. There is also a feedback forum here that you can post on and search to see if you really want to buy from someone.

As for feeders: Check FB. There are some feeder breeder groups there and you might be able to find a local supplier. Also, consider purchasing several months worth of frozen feeders. I like to use big cheese rodents and have also heard good things about perfect prey.com. If you order in bulk, buying frozen is usally a lot cheaper than purchasing live, unless you can find a good deal locally.

Good luck!

[Eric Alan]

Full disclosure: I'm mostly here to express my disappointment that the first line of this post wasn't, "I'm a man of wealth and taste!"

While I'm here, I might as well say this:


Pleased to meet you!

Best regards,
Hope you guess my name

[Swayback]

Full disclosure: I'm mostly here to express my disappointment that the first line of this post wasn't, "I'm a man of wealth and taste!"

While I'm here, I might as well say this:


Pleased to meet you!

Best regards,
Hope you guess my name

Was kinda hoping someone would call me on that one...
A. Wealth, generally a measurement of a monetary nature...I despise money...if only I could live with it!
I've wealth beyond measure if you don't count cash!

B. I can't tell a fire from a phantom from a normal or ______ (insert morph here) so as far as taste is concerned... I'm hope to develop a more mature palette so to speak!

I'm gunna guess...your name might be...Eric?
^^

hats off to you sir, I've joined a dozen forums with a similar titled intro...I always figure someone will respond with the line "pleased to meet you, hope you guess my name " and after all these years someone did!

[Eric Alan]

Best regards,
Eric

On a related note,

1.0 Light Normal BP (Peanut)

Peanut is also the name of my first BP (my Butter Pastel female). Oddly enough, she's also the reason I'm on here right now - waiting for the F10SC to dry after she left me a stinky present.

[pbyeerts]

Welcome! I had the BP need for a few months before Ginger picked me. She was my Christmas gift last year, and fits in well with our busy family. I had a very steep learning curve, but the peeps here are fabulous. I just found out 3 weeks ago that she is a she - I thought that she was a boy! Our family includes 1, macaw, 1 dog, 2 cats, 3 humans, and GINGER

[ElliotNess]

Welcome... take it from me it can become overwhelming with the morphs. I had 0 snakes 4 months ago. I have 3 balls and 3 boas now. On the search for more...

[ElizaJ]

I also can't tell morphs apart all I know is that I'm also a learner but mostly a very big dreamer! I was hoping someone could tell me what a good, not so expensive morph is to start my collection. I want to breed and I have to find someone to sell to. I'm hoping to go to the midwest reptile show in Indianapolis. Anyone been? Is it a good place to look?
I'm really excited to get my hands on a BP cause I've anyway had a passion for animals. I currently own 2 Sugar Gliders a Leopard Gecko 3 Rats (not feeders) a bunny and 2 dogs my parents say that's plenty but I have room for 6-10 BPs. Tips for a beginner?