i know you don't mean to be rude. by all means, hit me with every hard question you can think of. i know you guys are able to see 10 steps ahead of me. the honest answer is i have a passion for all animals. i'm one of those people that don't kill spiders and puts them outside cause i think all life should be respected. i've never had an interest in snakes before, but after looking in to them i find them to be interesting creatures. kinda like my cat. cats sometimes have a bad rep but are awesomely misunderstood creatures. snakes kinda fall in that stereotype too but too a much greater degree. i think it would be a good experience to own snakes.

mentioning the lifespan and regulations was a excellent point. i am aware they can live a long time. i've heard up to 40 years. the legal side of things i will have to look in to. i am assuming it won't be a problem in FL. we can have class 1 and 2 cats with a permit so would be shocked to find out they have a hard on about snakes. so far the only issues i've heard about in some states they have restrictions or bans on venomous and anacondas.

have to give you credit again for suggesting i start with only one female. i was aware the females take longer to mature, but the thought of buying her first and getting the male later had not crossed my mind. this makes alot of sense.

so far i have found two sites i believe to be reputable. underground reptiles and BHB reptiles. i've watched a bunch of brians videos. his passion is obvious. even though i don't know him i feel pretty confident his animals are well card for and high quality. who else do you guys recommend i look at?

i have not looked too much in to the cost of keeping. it will play with the numbers so i know what to expect, but it's not an issue. i have looked at the cost of feeders. pretty cheap. i was expecting feeding once a week. was surprised to hear sometimes every 3-4 weeks. was also not aware they are only good for 1 year. appreciate the tip.

making sure i have a local vet that has knowledge with snakes is another good tip.

i have already watched some videos about breeding the feed. i don't think i have the heart for live feedings. i understand snakes have to eat but i don't want it's prey to suffer no matter how short it is. i saw some guy knock out all his feed with some kind of gas, i think it was liquid nitrogen. said something about reducing oxygen and they basically go to sleep. not thrilled about being responsible for taking their lives, but if they are respected and don't suffer i think i can handle it.

enclosure really is my hardest decision so far. since my OP i've been looking at bioactive terrariums. i like the idea. i want that for my snakes. but still unsure if it's going to add quality of life for them. after hearing people with experience saying it's more for the human than the snake it really makes me question the enclosures. especially if i want to breed. if i breed i don't think it's feasible to do bioactive terrariums so might as well not even go down that road.

really appreciate the lengthy post.