New to the Forum and Need Advice

[Bogertophis]

Thank you all for your tips and advice! I will definitely hold off on getting a BP now until I have done a lot of research and go through as much useful forums as possible.

Pay close attention to the threads where BP-keepers are asking for help getting their snakes to feed...it seems complicated at first but after a while, you'll see many of the same reasons (for refusal) come up time after time. Snakes are not demanding pets in the way that dogs & cats are, but you absolutely have to understand what they need and why. Easier snakes include corn & rat snakes, king snakes, gopher/bull/pine snakes, etc.- both because it's easier to achieve the temperatures they need year-round to keep them feeding & healthy, and because they're nearly always easier to feed, & they feed reliably, without having to blow-dry their dead mouse to life-like warmth etc.

If patience isn't your strong suit, you'll want to keep that in mind when you choose your pet: do you want a snake that's outgoing? or easily stressed & fairly inactive? How big are you comfortable with in terms of handling? (boas are easier to feed but most get much larger, & larger snakes cost more to feed & house, so consider that too.) This is really the same sort of self-examination that we should all do for any kind of pet we're thinking about, since pets can live a long time & deserve the best of care, which is more likely when we're most "compatible" with the ones we choose.