I spent four figures on my FIRST ball python. (And so far only!) I happened to have the money available at the time, and didn't have any problems at all putting it toward my future dreams. If the timing is right, and the money is available (I'd never finance an animal) then the actual dollar signs attached to the snake mean little to me. To me, it's a matter of making dreams come true...and who puts a price tag on that???

EDIT to clarify: I don't think there's anything wrong with doing a sort of "lay-a-way" financing option for a particular animal. What I mean is that I would never use credit or any sort of loan in order to buy one.