I am (or thriving to be) a hobbyist level breeder. I really enjoy my snakes and plan on breeding them to make some money. Not alot of money; I'll be happy if I can make just enough money to upgrade my cages, make trades to upgrade my collection, and pay for feeding. I am not out to be a millionaire.
I agree that the prices for some Ball morphs are very high, but thats the fun of the industry. Sooner or later those prices will become affordable. Hell, I just bought my first BP morph for 300 dollars (male pastel). I'll breed him to a normal female a few years down the road and I might make my money back and some for all of the rat pups he'll be eating. That's good enough for me. The "higher" prices, not the "insane" prices keep the hobby exciting for me. Your "collection" can go up and down in value. Its kind of like playing the stock market. There are some people in it for the thrill and fun, and some people in it for money.
Mostly, I just like to show off a pretty animal, and have a chance at hatching my own "morphs" (its like treasure hunting!).
So far my collection only consists of a male Pastel BP, a pair of het for albino W. hognoses, and a "red" w. hognose with a 66% chance of het for albino. I'm excited for the future of my collection.

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