Sounds like you and I have similar histories, although before I got out of the hobby I hadn't done that much breeding (garters and waters). Anyway, I got out of the hobby altogether when we bought our first house and had our child. Cleaning cages just wasn't fun anymore. Fast forward about 4 years and my daughter started showing a real interest in herps, soooo, we got her a little baby ball python. That kicked off the fever for me again, but this time I vowed to just keep a small collection of animals and really focus on the long-haul aspect (I would typically only keep animals for a few years before selling or trading them off for another species) and any breedings would be a bonus. My daughter is still very involved and has a few snakes that are "hers" and she helps me feed, water and clean the animals. It has now been five years and some of the animals I bought as babies four years ago bred for me, but are still considered pets (CA boas, Ammies and Yellow Rats). Again, the breeding is just for personal satisfaction and fun and I sell or trade the babies to my local herp shops for food or supplies. So I believe you can have long-term family pets AND still get the satisfaction of breeding them and producing a new generation from adults that YOU raised up from little neonates! Good luck with your re-entry into the hobby!



Billy

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