Ron's Ball Python Blog

So you want to breed ball pythons for a living, eh? You’d be surprised to know how many emails and phone calls we receive from people inquiring about how to get into the business of breeding ball pythons for a living. Some people are tired of working a 9-to-5 job and others just want to make a little income on the side or just enough so they can purchase some of the more expensive and rare ball python morphs for their collection. Others want a bit of job security and so seek a way to “work from home” doing a job they’d really love to do, work with and breed ball pythons as a business.

I’m not going to talk about how to breed ball pythons in this blog because I’ve written other blogs that discuss the topic in great detail. I am however going to discuss breeding ball pythons as a business for those who are thinking about leaving the security of their 9-to-5 jobs to start their own ball python breeding business. Breeding ball pythons is my business and I haven’t worked for a company as a 9-to-5 employee in many years so I’m more than qualified to speak first-hand about the business of breeding ball pythons.

If you’re anything like me then you’re very passionate about ball pythons and love looking at and interacting with them as much as you can. It’s often said by famous businesspeople – Donald Trump, Warren Buffett and Bill Gates just to name a few - that you should love your job with a passion. You should love it so much that you’d do the same job you’re doing even if you weren’t being paid for it. If you feel the same way about ball pythons then you’re on the right path.

It’s one thing to be on the path but do you have enough stamina and willpower to overcome the obstacles on that path and “stay the course”?

Owners and Employees
There are two types of people in the world of business, owners and employees. There is nothing wrong with being an owner nor is there anything wrong with being an employee. The economy would come to a screeching halt if everyone was an owner or if everyone was an employee. Imagine a world where everyone was an owner and had no employees or where everyone was an employee and there were no owners. Both owners and employees have very specific jobs they perform and are vital to a company as a whole. Unfortunately though, owners have a more senior position in a company and thus the ability to terminate an employee’s employment. But unlike an employee, they can’t simply resign and go to work at a new company. An owner must “stay the course” and deal with the burden of keeping a company managed, organized and operating effectively.

I mention this because when you step into the world of breeding ball pythons as a business, you step into the shoes of an owner. But don’t throw away those employee shoes just yet because you’ll have to slip them back on as well since you’ll more than likely assume dual roles of both owner AND employee of your ball python business for some time. Believe me when I tell you that it’s tough work and that everyone isn’t built for business ownership. You have to do some serious soul searching to see if you are truly cut out for being a business owner along with accepting the responsibilities that it entails.

Is Business Ownership Right for you?
Once you’ve done your soul searching, you need to look at your financial and family situation and answer yourself some serious questions. How are my finances and savings? Do I have enough money or access to liquidity in order to fund my ball python breeding business? How is my family situation, will my spouse be supportive of my decision to enter the world of breeding ball pythons?

Let me be blunt with you. Most people are not in a financial position to enter the world of breeding ball pythons as their sole source of income. I would strongly discourage the majority from even entertaining the thought of leaving the security of a 9-to-5 job to become a full-time ball python breeder because it will require an extremely large injection of capital to get started where you can actually live and survive solely off of producing and selling ball pythons. I would however suggest breeding ball pythons on a small scale while keeping a regular job. Build up your collection over time and grow your business slowly to the point where it can support itself and you and your family as well.

It’s not that this business requires an enormous amount of money to get into. Like any business, you really need a large capital base to grow the business to the point where it can support itself and your family. Ball python morphs are relatively inexpensive these days and it’s not much of a financial burden to own a few morphs but you have to ask yourself, “How many morphs do I need to own that will produce enough babies that can generate enough cash-flow that will support the business and my family?” You’ll need five, maybe six-figures to accumulate enough inventories to meet that goal. That’s why I say to start building your collection and grow your business over time but keep a regular job in the meantime.

Managing your Business
There are many excellent books on the topic of creating a business along with managing the nuances of book keeping, accountants, licenses, attorneys, etc. so I won’t go in depth on those subjects. A good book on starting a home-based business is probably a good investment for you to own because it will walk you through the do’s and don’ts for starting a home-based business. The ball python business is like any other business with respect to record keeping, tax issues, etc. so what you’ll learn can be applied to your business.

You’ll also learn how to do market analysis that you can apply to the ball python market along with ways to promote, grow your business and sell your products.

Is Breeding Ball Pythons Profitable?
I wouldn’t be in business for all these years if it weren’t profitable. I look at the ball python business as a manufacturing business because they’re very much alike. Ball pythons manufacture baby ball pythons each year just like a company that manufacturers candy bars for instance. Unlike stocks, real estate, commodities, etc., you can make more money breeding and selling ball pythons than you can in most other investment vehicles. You’d be extremely lucky to own a stock that doubles in value but doubling your profit by breeding ball pythons is usually the rule, not the exception.

Tripling your investment is a real possibility as well with ball pythons but like the manufacturing scenario I just outlined, you keep making money year after year after year as long as your ball pythons are producing babies for you. Real estate and commodities are no different than stocks with respect to what you can expect to earn from your investments in them. Investing in ball pythons can most certainly yield you greater returns than any of these “traditional investment vehicles” can produce, even on their best day. There are some tax benefits to certain "traditional investment vehicles" but in my opinion the benefits pale in comparison.

So, what should you do?
In conclusion, as I’ve mentioned before, start growing your collection while keeping your day or night job. Acquire more ball pythons into your collection and build it up to the point where it will support itself and your family. Once you’ve reached that point you can leave your 9-to-5 job and pursue it fulltime if you choose to. Keep your goal in mind and continue to grow your collection of ball pythons but most importantly, have fun and enjoy the experience as well as your ball pythons as your collection grows.

I hope you and your family had a wonderful and safe Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/etc. celebration. New Years 2009 is only a few days away so have a STUPENDOUS new years as well but - and I can't stress this enough - if you go out for new years, please be SAFE and have a designated driver if you're an adult who will partake in adult beverages.

We're entering a new year so it was time to give the blog an overhaul to usher in the new year. I hope everyone is pleased with the new look. Thanks for reading my ball python blog when I add new entries and thanks again for your comments, questions and suggestions.

Ron

I’m pleased to announce the grand opening of “Pet Products Delivered” at http://www.PetProductsDelivered.com. You didn’t get your beloved pet a gift for Christmas? Don’t worry; with more than 14,000 different products in stock, I’m certain you’ll be able to find your pet something wonderful at our online pet store. We have everything from aquariums, bird, cat, dog and small animal items in stock so tell your friends and family about the online superstore and come check it out yourself.

It’s too cold out doors for most of us right now but that’s not a problem because you can simply order from the comfort of your warm home and have your items delivered to you front door. Have a happy and safe 2008 holiday season as well!

Happy holidays from your friends at RCReptiles.com!

Growing up as a child, we kept everything from dogs to ferrets as household pets. I can recall caring for our beloved pets and the occasional trip to the vet if warranted. When I first acquired a ball python many years back, I simply cared for it in the same manner as our previous pets, never keeping any detailed records of its activities. A trip to the vet’s office first revealed to me the importance of keeping records, a log, a journal, and etc. when the vet asked me when it last defecated. My mind drew a blank when the question was asked of me and from that point on, I decided to start keeping records of important events pertaining to ball pythons.

Ball python record keeping is very important

There really isn’t any set of “rules” when it comes to record keeping, it’s completely up to you what you’d like to record and keep track of but there are certain activities that you should record about your ball python when they take place. Such activities include when it last defecated, if the fecal was normal or abnormal (if abnormal, record the details), when it last fed or refused to feed along with the type of prey item that was offered, its last shed date and if it was a complete or incomplete shed, etc. and of course, the date.

You can keep records in a notebook if you’d like or 3x5 cards if you have more than one ball python. 3x5 cards placed near the cage of your ball python makes record keeping and review quick and easy. If you’re more of a technology type of person, you can use several software products created specifically for the reptile community such as Degei husbandry database, Metzcal and others. These products make it easy for you to record husbandry information directly on your computer and manage the data effectively. There are also Microsoft Excel spreadsheets available for download on the Internet that you can simply print out on paper to record husbandry information as well.

Regardless of whether you choose to use a pen and paper or keyboard and mouse to record husbandry information about your ball python, it’s a habit that I suggest developing if you’re not doing it already. They say that if you do anything for 30-days it will become a habit so just keep recording those important events and before you know it, it will become second nature for you. You’ll probably record more events than necessary when you first start out but it’s okay since you’ll more than likely optimize what you record and what you don’t record over time once you get in the swing of things.

Take your log, journal, 3x5 card or computer printout with you if you ever take your ball python to the vet. He or she will be very grateful as well because you'll have important information recorded that may assist the vet. Your vet may also be able to point out any concerns or suggestions when it comes to the husbandry and care of your ball python based on the records you’ve kept and provided. Record keeping is invaluable and your ball python will appreciate that you care enough for it to keep records of what it does.

Python regius is the scientific name for Royal or Ball Pythons. The term “Ball Python” was derived from the fact that they will oftentimes fashion their bodies into a “ball” shape when threatened. The main predator of the ball python in Africa is the “Black Cobra”. Black Cobras are unable to swallow extremely large prey items so ball pythons have evolved to adapt into a “ball” formation in an effort to prevent from being swallowed by black cobras. I’ve provided this bit of brief background to explain why they form into the shape of a ball when they feel threatened.

Ball pythons are docile snakes that usually do not strike at their keepers when they feel threatened but there are some that do and they are the exception, not the rule. As many of you have learned in school, there is a “fight/flight” response mechanism inherit in animals. Most ball pythons take the “flight” response by either crawling away very fast (and they can move very fast!) or contouring their body into a ball shape. Others take the “fight” response and strike at the threat. I’m going to discuss the “fight” response or “striking” in this blog and ways to have them stop this undesired behavior.

Ball python hatchlings can sometimes strike out of fear

I’ve noticed that hatchlings are more prone to strike or fashion themselves into a ball than their adult counterparts. I’ve also noticed that the hatchlings that do strike when they’re young tend to outgrow this un-welcomed behavior over time once they feel safe, secure and confident that you don’t plan to eat or harm them whenever you approach their tank. We have no adult ball pythons that attempt to strike at us but I have noticed adult “wild caught” (harvested directly from the bush of Africa) ball pythons strike out of defense when confronted by humans. Captive born and bred adult ball pythons usually do not show signs of striking at their keepers as adults, especially those accustomed to being handled. A ball python can also strike at you if it’s hungry and smells a rodent on you or your hand so change your clothing or wash your hands if you’ve been handling any rodents before you attempt to handle your ball python.

I’m sure you’ve heard of the term, “The bark is worse than the bite” when speaking about certain dogs. The same applies to being tagged or bitten by a hatchling ball python. Ball pythons will usually just “tag and release” opposed to biting and holding on. I’ve only been tagged a total of three times to date so I know first hand how it feels and what can be expected. It feels like nothing more than a light pinprick and produces minutely small droplets of blood. Simply washing the area and applying Neosporin, peroxide, etc. to the area is all that’s needed. They’re non-venomous snakes so there’s nothing to worry about if you’re ever tagged.

One way to help calm your ball python down is to give it time to properly acclimate to its new environment, assuming you received it pretty recently. Placing the cage in a low-traffic area or covering a portion of the tank visible to a high-traffic area will help your ball python settle in. Make sure the cage conditions are optimal as well (temperatures, humidity, hide-box, etc).

There are a few techniques for dealing with ball python hatchlings that strike at you. One technique is to place a garment that you’ve worn inside the tank with your ball python. The theory behind this technique is that your scent is on the worm garment so it will become aware of your scent and will not be frightened when you attempt to handle it. Another technique that I advise if your ball python strikes at you is to handle it for 15-minutes each and every day. You may feel a bit safer wearing a glove on your hand in the event that it attempts to bite your hand. Keep it away from your face and hold it daily for 15-minutes. Do not put it down or back in its cage if it strikes at you or hisses. You want to condition or “teach” your pet ball python that it will not get its way by striking at you. It will learn over time that striking is ineffective so it will ultimately stop this undesired behavior.

Ball pythons make exceptionally wonderful pets and they are not “mean” snakes, even if it appears that way if they should ever strike or hiss at you. Simply take a look in the mirror at yourself and then look at the little ball python hatchling. Now compare the size difference between you and your ball python hatchling and then try to mentally swap places with your ball python and you’ll get a better idea of why it might be afraid of you and strike at you “out of fear”. Make deliberate movements and show confidence when handling your ball python and it will learn over time that you’re a friend and not a predator that’s out to harm or eat it.

They can live for a very long time so rest assured that this striking behavior will go away over time and that you’ll have a long and happy relationship with your loving pet ball python.