What started your passion for reptiles and getting involved in the hobby?

My journey with reptiles began a little differently and I was absolutely terrified of them for most of my life. I love animals and as I got older realised how irrational the fear was so set to getting over it. I spent awhile researching and trying to learn what I could before I brought my first snake home. The fear was so short lived from there and years on I just couldn’t imagine life without them!

What age did you start your journey?

I was 20.

What species do you keep?

I keep a few different species of snakes. Python wise, primarily Children’s pythons, however I also keep a handful of Spotted Pythons, Green Tree Pythons, Olive Pythons, and a lonely Coastal Carpet.
I began keeping elapids a few years ago and am lucky enough to keep Red-Bellied Black Snakes and a small variety of Death Adders as well.

What is your favourite species and why?

That is a very hard one as they are all so different and amazing in their own ways. I really love the variety that I have when it comes to size, temperament, handling style etc.
I really can’t land on just the one, so between two instead…
I absolutely love Adders and being able to interact with them and observe their behaviour up close will always feel like such a huge privilege and I’m very grateful to be able to keep the individuals I do.
I also really enjoy my Children’s, they’re just beautiful little snakes to work with, great temperament, easy to handle and there is so much variety within the morphs.

Do you breed your animals, and what is your secret?

I do, no juicy secrets to share just a lot of research, patience, love, and time. Make sure you are prepared to spend every free hour of your time feeding and cleaning hatchlings and adults.
I’ve been very lucky along the way to make some fantastic friends who have been willing to share their time and expertise and for that I am incredibly grateful. There are so many things you just aren’t able to read from a book and need the hands-on experience and knowledge from other keepers. There are so many different ways to do things, find what works best for you and your animals and be open minded to new ideas and adaptations as they come along.

What started your passion for reptiles and getting involved in the hobby?

I have always had a passion for reptiles for as long as I could remember. Unfortunately for me, my parents had the age-old adage of ‘the only good snake was a dead snake’. So getting one as pet was out of the question in my early days. I did bug my parents enough that they eventually let me go to a friend of my dads who kept reptiles in the early 80s. I spent a few hours at his place one afternoon handling one of his snakes and he offered me one to keep. I was so excited. When dad turned up and I told him I had been playing with a snake all afternoon and said that his mate was going to give me one to keep. Dad was like… ‘oh yeah, what is it?’. Apparently free handling a Red Bellied Black Snake all afternoon when I was around 11 or 12 years old was not acceptable in my father’s eyes. To my disappointment, I didn’t get a snake and I never got to go back there ever again. I was not a happy kid… lol

What age did you start your journey?

It wasn’t until my wife and I bought our house 1997 and I mentioned to her how I’d always wanted a reptile. She agreed and thought it was a cool idea as I had always wanted one. Probably a decision she regretted as within 12 months, I had amassed a collection of around 40 animals with no slowing down in sight. I don’t think she thought it would ever amass to the hundreds I have now days.

What species do you keep?

Nowdays it is just pythons. Morelia species I keep are: Metcalfei, Carinata, McDowelli, Variegata, Spilota, Bredli, Imbricata, Viridis and Cheynei. In Antaresia: Maculosa, Stimsoni and Childreni. I have a lot of pure stuff, but I mainly concentrate on morphs now. I have the majority of them covered from caramels and T+ to Peppers and granites in a multitude of combinations.
I have kept many species over the years including scrub pythons, eastern and central beardies, central netted dragons, ackies, spencers, jacky dragons, mountain heath dragons, rough knob tailed geckos, velvet geckos (O.castlenaui) N.levis levis and thick tailed geckos, boyds forest dragons, long neck and short necked turtles (longicollis and macquarii). I also did rehabilitation of injured animals through WIRES and Sydney Wildlife. Often had Red Belly Black Snakes and Eastern Browns in for treatment. But stopped keeping/rehabilitating venomous snakes not long after having kids.

What is your favourite species and why?

One species I miss the most are my Ridge tailed monitors, V. acanthurus. They were awesome critters to keep and breed. I don’t really have a favourite as I just love all reptiles, but if push comes to shove, it would have to be a pure Silver Pepper Murray Darling Carpet Python. After the trials and tribulations of proving this relatively new mutation to the hobby, it kind of has a bit more of a personal touch for me. When I see others selling them, I kind of think how lucky I was to be able to introduce this morph into the hobby for others to enjoy.

Do you breed your animals, and what is your secret?

Sure do and way too many if you ask my wife 😊
No secrets really, anyone who asks, I tell what I do. Some listen, some don’t, each to their own.
However, one thing I see too often in people trying to breed for the first time, is underweight females. Need to feed them up if you want to be a successful breeder year in year out and feeding them as they start coming into season is very important IMO. I often see people stop feeding their girls way to soon. If your set up is correct, there is no need to stop feeding to soon or at all in some cases.

What started your passion for reptiles and getting involved in the hobby?

I’ve always had a huge passion for animals and found snakes fascinating as a kid. They weren’t the average pet and I loved to research them. After begging my mum to get one and the weeks spent waiting for my licence to arrive, I dragged her down to the pet shop right away. The best part was I could keep this pet in my room and it was solely mine! Honestly my passion for snakes has done nothing but grow and I didn’t know I would be more obsessed with them today than I was as a kid. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

What age did you start your journey?

I was 15 when I got my first snake.

What species do you keep?

I have both children’s pythons and carpet pythons of various morphs.

What is your favourite species and why?

Honestly, it is hard to say. I love carpet pythons for their variety and the many different visuals morphs that exist today, but I am also really excited to see where the antaresia species goes in terms of what visuals might exist into the future. I would have to say I have a soft spot for children’s pythons.

Do you breed your animals, and what is your secret?

Yes, I do breed my reptiles. Honestly no secret, just A LOT of patience and research. Everything I know today I have learnt from other breeders and their extensive knowledge. I believe no one is an expert particularly in this field. There is always something new to learn. There is a lot of trial and error but I find learning from others’ mistakes and what works for them is a good place to start. Finding a breeder who is willing to guide you along the way makes a huge difference. Husbandry is also very important in keeping happy snakes and will set you on the right course to achieving your goals.

What started your passion for reptiles and getting involved in the hobby?

Growing up on a hobby farm was awesome for a kid like me who was crazy about animals. It was like living in my own personal zoo, and I guess that’s where my dream of becoming a vet started. But you know what really kicked my interest into high gear? It was a day when I was 15. My mate had just got this python, and he called me over to check it out. Man, seeing that Diamond python for the first time was something else. It wasn’t just cool; it was fascinating. I couldn’t believe how different it was from the animals I was used to on the farm. I started reading up on reptiles, watching documentaries, you name it. It went from just a cool thing to learn about, to a bit of an obsession. That python basically set my life on a new course. It got me thinking about studying reptiles and maybe working in a field where I could learn more about them. It’s pretty wild how one day, one experience, can open up a whole new world you didn’t even know you were passionate about.

What age did you start your journey?

So, there I was at 15, totally obsessed with reptiles after seeing my friend’s Diamond python. I was like a sponge, soaking up everything I could find about them. But reading about them wasn’t enough, I wanted to get up close and personal. So, the first thing I did once I turned 18, Got myself a reptile license. Then came the cool part – getting my own snake. I started with a diamond python, But I didn’t stop there. Next thing I knew, I got a coastal carpet python too. It was different back then; you couldn’t just buy these guys in a pet shop. It was all about who you knew. I got mine through a mate of a mate. That’s how it worked back then, people have it easy these days.

What species do you keep?

I’ve had quite a variety of reptiles over the years, including Diamond Pythons, Coastal Carpets, Black-headed Pythons (BHP), Green Tree Pythons (GTP), Woma’s, Leaf-tailed Geckos, and Blue-tongue Skinks. Recently, though, my interest has narrowed down mainly to the Antaresia genus, specifically focusing on maculosa, childreni and stimsoni.

What is your favourite species and why?

My favourite Species is obviously Antaresia as I think there is a lot of work that can be done refining the traits they have and morphs they possess within their genealogy.

Do you breed your animals, and what is your secret?

No secret breeding Antaresia is fairly straightforward, I focus on ensuring the females are healthy and well-nourished before the breeding season. By putting the male in with the female for two days in and two days out, you effectively manage the breeding process. I lookout for signs of ovulation and prelay in the females, which are critical indicators for successful breeding.

As the prelay shed indicates that eggs are on the way, preparing the incubator becomes the next crucial step. Turning on the incubator about a week before you expect the eggs ensures it reaches the optimal temperature and humidity levels for successful incubation. This preparation is vital to provide a stable and controlled environment for the eggs to develop.

Breeding success lies in its simplicity and attentiveness. It highlights the importance of understanding the biological cues of the reptiles and providing the right conditions at the right time. Breeding reptiles, especially species like Antaresia isn’t too difficult if you pay attention to the cues and hibernate your animals for a month before the above mentioned cues and have a thought out process. But its nature and things can go and do go wrong, but you live and learn from any mistakes and refine your methods from that point.

What started your passion for reptiles and getting involved in the hobby?

I was surprised to see that this answer seems to be the same for a lot of keepers and breeders. As a child I had a love for dinosaurs and as I got older, I discovered they were not easy to get your hands on, so I settled on reptiles.

I was also lucky enough to of entered the hobby at a time when the legends of the Australian reptile hobby were in their prime. The support and knowledge they gave kept my passion alive and still does to this day.

What age did you start your journey?

I grew up in Mt isa and it was a time when video games were not controlling your life and most families were lucky to have one TV. So running around in the bush was all you could do to keep yourself busy and waste the day away. I was forever bringing things home and kept my first carpet python at the age of 10yrs old. I had really good parents who allowed it to free range in the family home most of the time. I was considered a strange child at school and I was either on the oval poking things with sticks or in the library reading every reptile book I could get my hands on.

What species do you keep?

Over the years I have kept and bred just about every reptile available to the Australian hobby venomous and non-venomous. These days I am settling on hyper bluetongues and pythons like Carpet pythons, rough scaled pythons, woma pythons, blackheaded pythons and just to be different, I also keep Antaresia. I enjoy breeding pure locality animals and a few colour morphs.

What is your favourite species and why?

If you were to see my collection you would think it was Antaresia due to the numbers I keep but in truth I love Rough Scaled pythons. I just love everything about them. I remember in 1992 seeing the first photos taken by John Weigel and being totally mesmerised. Even after all this time and all the clutches I have produced I still feel blessed to have these pythons and always will.

Do you breed your animals, and what is your secret?

Yes, I breed my reptiles and I believe the biggest asset you can have; is a lot of patience when it comes to breeding, especially when getting hatchlings to eat, it can drive you crazy at times.
As far as temps go for perfect breeding, I can’t help you, I’ve always been lucky enough that I live in a area and environment that offers perfect natural temps and cycles that match the species I keep, so I just use that to my benefit every year.

What started your passion for reptiles and getting involved in the hobby?

I was born into a family that kept birds, lizards, and marsupials, so it wasn’t a big leap to start keeping pythons. My first snake was a spotted python named Fang. I kept cages in my bedroom, until it was hard to get out the door. Once I fell in love with the species it seemed natural to want to breed them. I began attending the Victorian Herpetological Society meetings at the age of 12 with my father and uncle, who both supported my growing interest and financially supported my reptile passion.

What age did you start your journey?

My first memories of owning a lizard was at the age of 6. It was a stumpy tale lizard. We kept him in one of my father’s aviaries. My first python was purchased at around 10 years of age, which was before there was licencing in Victoria. All you needed was a permit to keep a spotted python.
At the age of 13 I began my breeding journey, with a pair of Childrens. Seeing the babies hatch from that first clutch ignited a passion for breeding pythons that has never ceased. 

In my mid 20’s I became a committee member with the Victorian association of amateur herpetologists were I held that position for roughly 8 to 10 years. During that time my wife and myself would be the editors of the crocodilian magazine and club website. I was lucky enough to have 2 great mentors in my early years of learning they were always there to help out and answer any questions I had. They were Roy Pails and Neil Soneman. Thanks Guys.

What species do you keep?

My main focus is mainly on morphs and locality specific in the Antaresia species. But I also keep and breed albino carpets and woma’s as well as hooded scaley foots. Over the years I have keep other things like Shinglebacks, Bearded dragons, Jacky dragons, Eastern and Gippsland water dragons, Blue tongue skinks, Diamond pythons, White skinks, Striped skinks and Water skinks.

What is your favourite species and why?

Without a doubt it would have to be the Antaresia species. They are a good-sized python that does not need to take up too much cage space or cost you a fortune to feed. Most of the time their nature isn’t too bad but yet again a bite from one of these guys isn’t going to need medical attention like some of our big Australian pythons. I also think we are just at the tip of the iceberg with the amount of new morphs being produced within this species.

Do you breed your animals, and what is your secret?

Yes, I breed my pythons. I feel there is no real secrets to breeding them. It’s probably more about being very thorough with your husbandry, being consistent year after year with the process that you chose to breed your reptiles and don’t change that it. Your animals will breed better in a consistent breeding process. Every body’s reptile room is totally different so do what suits your room’s requirements not what joe blow off Facebook told you. During breeding season I keep the room at approx. 32 degrees during the day and approx. 21 during the night.

What started your passion for reptiles and getting involved in the hobby?

When I was three years old, I was already fascinated with animals. I would catch skinks, geckos, and frogs in my backyard and create enclosures out of cardboard boxes and plastic tubs. This first sparked my curiosity, but my particular interest in reptiles began when I was just six years old. I became fascinated by these beautiful creatures after watching YouTube videos on snakes and spent countless hours researching and learning about them. Around a year after that, I purchased my first pet snake from a local pet store. Currently, I am pursuing my tertiary education in areas such as Herpetology, Veterinary Sciences, Animal Biology, and Animal Behaviour.

What age did you start your journey?

I bought my first snake, a blonde spotted python that I named Wizard whom I still have today, when I was seven years old.

What species do you keep?

I currently keep three species in the Antaresia genus. Spotted pythons, Children’s pythons, and Stimson’s pythons.

What is your favourite species and why?

All the Antaresia species are my absolute favourite. If I had to choose just one from the genus, it would be spotted pythons. Although I do love the lovely nature of Stimson’s pythons and the morph variation in Children’s pythons. Spotted pythons are currently my favourite due to their larger size and beautiful mutations.

Do you breed your animals, and what is your secret?

Yes, I do. I began breeding Antaresia when I had just turned thirteen years old. My business focus is to produce healthy, vibrant, new, and exotic quality morphs for the hobby, and I have many projects planned for the upcoming seasons. I would say my secret is to never give up and to do tons and tons of research. As a reptile keeper/breeder, there will be many ups and downs, but in the end, always keep working towards your ultimate goal. You can never learn too much; there is always something new to discover.

What started your passion for reptiles and getting involved in the hobby?

When I was 6 years old, I was given a little Green Tree Snake. Little did I know that was the start of a lifelong passion. Throughout my younger years I kept multiple species and really learnt as I went. When I was around 12 years old, I was introduced to a family friend who also kept reptiles. This was my first real introduction to the reptile community. He opened my eyes to all the different morphs, species and breeders but also showed me Aussie Pythons and Snakes forum. It is from that point I was hooked! I spent every waking minute reading and learning on those forums.

What age did you start your journey?

At 6 years old.

What species do you keep?

Just a couple LOL.

Currently have a large collection of Antaresia but also a few Woma’s, Olives, Carpets, GTPs and some other little bits.

What is your favourite species and why?

This is a pretty hard one.

I love GTPs due to the fact they are the perfect display animal and everyone loves them. But I do love my Antaresia.

Do you breed your animals, and what is your secret?

Yes, these days I don’t breed nearly as much as a few years ago. Given the current state of the world and also some life goals I have taken a big step back in terms of breeding. Secrets? Just don’t give up. And lots and lots of rats!

What started your passion for reptiles and getting involved in the hobby?

I started herping as a young child. My first purchased was a pair of Spotted pythons from Alma and Ted Searle who were pioneers of the Brisbane reptile hobby community, running cool companion reptile club.

What age did you start your journey?

I started the journey into reptiles properly at 18 years old.

What species do you keep?

So many!
Various Antaresia and Morelia morphs, and both types of Aspidities for the pythons. From the lizard side – Bearded Dragons, Boyd’s Forest Dragons, Shinglebacks and Blue Tongues.

What is your favourite species and why?

My favourite species is the Antaresia genus – small, easy to handle and house. I enjoy breeding the morphs and wild types and they fit easily in my reptile room.

Do you breed your animals, and what is your secret?

Yes, I breed my reptiles.Mmy secret is lots of research, humble in the belief you are never to experienced to learn new things. I love sharing information with friends in the hobby and have built a relationship with a great reptile vet. I schedule set days/time to spend working with my reptiles (my me time😊)

What started your passion for reptiles and getting involved in the hobby?

I had no perception really of reptiles until I met my now husband, Garth. He had been a reptile lover since he was about 10. He was into birds when I met him and when the licencing to keep reptiles in NSW came out in 1997 we were onto it. We went up to Cairns before that and went to Hartley’s Creek Crocodile Farm, where my friend worked at, at the time. They put a large python over my neck and I almost freaked out. When we got back to Sydney, we purchased around 5 Pygmy bearded dragons. In the mean time we became members of the Australian Herpetological Society in Sydney and would go to their meetings, meeting like-minded people. We were probably one of the first to breed these little dragons and they sold like hot cakes. Then we decided to buy a couple of Diamonds. They were sold to us for 100.00 each, I nearly collapsed thinking we were paying a King’s ransom, how things have changed. We enjoyed the pythons, so ended up getting other pythons, Olives, Children’s, Stimson’s, Water, Woma’s, Jungle’s, BHP’s etc.

What age did you start your journey?

I started later in life at 43.

What species do you keep?

Gippsland Water Dragon’s, Woma’s, BHP’s and all the Antaresia species (Childreni, Maculosa, Perthensis, and Stimsoni including the Pygmy Banded Stimson’s) oh and Black and Yellow jungles.

What is your favourite species and why?

My favourite species is the Antaresia species. They are friendly, compact and I just love them. Most are friendly.

Do you breed your animals, and what is your secret?

Yes, I breed my animal. I mainly breed what I can easily sell. No secret. I Just put them in together, if they breed, they breed, if not, tough luck for me.  You have to love what you breed and keep.