General Discussion

@cavallocavaliere
Another thing to consider is their lifespan. Ball Pythons can live for 20-30 years! (provided you care for it right) so it's a big commitment. I would say that if you aren't in college (or out of college) yet, wait for a while. (That's what stopped me from getting a snake) A lot of colleges don't allow snakes, and it would be generally difficult to balance school and snake care, and probably equally difficult to get your parents to take care of a snake! But snakes are really amazing animals and can be a great pet! They have a lot of charm and character. I work with them pretty often at the place where I volunteer. So I wouldn't rule it out forever, even if you can't get one now.

@cavallocavaliere
One more thing! A Kenyan Sand Boa may be another option for a snake. They still live for 20+ years, but they are much smaller! And super cute. Also, it should be mentioned that I have never owned a snake, this is just what I found in my research when I was considering getting one. So take what I say with a grain of salt. (any snake owners, feel free to correct me on anything!) Good luck!!

(edit- one more one more thing-
If you welcome a noodle friend into your house, it is a REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY good idea to feed the snake f/t mice (or rats). F/t (frozen/thawed) is a much safer way to feed the snake than dropping a live mouse in the enclosure. Not only is it much kinder to the mouse, it is MUCH safer for your snake. A mouse fighting for its life can do serious damage to your snake. It can take a little doing to get a snake to take f/t mice but it pays off in the end! Good luck once again!!)

@cavallocavaliere
I have a ball. He's a normal. One of the upsides to balls is that there's countless morphs, but some are pretty pricey. A downside of owning a herp is that it can be really hard to find a vet that deals in exotics. (Joining a herp society can help with this)

He is in a 40 gal breeder (36x18x16) , and he's about 3 ft long--he'll only get around 4-5 feet so I'm not worried. He seems perfectly fine with it and he's got plenty of cover, so he is okay. I adopted him from my herp society (if you have one, I highly recommend joining, it's a really great community and resource) so I'm not sure on how old he is, but I'd guess about 3-4 years. He's going to live 20+ years, so it's a long term commitment.

I have him with both a UTH and heat lamps (I live by Canada, so it gets cold lol). DO NOT USE HEAT ROCKS AS A HEATING APPARATUS--IT WILL BURN THE SNAKE. Hot spot should be around 90-92, and cool side should be about 85. Be careful because they can dry out fairly easily but if they're kept too humid, they'll get scale rot. I currently have KC on coco husk. Humidity should go up when they're in shed, typical humidity should be around 40-50%, but in shed I up it to around 65%.

Luckily for me, KC eats well, but most balls are extremely picky eaters. They can be particular about the color, size, type of rodent, etc. If you're having trouble with feeding, I'd suggest African Soft-Furs (balls are originally from Africa so it's a more natural prey item) Some will go off feed for months at a time, but as long as they're not loosing weight, it's okay. He eats f/t XL mice (will probably go on small rats soon). I never feed live unless I absolutely have to, live animals can harm/injure or potentially even kill the snake. I want him to stay fairly slender (or about as slender as a ball can get, which is still quite fat) so I feed him about once every two weeks.

They don't really have much of an odor because they don't musk like some other snakes, but there's a slight stale smell around KC's terrarium (although it also smells earthy b/c of the coco husk).

They're typically very docile, but hatchlings can be a bit nippy and the occasional individual can be a bit agressive. Balls don't move around as much as, for say, a corn snake, and they're far more likely to just sit around your neck or hand than do anything exciting. Excellent couch potato snakes. Don't handle too often, because that can stress the snake out. Also, don't handle until at least 48 hrs after eating, or else you could get regurgitated on.

Hopefully this helps. :P And it's pretty long, but if there's anything else you want to know, you can feel free to PM me. :)