Royal Constrictor Designs

Born With a Passion for Pythons

I have been fascinated with reptiles and amphibians my entire life. Growing up in the 70s and 80s, there weren’t any captive-bred reptiles available, but I always kept a small collection, mostly lizards, as pets in display cages in my bedroom.

When I started college at the University of Wisconsin- Stevens Point, I had no idea that I could breed reptiles, let alone turn it into a successful business. While I was on a school trip to Costa Rica in 1993, I realized I had to have a career working with reptiles. Around that same time, I started attending Lee Watson’s Reptile Swap in Illinois, and I also started working at a local pet Store in Schofield WI. I started to understand that there was a huge demand for quality, captive-bred reptiles, so I decided to start breeding some Giant Day Geckos in my dorm room. I was successful at it and that success opened the flood gates to my future of becoming a full-time reptile breeder.

While in college, I was able to do internships at the Sedgewick County Zoo in Wichita, KS, and the Houston Zoo. I was also able to visit Dave and Tracy Barker’s facility as well as Ron Tremper’s. Those experiences were truly inspiring and gave me the courage to attempt to do something as strange as breeding reptiles for a living.

In 1996, I graduated from UWSP with a bachelor’s degree in Biology and I had taken some business courses as well. I continued to work for the local Pet Store for most of the next four years, with a small break to work for Ty Park with his breeding/wholesale reptile business in Illinois. I learned invaluable information about how to run a successful business in reptiles.

In April 2000, I had built up my collection and learned enough to turn my part-time business into a full-time career. I started producing large numbers of Leopard Geckos, Crested Geckos, Bearded Dragons, and Veiled Chameleons and I had other species as well. I had Ball Pythons, Boa Constrictors, Carpet Pythons, various colubrids, and more.

Eventually, my interest swayed towards Ball Python Morphs so much that I decided to move out of most of the other projects. Now, my business is almost exclusively focused on producing the highest quality, most beautiful Ball Pythons in the world! I look forward to working with you on your ball python project.

Sincerely,
Garrick

Royal Constrictor Designs is a member of the United States Association of Reptile Keepers (USARK), an association dedicated to protecting the rights of reptile breeders and keepers. Watch the video to see why it's important to become a member and band together to keep these awesome animals for years and years to come.