Howdy!
You've clicked on the first blog post because your brain is just CRAVING to know who owns, runs, manages this awesome business - and that's me, Anna Kirby. Hench the name, AK. No, we're not located in Alaska *rolls eyes*. AK Morphs is currently located in East Texas.
So let's jump to the good stuff...
I got into ball pythons in 2020 after watching Brian Barczyk on YouTube cutting ball python eggs while I was working out. I thought it looked cool, and I could probably own a snake. The weekend I decided I was ready to "own" a snake NARBC Arlington just happened to be happening. So my husband (Robert) and I went to the event. Talk about overwhelming!
I ended up at Wilbanks table and asked to see a banana het pied (I had never held a snake in my life up until this point) and the guy working for Wilbanks opens up the container and just plops this snake in my hand. I'm scared shitless. Hands visibly shaking. The guy goes, "Do you want him?" and me, not knowing how to say 'no' to anything, said "yes", and that's how I ended up with my first ball python. We purchased everything we needed for him at the show, and when we got home got to work setting up his tank. We named the banana het pied ball python Penny, and he's still a current member of my collection. He's actually a very odd banana - extremely dark and doesn't freckle.
Anyways, after a few months of getting Penny I had three additional snakes. Then I decided in 2021 I wanted to give breeding a snakes a shot, and now here I am. It's been a fun ride, and I'm excited to see where breeding snakes takes me. I'm aiming to be full time soon.
Besides snakes I think I'm pretty diverse. I've done a lot of different things in my life, and have experiences that most people would dream to have. I grew up playing video games competively and eventually became professional. My favorite memory was being in OXM (Official Xbox Magazine) issue #118 on a full two page spread discussing the Halo series.
I've an Advanced Open Water and Nitrox certified NAUI scuba diver, and I am an undefeated ax throwing champion. The picture above is me and my prizes from the first ax throwing competition. I don't know if you've picked up on it yet, but I'm extremely competitive. I'm also a known acrylic pour artist and have taught classes at Michael's. I'm a skilled photographer as well, and have landed a cover photo on the Porsche of America magazine when I worked with my father-in-law (he's a professional autocross photographer) during an event. That was pretty cool.
The man behind the scenes is the only reason I haven't moved on from snakes. This is my husband, Robert. He feeds the rats, helps water the snakes, and is the one who takes those awesome ad photos of all the hatchlings (even the shit Nyala's that strike at anything and everything). He also has to deal with my constant shenanigans, so you should feel pretty bad for him at this point. You'll always see Robert with me at shows (apparently I can't be trusted with the wallet or credit card after Arlington). He has many titles here at AK, but without him there would be no "K" to AK. So, I guess he'll have to be a permanent addition.
If you've been following me since the beginning then you know my second love, beside Robert, is horses. Specifically, all of my rescue horses. During Covid I decided I would rescue my first kill pen horse, Lilith. Rescued the horse on Sunday, got let go of my job on Monday.
Anyways, I sold art to get me through that time until I found another job. A few months after I rescued a senior white ghost paint who is worth his weight in gold. Robert named him Phantom, and that's Phantom and I in the photo on the right. We don't know what happened for Phantom to end up at the kill pen, and I've finally accepted that his original owner passed away and the family just didn't want to take care of him. Phantom is what you'd call a 'unicorn' or a 'diamond in the rough' because whoever owned him spent YEARS training this horse. He is fancy, one hand broke and will probably be the best, or one of the best, horses I will ever own. He's forgiving when I makes mistakes, and helps me build up my confidence with riding after the numerous Lilith tosses.
As of right now I currently own five rescue horses; 4 senior geldings and Lilith. I wouldn't change my little herd for anything, and soon my two Texas Longhorns will be joining them (October 31, 2022) named Aang and Chip (yes Aang from The Last Airbender, duh).
[Insert Longhorn photo here when I have a good one]
Anyways, after we owned all these horses Robert and I decided it was probably time we purchased a house. We ended up buying our first home in April 2022, and it just happened to come with 25 acres in the middle of nowhere in East Texas. Now, my next goal is to build up my reptile facility, acquire more land, and I hope you'll follow me as I grow!
Until next time,
Anna
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