Yea been into reptiles since I was a kid. Took off into an obsessive hobby that returns a little money every now and then. I mainly work with ball pythons but I absolutely love retics. Most people probably wouldnt believe you when you told them that your snake was smart but retics are just different from any other snake, they rock. We have two retics, they are still young but growing fast. Some lines do grow faster than others, in fact the two that I have are clutch mates. They have eaten the same amount of meals since birth yet one is considerably larger than the other.
Would love to see pics of your other snakes if you ever take some.