# Ball Pythons > BP Husbandry >  why is he choosing his cold side hide over hot side?

## FrankieCarbone

ok so i got a new pastel on thursday (fed ex overnight) the snake is about as perfect as u can get, very healthy, good eater, in fact the breeder told me to try and feed him the day after i got him, i was reluctant but i threw in a white mice on friday (just one day after i received him) and he took him down like a champ!  Now ever since friday night after he ate he moved from the hot side hide to the cold side, and has not left it for 2 days, now i know this could be because hes shedding but the curiosity got to me and i lifted the hide and picked him up, now this was 48hrs after he ate, and his body felt cold, my temp gun red his surface body temp at 79! so i persuaded him into his hot side hide, this was last night, today i wake up in the morning and i see he left the hot hide and went into his cold hide!  I once again persueded him into his hot side hide where he has been the last hour.

Now i know what alot of you are thinking, so let me get it straight, my temp gun has my hot side hide at 95 under the bedding, and 91 or so on the bedding, so NO its not that the UTH is too hot, i been getting these readings persistently.  And the ambient temp is between 86-90 and humidity 57-70.  The cold side is at around 82-86.  Now i have been checking these temps with my PE2 all day long so i know they are accurate.  So whats the deal? why is he choosing the be cold when the hot hide is perfect heat.

Oh and another thing, they are both identical hides.

----------


## PitOnTheProwl

Could just be what he wants, my spider is almost always on the cold side. :Wink:

----------


## Kymberli

My male normal remains on the cool side most of the time, yet he's healthy, happy, eating regularly and gaining weight. I've tried many times to put him in his warm hide but he always ends up back on the cooler side. I've even lowered the warm side to 88 and switched the (identical) hides.. still stays on the cool side, lol. If your temperatures are good then I don't see any reason to worry. If he needed to warm up, I'm sure he'd go to the warm side.

----------


## FrankieCarbone

im only concerned because when i picked him up he felt cool to the touch, im dont understand why a snake would prefer that over being alot warmer, i mean like i said when i checked his body with my temp gun it was 79! now i know thats not right....

Right now ambient temps are 88, 55 humidity.  I put him in the warm side this morning and he hasent left since then, so will see if he stays there, but i just found that odd, especially since he started going to the cold hide right after he ate, you would think he would prefer the hot side to get that belly heat from the UTH.

----------


## Inknsteel

Your snake will go where he/she wants or needs to go to thermoregulate. By opening the tub, pulling him out of his hide and sticking him into the one YOU want him to be in is probably pretty stressful for the snake. He'll be fine if you just let him go where he needs/wants to go...

----------


## SpiffyYoshi

They aren't called cold-blooded for nothing!

----------

Ptshay (10-19-2016)

----------


## stratus_020202

> Your snake will go where he/she wants or needs to go to thermoregulate. By opening the tub, pulling him out of his hide and sticking him into the one YOU want him to be in is probably pretty stressful for the snake. He'll be fine if you just let him go where he needs/wants to go...


X2. Also, 79 is not that low for a body temp. They are cold blooded after all. Our body temp is a lot higher, so it's normal for them to feel cool.  If they feel hot, then I would worry.

----------


## D&J Reptiles

It looks like there is alot of good and correct information. Snakes sometimes like the cold. You will catch them soaking in their water and it is usually much colder than the warm side. It is just something that they do...

----------


## mommanessy247

my girl is on the cool side 75% of the time as well and i'm giving that estimated percentage cuz i'm not awake 24 hours a day sitting and watching her every move so i'm willing to bet she visits the warm side and i'm just not lucky enough to catch it. also, she's got a habit of going straight to the cool side for the first 24 hours or so after a meal then moves to the warm side for the 2nd day of digestion.
i used to worry that she was not gonna be warm enough to digest her meals if she was always on the cool side but apparently she's getting the amount of heat she wants. 
just trust that your snake knows what it's doing and will do it when it feels the need to.   :Wink:

----------

Ptshay (10-19-2016)

----------


## FrankieCarbone

> i used to worry that she was not gonna be warm enough to digest her meals if she was always on the cool side but apparently she's getting the amount of heat she wants.
> just trust that your snake knows what it's doing and will do it when it feels the need to.



thats what i wanted to hear.  learn something new everyday here, thanks everybody for the replies...

----------

Ptshay (10-19-2016)

----------


## BabyyItsLove

I had the same concern about mine, being that i've only had him for about a month and he spends only one of 7 days a week on the hot side. 
I just let him be and let him run his course. He's one hell of an eater, so I wasn't overly concerned.

On the other hand... He's becoming a bit more skiddish... and THAT is what has the wheels in my head turning.

----------


## Future Generation

> My male normal remains on the cool side most of the time, yet he's healthy, happy, eating regularly and gaining weight. I've tried many times to put him in his warm hide but he always ends up back on the cooler side. I've even lowered the warm side to 88 and switched the (identical) hides.. still stays on the cool side, lol. If your temperatures are good then I don't see any reason to worry. If he needed to warm up, I'm sure he'd go to the warm side.

----------


## Bogertophis

Necro-thread Alert... :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):   Future Generation, I think the OP might have it figured out by now...this thread is from 2011.   :Wink:

----------

