Custom Cage

[Toby_H]

I’ve decided to get a male and a female snake this summer and they will likely be Ball Pythons. I’ve read a bunch about housing and caring for them and plan to continue. While I very consistently read that a 20~30 gal aquarium is acceptable for adult BPs, it just sounds small to me…


What would you consider an “ideal” size cage for a BP (and why)?

2’ x 2’ @ 3’ tall is what I’d like to offer.


When given the opportunity, how much to BP’s climb?

I would like to offer a couple of ‘branches’ including a raised hiding area. How well would this be utilized?


Below is an illustration of the “water dish” I have designed for my Tegu (lizard) enclosure. Would this sort of water dish be advantageous for a BP?



The pump/sponge area will be covered.


Any other thoughts, suggestions, links, etc for custom cage ideas will be greatly appreciated. I’m a DIY guy with a good bit of experience in working on such projects.

[dr del]

Hi,

I would recommend a good heavy ceramic dog waterbowl.

Easy to clean and very hard for the snake to tip.

I don't give mine bowls big enough that than can fit in them or anything like that. And I would worry about the vibrations form the pump disturbing the snake.

As to cage size smaller is often better from the animals point of view.

Have a read through our caresheet and see if it raises any questions.



dr del

[jtyson123]

Though it does seem cruel to some people, ball pythons prefer smaller housing. Keeping them in a large enclosure can stress them and actually shorten their life span from what I have heard. Can't verify the latter part, but it makes sense. I know when I tried a couple of mine in larger enclosures, they went off feeding. Back into smaller cages and they were fine again. Good Luck!

[dr del]

Heh,

They do tend to be secretive shy little beggars.

Apart from the ones who aren't of course.



dr del

[WakoNako]

A 10 gallon tank would be more than enough for a yearling. The cage I'm building only has an interior enclosure space of 28"x14" and like 15" in height, and that should be more than adequate to last our BP for the next 2, 3 mayber even 4 years.

[Toby_H]

And I would worry about the vibrations form the pump disturbing the snake.

I hadn't even thought about the vibration beign a problem... thanks for the point of concern...


As for enclosure size, while I see how a big ole wide open box with a single hide could be stressful, especially if bright lights are used for heat... but a 2' x 2' @ 3' tall with branches, a couple of hides, live or fake greenery, dimmed lighting, etc, etc would make the snake feel "right at home"...


I'm not saying I am right and others are wrong, just wanting to think the idea through and not unnecessarily limit myself or my snake...

[dr del]

Hi,

Yeah we all tend to start off thinking of wonderfully realistic enclosures.

Sadly they are a real trial to get the temps and humidity right and keep clean.

It's not impossible - but it's not that far off it either.

Ball pythons aren't really very good climbers either so you will need to make sure they can get the temp range across the floor that they need and that, when they fall ( and sadly they will ), that they don't land on any hard edges and hurt themselves.

And the kicker is if you get the environment right you will hardly ever see the snake during the day when the tank looks its best.

They spend most of their time in the wild inside rodent burrows and termite mounds only coming out to hunt or look for mates.

From the snakes point of view the perfect setup is small, dark, humid and warmer at one end than the other.

With hot and cold running mice and conjugal visits.

Come to think of it I wouldn't mind that overly much myself.


dr del

[stevepoppers]

If I could start again, I'd get a tub instead of a tank. $8 and supposed to be super easy to take care of. Dang buggers never leave their hides anyway.

[kitedemon]

Hey Dr del has some good points but for me personally I have an enclosure that is 24 inch by 24 inch and 18 tall. Keeping the temps correct isn't really very hard but the humidly is a it trickier. It can be done however, substrate choice and a few tricks here and there.

3 feet tall might pose a bit more issues with heating and humidity. My guy climbs quite a lot in the nights, Many well know authors also back this up,

Bartlett & Bartlett "despite being heavy bodied, ball pythons can climb adeptly."

de Vosjoli "...may even climb on branches close to the ground"

Personally a larger enclosure like what you have suggested is fine (less height maybe easier...) Lots of 'landscaping hides and plants will give a secure feeling for your ball and give you something to look at when it is hiding.

There is nothing wrong with tubs! They are easy and simple to keep and the animals are healthy kept in tubs. That is why breeders use them!

I have one snake and one coming so it takes me 20 min to clean his enclosure (40 for two) I enjoy that time. It is a bit more of a of a balancing act to get things right I love technical issues anyway. I also relax after work by just looking in the enclosure sometimes my guy is out in the evenings sometimes not, but either way I enjoy that too. I can see his trails he makes and I enjoy the enclosure look too.

Personally it is worth the extra work. I had him in tubs and I felt like I wanted to take him out all the time to handle as I couldn't see him through the sides. Than can cause stress so in my case a bigger display enclosure I get my time with him with out over handling. Just my personally feelings here.

My biggest trick for humidity is rocks. I have a chunk of a fine grained porous rock (rainbow stone in my case) I actually have two... I soak one for a day and them pat the surface dry and place it in the enclosure. over a few days it dries out releasing the water it holds back to the air. It takes 3-5 days to dry completely and bumps up the humidity a notch (7-10%) Then when it is dry I place my second one in taking the first out and into boiling water from the kettle and start the cycle all over.

[Kaorte]

I think your best bet is to find a different species of snake that would be better suited for a nice display enclosure. Ball pythons make awful display animals (sorry guys, you just do).

When they are happiest, they will RARELY come out of their hides and while they do -sometimes- climb, it is usually due to stress from being in such a large enclosure.

I see my snakes out of their hides once or twice a week right around feeding day.

Perhaps you could look into some more arboreal or semi-arboreal species? They would be much more fun to watch in such a cool enclosure