PetSmart - Ball Python

[Saboduh]

Hello,
I received a ball python as a present that was purchased at petsmart. The next day I nocted white mites on his head and also some dry flaky scales on his back. I washed him in warm water and cleaned the tank out and 2 days later it seems I have taken care of the mites....
I have 11 days left before I can return him but I want to give it a chance first. His tank has the correct temp and humidity and he is curious and active when I handle him, flicks his toungue and moves around. Hes not soaking in the water or acting weird other than stayin in the hide on the cool side never going to the warm side. I have not tried to feed him F.T mice yet, but I am going to try in 4-5 more days if he does not eat I think I will return him.
His belly looks nice and other then the few flaky scales on his back his color is very normal but along his side and near his head his skin is a bit wrinkly, im not sure why. I dont think he is about to shed becuase his belly is not pink and no clouding of his eyes. The feeding chart the pet store gave said he ate 2 weeks prior to the purchase but only one time last month.
I guess my question is he seems overall un healthy and would it be futile for me to try to maintain this snake? i see after some research he is probably not captive bred. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[MissSeeman]

I got my ball python as a christmas present from PJ's last year. He wasn't in the greatest condition either, he had a bad shed, and a retained eye cap. I decided to give it a go and keep him, he is just fine now.

First thing I would do, is keep his tank as clean as possible. He doesn't go to the warm side of the cage you say? triple check his husbandry, his heat and humidity are good. Once you think his husbandry is good, check one more time. Since you've only had him for a few days it sounds like, it's completely normal if he won't eat yet. My ball didn't eat for a whole month before he got acclimated to his new home.

Basically keep his cage clean, make sure that your husbandry is spot on, and he will get comfortable with his new home and eat fine. be vigilant when it comes to the mites though, when you give him a soaking, dry him off with a dark colored towel; if he still has these white mites, you should be able to see them.

[Saboduh]

before i noticed the mites i had aspen bedding and a half log hide on each side. once i saw the mites i ditched the logs, washed the tank in scalding hot water with maybe 5% bleach dried it out. i replaced the aspen bedding with news paper for now, im thinking about using paper towels not sure if the news paper has chemicals or not. i just wanted to get the bedding out i read thats whats the mites eat. i placed 2 of the same size cardboard boxes as hides

i dont have a digital thermometer yet, i didnt realize until after i was broke that they are the best so i have the dial ones. the cool side reads 79-81 during the day and 76-78 at night and the hot side has been 80-81 at night and 88-90 during the day. the humidity has been 55 pretty consistant since i had him.

what causes the skin to be wrinkly? my first thought was he has to be malnourished

i am going to keep an eye for the mites but i had him out for about 20 min today watching his face and didnt catch any running around. i dont want to disturb him too much for the next few days though. he is currently in a 10 gallon tank but as soon as i get paid i will be getting a plastic tupperware type container for him until i can purchase a real enclosure.

i will try to post a pic of him tomorrow if i decide to get him out and check for mites again. i went to the petsmart and told them about the mites they acted suprised, i wanted to let them know as he was in the cage with another juvenile BP

[purplemuffin]

Wrinkly skin can mean malnourished, dehydrated, or sometimes just before a shed. Maybe post a picture of the ball python?

[matt y]

Sorry OP, this is kinda offtopic, but my friend got a ball from petsmart that was stuck to a sticky trap and had been ripped off. The guy's kinda in the ICU at his house right now recovering. Yesterday we went to the same store and the balls in there had wrinkly sagging skin, you could see their bones. I told the employee there to check on them and when she got one out and handed it to me there were mites ALL over it. I hate that place and wish I could take all of their snakes from them. If I only had the room

[Highline Reptiles South]

I wouldn't return my worst enemy back to petsmart. I would ask the manager to get you some Prevent a Mite to kill the mites. If they won't - get some yourself. You can fix everything else.

New snakes can take some time to eat for the first time...

[Saboduh]

well, his care sheet said he ate about 2 weeks ago and i talked to the worker who has fed him, so the saggy skin along with some of the flaky scales on his back lead me to believe he is dehydrated. any steps i can take other than having the correct humidity to help him with this? he has a bowl of fresh water too.
when i check him for mites tomorrow i will snap a few pics to show.

i appreciate the feed back i am feeling more optimistic about keeping him

[Highline Reptiles South]

2 weeks is a long time for a hatchling. feed him and give him a good soak in lukewarm water every other day or so. make sure he has fresh water of course

[mommanessy247]

just be sure to NOT handle for 2-3 days after the snake eats or it'll regurge.
you reeeaaally wanna invest in a digital thermometer as soon as humanly possible, borrow the money & pay it back when you can if you have to. the best thing for checking temps would by far be a temp gun. that will tell you the surface temps & thats how you'll know what your snake is sitting on all the time. for $40 you can get a temp gun & a metal case for it that comes with an extra battery, at tempgun.com.
i dont think anything was mentioned about this but what do you have providing the heat? a lamp or a heat pad? if its a heat pad you have it hooked up to a thermostat right? if a heat pad is not controlled by something like a thermostat it'll get too hot & could burn the snake.

[Saboduh]

he is in a 10 gallon aquarium and i have a UTH on the right side. its a small one that came in a starter kit with the dial thermometers. its not on a thermostate so i will be getting one of those as well as a temp gun, i also want to get a better heat pad one that has a high/low adjustment. i do also have a heat lamp with day/night bulb, i know they dont need those but the day one helps the day temp get over 90 but im not having any trouble with the humidity even when i use that..humidity in tx average 45% so keeping 50%+ in the tank has been really easy
i have his hide on the warm side on top of a paper towels to help not be directly on the heat soure.

i know when i pick him up how should his body feel? not warm but not cold, i know that my temp is high then his should be so he should feel cooler to my hand?