Getting first ever snake!

[paperaith]

Hi! My boyfriend and I are getting our first ball python, a pastel female from The Snake Keeper at ballpython.com (any experiences with them?), probably sometime in the next 2-3 weeks.

We have a 30x12x16 sliding door habitat from Tetrafauna, and tonight we got ReptiBark, which I read varied opinions on, and combination hide/water dish.

Next up we are putting together an order for an under-tank heating pad and possibly lights for the top, and a thermometer and hygrometer. We were looking at ordering from Drs Foster and Smith.

What size heating mat should we use for a tank that size? Are the stick-on-the-inside-of-the-tank analog therm and hygro useful, or should we get something better?

It is my understanding that BPs don't need heat from lights, but that lights can be used for aesthetics. I also read that using lights that are too bright can cause stress to the snakes as they are nocturnal. Thoughts on this?

We'd also like to get some plants and decorations for the terrarium, but that's secondary to the essential care items so I thought I'd ask about them first.

Thanks very much in advance for your help! We are very excited and just want to do everything as well as we can.

[abrunsen]

Welcome to BP.net!

Is the BP you're getting a hatchling?

Also I don't know if you knew about this but there are care sheets on here that are very helpful. Here is the one for BP's

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ius)-Caresheet

-Alex

[boaz_21]

Hello and congratulations!

With the under tank heating pad you will need to also get a thermostat so that you can control how hot the pad gets. If it gets to hot it can burn your snake. I ordered mine off ebay and was half the price that I would have paid in the store. And you'll want it to cover about 1/3 of the bottom of the tank. So a tank that size probably a medium. I don't remember right off hand how much area they cover but the dimensions are on any website you'd order them from.

Next your gonna want a digital thermometer and hygrometer. Flukers makes a nice combination. Analogs, I and many others have found, are not nearly as accurate as the digital ones.

Good Luck with her!

[abrunsen]

This is the thermostat I use. Good price and works well.

http://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-MTPR.../dp/B000NZZG3S

and for a thermometer and hygrometer combo I would suggest this. It isn't the one I use but I know others who use it and it works just as well.

http://www.amazon.com/Chaney-Instrum...9981366&sr=8-8

[paperaith]

Welcome to BP.net!

Is the BP you're getting a hatchling?

Also I don't know if you knew about this but there are care sheets on here that are very helpful. Here is the one for BP's

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ius)-Caresheet

-Alex

No, she is about 6 months old, I didn't see any hatchlings for sale anywhere I looked.

I did read the care sheet, and I also read the post on setting up a glass habitat. Very informative!

[enchantress62]

Husbandry is the most important thing to consider for a happy healthy snake. All the previous advice is important but i had trump/ humidity issues until i insulated three sides and the top. I used foam board and high heat duct tape for mine and it worked like a charm. For aesthetics i used the cling scenery first then placed the insulation behind it. Also placing a bowl of water over the heating pad helps keep the humidity up. Good luck and welcome to the obsession. Lol

[Rob]

If you have a screen top your going to lose a lot of you humidity there. Put a damp towel over 3/4 of top, it worked really well for me. good luck

[The Serpent Merchant]

There are a few issues, some have already been covered but I'll give you my $0.02 anyway.

First off, repti-bark isn't the best choice if you are using a UTH as your primary heat source. UTH's do not heat the air in the tank so the only heat that your snake will get is from the substrate. 1 of 2 things will happen with repti-bark.

1. The UTH will not be able to produce enough heat to get the top of the substrate to 88-92 degrees

2. In order to provide the correct temperature at the top of the substrate, the glass bottom of the tank will be far too hot. Some snakes will burrow down into their substrate, and if the bottom glass is too hot they can get burned.

Newspaper/butchers paper/corrugated wrap all work very well with UTH's but a thin layer (less than 1/2" thick) of Eco-Earth or Aspen will work as well.

You may need to use a heat lamp as well depending in how cold your room gets. As I said before UTH's do not effect the air temperature in the tank. This means that if you room gets below 75 degrees a heat lamp may be required. I suggest that you get an infrared heat bulb if you find that you need one. Infrared bulbs can be used 24/7 because they put out a form of light that your snake cannot see.

The UTH must be regulated by a thermostat. The thermostats sold in pet stores are crap. There are a few options based of price.

1. The hydrofarm thermostat sold on amazon for $30 will work, it isn't very good compared to other thermostats on the market but it will do what you need it to do.

2. Herpstats are the best, they are far more accurate but cost more. The basic model costs $99

The stick on thermometers/hydrometers should be avoided. They are over priced, are not accurate, completely stop working after a few weeks, and will not measure the temperatures that you need to know. The stick on thermoneters measure the temperature of the glass that they are stuck too. What you need is a digital thermometer with a probe. This one is sold at Walmart for $12 and will measure your hot/cool side temperatures as well as humidity.



The hide that you are describing sounds like a lizard hide (the ones with a water/food dish built in. Maybe I read that wrong) you need to have 2 identical hides. 1 on the hot side and 1 on the cool side. I really like the hides sold by reptile basics, they cost much less than other hides and are great quality. For a 6 month old, the medium size is the best.



As for UTH size. The 1/3 rule works with tubs, but it doesn't work very well with tanks. The 20 gallon sized heat mats are what you will need.

Honestly if I were you I would just return the glass tank (if you can) and get a PVC reptile cage. Here is a thread I wrote on them:

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...With-Pictures!

You can make the glass tank work, but a PVC cage will be much easier to maintain. I hope all of this helped.

[Slim]

paperaith, welcome to BP.net and the wonderful obsession of ball pythons. Aaron hit a home run with his advise in the above post. Please feel free to ask if you have any other questions.

[UpNorth]

Right on board with Aaron regarding PVC. If I could go back 6 weeks, I would have just spent the extra $75 and got a 24"x24"x12" PVC enclosure, or a 4x2x1 with a divider for some extra cash allowing some expansion as he gets bigger.

Humidity is relatively easy to keep around 53%, but during shed it is a pain to maintain 65%+. I do need to spray/mix my cypress in order for it to hold enough humidity, but making sure that the substrate below his hides stays dry to avoid scale rot.