am I a bad snake owner?

[craigj1187]

as most of you know i just got my ball python about 2 months ago. well for the last 2 weeks i havent had anything to do with him. i fed him and checked his temps,humidity,watered him, but i havent had anything else to do with him, havent cleaned his cage or anything! but my dad was put in the hospital 2 weeks ago with over 106 degree temps. they still dont know what caused that, but he was diagnosed last week with steven-johnson syndrome, and they found a tumor in his chest. THAT has been what i was worried about, not my snake, my mom was diagnosed with cancer 3 years ago, almost 6 months after my grandma passed away from cancer, well we just found out my moms cancer has came back, on the only kidney she has left, and the past year has been more than mind boggling for me. my question is what do you guys do in this situation? most of my day is at the hospital with my parents. what do yall do when yall are away or have something bothering you, where your mind isnt thinking about if my snakes cage is clean. but wether or not your dads gonna make it, or your already sick mom isnt too stressed from being at the hospital for 2 weeks. i dont want to get rid of my snake but i dont want him to die because i couldnt be here to clean his cage properly, what would yall do?

[martin82531]

You don't sound like a bad owner but you do have priorities. Is this case, being with your dad and family comes first.

With that said; if your finding your self in a situation were you can no longer provide proper care for your snake I would look at possibly giving it up for adoption or maybe finding someone who can take care of him/her until your in a position to do so your self again.


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[RedseaReefer]

Husbandry is always important but that aside I think you know your priories and if anything sown times my snakes are therapeutic aahhhhh best of luck to you and your family my friend

[craigj1187]

thanks you guys. they told me today he might be able to come home in a few days, but i had to go today and completly sterilize their house, so maybe i can get back to taking care of my snake properly within a couple days...he doesnt seem to bad off "my snake that is"

[Annarose15]

This is actually one of the beautiful things about snakes as pets. Your BP doesn't care if you don't play with it, doesn't need walks or playtime, doesn't need brushing or nail trimming. It only needs fresh water, a clean and proper environment, and food. All of these needs can be met at a minimum of 15 minutes, twice a week. Taking an extra day or two to clean the enclosure won't immediately result in scale rot, and a day late on feeding isn't going to cause starvation. Focus on taking care of your family, and just reserve a few minutes a week to take care of your BP's basic needs. Life will settle down eventually, and your BP will be no worse for the "neglect".