New guy looking for an ID and some care tips

[match19]

Hey everyone, I found this guy (or girl) this past weekend in south florida and was hoping to verify that it is indeed a ball python. Also, when I found the snake it was acting very strange, lifting its head and moving around very erratically. Once I held it I noticed it had a damged eye and ots head would droop to the side of the damaged eye. I found it on saturday and I have provided it with water, plenty of heat and fed it a small rat yesterday. Any tips would be appreciated. TYIA


Damaged eye

[bcr229]

Wow - their eyes do that when they get dehydrated and/or have multiple retained eyecaps due to low humidity. Since it did eat for you I would leave it alone for the next day or so to digest, make sure it has access to plenty of water, and crank up the humidity so it doesn't dry out further. What kind of enclosure is it in now?

[match19]

I have it in a 40 gallon breeder outside right now. I put a large bowl with water in there and it sits in the water a couple hours everyday, I too figured it was dehydrated. Our humidity has been 80-90% for the last week. Most of the tank is shaded except about 10" on one side, it tends to lay in the direct sun for a while and then lays in the water bowl which is shaded. Temps in the tank have gotten as high as 84 and drop to about 75 at night.

[bumblebee1028]

That looks like a spider ball python, so the odd head movement is possibly from the neurological issues associated with that morph (all spiders seem to have some degree of a "head wobble"). I've always heard not to use glass tanks outside, because the sun can quickly heat up the entire tank and cook him/her. He/she may be in the water bowl so much because it's too warm. How are you measuring the temps? Also, 75F is a bit too cool for a ball python, and they do best with temps higher than 84F to digest. It would be best if you can get the tank inside, and get the temps to a more ideal range (88-94F for the basking spot and 80-84F for the cool side).

Here's a good guide to help you set up the tank if you can get it inside: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...-With-Pictures!

[MJT_23]

Definitely a ball python, and is the spider morph. Him moving his head around all crazy is probably just his wobble that all spiders have. You can google it and see videos of other ones doing it to see if it's the same. Also make sure to supply him with 2 hides, one on the hot and cold side.

[jdhutton2000]

Humidity, Hides and Get his temps stable. Follow the care sheet that bumblebee posted. Good save!

[bcr229]

I have it in a 40 gallon breeder outside right now. I put a large bowl with water in there and it sits in the water a couple hours everyday, I too figured it was dehydrated. Our humidity has been 80-90% for the last week. Most of the tank is shaded except about 10" on one side, it tends to lay in the direct sun for a while and then lays in the water bowl which is shaded. Temps in the tank have gotten as high as 84 and drop to about 75 at night.

If it's in the sun it's likely hotter than 84*F in there during the day, especially if he's soaking, and 75*F at night is too cold. He should have access to 80*F low, 90*F warm, at all times, so he can regulate his own temperature as he needs to.

It's hard to tell in the pics but he looks thin in the top one so I'd bet he either escaped or was let loose quite a while ago. If he's been surviving on wild rodents he may have picked up an internal parasite. If you're going to keep him have a vet do a fecal exam on his stool to make sure he doesn't need to be wormed.

Another thought if he's soaking - he may have snake mites, wild snakes carry them so he may have picked them up as well. Do you see little black bugs about the size of black pepper flakes in the water?

[match19]

Thanks for all the info. I have a 60 gallon with a stand I plan on using for it in the house so it will be setup properly. It was a very unexpected find and I only had a mesh top for the smaller tank at the time, so I will get him setup this weekend. Only a small portion of the tank gets direct sun and I have been watching the temp (thermometer on glass inside tank) and the highest it has reached so far was 84-85, I too was worried about getting too hot. Im sure most of you are aware of the snake populations in south florida, they seem to thrive in our climate. I will look for the mites and find a vet for the stool sample. I am stoked to have found such a cool snake, it will make a great additon next to the geckos, bearded dragon and chameleon.( whats one more reptile right lol) two more quetions, how do I tell sex and any idea on how large I should expect it to get? Thanks again for the help, seems like a great community you guys have here and I will post more pics when I get it setup.

[bumblebee1028]

Thanks for all the info. I have a 60 gallon with a stand I plan on using for it in the house so it will be setup properly. It was a very unexpected find and I only had a mesh top for the smaller tank at the time, so I will get him setup this weekend. Only a small portion of the tank gets direct sun and I have been watching the temp (thermometer on glass inside tank) and the highest it has reached so far was 84-85, I too was worried about getting too hot. Im sure most of you are aware of the snake populations in south florida, they seem to thrive in our climate. I will look for the mites and find a vet for the stool sample. I am stoked to have found such a cool snake, it will make a great additon next to the geckos, bearded dragon and chameleon.( whats one more reptile right lol) two more quetions, how do I tell sex and any idea on how large I should expect it to get? Thanks again for the help, seems like a great community you guys have here and I will post more pics when I get it setup.

The stick-on thermometers are not really reliable, I wouldn't trust it at all. A digital thermometer with a probe is much more reliable, and can be found at Walmart for about $12. The glass traps the heat inside the tank, which is why it's not recommended to use glass tanks outside. If it gets too hot, he has no where to go. I would at least get the tank out of the sun ASAP.

Since you have other reptiles, definitely quarantine him by keeping him in a different room than the others, as you don't want him spreading any mites or other parasites or illnesses to them.

The only ways to tell if it's male or female are to have an experienced vet or expert "pop" or probe him/her. You can't tell just by looking at them. They can easily get up to 4 feet long, and around 1500-2000 grams (that's just an estimate, they can be larger or smaller, and females tend to be a bit bigger). He should be fine in the 40 gallon breeder for his entire life.

[Pythonfriend]

so you just found it out there in the wild? thats crazy. it must have escaped or someone let it loose.

yep its a spider morph, and it has a rare feature that looks rather cool: a mustache. you dont get that nose pattern very often.

i hope the eye recovers.