New Ball Python Owner with Questions

[pvpgirl]

Hi there! I recently bought a ball python (my bf talked me into it) but neither of us have owned one before. We've found a lot of conflicting information on the internet so when I came across this site, I was hoping that someone here would be kind enough to assist with sorting fact from fiction and help out by guiding us with their own experience so we can be successful owners.


First, I'll share some information about our snake.


We bought her from a locally owned pet store, not one of the big store chains.
He told us she was a super lesser (blue eyed lucy) and that she was about one month old. Her eyes are red like they are in the picture, (not just red eye from the flash) with a blue outer ring which has me a little concerned. The pictures I've found searching of other Lucy's have had darker inner eyes with the blue outer circle. Is there any definitive way to know she what she is beyond taking his word for it?
https://goo.gl/photos/CBuxphRcgacjKSkQ7
We fed her a hopper on Friday and plan on giving her another one on Wednesday. Next week, we're going to try her on a small. She's about a foot long and I'm not sure how much she weighs.


We've found conflicting information on care as far as temperature and humidity. One place says 80-90, another says 78-95, and one fellow at PetSmart claimed we shouldn't have her habitat over 75 (that sounds completely like BS to me). Humidity, I've found sites claiming anywhere from 40% to 60%, leaning toward the high end when she's moulting.


For her habitat, we're currently using a 10 gallon Grreat Choice terrarium.
http://www.petsmart.com/reptile/terr...alue%3Dfaceted


It came with a thermometer/hydrometer which we've stuck at the 'cool' end of her habitat. It's been giving a pretty steady reading of 75-78. We've stuck a thermometer film on the other end, but the darn thing never seems to read a temperature. The heating film that came with the kit has been put on the bottom of the end with the temperature film. It didn't really seem like it was warming much of anything up, so we purchased another small heating film and placed it low on the warm side. The substrate on that end is warm to the touch.
http://www.petsmart.com/reptile/heat...pfm%3Dcategory


For the most part, Lucy hangs out at the warm end. There is a 4 inch (across) water bowl on the cool end and the humidity has been keeping around 50%.


For substrate, we've been using about an inch of absorbent coconut fiber to help maintain humidity levels. It seems to be keeping the moisture pretty well, only showing drying spots after one week. We're spot cleaning the scat (is that what it's called with snakes?), and spot hydrating with a spray bottle with a full re-dampening at the one week mark and plan on a full change of the substrate once a month.
http://www.petsmart.com/reptile/subs...alue%3Dfaceted


For a hide, we got her a medium sized, hollowed out split log.
http://www.petsmart.com/reptile/habi...pfm%3Dcategory
We've placed it in the middle of her habitat so that one end opens on her warm end and one end opens on her cool end.


We haven't done anything special as far as lighting. Where she's located gets several hours of natural light during the day and there's usually a room light on in the late afternoon.


She gets played with for around 30 minutes a day except on feeding days when we leave her alone for the whole day. This is another place we've found conflicting information, with one place saying you can feed them inside their habitat just fine and another saying snakes should be transferred to a feeding tub.


There's a small mark on her underbelly a couple inches above her genitalia. It's in a straight line directly at the center line. Could this be a scratch, or a residual mark from her umbilical cord?
https://goo.gl/photos/wpeZ8MNjdCvxaTKk6


If someone could at least let me know if we're on the right track, that would be greatly appreciated. Lucy is a beautiful creature and I am completely paranoid that something could happen to her due to our ignorance. Thanks in advance!

[Megg]

If the thermometers you have are the ones I'm thinking of (the dial ones), I'd ditch them. They aren't very accurate. I'd try an Acurite Indoor/Outdoor thermometer with a probe. They are about $13 at Walmart, and they will give the temperature on the hot side and cold side, and humidity. I'd also ditch the half log, and give her 2 hides with only one opening on each. She should fit snugly inside. Put one on the cold side and one on the hot side. I try to maintain mid 70's to 80 degrees on the cold side, and about 88-92 degrees on the hot side. Is your heat source regulated? It should be on a thermostat so she doesn't get burned! You can order a hydrofarm off EBay for $25-30. (Or a Herpstat if you're willing to spend that much). Hydrofarms aren't the best, but they are definitely better than nothing!
She does not need to be moved out of her habitat for feeding- cage aggression is a myth.
I try to keep my humidity between 55 and 65, more when they're in shed.
Hopefully someone with more experience than me will chime in, and correct me if I'm wrong about any of this!

[thejennabird]

I support everything Megg said (switch thermometers, change hides, get a thermostat!), and will add... have you seen the How to Set Up a Tank tutorial on these forums? This is a great primer on setting up an enclosure for a BP and provides links/descriptions of all the equipment you need. Sorry to tell you your "pre-made" kit isn't right for your new pet, but those Reptile tanks are generally designed for species with less precise habitat requirements (ie. corns and kings).

As for feeding, unless you have a legitimate reason to feed your snake outside the enclosure (and fear of so-called "cage aggression" doesn't count), just feed your snake inside the enclosure.

[JoshSloane]

Megg hit on some of the important points. It's important to differentiate between hot spot and ambient temps. Ambient readings measure the temperature of the air within the enclosure. It is important to keep these within the mid 70s to the low 80s. The hot spot temp on the warm side is the temperature that the snake will experience on the floor of the enclosure. This temperature should be anywhere in the high 80s to low 90s. This temperature needs to be taken with an infrared heat gun. These can be purchased online or at a big box hardware store.

[Albert Clark]

Megg covered the bases well! I have to agree that the most important piece of equipment is your THERMOSTAT. And that is really where most of your concern should lie. Beautiful bel btw. You guys are doing great with the way you are going about things. Imo, I would spend the extra money and get a quality thermostat from either Spyder Robotics or vivarium electronics. Your humidity levels are fine.

[frostysBP]

X10 on the thermostat dont skimp here...herpstat intro will do everything you need and is less than 100$ if you plan on getting more snakes I would buy a 2,3,or 4 depending on your needs.

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[pvpgirl]

I can't thank everyone enough! It's relieving to know we're on the right track and have already started taking steps to correct the areas we're lacking in. A hydrofarm thermostat has been ordered and we'll be heading to WalMart later tonight for an indoor/outdoor thermometer.

Thanks for pointing me toward the tank set up thread, thejennabird. I wasn't aware there was a tank guide in the husbandry section and that one has a lot of good information in it!

Lucy ate her mouse today inside her habitat and though it took her a little while to wake up and grab it (she was sleeping in her hide when we brought her the mouse), she had no trouble getting it down. I feel much more comfortable feeding her this way; I was afraid she would regurgitate her hopper last week when we used a feeding tub.

I've reread the tank guide several times, and though the higher priced accessories aren't an option at the moment, I will work on some of the other things mentioned in the tutorial as far as set up, positioning, and layout in a day or two once Lucy has had a chance to get her mouse comfortably digested.

Thank you all so much for the quick responses! I apologize if my concerns seem basic and amateur, but I wanted to make sure we were doing right by this pretty little snake.

[frostysBP]

No worries would not be here or what I do if I didnt enjoy it......and im sure others would say the same.

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[thejennabird]

Whoops, should probably add one more thing. Just to clarify, you're feeding her hopper mice? I bet you she can eat at least an adult mouse, if not a rat pup. The general rule of thumb is to feed your snake something that is about as wide as the widest/girthiest part of your snake. A hopper mouse would be small even for most hatchling BPs. I'd recommend you size her up to some bigger food!

You don't happen to have a kitchen scale, postal scale, or anything you could use to monitor her weight, do you?

Edit: Oops, I see now you are planning on sizing her up to small mice anyways. Good idea! You're on the right track. You might consider checking for rat pups in your area too. Not too soon to see if she'll switch for you, and save you some pain down the road.

[Megg]

Definitely not a problem to answer your questions! It's good that you're asking these things. I think you'll find that even people who have kept snakes for 20+ years are still learning!


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