How can I tell if my 'normal' is really 'nornal'? Is it possible?

[MontyP2016]

I got this young fellow less than a month ago from Petsmart. I had gotten a Spotted the day before but wanted a ball so we went to the petstore and got him. Always the snake lover, most of what I know of them are from my own experience from wild caughts of my own growing up on a farm so I've been doing extensive research on Balls and other non-natives. Anyway, during his shed the other day I was just admiring his patterns and colors while he was soaking and thought, how do I know if he is really a 'normal' or not since some morphs actually look normal. I dont know where the petstore got him from, whether he is w/c or bred locally, whether het or anything else. Is there a way to tell? Thanks in advance!

[Hannahshissyfix]

It's pretty unlikely he's het for anything and you wouldn't know for sure if he was unless you went through and bred him to a visual of each recessive gene.
From your posts, you seem to be bathing that snake way too much so I'd fix humidity issues in the enclosure and leave baths to a quick rinse if there's poo on him.

[redshepherd]

(Hannah is right, and just to add in) You don't have soak/give him a bath unless he already has stuck shed or is already having trouble shedding. If you keep your humidity fine at around 60% normally and up to 70% or so during shed, they shouldn't ever need to be soaked.

[cheosamad]

It looks like a normal, and like it was said, if it was het for anything you'll never know unless you breed it to visual recessives.

[MontyP2016]

Ok thanks. I figured he was a normal but I could hope right? Lol
This pic was actually from the other day when he had a very difficult shed (and some other issues). He hasnt been in the water since. On the subject though, a snake going into shed (blue eyes, pink belly) soak or no soak? During shed I keep humidity at about 70 but I still give a 10 min dip every day during shed as some local snake owners advised. Good or bad? None of my snakes are aggressive, even with blue eyes and I dont handle them during shed besides the bath. Whats the pros and cons on soaking?

[MontyP2016]

None of my snakes are aggressive

None except my eastern milksnake but I dont bath him or eveb handle him much right now

[MiniMed]

If your humidity is 70% during shed and above 50% the rest of the time he shouldn't need to be soaked. The only time you need to bathe him is if he gets poo all over himself and even then it's just a quick rinse. If he has stuck shed, dampen a washcloth and let him slide through it.


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[MontyP2016]

I've heard that a few times but I'm not getting any pros or cons of soaking. A lady I know has had pythons for 20+ years and bathes them often and lets them swim in a kiddie pool just for them. I'm an intellect, I love learning and I would like to learn as much as I possibly can but 6 career snake owners are telling me one thing and half a dozen something else. I guess I am just trying to figure out if it's fact or opinion not to soak them so that I'm not hurting my own family (I have over 100 pets, only 5 snakes).
Please dont think Im trying to argue or disagree, I just want to know the best so that I can give them the best care possible
Thank you again

[AlwaysSunnyJenn]

Ball pythons in the wild don't swim. They weren't built for swimming and should not be forced to swim i.e putting them in the tub or small pool. Ball Pythons don't "like" things. They are either comfortable or stressed and you can't always tell if they are stressed. There are some signs but not every snake displays those signs. Every snake is different, some tolerate things better than others but it's really not fair to the snake to make him tolerate things that aren't natural for them. There are some snakes who like to take the occasional soak which is why it is good to give them a water bowl they can fit in so they decide when they want soak up a little H2O.

[PitOnTheProwl]

A ball python will soak itself if needed.
When you force one to soak not only are you adding more stress to its life but you are also washing away oils that help it shed so in the reality of things you are helping to create a bigger problem when shedding....