Hello, New Python Owner Here

[Anne Frankenstein]

So I bought myself a Ball Python a week ago. Her name is Sombra, she's between 4-5 feet long, and around 1 year old. Her terrarium is all set up with proper heating and humidity. She took to the dead rat I gave her last week, and she's drinking. Sombra spends most of her time in her hide occasionally sticking her head out. (Excluding the few times I take her out to hold her.) I just have a few questions. I've never seen her go on the basking side of the cage. I presume she does it at night when I'm sleeping? And how often should I feed a snake her size? I was thinking every 1.5 weeks. Is that too much? I don't want her to get fat.

Here's a portrait of Sombra:

[tttaylorrr]

welcome to the forum!!!


this chart should help with your feeding question:


as for the warm side, we'll need to ask a few questions to help you better: how are you heating the enclosure? is your heating element(s) regulated with an electronic control? what is the temperature of the hot spot? what are your ambient (air) temps? what are you using to measure temps?

EDIT: Sombra is very pretty.

[Hannahshissyfix]

Yep what Taylor said. She also may be avoiding the warmer side if she feels too exposed there. Do you have a hiding cave on that side as well? If not Id add one. Its great that she's already eaten for you but knowing her weight is a lot more helpful than age/length for feeding suggestions so Id pick up a cheap kitchen scale to add to your husbandry items for her. Glad youre enjoying your new pet!

Sent from my SM-G920T using Tapatalk

[Anne Frankenstein]

The temperature on the hot side is 32C and on the cool side it's 26C. Humidity is at 56%. I don't have an electronic controller. Do you have any recommendations for one?

I do have a log hide on the left side, but Sombra seems to prefer the cave hide on the cool end. Might have to buy a another one of the cave hides then. Here's the setup for Sombra's home:

[tttaylorrr]

The temperature on the hot side is 32C and on the cool side it's 26C. Humidity is at 56%. I don't have an electronic controller. Do you have any recommendations for one?

I do have a log hide on the left side, but Sombra seems to prefer the cave hide on the cool end. Might have to buy a another one of the cave hides then. Here's the setup for Sombra's home:

thanks for providing a picture! that helps a lot.

ball pythons prefer cave-like hides, so it's no wonder your snake has a favorite. these animals are known to pick a favorite hide, so it's best to have 2 identical hides so they don't feel like they have to choose.

if you're using those suction-cup gauges to measure temps, i would not rely on them. for a species that requires such specific husbandry, those analog thermometers are useless as they can be up to 10° off. a lot of us use digital thermometers and hygrometers like this one.

ALL sources of heat MUST be regulated by an electronic control. there is no exception to this rule. do you only use lamps to heat your enclosure? if so, you could probably get away with using a rheostat like this, but rheostats only work in rooms that have a stable temperature throughout the day (changing no more than ~3°). a thermostat is the superior choice over a rheostat, as a thermostat takes its temp readings through a probe and adjusts the electrical output based on its readings; a rheostat can only be manually turned up or down. here's an affordable (read: cheap) thermostat that you can rely on temporarily until you can afford a more long-term and more reliable unit.

i hope this helped some!!!

[Anne Frankenstein]

Thanks for all the info. Along with the lamp I also use a Zoo Med Heating Pad placed on the left wall of the enclosure for heating. If I have two lamps, one for the day and one for the night would it be better for me to buy the Herpstat EZ2 over the EZ1? Money's not a problem for me.

[tttaylorrr]

Thanks for all the info. Along with the lamp I also use a Zoo Med Heating Pad placed on the left wall of the enclosure for heating. If I have two lamps, one for the day and one for the night would it be better for me to buy the Herpstat EZ2 over the EZ1? Money's not a problem for me.

so that could be another reason your snake doesn't like the warm side: an unregulated heating pad can easily reach 120° F+ when left running and those temps can kill your snake. please unplug it when you get the chance. also, that heating pad should have gone underneath the enclosure to provide belly heat for digestion; a UTH (under tank heater) does nothing for ambient (air) temps.

all heat sources need to be regulated. so you have a UTH and 2 bulbs: that means you need 3 electronic controls to regulate them. i recommend you read up on the differences between a rheostat and a thermostat and judge what will work best for you and your equipment.

i suggest you read through this stickied thread: how to set up a glass enclosure. the photos are down but this link here has all the photos from the OP so you can follow along.

if you can swing the Herpstat EZ2 then go for it. i absolutely LOVE Herpstats and they will likely last for the snake's lifetime. if you go this route just remember you have 3 heating elements so you would need 3 electronic controls.

[Craiga 01453]

First off, welcome to the forum and the wonderful world of snake keeping!!


I have read through this and pretty much say everything tttaylorrr has said. You're in good hands!!

[C.Marie]

Hello , welcome oh your new babe is adorable, looking like a very curious little noodle, great picture love wishing and your new friend nothing but the best

[dr del]

So I bought myself a Ball Python a week ago. Her name is Sombra, she's between 4-5 feet long, and around 1 year old. Her terrarium is all set up with proper heating and humidity. She took to the dead rat I gave her last week, and she's drinking. Sombra spends most of her time in her hide occasionally sticking her head out. (Excluding the few times I take her out to hold her.) I just have a few questions. I've never seen her go on the basking side of the cage. I presume she does it at night when I'm sleeping? And how often should I feed a snake her size? I was thinking every 1.5 weeks. Is that too much? I don't want her to get fat.

Here's a portrait of Sombra:

Sorry but it is likely someone has been fibbing to you - at 4-5 foot long she is probably at least 3 years old if not older.