Questions from a Worried New Ball Python Mom

[KayleeG]

Hello everyone, first post! I just got my first ball python yesterday after being totally blown away by my boyfriend's a few months ago.

I spent a few weeks reading up, studying and preparing before acquiring her and I had a few questions for those who are far more experienced than myself now that I've got her set up to some extent (no matter how much I've read and heard, I'm still worrying 24/7 that something isn't right for her).



Background info!

I've got her set up in a 10 gallon terrarium with a ceramic heat bulb on a timer and a UTH with a thermostat (temperature probe inside the tank right over the glass, thermostat set to 92 degrees Fahrenheit). I've also got a second thermometer with a probe right next to the thermostat's probe so I can be sure of the temperature in case the thermostat were ever to fail without me noticing. The timer on the heat bulb is just to make sure it never gets too hot or runs for too long. During the day it's on for an hour, off for an hour and during the night it's on for about 4 hours at a time and off for about 30 minutes at a time. This is because it gets rather chilly at night (50-60 degrees), even during the summer. I've also got a general thermometer/hygrometer in the tank.

I've got the ambient temperature steadily between 75 degrees and the low 80s, the hot spot hovers between 88 degrees and 94 degrees. The humidity is a bit of a struggle but after throwing a humidifier in my room, and keeping a wet towel over half of the screen top it seems to hover around 50-55% humidity. That seems to be the best I can do without directing the humidifier into the tank which raises it too high (80-90%).

She's on coconut fiber substrate and has a water bowl she can fit into should she like to soak, although I keep it relatively shallow and will refill it with bottled water daily. She also has some fake plants suction-cupped to the sides of the cage which she seems to enjoy climbing all over (they hold her weight very well!), and her hide is over her hot spot (about a quarter of an inch of substrate in the hide over the hot spot so I can control the temperature as accurately as possible >.<). She only has one hide at the moment because while I bought 4 to try out, she was bigger than expected and to big for all but 2 of them. Unfortunately I can only fit one of the bigger ones into her 10 gallon at a time so I'll need to upgrade her to a bigger terrarium next paycheck.

She can stretch out almost fully in this terrarium, probably about 5/6ths of her length.

She seems relatively content and was exploring for hours yesterday after I got her in the wee hours of the morning, she's been curled up sleeping/chilling in her hide since about 8AM today though.



Now the actual questions. Is the hot spot going to be okay? I've heard horror stories of UTHs burning the poor noodles and while I think I have it controlled I want it to be perfect for her.

Will she be okay with one hide for a month or so? I know I need to upgrade her to a bigger terrarium but I was ill prepared no matter how much I tried to be otherwise.

Is a ceramic heat bulb outside of the cage safe with the times I have it on for? I kind of need the supplemental heat to maintain the ambient temperatures unfortunately, but I would be willing to try something else.

Will she be okay in a relatively small terrarium for the moment? Similar to the hide question ^^;

I'll include some pictures if Imgur links work!

Terrarium: https://imgur.com/a/65fSYEy
Thermostat: https://imgur.com/a/MAOM0AE
Setup: https://imgur.com/a/jmAMQEn
Hide: https://imgur.com/a/O0nQQ9j
Noodle: https://imgur.com/a/YvKRTwV
More Noodle: https://imgur.com/a/BuJxikr
Image from Breeder: https://imgur.com/a/tTvtUyy

[L.West]

Hi, congrats on your first snake. One thing I would change is to put some sort of background picture like aquariums use to provide some privacy. Snakes like to feel secluded.

It is always best to have two identical hides. The type of log you have are not the best choice. They are open on each end and dont supply the privacy they need. They are also hard to clean when pooped on.

Hot side temps shouldn't be over 90. Cool side at 78-80.

Other than that, it seems like you've done your homework.

I'm sure others will chime in also. Best of luck to you.

[Jmarshall]

I am extremely new to ball pythons as well but I will pass on the information that I have read and received. The thermostat probe shouldn’t be in the cage with the snake (the snake could move, drag, lay on, pee on etc.) which could cause UTH to sky rocket to unsafe levels. The thermostat probe should be taped between tank and UTH. I have also heard recommendations to black out three sides of a glass aquarou
for privacy, i would think the CHE should be on a thermostat eventually to keep it regulated.. these are the recommendations I feel comfortable giving.

[KayleeG]

Thank you both for the advice

I'll adjust her thermostat's temperature down to 89 or 90, and I plan on getting her some more suitable hides in the near future. Unfortunately my options were kind of limited with the size of the tank and what I had available due to thinking she'd be a bit smaller than she is.

I'll see if I can't get some black paper to throw on the sides/back so that she feels a little more secluded.

In regards to the temperature probes, that log seems to be a little big for her to move on her own suddenly (or at least I think it is considering she was climbing all over/around it the other day) and I have the probes held down to the glass by the edges of the log so that she can't move them whilst wiggling around in her hide or exploring. Also have the sturdy plant covering the wires which seemed to prevent her from messing with them in all her explorations yesterday. This isn't ideal but it was the best that I could come up with at the moment. I had a lot of trouble getting the hot spot to the right temperature without the probe being in there but I'll see if I can set it up better after she's settled in some, definitely didn't want to use tape to hold the probes in place since I've seen what tape can do to the poor snakes.

Thank you again for the responses!

[Craiga 01453]

Hi, congrats on your first snake. One thing I would change is to put some sort of background picture like aquariums use to provide some privacy. Snakes like to feel secluded.

It is always best to have two identical hides. The type of log you have are not the best choice. They are open on each end and dont supply the privacy they need. They are also hard to clean when pooped on.

Hot side temps shouldn't be over 90. Cool side at 78-80.

Other than that, it seems like you've done your homework.

I'm sure others will chime in also. Best of luck to you.

I am extremely new to ball pythons as well but I will pass on the information that I have read and received. The thermostat probe shouldn’t be in the cage with the snake (the snake could move, drag, lay on, pee on etc.) which could cause UTH to sky rocket to unsafe levels. The thermostat probe should be taped between tank and UTH. I have also heard recommendations to black out three sides of a glass aquarou
for privacy, i would think the CHE should be on a thermostat eventually to keep it regulated.. these are the recommendations I feel comfortable giving.

These are both great replies.
- Some important things I'll reiterate are: hot spot should be 90 tops.
- ALL heat sources, including CHEs should be regulated by a thermostat. This will A) prevent dangerous heat spikes and B) regulate the temps rather than heat up, cool down, heat up, cool down.
- the probe 100% needs to be OUTSIDE the enclosure. It's not a matter of "if" but a matter of "when" the probe gets moved. Your BP is 10000% definitely strong enough to move that log hide. Even if it miraculously DOESN'T get moved it'll get peed on.
- get your snake a second proper hide, it's only a few bucks and your snake will be able to thermoregulate properly, allowing for proper digestion while adding a sense of security that BPs need.

Other than that, you're off to a good start.x zx

[KayleeG]

I've adjusted the heat mat's thermostat already, turned it down to 89 degrees since it likes to get a degree or so higher than the set temperature before shutting off.

If you don't mind me asking, how would I go about regulating the CHE with a thermostat? As in, where would I put the probe? I'm not exactly sure how I'd set that up so that the CHE didn't get too hot or cause heat spikes.

[Jmarshall]

I would dangle the CHE probe in the tank so it just hangs.. That way it will control CHE and monitor ambient air temps. Also if you attach UTH thermostat probe in between tank and UTH you may have to bump it up just a bit to reach the desired temps in the tank but you wouldn't have to worry about it coming loose and snake burning. I have my thermostat set to 95 degrees which brings my hotspot INSIDE the tub to around 90 degrees. You can get Jumpstart thermostats on amazon for pretty cheap or if you want to invest now rather than later I would recommend a herpstat. If you go with a herpstat 2 it can control both the UTH and CHE at once. They're amazing products. I purchased a herpstat 4 so I can control all of my heating plus lights and humidity if I need it and I couldn't recommend it more.

[Craiga 01453]

I've adjusted the heat mat's thermostat already, turned it down to 89 degrees since it likes to get a degree or so higher than the set temperature before shutting off.

If you don't mind me asking, how would I go about regulating the CHE with a thermostat? As in, where would I put the probe? I'm not exactly sure how I'd set that up so that the CHE didn't get too hot or cause heat spikes.

You would put the probe inside, just above the ground. High enough it won't get peed on or anything. You can hot glue it to the glass. Hot glue holds really well, but also comes off easily if you ever need it to.

[Bogertophis]

I'm wondering how big your BP is...they love "cozy" cages & if young & 10 gal. should work ok for a while. Since you mentioned your plan to cover 3 sides

with black paper for privacy, let me just suggest something else instead, since you mention your cooler climate & it's only summer: I suggest foam-poster-board

(it comes in either black or white, & sold in with school/office supplies) instead, cut to fit (use a ruler & X-acto knife) & tape on...this will insulate the cage (keep

more heat in). It's awfully hard to achieve the right amount of heat in such a small tank though and still have "room" at the other end for the cooler temps...it

is important that your snake can "thermo-regulate" & have lower temps available. As far as getting another hide in a month or so, no...you want a minimum of

2 hides always (one on the warm side & one on the cool side), but you can use something temporary (like a small clean box that's just big enough for your snake

-and cut a "doorway" into it) until you find suitable & more permanent hides. Snakes like to feel cozy...those half-round hollowed logs are only good as cage

furniture, they don't offer the proper security to be considered a "hide". The reason all this matters now is that you want your snake to feel secure enough to

eat...if they don't feel safe & secure, they might not eat for you. So look at the size of the snake when it's curled up, & try to find a couple clean boxes* to use

that are just slightly bigger than your snake & not too tall, then cut only one doorway in it, big enough for your snake to fit thru with a meal. (*when they get

"dirty" just toss & replace)

[Bogertophis]

BTW, there is a way to get around the small tank & not having enough room for 2 hides: Again, not saying cardboard boxes are very aesthetically-pleasing,
but they can be functional in a pinch. So think about adding a "second floor"- even if you just do it for one side, a flat box (like a cereal box) can be used.
(those half-round tree-bark hides waste a lot of space, too, but they're great in a larger cage for decor) If you use a box over a UTH, you need to cut out
the "bottom" so as not to impede the heat rising into it.