New guy..new snake..couple of questions

[shew]

Hello, my name is Todd and I've read some good posts while visiting the forum for the last couple of days. It looks like this is the place to be for info on ball pythons.
In the past I owned several reptiles (boas, pythons, monitors, rat snakes, etc), but that was more than 15 years ago..so I'm a bit rusty. I picked up a young ball python from a local breeder yesterday, and have a few questions on first feedings, etc. I looked around in the 'sticky' section but didn't see what I was looking for...so forgive me if I'm asking a common question.
Here are the stats on my young male bp:

He is currently approx 18" (didn't measure, just compared to the tank)

Captive bred by a local person who breeds for hobby

He ate an adult mouse last Thursday, and has been a solid eater (according to her)

Currently I have him in a 20H with a Walgreens heating pad under one side, a hw store light on top of the screen cover (which is approx 3/4 covered with duct tape). Newspaper substrate, 2 hides, 1 water dish. As of this morning it was 86 degrees on the warm side (sticker type thermometer 1/2way up the back wall of the aquarium), and 80 degrees on the cool side.

He had a bm overnight

Here are my questions:

When should I attempt to feed for the first time?

Is it okay to start with frozen, or should I go with live for the first feeding and transition to frozen?

I plan on feeding in a separate enclosure. Should I begin doing this with the first feeding, or wait until he has eaten a few times?

He wants to hang out in the cool side. And since the tank isn't terribly warm at this point, is that a sign of stress, or should I cool down the heating pad and see if that encourages him to the warm side?

How long should I wait before we can begin to handle regularly? Can we begin after the first successful feeding, or wait a couple of weeks regardless of his feeding? (My 5 year old can hardly stand it)

Sorry for the long post..glad there is a forum for this kind of thing--back in the day it was much harder to get advice from experts.

here is a pic of the little guy:

[zhang317]

first of all welcome to the forum.

you will find out very soon that everyone here will tell you to get a thermostat of at least a rheostat to monitor/adjust your heat pads. and your gonna get yelled at for the sticker type thermometer, so just get two digital ones, one for each side

then you will find that most people here will tell you not to feed in a different enclosures for various reasons such as; that its might cause regurgitation, unnecessary stress, and as long as feeding time isnt the only time you put your hand in the cage, there really isnt any good reasons.

after that you will find that we are very often overkill when it comes to the husbandry and care for these animals. you didnt mention humidity, which is just as important for ball pythons as temperature. if your animal is in a glass tank, humidity might be a problem. you can either mist it regularly, or cover half of the screen top to keep the moisture in.

other then that, id have to say this is one of the best "new guy" posts ive seen. i mean two hides, thats really good. it shows youve done some solid research. you can start handling him after 10 days or so, just not 24 hours after a meal. let the guy/girl settle down and see where it spends most fo the time before you worry about temperatures, which seem okay (just of the top of my head)

if you have anymore questions please feel free to ask, welcome again, this is the best place for info on ball pythons. and you have done a good job

[pavlovk1025]

Hello, my name is Todd and I've read some good posts while visiting the forum for the last couple of days. It looks like this is the place to be for info on ball pythons.
In the past I owned several reptiles (boas, pythons, monitors, rat snakes, etc), but that was more than 15 years ago..so I'm a bit rusty. I picked up a young ball python from a local breeder yesterday, and have a few questions on first feedings, etc. I looked around in the 'sticky' section but didn't see what I was looking for...so forgive me if I'm asking a common question.
Here are the stats on my young male bp:

He is currently approx 18" (didn't measure, just compared to the tank)

Captive bred by a local person who breeds for hobby

He ate an adult mouse last Thursday, and has been a solid eater (according to her)

Currently I have him in a 20H with a Walgreens heating pad under one side, a hw store light on top of the screen cover (which is approx 3/4 covered with duct tape). Newspaper substrate, 2 hides, 1 water dish. As of this morning it was 86 degrees on the warm side (sticker type thermometer 1/2way up the back wall of the aquarium), and 80 degrees on the cool side.

First, the sticker thermometers are not accurate as they only measure the temperature of the glass and not the actual heating area. You might want to invest in a $12 AcuRite thermometer with 10' Probe so you can measure your hot and cool side as well as the humidity at the same time. Put the probe under the substrate ontop of the glass where the UTH is. Also, you might want to look into a dimmer for your UTH as they can pose a danger unregulated.



He had a bm overnight

Here are my questions:

When should I attempt to feed for the first time?

A mouse should do it. Just a regular size one, not too big for the first time.

Is it okay to start with frozen, or should I go with live for the first feeding and transition to frozen?

It is ok to start with frozen but I would recommend live. Im no expert but that's what I like to do, a couple live until the habit is there and then switch to F/T. You can get them started learning F/T by offering Pre-Killed

I plan on feeding in a separate enclosure. Should I begin doing this with the first feeding, or wait until he has eaten a few times?

You might not want to do it at all. Moving a BP to a separate feeding enclosure can stress them out and they might not eat.

He wants to hang out in the cool side. And since the tank isn't terribly warm at this point, is that a sign of stress, or should I cool down the heating pad and see if that encourages him to the warm side?
That's that whole thermometer again...you cant know the temperature of the hot spot if the thermometers not there. I bet youll be surprised when you check it the first time with a real thermometer, I know I was (114 F).

How long should I wait before we can begin to handle regularly? Can we begin after the first successful feeding, or wait a couple of weeks regardless of his feeding? (My 5 year old can hardly stand it)
2 Days after first successful feeding for like 15-20 mins at a time.
Sorry for the long post..glad there is a forum for this kind of thing--back in the day it was much harder to get advice from experts.

here is a pic of the little guy:

Congrats on your new addition and welcome!

Edit: Forgot to mention, if you just got him give him about a week to settle in before trying to feed.

[Kaorte]

The thing that jumps out at me the most is this "walgreens heating pad". If this is a human heating pad well, there is a reason they are called human heating pads and not snake heating pads.

Time to invest in a under tank heater with a thermostat! As others have said, nice digital probe thermometers are a must also.

Wait a week to feed your new snake and then wait at least 24 hours after the feed before handling. I would recommend feeding inside the tub, there is no such thing as cage aggression and if anything, moving him from one place to another on feeding day will just increase your chance of getting bit.

Welcome and good luck!!

[shew]

Thanks for the advice. I picked up an Acu-rite indoor/outdoor temp gauge and placed it atop the glass over the heating pad and under the newspaper substrate..and it reads 102 at the hot spot, 80 on the cool side, with 49% humidity. I will go buy a lamp dimmer to control the heating pad a little better, but my question now is--should it be 95 at the hottest part of the heating pad (right on the glass)?

[k2l3d4]

Ok.... from what I do with my tank..... anywhere that the snake can get to for the hot spot should be 88-92 degrees... I personally worry about 95 and the snake getting burned . that is pretty hot. As far as feeding,.. go with what every one has been saying wiat a week for the little one to settle in and then feed. And after at least 24 hours after feeding you and your little one should be fine for getting to know each other.....

[Vypyrz]

I usually keep mine around 90-91. Alot of people who use glass enclosures will cover three sides of it since BP's aren't too fond of alot of open space. You can use anything from paper to fabric. I use aquarium background. just cut it and tape it to the outside. Also what I did to help with the humidity on mine is cut cardboard panels that are the legnth of the screen and 6 inches wide and wrap them in aluminum foil. That way I can add or remove panels to help adjust the humidity and ambient temp. If you want to see the pics of how I did it send me a PM. Welcome to the forum...



Rob

[frankykeno]

You want to aim for about 90-92 warm, 80-82 cool on top of the substrate where the snake actually lays. Halfway up the tank or wherever isn't tell you what you need to know.

Feed the snake what it's used to eating in the feeding manner it's used to dealing with for a few feedings at least. Then (and only if the snake is eating well for you) should you consider changing anything. Transitioning from the breeder to you is stressful enough, don't push so many changes on this snake that you trigger a stress induced fast.

As far as handling, personally I like every new snake to eat at least 2 times for me before I do much handling. I'll do an initial exam when the snake arrives, handle it during cage cleaning but other than that I don't do recreational handling until the snake is obviously well settled into the routines of our home. You have years to handle this snake but only a small window of opportunity to smoothly settle it in without creating issues you and the snake don't really need.

Welcome to BPNet!

[shew]

I picked up a lamp dimmer this evening so I'll try and get the hot side down to 92-ish....thanks

Rob - Thanks for tip on closing in the sides and the foil/cardboard technique. I'll do that tomorrow and see if I can keep the humidity/temp more consistent.

Franky-I'll take your advice on waiting a couple of feedings.

Thanks again for the tips. I'm hoping all these mods will make the 1st feeding attempt go well.

[WingedWolfPsion]

I'm not the person who will say don't use a human heating pad--I use them for spares for individual tubs myself. However, if you DO use a human heating pad, there are things to consider.

First, make sure it does not have an automatic shutoff! Most heating pads these days DO. They will shut off after a few hours (or less). I had to search high and low to find heating pads without this 'safety feature'.

Second, do not set anything heavy directly on the pad or its cord--particularly not a glass tank. If you're using a glass tank, use short wood blocks or something similar to elevate the tank slightly ABOVE the pad. Otherwise, you will damage the pad which can lead to bad things, like fire.

Third, pay attention to the instructions on the pad which tell you to inspect it often for signs of degradation. When the pad discolors and starts to deteriorate, replace it promptly. I also use the cloth covers that come with the pads.

Control the heating pad with a thermostat or rheostat. The surface where the snake rests should be a nice 90 to 92F, no warmer, no cooler. The ambient temperature in the rest of the tank should be a nice 80F--if it isn't, you need a different heat source to regulate on the other side as well.