BP Husbandry

[adam_degel]

Hi there,

I'm new in the ball python world, I've owned a normal male(2ft) for about 1 year now and I recently purchased an about 2 year old female pastel(3.5ft) hoping that in a few years I could breed them. I just read the article on 'Housing and Caring for a Ball Python in a glass Vivarium' .. I had a few questions of concern because I obviously want the best for my snakes but find it a little over-whelming to keep up with some of the procedures.. and find that I'm doing a lot of things that i don't think my snakes are actually benefiting from.. First things first and I want people's thoughts on this cause my snakes overall well being does matter to me.. due to the fact that money is an issue I try to cut some corners in housing both of the snakes.. so I thought of the idea of putting a 15 gallon tank inside of a 40 gallon tank.. obviously the bigger female inhabits the larger side.. now, I find it silly to focus most of my attention on hot/cold sides because really, i bought the snakes initially because of their beauty so I want to be able to see them! having all kinds of different hiding spots seems crazy cause they would literally be in hiding all their lives! lol.. so I decided to focus my attention on the 'hot spots'. So basically i have 1 hiding each, on the bottom of the hiding is a heat pad and on the top is a 50w UVB bulb.. this gives that area sufficient heat for the snake.. if he/she wants to get cool they just got to leave that area, no worries right? Humidity levels work the same for me, its obvious when the mulch is dry so i spray it down a couple of times a week, I went to home depot and bought a piece of Styrofoam and placed in on top of the screen to keep the humidity in.. my snake has always shed in one whole piece.. I always make sure that water is changed but I was reading that some people are changing the substrate like once a week?! is this true? I'm always spot cleaning and re-mixing the mulch around.. it never smells and I don't ever get any bugs (knock on wood*) so I think that department is good.. Anyways, like I said before I'm open to new idea's to keep my snakes in the best of health but to have all kinds of lamps(which my snakes never go under) timers, t-stats, sensors, gauges.. i'm surprised the cops dont think some of you guys have grow-ops in your basements, lol, .. give me a piece of your mind! i'm open to new suggestions.. but i don't want anyone who keeps their snake in a plastic shoe-box with newspaper to answer! no offense!

[DustinB]

You could just put a divider in the middle of the 40G tank with a UTH under the center for heat. That way both sides have a warm and a cool side. You need 2 hides so the snake can regulate its temperature and still feel safe. No need to put one tank inside the other.

If you bought a ball python to display it, sorry to say, you should have gotten a boa. BPs pretty much hide all the time except for a little bit at night.

On the substrate. I used aspen and I only replace it once a month while disinfecting the cage, but I do spot clean removing everything around the spot, then add a little bit to that spot.

[Kaorte]

WELCOME!!!!

Since money is tight for you, I would suggest tub setups. They are cheap and easy to clean. Setting up both snakes in tubs could cost as low as 50$ and adding another snake is as cheap as $10.

If you haven't already, invest in a T-stat and ditch the lamps. T-stats will make your life (and the snakes) a whole lot easier and getting rid of the head lamps will reduce the misting you have to do.

If you have any questions at all, don't hesitate to ask. Everyone here loves to help and share their passion for snakes