She wont Eat Agrrr

Ok so i have had my ball python for aaround 3- 4 weeks now. And she will not eat at all.
I contacted the breeder and they suggested i go to live , though they fed frozen thawed...
i cant feed live, a . i dont have access to live hoppers only live adults.
b. im afraid of feeding live mostly cause of aggression..

Oh i guess i should mention she is a bumblebee and she is losing weight noticably every week. She is an 09 hatchling. She lives in a 20 gallon tank with a screened lid, undertank heater and infrared heat light as well. Temps are 85 during the day and around 75-80 at night. basking temp higher then 85 .
humidity is moderate meaning 50-60%

So , my question is what do I do ?>??
adn how long is she going to be able to go without me being really worried?

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Originally Posted by BlueCinder

Oh i guess i should mention she is a bumblebee and she is losing weight noticably every week. She is an 09 hatchling. She lives in a 20 gallon tank with a screened lid, undertank heater and infrared heat light as well. Temps are 85 during the day and around 75-80 at night. basking temp higher then 85 .
humidity is moderate meaning 50-60%

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A 20 gallon enclosure would be too large for a hatchling. You can try to clutter the enclosure with crumbled newspaper or try cluttering it with fake decor plants so there are NO open spaces. How many hides do you have?

85F is too low, Ball pythons need their warm side to be between 88F-94F during the day, and it wouldn't hurt for it to be at night. What are you using to control the undertank heater & infrared bulb?

Ball pythons do not bask, as they are nocturnal and would much rather hide during the day.

Coolio is right on the money. How are you measuring your temps btw?

Well i have a thermometer in the middle of the tank which shows me he ambient temp. of 85. i have a hide on the warmer side of the tank. which is also where the uth is and bulb. i also have a thermometer there showing 90-92.
i have a big water dish on the cool side. I would like to also mention that in order for me to keep the heat in more i put a really heavy sweater covering half the screen cover and side of the tank, and thats where she seems to stay most of the time, well all o f the time actually. and on that side its below 75 .

i am using aspen bedding as a substrate too.. she is an older 09 hatchling. not recent. i was told she was well established and etc.. .


so more foilage in the tank, got it ! :gj:
i am usinga 50 watt infrared heat light... should i go bigger??

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Originally Posted by CoolioTiffany

A 20 gallon enclosure would be too large for a hatchling. You can try to clutter the enclosure with crumbled newspaper or try cluttering it with fake decor plants so there are NO open spaces. How many hides do you have?

85F is too low, Ball pythons need their warm side to be between 88F-94F during the day, and it wouldn't hurt for it to be at night. What are you using to control the undertank heater & infrared bulb?

Ball pythons do not bask, as they are nocturnal and would much rather hide during the day.

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yah i meant hot spot, meaning place where they get warm LOL. sorry. im use to saying basking.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BlueCinder

Well i have a thermometer in the middle of the tank which shows me he ambient temp. of 85. i have a hide on the warmer side of the tank. which is also where the uth is and bulb. i also have a thermometer there showing 90-92.
i have a big water dish on the cool side. I would like to also mention that in order for me to keep the heat in more i put a really heavy sweater covering half the screen cover and side of the tank, and thats where she seems to stay most of the time, well all o f the time actually. and on that side its below 75 .

i am using aspen bedding as a substrate too.. she is an older 09 hatchling. not recent. i was told she was well established and etc.. .


so more foilage in the tank, got it ! :gj:
i am usinga 50 watt infrared heat light... should i go bigger??

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Typically, if you've decided to go with both the UTH and the lamp, you should have the UTH on the cool side at a controlled lower temperature. NO LOWER THAN 75 F. Any cooler, and that is bad bad bad. But too warm is bad, as well. If you can't keep the temps on the warm side between 90-92 with just the lamp, try upsizing the bulb. Also, regarding the hides and water dish, BPs are secretive, and they should have same-size hides on BOTH sides. This way, they will not ignore their needs over security. Hope this helps, and hope any of the experts out there catch any false info I may have accidentally given you!:gj:

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Originally Posted by Moofins07

Typically, if you've decided to go with both the UTH and the lamp, you should have the UTH on the cool side at a controlled lower temperature. NO LOWER THAN 75 F. Any cooler, and that is bad bad bad. But too warm is bad, as well. If you can't keep the temps on the warm side between 90-92 with just the lamp, try upsizing the bulb. Also, regarding the hides and water dish, BPs are secretive, and they should have same-size hides on BOTH sides. This way, they will not ignore their needs over security. Hope this helps, and hope any of the experts out there catch any false info I may have accidentally given you!:gj:

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ive always read that all heat stays on one sid eof the tank?

With a 20 gallon tank there is likely no need for heat on the cool side of the tank unless the room gets into very frigid temps. If the warm side is where it should be the cool end should naturally be about right as well. Again, this is assuming the room the enclosure in is in somewhat "normal" living temperatures.

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Originally Posted by xscorpio

With a 20 gallon tank there is likely no need for heat on the cool side of the tank unless the room gets into very frigid temps. If the warm side is where it should be the cool end should naturally be about right as well. Again, this is assuming the room the enclosure in is in somewhat "normal" living temperatures.

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yah the enclosure is in my main room, non high traffic area, and its always at 24-26 degrees celcius in the room

Are you warming up the prey before offering? Like say with a blow drier?