My first snake.

Hey i'm new to this site, i plan on getting a BP pretty soon from a local reptile store. I have a 10 gallon tank so far that is up on a stand. for substrate i have aspen bedding from zoo med. for a heat source i purchased a 10-20 gallon zoomed heater. Also, i got an exo terra hide for him. Now for my question, am i doing everything right for my soon to be baby BP? should i also get a light fixture? Any tips on choosing which one i should get? Any tips on how to see if the snake is healthy? Also, i have done alot of reading on feeding and most places say to start the BP off on pinkies... but those seem to small. Please help and if You guys have any tips for a beginning snake keeper please share them :) P.S i don't plan on having him/her in the 10 gallon forever, i just heard 10 gallon tank is good to start baby's off in. OK Thanks!

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Originally Posted by Obscurus28

Hey i'm new to this site, i plan on getting a BP pretty soon from a local reptile store. I have a 10 gallon tank so far that is up on a stand. for substrate i have aspen bedding from zoo med. for a heat source i purchased a 10-20 gallon zoomed heater. Also, i got an exo terra hide for him. Now for my question, am i doing everything right for my soon to be baby BP? should i also get a light fixture? Any tips on choosing which one i should get? Any tips on how to see if the snake is healthy? Also, i have done alot of reading on feeding and most places say to start the BP off on pinkies... but those seem to small. Please help and if You guys have any tips for a beginning snake keeper please share them :) P.S i don't plan on having him/her in the 10 gallon forever, i just heard 10 gallon tank is good to start baby's off in. OK Thanks!

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Hey there, welcome to the forums. I suggest taking a read through the ball python care sheets posted here. They will give you information on many important things. From the list you gave, id suggest getting a type of heat control: a thermostat or a dimmer at the very least. you will also want at least two digital thermometers or a heat gun. This will tell you the surface temp on both the cool and warm sides (90 and 80 degrees respectively). It is also good to have the same identical hide for each side in a tank. Let us know if you have any more questions

Mark

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Originally Posted by Johan

Hey there, welcome to the forums. I suggest taking a read through the ball python care sheets posted here. They will give you information on many important things. From the list you gave, id suggest getting a type of heat control: a thermostat or a dimmer at the very least. you will also want at least two digital thermometers or a heat gun. This will tell you the surface temp on both the cool and warm sides (90 and 80 degrees respectively). It is also good to have the same identical hide for each side in a tank. Let us know if you have any more questions

Mark

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Ok, I've done some reading on the care sheets :) i actually spent about 10 min covering the back and 2 sides of my tank to make him/her feel more comfortable. About the thermometers, how much would those cost? and any brands or stores you know about where i can find a good deal on getting one? And thank you. :)

If you have a wa;mart you can get the acurite for 12$. if you have a lowes you can get the same Acurite for $8.

Here is what they look like. Its the grey one on right side.

http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/s...r/100_3246.jpg

Ok, cool i have a Lowe's nearby. :) ill go check it out thanks to both of you, you guys are fast at responding i didn't expect that. :D

Also get a lamp dimmer from lowes. This is so you can regulate the temperature of the heat pad. They can get well over 130F and thats just too hot!

In the future it would be good to invest in a thermostat as dimmers you have to check the temps and fiddle with the dimmer if your room temps change. You can get a decent and cheap thermostat off amazon. It is a hydrofarm.