anybody ball python ever did this????

welp i went back in the sun room tonigh to check on my bp,s i have a habit of getting up in the middle of the night to go look at them but i went to go check on my bp in the big tank and i didnt see her and i was like what tha........so i looked around in the tank and i saw a little under a half of the end of my snake sticking out of the substrate.by the way i have eco eart and its pretty deep.but any way i picked her up and she had started to dig into her substrate.she have dirt stuck all in her heat pits and in her mouth but i got it out.i just let her swim around a little in the tub.have anybody els seen this or is it normal:confused:

ive heard that some bp do that to get to the heat spot if you have the substrate too deep it may not be warm enough for him

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Originally Posted by Abaddon91

ive heard that some bp do that to get to the heat spot if you have the substrate too deep it may not be warm enough for him

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its not that thick on the hot spot its jusst kind of deep on the cool side.i have live plants and they are still in the plastic pot so i have the dirt thick to cover them up.but the hot spot in the inside stays about 87 to 89 all the time and on the outside of the hot sope its close to to the 90s.the cool side is around 80 to 85

mine starts to but then he stops but my substrate is not that deep so i dont know. it is kinda funny to watch though !

will they be ok doing that?reason why asking is they get dirt all in their mouth and in their heat pits

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Originally Posted by shaqthaballkeeper

will they be ok doing that?reason why asking is they get dirt all in their mouth and in their heat pits

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One would think since the live in dirty burrows in the wild, and probably get dirty quite a lot that they would be ok getting a little substrate in their face :confused:

I have one that likes to burrow out from under the cool hide (there is not enough substrate on the hot side to burrow) why he doesn't use the door is a mystery. I'd not worry about it too much your temps are fine (what is the ambient air temp?) and every now and again you find a digger or climber.

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Originally Posted by shaqthaballkeeper

will they be ok doing that?reason why asking is they get dirt all in their mouth and in their heat pits

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They can burrow for many reasons - one is to thermoregulate, another reason is to feel more secure.

As for the dirt in their mouth and heat pits - why would you be concerned about that? Are you concerned that they have not sufficiently evolved to deal with something so basic?

Let's put it this way - sticking it in the water and bathing it carries much more risk for that animal than a face full of dirt.

Do the poor thing a favor and stop flipping on lights in the middle of the night, poking around in it's tank and sticking it in the bathtub for midnight soaks. All of those things are stressful to you snake, and stress can lead to issues much more real and substantial than a heat pit full of dirt.

I've fallen into a termite mound once(not good!), believe me, what's in there can only be worse than a bit of coco fiber. Isn't eco earth supposed to be kinda digestible anyway(I don't know, I just heard this), so I doubt it's going to do any damage, one of the things they say about it is that it's good for things that like to burrow!!

Snakes like to burrow. On the boa forum, people always feel the same way you do when their boa burrows in the substrate. Sometimes it just makes everything better. Also, they can stretch out still when burrowing. I bet snakes burrow in the wild to ambush their prey. What better way to catch your food then being right in the path it travels.

I wouldn't worry about the dirt, but if it bothers you, switch substrates. Use aspen, use newspaper, use something else that doesn't get in the heat pits and face.

Star