Husbandry checkup please

Acquired a ball python yesterday, I've read a fair bit, but I'd really appreciate some opinions on her current setup.

This info from the vet who rescued her and gave her to me:
Born: October 2011
Acquired by vet: April 30th, 2012
5.1.12 shed
5.3.12 ate live fuzzy
5.4.12 ate live fuzzy
5.11.12 ate live fuzzy
5.18.12 ate live fuzzy
5.27.12 shed
5.31.12 ate killed fuzzy
6.7.12 ate thawed fuzzy

Weight on 6.12.12 88g.

She is currently in a 20x10x12 Zilla glass vivarium, which the vet gave me, it has clips to hold the mesh lid secure.

Bottom of viv is lined with paper towels, with this over the top, which fits the bottom snugly, just because I had it already, happy to switch it out.

She has this on it's side as a hide, again just because I already had it and it was an improvement on the cottage-cheese tub she had at the animal hospital which she wasn't keen on.

She has a small saucer-sized plastic tub, about 1 1/2 inches high, filled with 3/4 inch of water as a dish and bath.

At the moment we are using the lights that we were given with the vivarium kit that came with her, which are a day white light spot during the day, sat on the mesh over her hide, and a night black heat bulb next to it, which we cycle alternately for 12 hours. Although we only got her yesterday afternoon, so she just had the daylight bulb for a few hours, then the night bulb overnight, and the daylight bulb again today.

Last night temperatures on the Zilla disc thermometer on the viv floor were staying around 72-74F on the ground, and with the digital probe on the basking area at the top of her hide was 87-89F, the daylight bulb seems to keep similar temperatures, around a degree or two warmer on average.

The humidity on the Zilla disc is measuring a fairly steady 55%, the probe at the top of the hide/basking area is usually around 40%.

The vet said not to try feeding her for a week to give her time to settle in, and the caresheet he gave me says not to try handling for 2 days for the same reason. I'd like to order some food for her today, but I also don't want to disturb her to figure out how big her food should be compared to her body! So what do you think for an 8 month old female? I'm assuming smallish fuzzy rats...

Here are a few pictures from yesterday as soon as we got her home, they are pretty rubbish because I didn't want to freak her out too much! I still haven't handled her at all. She curled up in a ball on one side of the viv until about 8pm, then she started exploring carefully. This morning she was tucked up carefully in the hide and barely visible.
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y13...34770386_o.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y13...51910884_o.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y13...29552530_o.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y13...20961424_o.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y13...87819099_o.jpg

Seems alright but get rid of the disc thermometers. Get an accurite or a tempgun, it will make your life easier and read the temps accurately.

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Originally Posted by apple2

Seems alright but get rid of the disc thermometers. Get an accurite or a tempgun, it will make your life easier and read the temps accurately.

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They are pretty useless aren't they! It came with the setup we were given, so I chucked it in there, but I rely on the digital with the probe, rather than the disc. Where would you recommend having probes? At the moment I have one on top of the hide to check how hot it is there, I have another that I'm going to put at the cooler end, do I need to check the temperature in the hide itself?

You want to get your cool side up to about 80ish degrees.
She looks small for her age, I wounder if she was a slow start or problem feeder?
Dont over do her too quick, give her time to settle in.

Maybe it's just me, but 88g seems low after an entire year. Mine actually looks smaller than yours and he is pushing 250g. What did you weigh him with?

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Originally Posted by PitOnTheProwl

You want to get your cool side up to about 80ish degrees.
She looks small for her age, I wounder if she was a slow start or problem feeder?
Dont over do her too quick, give her time to settle in.

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I put a bit more detail in the Intro forum, she is a rescue, so her age is a guess, but I don't know how much information that was based on. The disc is deceptive for size, it's one of the larger ones, so is 3 inches in diameter. I keep reminding myself that these are supposed to be beginner snakes and I need to chill out a bit, but I feel so responsible for all my animals! More than my children, least they can tell me what's going on! And are more tolerant of big variations in temperature and humidity, usually...

So when you say don't over do her too quick, do you mean not to feed her for a week, as the vet recommended? Haven't handled her yet, giving her time to settle in. Wasn't planning to try until Friday at the earliest, unless that is too soon?

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Originally Posted by mackynz

Maybe it's just me, but 88g seems low after an entire year. Mine actually looks smaller than yours and he is pushing 250g. What did you weigh him with?

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She's 8 months old, and is a rescue. My vet weighed her before he gave her to me yesterday. She was brought in by a concerned teacher, who took her from one of his special-needs students. She was malnourished and dehydrated, but the vet cared for her for a month before giving her to me. I rescued a chameleon a couple of months ago (yes, I'm too soft, but never taking on another rescue who isn't healthy) and she ended up needing to be put to sleep, and he felt sorry for how soft-hearted I was and how heartbroken I was that I didn't manage to save her, so he gave me the ball python because he wasn't able to look after her along with his personal herps, and knew she would have a good home here.

I'm an epic n008, readily admit it...

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Originally Posted by Trillian

So when you say don't over do her too quick, do you mean not to feed her for a week, as the vet recommended? Haven't handled her yet, giving her time to settle in. Wasn't planning to try until Friday at the earliest, unless that is too soon?

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yes and then work your way slowly

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Trillian

So when you say don't over do her too quick, do you mean not to feed her for a week, as the vet recommended? Haven't handled her yet, giving her time to settle in. Wasn't planning to try until Friday at the earliest, unless that is too soon?

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I'm a newbie too :)

That sounds like a good idea, I waited a week to feed and handle so mine could settle in and not feel so stressed. I'm sure someone with more expirience than me will be along shortly to either confirm this or offer better advice.

EDIT: Spoke too soon, PitOnTheProwl is already here haha

Just checked the temperatures, warmer end with the hide is 32.5C (90.5F), cooler end where the water dish is is 25.4C (77.72F). The heat is solely from the lightbulbs at the moment. So to get it up a few more degrees, what are the opinions on ceramic fixtures over under-viv heating? Would it be better to use one or other over lightbulbs, or use whatever combination provides the right heat gradient?

Is the humidity okay?

Sorry to ask such well-covered questions, just need reassurance and constructive criticism!