Ball python help

Hi, ive had my ball python for just over a month, im new to owning snakes, * i had yellow bellied turtles before *
Id like to know a few things about my snake so i can understand more about it,

1. I keep seeing different temperature requirements on the hot side on different forums, i did have one bulb that was an exo terra 75w red heat bulb and with the digital probe placed at the back far corner of the vivarium it was going up to stupidly hot numbers like 103/105 degrees! straight away i got a white bulb that was 50w by mistake *i asked for a red one* is the white bulb alright for the 12 hours in the day?

2. Also, at night i turn the light off being as its white and the temperature goes to about 75.2 degrees, is this alright for night temperatures?

I dont own a UTH or a thermostat as im currently tight for money with car insurance coming up in the next 2 weeks

3. Ive weighed the ball python at 113 grams, its around 20 inches long and has a kind of triangular shape to it, im currently planning to feed it every 5 days from now until it sort of fills out in a way, as i dont feel that it is healthy enough, is this okay to do? because ive read about powerfeeding or whatever can reduce the lifespan of the snake?

Thanks for your time if you answer it :)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by MarkLeishman

Hi, ive had my ball python for just over a month, im new to owning snakes, * i had yellow bellied turtles before *
Id like to know a few things about my snake so i can understand more about it,

1. I keep seeing different temperature requirements on the hot side on different forums, i did have one bulb that was an exo terra 75w red heat bulb and with the digital probe placed at the back far corner of the vivarium it was going up to stupidly hot numbers like 103/105 degrees! straight away i got a white bulb that was 50w by mistake *i asked for a red one* is the white bulb alright for the 12 hours in the day?

2. Also, at night i turn the light off being as its white and the temperature goes to about 75.2 degrees, is this alright for night temperatures?

I dont own a UTH or a thermostat as im currently tight for money with car insurance coming up in the next 2 weeks

3. Ive weighed the ball python at 113 grams, its around 20 inches long and has a kind of triangular shape to it, im currently planning to feed it every 5 days from now until it sort of fills out in a way, as i dont feel that it is healthy enough, is this okay to do? because ive read about powerfeeding or whatever can reduce the lifespan of the snake?

Thanks for your time if you answer it :)

---

The white bulb is fine. However, you need to keep a hot spot 24 hours a day so your snake can thurmoregulate properly. Home Depot (I'm sure Lowes has something similar) has a "table top lamp dimmer" that you can plug your lamp into and that plugs into the wall. It's got a little control that will control how much power goes to your lamp. Feel free to use the red 75watt bulb with this because you can lower the amount of power until it gets to the 90* hot spot. I use this method for a corn snake and it works well. You just need to make sure you check it frequently (two or three times a day) to make sure the temps are right. It will fluctuate with your ambient temperatures.

When you aren't strapped for cash, think about getting an under the tank heater with a thermostat. Ball pythons digest better with an under the tank heater for belly heat but they will be fine with a lamp.

As for feeding, it sounds like your ball python is skinny. Don't jump to feeding it too quickly because it can do more harm than good. I got a very, very small ball python (She was 44g at six months old - that's smaller than a newborn fresh out of the egg) and I started her out feeding her small meals and working towards larger meals more frequently. I would start by feeding her a hopper mouse or rat pinky once a week for a few weeks then gradually feed something larger. Don't rush.

I don't know if you've seen this: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...s%29-Caresheet but take a look. It's got a lot of valuable info.

One other thing to mention, with a heat lamp, you'll have trouble with humidity. Try keeping a damp towel over the screen top to hold humidity. If you have any questions, feel free to ask!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by BHReptiles

Ball pythons digest better with an under the tank heater for belly heat

---

This simply isn't true, and no matter how many people say it it never will be true. A heat lamp will heat the substrate just like a UTH will. In many cases heat lamps will heat the substrate up too much and something like a lamp dimmer or thermostat will be required to reduce the amount of heat produced. The only real issue with heat lamps is that they reduce the amount of humidity in the cage.

UTH's aren't perfect either. They cost more to set up since you have to use a thermostat with them, and they don't increase the temperature of the air in the cage. This means that if the air in the room that the cage is in drops below 75 degrees a heat lamp will me required to increase the air temperature in the cage.