New member and new BP owner

What's up guys? After many years of wanting a snake and between parents when I was younger and girlfriends not approving of them,I just got one at the white plains reptile convention.
Me and my girl just broke 3 weeks ago,she wouldn't let me get a snake,well now i got one. I don't kow if we are 100% over yet,but if she comes back she has to deal with My Ball Python.

named him Kocur after former NYR tough guy Joey Kocur. i kow theyare very docile and thats what i like. He's real cool and mellow,just very scared.i have him for only a couple days now. So I'm not bothering him much. Picked him ups few times for a few minutes then put him back and leave him be. He's exploring and hiding and is now drinking water...

any new tips or pointers any one have for me. His tank is set with lamps and heat pads and the temp on hot side is around 87-89. Big water bowl,fresh water and ought a bag of frozen fuzzies. I will be thawing them out at room temp and OT in water as I was told the mice lose nutrients that way. I'm going to be feeding him one time a week now,maybe adventually two,depends. I have him in a 40 gallon now as well. 2 hides. One on OT side one on cool side.

ive also got 2 cats,I mtrodicd hem already,my cats were great. Anyway,I'm def loving this BP,he is a Ghost. Paid $75 for him,which I was fine with.

glas to be a member here and can't wait to get my next ball python.

If you don't have a tstat you need to get one. The heat pad(aka: uth= under tank heater) will get very hot when not regulated and can burn your snake. I love herpstats from http://www.spyderrobotics.com/home/products.html . A tstat is the most important thing you will buy. Buy the best you can afford.

Next your going to be told that a 40 gallon tank is to large for a young snake. I have kept young snakes in larger than recommended homes without any issues. That said I have always kept the tanks filled with real and fake plants, drift wood, and hides. You need to avoid having large open areas. You can even use crumpled newspaper to give your little guy cover to move around in.

As for feeding it is recommended to feed 10-15% of your snakes weight in grams. You can get cheap kitchen scales from Amazon to track your snakes growth and maintain proper feeding amounts.

Ok,cool man. I've got 2 hides,but this weekend I will pick up some plants from petco or petland cause there is a lot of open space and yeah man,I was told it was too big a tank,but I felt that was bogus. I want him to be able to move around . But I need to clutter the tank more. The newspaper thing is an awesome idea.Wanna buy some fake tree branches and roots for him crawl through and around. He is about 2 months old.

as for a thermostat,I just ordered one about an hour ago off of eBay. It's a hydrofarm,cost me about $35.00. Says I should have it within the next 3-7 days.

now I just tried to feed him. He was in the hide,I lifted the hide out of the tank,held the frozen thawed out fuzzy in front of him,for about a minute.. He struck and grabbed it but didnt constrict and coil it.. Held it in his mouth for a few seconds and then released him and crawled back into his hide on the cool side.. I hear they are picky eaters and can be hard to to get to feed. Did I do something wrong? Is it to quick to know if he needs live food instead of frozen.. The breeder I got him from said he will eat frozen or live. But these people will say whatever they can to make a selll. Either way I was buying a snake and had to chance it and hope he would eat with no problem.. Could he still be to nervous in is new home?

also how do I know what size to feed him? Was told fuzzys are good now.. I heard or read that feeding your snake a little less than its body thickness in food is about accurate. Yeah man,I was hoping he would eat with no problem. Now I guess I have to work with it.


Thanks for your help man.