Soon-to-be Ball Python owner with some questions...

Hello,
two weeks ago at a reptile expo I saw some tiny hatchling Ball Pythons and knew that my life would not be complete if I didn't own one. I couldn't get one then as I didn't have a set-up and knew nothing about their care. Since then I've been reading up on them (this site has been so helpful!), and I need to be all set up by Feb 1st, when the expo comes around again so I can get one!
Here is what I have so far:
20 gallon glass tank
coconut fiber bedding
a ceramic water dish
a cave for him/her to hide in
a branch to climb on
Will he need anything else in his enclosure?

I also have a question about feeding: I read that on the care sheet here that they only supposed to eat every 7 days. Is this correct for babies too? Also will he be able to handle pinkie mice straight away? The snakes I saw were so tiny!! I do have a dubia roach colony that I use to feed my bearded dragons, could I start him on these?

I have an UTH to keep his enclosure warm, I also have a black midnight bulb thing. Could I have this on at night so I can see him and to keep the temperature up (the temp in my bedroom drops over night) or will this bother him?

Sorry if some of these questions are stupid, I am completely new to snakes!!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Roberta

Hello,
two weeks ago at a reptile expo I saw some tiny hatchling Ball Pythons and knew that my life would not be complete if I didn't own one. I couldn't get one then as I didn't have a set-up and knew nothing about their care. Since then I've been reading up on them (this site has been so helpful!), and I need to be all set up by Feb 1st, when the expo comes around again so I can get one!
Here is what I have so far:
20 gallon glass tank
coconut fiber bedding
a ceramic water dish
a cave for him/her to hide in
a branch to climb on
Will he need anything else in his enclosure?

You will want another hide or two, as baby BPs are very scared of everything and need to feel secure. Otherwise, things sound good on the inside. Grab a digital thermometer with a probe so you can monitor the hotspot reliably, and an ambient digital thermometer to monitor air temps, as long as a temp gun to measure surface temps throughout the enclosure.

I also have a question about feeding: I read that on the care sheet here that they only supposed to eat every 7 days. Is this correct for babies too? Also will he be able to handle pinkie mice straight away? The snakes I saw were so tiny!! I do have a dubia roach colony that I use to feed my bearded dragons, could I start him on these?

A baby BP can actually handle much more than you'd expect, and pinky mice are much too small. You can start on fuzzy or hopper mice, or preferably a rat pup, because rats provide better overall nutrition. Always ask the breeder what prey they were feeding so you know how to start off. Dubia will not even provoke an interest in your BP. They are carnivores through and through.

I have an UTH to keep his enclosure warm, I also have a black midnight bulb thing. Could I have this on at night so I can see him and to keep the temperature up (the temp in my bedroom drops over night) or will this bother him?

One of the most important things as far as heat goes is a thermostat. You NEED to be able to control the heat output, or else your baby could encounter nasty belly burns. A quick google image search for "Ball Python Burns" will show you the damage that can be done with an unregulated UTH. Big Apple, VE, and Herpstat all make good thermostats, but in a pinch you can make do with a Hydrofarm thermostat, 35-45 bucks on amazon.

Sorry if some of these questions are stupid, I am completely new to snakes!!

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Tank is fine. You will need to watch the humidity levels. Get a digital hygrometer to measure humidity. A lot of people with tanks have difficulty with keeping humidity up, but it's not insurmountable. Monitor and adjust as needed.

Mice pinkies are too small for anything but the most stunted of hatchlings. Your snake can eat much larger food than you think. Food should be about as wide as your snake is at his widest part. Ignore the head and neck, they are deceiving and will stretch. If it can fit in the widest part of the snake, it can fit down his mouth and throat. Hopper mice are usually the smallest food needed and they outgrow those very quickly. If you are unsure about eyeballing it at first, weigh both....basic guideline is food should be 10% to 15% of weight. Do that a few times and you'll quickly pick up the ability to eyeball. Babies can eat every 3 to 5 days easily. As they get bigger the food gets bigger and you can do it less frequently (for example, I switch mine to every 7 days at 500g).

Is the hide a fully enclosed one? Or one of those logs that's open at two ends? They generally like fully enclosed hides that are tight. They can cram themselves into much smaller spaces than you think...and they like it like that.

Branch is not necessary, but doesn't do anything bad either.

i wonder about the "black midnight bulb thing" you mention. what exactly is it? i mean, what kind of radiation will it give off? thermal or UV?

heat bulbs can do a good job, but they tend to cause the humidity to go way down, so people generally just use an UTH, controlled by a thermostat. (thermostat is really important, it prevents burned snakes). UV light would not be good at night, first of all BPs dont need it (beardeds do need it), and their eyes are good at detecting UV light, they have an additional photoreceptor that is quite far in the UV spectrum. so, UV may bother them.

if you want a dim night light to see it exploring, according to a study about their photoreceptors, their eyes are weak in the red. they can detect infrared with their heat pits, but they are really bad at detecting red light, like from a small red LED. maybe they are even blind to it.

but then, according to people that just experimented and played around with lighting, they seem to do best when its dark at night.

Welcome to the forum. I think most of your questions have been answered by other people already but check out the links I posted. The first one will give you a good inside of how to properly set up a 20 gallon tank.

How to setup a glass tank:
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=201740

Ball Python Care Sheet:
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=127203

Sent using Tapatalk

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Pythonfriend

i wonder about the "black midnight bulb thing" you mention. what exactly is it? i mean, what kind of radiation will it give off? thermal or UV?

heat bulbs can do a good job, but they tend to cause the humidity to go way down, so people generally just use an UTH, controlled by a thermostat. (thermostat is really important, it prevents burned snakes). UV light would not be good at night, first of all BPs dont need it (beardeds do need it), and their eyes are good at detecting UV light, they have an additional photoreceptor that is quite far in the UV spectrum. so, UV may bother them.

if you want a dim night light to see it exploring, according to a study about their photoreceptors, their eyes are weak in the red. they can detect infrared with their heat pits, but they are really bad at detecting red light, like from a small red LED. maybe they are even blind to it.

but then, according to people that just experimented and played around with lighting, they seem to do best when its dark at night.

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the only "black" night bulb I have come across is one by Flukers. The package says "Repta-sun black light bulb" and this is a quote from the spec sheet on their website: http://www.flukerfarms.com/PDFs/Lightbulb-FAQs.pdf

"Black light bulb:

i. This light can be used to provide an appropriate

night time basking spot. Because this light does not provide light in thevisible light spectrum, it can be used during the night withoutcausing negative effects. This bulb produces negligible quantities of UVB. Please refer to the table on the box to determine the most appropriate wattage"

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jclaiborne

the only "black" night bulb I have come across is one by Flukers. The package says "Repta-sun black light bulb" and this is a quote from the spec sheet on their website: http://www.flukerfarms.com/PDFs/Lightbulb-FAQs.pdf

"Black light bulb:

i. This light can be used to provide an appropriate

night time basking spot. Because this light does not provide light in thevisible light spectrum, it can be used during the night withoutcausing negative effects. This bulb produces negligible quantities of UVB. Please refer to the table on the box to determine the most appropriate wattage"

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Visible light spectrum for humans, or for BPs? Haha. There's another recent thread on the BP visibility spectrum, but to get back on topic, I think I'd go for a ceramic heat emitter over any bulb that generates light.

Thanks so much for all the replies, guys!! Some very useful info!
The black light bulb thing is something I used to have for my bearded dragons, I don't know what make it is or anything because I threw out the packaging. It gave off enough heat for my bearded dragons at night, but they now live in the living room so they don't need it anymore. I do also have a red bulb but after reading this thread, to be on the safe side, I'll get rid of the bulbs and UTH and get a ceramic heat emitter, hopefully that will be enough.
I will also order a digital hygrometer. I bought a humidifier for the room and am still having trouble getting the correct humidity in the tank, however, right now I'm only use one of those dial hygrometer things and apparently these aren't accurate, so I'll know more when I get the digital one.
I've covered three sides of the tank and I'll get him a couple more hides so he can feel safe. I'll take away the branch if they don't like climbing, I just thought the tank needed more stuff in it. I just don't want him to be bored! LOL! Did I mention I know nothing about snakes? :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jclaiborne

the only "black" night bulb I have come across is one by Flukers. The package says "Repta-sun black light bulb" and this is a quote from the spec sheet on their website: http://www.flukerfarms.com/PDFs/Lightbulb-FAQs.pdf

"Black light bulb:

i. This light can be used to provide an appropriate

night time basking spot. Because this light does not provide light in thevisible light spectrum, it can be used during the night withoutcausing negative effects. This bulb produces negligible quantities of UVB. Please refer to the table on the box to determine the most appropriate wattage"

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yep, in that recent other thread, a study shows that they have a photoreceptor that has its maximum sensitivity at 380 nanometers. for humans, that is almost exactly the border between barely visible and completely invisible UV light. and this is just the maximum, the range goes even deeper into UV light. their whole visible spectrum is shifted towards UV, they have receptors for green, blue, and UV.

so my bet is they can really see it, and much better than humans, at much shorter wavelengths. which would mean these UV lights are no good for BPs, absolutely not, maybe during the day, no problem during the day, but definitively not for the night. the .pdf from the company be damned.

at night, if you want warmth from a bulb, go for infrared/thermal. and if you really want something to watch your BP at night, go for a deep but dim red. and the clearly best hot spot is UTH + thermostat.

Dude,It's really very simple.

- tank
- dome for a heat bulb ( I use a double dome,one bulb for night,one for day)
- 2 hides( one hot side one cool side)( I use only one hide, hot side)
- UTH
- hydrofarm thermostat ( for UTH mat)
-thermometer with probe to monitor he UTH
-wet rags covering 80% top of screen
- an analog hygrometer ( is perfectly fine)
-water bowl


Done,it's that simple,that's my set up. My snakes eat and shed great. Don't drive your self crazy,ppl here will make your head spin with what to get and what to do. It's not complicated. I know ppl who do way less than I do.

keep your hot side 86-90,humidity 40-60 and 60-80 while in shed,hot spot round 90-92.
if u want details on how to set this tank up,in box me,I'll be glad to help

As for food,my guys were Eating rat pups at about 110 grams and up until the hoppers. Pinks are a waste to small.