just a ?

im building a custom cage for our little guy 5ft long 2ft wide and 3ft high (have to have space for the hides i wanna put in :) ) and i was just wondering how much flexwatt i should use and your opinions on that. i already sent justcage an e-mail asking the same thing but i was just curious if any of you would have an opinion. thanx in advance!

WOW ... that's a really big cage for a ball python!

You do realize that balls will do better with hide boxes that just barely cover their bodies? They feel most secure when they are jammed into tight little spaces that touch all sides of their bodies.

Are you building this cage out of wood or plastic? Homemade wooden cages and flexwatt really don't work well together. Flexwatt does not radiate through the wooden floor well at all, and putting the flexwatt inside the cage is not the safest thing in the world.

For homemade wooden cages I always recommend radiant heat panels. They mount in the ceiling, are safe to the touch, and generate a nice warm even heat. They work great with thermostats as well!

Good luck with whichever way you go.

-adam

GEEZ...that is a huge enclosure.

Adam pretty much said it all. I would definately reconsider the size of the enclosure. My ball pythons are in tubs that measure 33'' x 17'' x 6'' and can stay in there their whole lives. Just to give you a size reference.

i know it is a big cage but the frame is already built. it will be made out of wood so the suggestion is appreciated. i am going to put things to climb on in the cage becuase unlike everything i have read about balls liking the ground mine seems to be the odd ball cuz he tries to find places higher up and stays up there. and the hides are going to be tight to his body and there are going to be multiple hides not just 2 with the water bowl in the middle, he has out grown his current one and barely fits in it any more. what can i say i just must have an odd ball because he is the oppisite of everything i read about how they act ... except the hair thing he does have a hair feddish. he just acts more like a lap dog than a snake and acts like he enjoys being handled and out of his cage. not a mean bone or muscle in his body ... unless your a mouse. thanks again for the suggestions though, they are apprectiated.

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Originally Posted by Egyptian_Sphynx

seems to be the odd ball cuz he tries to find places higher up and stays up there

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You might want to check your temps .... since heat rises, ball pythons that need more warmth commonly try to follow the heat. This behavior is probably more related to your snake trying to properly thermoregulate than "liking" being up on a branch. Instinctually, off of the ground and exposed is the last place a ball python really wants to be.

Same principle applies to green tree pythons that lay on the ground of their enclosures instead of perching.

Good luck with everything.

-adam

adam does have a very good point. Where you just planning on using flexwatt or do you also have lamps that you are going to use? I have found that a problem with big enclosures (no matter what type of snake they are used for) is that the air temperture in the enclosure can change dramatically if the room temperature varies(i.e. one minute it seems like everything is great, then the a/c kicks on and temps are 5-10 degrees lower.) Be sure to monitor the temperatures all over the enclosure for at least a week at various times during the day to be sure that your temperatures are good all the time. If the temps are right, be sure to provide many,many,many hides in that large of an enclosure and even an extra water bowl in that enclosure to reduce stress.

nevermind what i asked im just going to not make it

edit= ill give it to my bunny (which is a pet not a feeder)

Good choice. If you already have all the stuff to build the enclosure, you could always just cut down the size. A 3' x 2' x (1' or less) enclosure would work much better for a ball python. Hey...if you got extra stuff, you can always build an extra enclosure and get another bp :)

im just going to buy another aquirium for my female (khentimentius girlfriend hopefully) and the bunny is just spoiled rotten and gets alot of toys and stuff and im running out of room in his current cage which is a kennel ( the one that you can see trough made out of metal) which works great but he scatters everything everyday so ill just give it to him and get some aquiriums. sorry for the spelling that was never my strongest subject.

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Originally Posted by Egyptian_Sphynx

nevermind what i asked im just going to not make it

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That's ashame that you'd let a few posts on an internet forum change your mind like that.

My intent was to only give you suggestions that might help with the new enclosure. I certainly wasn't trying to suggest that you scrap the idea all together.

A large enclosure can certainly work well for a ball python, it just takes a lot more work to make sure it is heated properly and provides enough security for your snake to live stress free.

-adam