Literal spider ball

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Originally Posted by Blandini

Why leaves aren't good? In the store I bought them they told me they were actually good for my snake o:

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Pet stores lie to sell you products that no experienced owners buys because they play off of your inexperience to move stock. Plain and simple. I would go with Aspen bedding or paper towels if I were you and avoid leaves because they do nothing for your snake. Also, stay far away from cedar that isn't kiln dried.

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Originally Posted by Blandini

o: ok, about the heating, I live in Mexico Cancun, the temp is ideal even though has no basking spot, (also a thing that in the store told me that wasn't too necessary with this climate)

And about the thermometer I'll change it asap.

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That simply is not true, the cool side needs to be between 78 and 82 degrees, but the hot side must be between 88 and 92 degrees 24/7,365. there is no way your enclosure is that hot, and if it is then the cool side is too hot.

It should be obvious now that the store gave you terrible information

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Originally Posted by The Serpent Merchant

That simply is not true, the cool side needs to be between 78 and 82 degrees, but the hot side must be between 88 and 92 degrees 24/7,365. there is no way your enclosure is that hot, and if it is then the cool side is too hot.

It should be obvious now that the store gave you terrible information

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Ok, thank you very much I'll check the heating issue as soon as possible, and won't trust stores ever.

If you keep that thermometer that high she will keep climbing up on it to try to escape, and since BP's tend to be clumsy climbing she may fall and get injured. You may want to lower it.

Also there are two things that jump out at me in those pics. That type of thermometer takes the temp of the air, for BP's you need to keep track of the surface temps. Do you have a tempgun or thermometer with a probe to keep track of the surface temps?

I got your "spider" ball joke, I thought it was pretty cute...
Anywho, what someone told me about thermometers (I did the same thing...): Your ball python crawls around on the ground. It will never be up that high- unless of course, climbing on it's thermometer. So you need to be measuring the temp of the ground, where your snake lives. Def look at temp guns, they're not terribly expensive, and they're really neat. You can measure the surface temp of everything in your house just for giggles! (Ha, I knew this cola wasn't exactly the coldness that I wanted...!) A little digital thermometer won't be too much, either. I got both items at Lowes.

You should try and put more hiding places in that tank... clutter it more with aquarium leaves (not real leaves)

Did you build your own tank, by the way? I wouldn't mind seeing more pics of it if yes... ;)

Welcome to the wonderful world of inexperienced ball python owner versus stupid pet shops.

If you hang out here long, you will find a lot of good information, and that most pet shops know as much about how to care for a ball python as I know about building a space shuttle.

Your tank is a little big, but that can be adapted. That thermometer is the kind used to measure the temps of the water in a fish tank, and is not going to give you a clue about the temps your snake needs. I have no idea how many of the items we take for granted here in the states are easily accessible to you in Mexico. If need be, you can order most things online and have them shipped to you if they are not available locally.

I think you have some kind of substrate under the leaves, it looks like what we call Eco Earth, or something similar. If you can get it, fine shreds of aspen are really good bedding. They help with humidity, are easy to spot clean, and are snake safe. Newspaper and paper towels are also good options, but of course will need a bit more in the cleaning department.

Try to get a digital thermometer/hygrometer combination if you can, it will greatly simplify things for you. The safest and best thing to use for heat is an under tank heater, called a UTH. You want one big enough to cover about 1/3 of the tank to create a suitable hot spot. Ball pythons don't need heat lamps or UV lights like many reptiles do, so that is a bonus. Whatever you use for heat also needs a thermostat to ensure it doesn't get too hot, as ball pythons can and will get burned by a lamp or UTH that gets too hot.

Ideally, you want two hides, one for the hot spot, one for the cool. In a perfect world they will be identical, so your snake feels equally secure in both. You can crowd the empty space in your tank with silk flowers and leaves, and that will help your snake feel more secure. You can use plastic, be be careful as many plastic plants contain metal stems that can rust when exposed to humidity for long periods. Make sure there aren't any sharp points and no loops your snake could get hurt on or worse, stuck in.

If your tank has a screen lid, you will have a terrible time with keeping humidity in, you can cover part of the lid to help hold in the humidity, and there are lots of other tricks here to help with that.

You will find most people here are warm and friendly, and are only to eager to help with any questions or problems you may have. Goodness knows I learn something new every day, and I've been here for years!

Gale

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Originally Posted by ReptilesK2

Looks to me like a normal ball python, not a spider.

Its possible it might get hurt, its probably just stressed out.
What are you using for bedding?

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I think he meant like Spider-Man because it was climbing up the glass. Not that its a Spider ball python.

You have to consider the source when dealing with pet stores. Considering the big box pet stores have done what big box stores do. They have washed out the good ole small stores. Most pet stores have poor husbandry and the people working in them have literally no good experience with reptiles. Plus the people working in the stores are minimum wage first time working kids. No offense to that at all but those stores dont pay for experienced people. Also consider the aninal your keeping. Consider where they come from. Ball pythons come from africa. They spend the majority of their lives underground. In most cases they are found in big termite mounds. They are not a very good candidate for a display animal. They like to hide. Proper temps and humidity is key. I walked into a pet store, i wont mention names, hahaha of course i will, petco. And i acted like i didnt know anything. I asked the guy about a ball they had. I said hey where do they come from? What do they eat? How often should i feed? And last but not least whats the best temps? Ok word for word here was his answers. The come from the jungles this is why they are called jungle ball pythons, they eat mice, birds, anything they can find, they should eat once a month, 70s to 80s are ideal temps. oh and when i asked him about smell of the cage he said i could put cedar in there. Cedar. Freakin cedar. Lmao i seriouslly lost it. I had to come out of undercover. Not only did i tell him he was full of crap, i also made a point to show him the mites he had in the cage along with the fact the ball pythons he had in his tanks were horrible looking examples of the species. I would have bought em just to get them out of there but im not paying 79 bucks a piece for sick normal wild caught ball pythons.