lighting

"Party bulbs" are clear glass with red coating, which will burn off. You need an actual red glass bulb for it to be safe.

yeah i have a red glass bulb(infrared) but the problem is when i put it on his hot side gets 103 degrees! so i haven't been using it but the hot side is like fluctuating between 86-89 degrees and the cool side is some how always 79.8.....always lol. so i guess i wasted some doe.

Did you have it sitting flush on the lid or was the light suspended above the enclosure?

I was told by a reptile store owner (who supposedly has 50 years experience) that you should take your BP out in the sun for 15 minutes a week because they need the vitamin d (i think that is what he said) from the sun. Any experts have an opinion on this?

Jamie

Our only local exotic vet tried to convince us that BPs needed UVB as well. They are nocturnal creatures - how would they do this in the first place? I think some folks are taking these requirements most diurnal reptiles have and blanketing that to include all of them. That is not logical, captain.

My $0.02 is that it's cheaper than an UV bulb and achieves the same effect, but that there's no evidence supporting ball pythons having a need for UV light. Information becomes outdated sometimes, as newer information becomes available.