New owner with a normal male (Atticus) progression thread

So here are a few pics of Atticus' current enclosure. He loves climbing, so we've tried to add a few things he can perch on. He's in a 20 gallon tank for now, but we will go a different route once he grows out of it. He has a ceramic heat lamp to increase ambient temp, and the Tropic Aire Humidifier and Air Exchanger helps keep the humidity stable. He has a UTH with a temp regulator, and heat/humidity gauges currently in the middle and warm sides of his tank close to the substrate, which is aspen. At some point I'll upgrade to a digital model that can monitor both sides simultaneously. He has a reptivine and suction cup vine for climbing/lounging, and some plastic greenery for no apparent reason (although where it is now helps to close off one of the sides of his hide). And I assure you, the lava lamp, Red Wings memorabilia, bird figurine, magic cards, and nerf gun are all essential components of this set up.

http://i.imgur.com/GYAvcE9.jpg?2

http://i.imgur.com/xUA7aQW.jpg?1

Atticus is doing well, and he's growing up so fast! He is now fourth months old, and over the past month, he has gone from 130g to 215g. I have to make sure to take pictures regularly so that I have something for posterity :)

http://ball-pythons.net/gallery/file...age_948059.jpg

That face though!

Updates on Atticus!

He is now 6.5 months old, and he recently weighed in at 390 grams. His last two sheds have been perfect - I have started putting damp paper towels in his hides twice per day to keep humidity up once I notice the cycle starting. For food, I got lucky and found a local pet store that carries f/t jumbo mice, and he seems to be liking the change - he gets really alert when he sees it. And it must be true what they say about behavioral reinforcement, because he even seems more interested in seeing me now that I've started giving him bigger mice :) The feeder I gave him yesterday was 42g, so I'm expecting a growth spurt soon, as well as an enclosure upgrade.

http://ball-pythons.net/gallery/file...age_241386.jpg

Atticus is doing great! He's 588 grams, and he generally eats 2 adult mice per week. Sadly, jumbo mice are hard to come by, and the next size up at the pet store (small rat) seems too big. I have been feeding him in his enclosure, and that works well. I'll try to get him to strike the first mouse, but sometimes I'll just leave both f/t mice with him overnight. "Whatever works" is my new motto.

I still haven't upgraded his enclosure. He's so good at squishing into his hide that it is always a shock to see how big he is! Here are some pics. He has kept the blushing that I love so much :)

http://i.imgur.com/ZJnHjpm.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/EOluH16.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/sM6Szeu.jpg

It's crazy how they don't seem to grow all that fast but then all of a sudden one day you notice how big they've gotten and it's such a warm, fuzzy feeling! :) He looks beautiful and healthy, you should be a proud snake momma!

Thanks! We have definitely come a long way with the help of this site. And I am a very proud snake mom. Sadly, not everyone wants to see pics of my "baby." I've been unfollowed on Facebook a few times :)

Great thread and what an adorable boy.

He has now officially been outside. The texture of the grass weirded him out at first, but he recovered nicely and explored until he found a rock to attempt to hide under.
http://i.imgur.com/WhR3TSZ.jpg

He is getting big!