Hi I'm new here and worried about my ball :(

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Originally Posted by Kaorte

Lets not make sweeping assumptions about certain substrate choices, shall we?

Reesy, I'd love for you to point me in the direction of experiences you or others might have had with substrate impaction in ball pythons from eco-earth, because I have never seen any evidence to suggest the claims you make to be true.

I've read threads of snakes dying from accidentally ingesting paper towels though, soo are you going to tell me that eco-earth is more or less dangerous than paper towels?

Substrate is a personal preference. The only substrate you should avoid is CEDAR. I've used many substrates including paper towel, eco earth, cypress mulch, aspen, indented kraft paper, and news paper. Cypress mulch and indented kraft

Even then, I have rarely, if EVER heard of a ball python becoming impacted from slight substrate ingestion.


While I agree we shouldn't be teaching newbies bad habits, I also believe we shouldn't use hypothetical situations as scare tactics for why we should not use a certain substrate. Do you seriously think all ball pythons in the wild are dying left and right due to impaction? Because I'm pretty sure they lay on a substrate very similar to eco earth all day everyday. Its called dirt.

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A-friggin-men. Many (if not most...but don't quote me.) commercial breeders use aspen. And honestly, unless your prey item is sopping wet, there's really no reason for bedding to be sticking to it. I like using paper towels as much as the next person, but some of us like nice looking display cages occasionally...I use paper towels, eco earth, and aspen depending on the caging setup. There is *nothing* wrong with any of those choices, provided that the animal is healthy. Now, if there is some flaking on the belly, paper towels are probably the best thing right now, because you want to be able to keep things as sanitary as possible, and have nothing in the cage that can irritate it. But...but...but...lol, I'll get off my soapbox. :rolleyes:

here r some of the pics i promised you guys sorry it took me so long i got kind of busy and last night went out and got a little drunk :/

http://i1302.photobucket.com/albums/...ps5605c2aa.jpg

http://i1302.photobucket.com/albums/...pse1bef7dd.jpg

http://i1302.photobucket.com/albums/...ps3587a379.jpg

http://i1302.photobucket.com/albums/...ps869f5cc1.jpg

The one is of him actually starting to coil around his food i thought it was pretty awesome so I put it up too it is outta focus so that sucked :/ but i do have one question ive been keeping the temps pretty good but humidity keeps fluctuating it's at 42 rite now but it will go up to about 46 - 47 sometimes, I was wondering if I should do anything to keep it up a little more cause i know it should be around fifty or a little above but i jus didn't kno how to get it up with there being paper towel as a substrate and if it would be alright with wats up with his belly as you can see in the pics now the one pic you can see the pink pretty good all the other pics i had were bunk and could see much so I didnt bother to put them up. So I was just wondering how i should go about kicking up the humidity just a little while trying not to mess with his belly too much thank you so much guys and gals I love this website and I am so glad I found it you all are awesome!!!

P.S. i give my girl props for holding him for me while I took the pics. She is deathly afraid of snakes and the first day she touched him she cried lol!!! the very next day she asked to hold him and my jaw dropped, she said it would take her year before holding one and i doubted it then the next day already holding him :)

Is he in a tank with a screen lid? Try putting a towel over half of the top, enough to trap some of what's evaporating off. If you've already employed this trick, maybe someone else can chime in with other ideas! =] Glad to hear he's doing ok, his belly doesn't look too bad and will clear up in the right conditions.

No need to toss the eco earth.
I mix it with repti-bark and have zero ingestion problems.
If you are feeding F/T do not put the prey IN the water but in a bag in the water to warm it. Dry prey picks up very little substrate. You can also get the same stuff eco earth is made from in a small-medium eiices as opposed to shredded which, is easier to flick off an substrate with tongs that may be picked up.
Looking after one snake it is easy to watch the entire feeding process, it isn't like you are tossing 30 rats in bins and walking away to check back later.
I'm pretty sure that snakes do not eat off of dinner plates in the wild.
That said they have been known to ingest even paper towels, it is a good idea to watch your snake eat even with F/T.

If you post pics of your set-up I am sure you will get tons of suggestions to help you create an ideal habitat for your new pet.

For now i put a little wash cloth on the edge of the screen op and it is working wonderfully the humidity is at 58% and staying steady. i put too much of the wash cloth over it this morning and it shot it up too 70 % i was amazed by how much it went up just from a little wash cloth lol. I feel like im getting the hang of keeping my cage regulated at more stable conditions, my only problem is the heater in the room sometime i shut it off and the temp dips too low and if i leave it on too long it will get a little too hot but not by much it"s going to take a while to get that dialed in.

I'm definitely happy with the results after getting info on this website from all the fine, smart people on here i have mad respect for all of you and especially for the ones that breed (something i definitely want to get into in the future). the one last thing im woried about is my little boy's belly i really think it just got burned too to my lack of knowledge about the heat pads needing to be regulated with either a dimmer or a thermostat. I feel so bad and i am just wondering by the next time he sheds will the flaking scales go away? will it look like it never happend? I can see a line on the middle of his belly scales where they are flaking its like a small outside layer of the scale is coming off it doesnt look too bad the flakes look clear. i didnt know if i should give him a bath or get anything to help it heal or just wait for the next time he sheds naturally to see what happens?

Once again thank all of you for your help i will never stop coming to this website for information on ball pythons i want to learn more everyday about snakes and reptiles in general i hope to one day be a herpatologist and breed snakes its my dream and i plan on it. I trust you guys on this website and i feel like this is the start for me too learn more. :D

Oh and one more thing i will get pics of the setup on here soon although that's not the most of my worries due to me finally getting the hang of it just wanna kno about his belly, if i should bathe him or get something to help it heal or just leave him alone and let him shed and one more thing should i be handling him at all or is handling him for a little time every once in a while ok? Thank you!

does anyone have any thoughts on his belly? just want to know so i don't do anything wrong or hurt him any more

Belly looks fine to me!

It's hard to see over pictures because the parts that are laking are in a small line down the middle of his belly. to look clear like its the top layer of the scales. You can see a line down his belly where all of them have already flaked off there's only a little bit more still flaking. idk it really doesnt look bad and u can barely even notice it I just dont want to make it worse by handling him i just didnt know if it would be ok too and if it is something this minor should it be gone by the next shed?

Anyone know if i should be handling him at all? i always wash my hands and keep everything clean just want to know if it will make it worse or not thank you :)