Newbie..

Kim got it! Temps should remain stable 24/7, unless breeding. (which should only be attempted after the snakes after reached a certain weight and age.

As for the 66% ghost thing. That means your snakes has a 66% chance of carrying the gene. (not a 66% chance of producing a ghost baby) Ghost is a recessive trait. It's NOT a sure thing, and in order to prove it out you'd have to breed it with a 100% het or a visible ghost, in order to prove it out. I hope that helped and I didn't muddy the waters more. :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by tigerlily

Kim got it! Temps should remain stable 24/7, unless breeding. (which should only be attempted after the snakes after reached a certain weight and age.

As for the 66% ghost thing. That means your snakes has a 66% chance of carrying the gene. (not a 66% chance of producing a ghost baby) Ghost is a recessive trait. It's NOT a sure thing, and in order to prove it out you'd have to breed it with a 100% het or a visible ghost, in order to prove it out. I hope that helped and I didn't muddy the waters more. :rolleyes:

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I think i muddied the waters pretty good!!!

Ok so what would happen if I breed it with the "Petco" ball?.. :D
What would or might be produced?

Your "petco" ball is what is considered to be a "normal," which is the more common term people use.

Since the pastel trait is co-dominant, when a pastel is bred to a normal, half of the offspring will be pastels and the other half will be normal (or petco style as you keep referring to), statistically speaking...it usually doesn't work out perfectly like that - its like flipping a coin.

You need to separate your snakes permanently, don't ever let the temps drop at night until they are adults, and do a LOT of reading...sounds like you've got a lot to learn. ;)

I do have a lot to learn.. and so far I'm already getting some really good info! :) Ok.. I have a 60w Daylight bulb in a 20 gallan Long tank, standard stick on heating pad and at night I through a 75w moonlight bulb. I believe my tank heat drops a bit with the moonlight bulb? Is this not enough heat for my snake? too much, too little. I do have a temp gage. My lighting is on one side of the tank... and the temp gage is on the opposite end by the water dish. I'm getting readings of 78-84. I know it would probably be warmer readings if the temp probe was closer to the other side. Any thoughts?..

Your first step to getting the right temps is getting an accurate tool to measure them. The 'temp guage' the pet store sold you are incredibly inaccurate and a waste of money - return it if you can. Instead, opt for a digital indoor/outdoor thermometer available at any target/walmart. Acurite makes a nice one that is commonly used.

The indoor/outdoor thermometers usually have a probe that you can place wherever you want to measure the temperature - in the hide, on top of the hide, at the cool end, wherever. See how that is better than just sticking a guage to the side of the tank where you snake will probably never go?

Why do you think that the 75w bulb is putting out less heat than the 60w? Brightness has nothing to do with the amount of heat put out. If it were me, I would run the moonlight 24/7 - your ball probably is not very happy with a bright bulb shining down of them 12" away all day long, especially considering that they are nocturnal.

Hey I really appreciate your time with me...
Okay I might have made this not understood...
I have a temp gage that does have an extended probe I can put where ever I like. I just thought If I put it too close to the heat lamps it would give me false readings of really how warm my tank is. On the instructions for this thermometer it just showed a picture where they stuck theirs.. but never explained where to put it or why. I do have a 75w infrared bulbs that I can use instead of the daytime one, but someone suggested I use the day one instead during the day and the blue moonlight during the night. But see this is why I joined here because I know you guys are much more knowledgable then the normal pet store owner when it comes to these particular snakes. Ok.. so where should I put the the probe.. and what bulbs do you recommend. Also do you agree with everyone as far as housing the snakes in different tanks? I always see in pet stores baby ball pytons together in one tank. If you do think they should be housed seperately.. do I need to rush out and get another tank and seperate them pronto!? I'm glad everyone is shinning light on these topics for me! Very appreciated "elevatethis"
Thanx~

DEFINITELY separate them. They are not social, and one will basically become dominant over the other. The resulting stress on both by constantly competing for space can cause health and feeding problems long-term.

The reason the pet store has them together is out of utility...the pet stores generally do not care about the well-being of the animal, but care more about moving them out of the store. A common reason pet stores put snakes in bare tanks is so prospective buyers can see them - ball pythons like to hide all the time, which wouldn't a good selling point for unknowing customers, just seeing what looks like a tank with no inhabitants. That's normal ball python behavior and they should be allowed to do it.

Like I said, no need for the bright overhead light or the burden on you to switch lights every day. Just run the moonlight 24/7, keep your heat on all the time, no night drops. Your ball will thank you.