Why is my 5 month old ball python so active?

Hi everyone,

I'm new to this forum and a new ball python owner. William is overall quite an active snake. Lately he's been on the move casing his 10 gallon terrarium. Should I be worried about him being too active?

Here are a few details about William: he is 5 months old, just under 2ft long, very friendly and relaxed when held and seems to have a great temperament.

A few details about his environment: the tank has a hide on the hot side (90F in the hide) and one on the cold side (75F) and a climbing branch. The ambient temp is btwn 80 - 85F during the day. I have an under heating pad that covers about 1/3 of the tank on the hot side as well as an over head heat lamp on the outside of the tank, which is on a timer and a night heat lamp comes on during the night. In other words I'm pretty OCD about his environment!

His eating: He eats a small frozen mouse once a wk. the mouse is thawed and warmed. So far he has taken his mouse every week with no fuss and seems to be a good eater.

I'm wondering if maybe he is hungry but his activity seems to happen a few days after he's eaten, not just when it's time for his next feed which makes me think it might be something other than hunger.

Bottom line, should I be worried about this overactivity?

Is your Uth hooked up to a thermostat? If not, your snake could get badly burned.

If he's new, it's understandable for him to be a bit active. Make sure he has two snug hides with one entrance, and had lots of plants. Baby balls need cluttered up cages to feel secure.

I'm not an expert, and someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think a 10 gallon tank might be too small, a content bp should in his hide most of the time. Do you have a hide on each side of the tank? What kind of substrate do you use? He might be uncomfortable if he is that active, but that might just be his personality.

Just my two cents, so I hope others will chime in soon! :)

How small is the mouse?

How much does your snake weigh and how much does the frozen mouse weigh?

A small mouse seems to me to be too little food for a 5 month old BP. I would guess he's hungry and looking for food.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by 200xth

how small is the mouse?

How much does your snake weigh and how much does the frozen mouse weigh?

A small mouse seems to me to be too little food for a 5 month old bp. I would guess he's hungry and looking for food.

---

x2

Sounds like your husbandry is spot on. I agree that he is likely looking for food. A small mouse isn't enough. Prey should be 10 - 15 % of the snake's body weight. My young ones take F/T rat pups easily. I feed every 5 days until a year old and then move to every 7 days.

The 10 gallon will be big enough temporarily, but he will need more space soon.

He is probably hungry. This happened to me a while ago so I switched mine from hoppers to adult mice. My bp is 5 months old and eats fuzzy rats.

I have to agree, he sounds like a hungry snake searching for food.

Adhd :d

Thanks for all the replies!

We've had him for over 6 wks and he used to go into his hide all the time. I have 2 snug hides, each w one entrance. I've use coco husks since we've gotten him. When he's resting he is staying outside his hide. I check the temp in the hot hide all the time w a probe. It's around 90F.

We feed him fussies, so maybe it's time to switch to rat pups or adult mice? I haven't weighed him. Will go and get a little digital scale today - seems like a good idea.

I do not have a thermostate. Where can I get one? They don't seem to have them at the pet stores.