Newbie

Just got my first ball about a month ago, my buddy had him for about 4 months before hand. He got a bigger one so i decided to try and buy the other one from him. The guy at the pet store said it was a male, but havent gotten it sexed or anything. He is a Fantastic eater, eats every week, have had no problems out of him. He's about 6 months old im guessing. Ive been lurking around here for a week or so, figured i would go ahead and start some posting. He is very friendly, isnt head-shy, has never try'd to strike or bite anyone yet, he is VERY active, as long as his hide isnt in the tank. When his hide is in the tank, he just wants to stay in there all the time, is there anything wrong with that ?

Hopefully the pics will work right :D






http://i27.tinypic.com/mweh5i.jpg

http://i25.tinypic.com/2jcdf9t.jpg

It's normal for them to be hiding almost all the time. What is that substrate? Im not familiar with it.

Its a mixture of Zilla Jungle mix and Zilla Coconut Husk brisk. It seems to do very well and he seems to like it.

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Originally Posted by Nickcb

Its a mixture of Zilla Jungle mix and Zilla Coconut Husk brisk. It seems to do very well and he seems to like it.

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hmmm... never heard of that you should try some aspen bedding it might be cheaper.. IDK but anyhow I love the reduced pattern good pick up my friend and welcome to bp.net!

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Originally Posted by mrs.twistedtails

hmmm... never heard of that you should try some aspen bedding it might be cheaper.. IDK but anyhow I love the reduced pattern good pick up my friend and welcome to bp.net!

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Oh ya forgot to say very nice reduce pattern BP! lol I was just starting at it blank....

That substrate sounds expensive, but looks nice though, I hope it doesnt harm the snake. :gj:

You should leave the hides in the viv. It is very normal for bp's to hide most of the time, its what they do!

your substrate looks too wet... and you should leave the hides in his tank unless you are taking him out to handle him, ball pythons get stressed very easily and he should have a place that he feels secure

Beautiful snake - love the reduced pattern! :) But I agree with the others about leaving in the hides, since his "active" behavior is most likely him trying to find a hiding spot. I also agree about the bedding, since it does look rather wet. How are you measuring your temps and humidity? Anyway, welcome to the forums and nice BP!

P.S. I use newspaper or paper towels as substrate, since it's cheap/free and easy to clean... plus it's easier to see the mess, whereas urine can get hidden under thick substrates. Just my preference, though.

Thanks for all the replies, about the Reduced Pattern. How do u determine that ? Still new to all of this. And the reason the bedding looks moist is i have just misted it a bit, and had cleaned out the tank a bit, his hide stays in all the time. Just wasnt in at the time do to cleaning. As for the bedding being expensive, its not to bad i dont think, about 9 bucks for the jungle mix for a bag, and about 6 for the coconut husk. Mix the 2 together and it makes a lot. I am OPEN for ANY and ALL suggestions of what i should get or anything im doing wrong so far. Every time he Urinates or Defecates i scoop out a fairly good size chunk of the bedding just incase.

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Originally Posted by Nickcb

Thanks for all the replies, about the Reduced Pattern. How do u determine that ?

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That usually just means it's a normal Ball Python, but their side pattern (the light brown) is bigger & less "separated" than normal. Some reduced patterns are genetic, but usually it's just a variation on normal markings. Here's an example of regular pattern vs. reduced:

Regular (my baby)
http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p...s/DSCF5739.jpg

Reduced (courtesy of Living Arts reptiles)

http://livingartreptiles.tripod.com/...g.w300h314.jpg

Another extreme reduced (Boas and Balls)

http://www.boasandballs.com/Photo%27...ls/banana2.jpg

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Still new to all of this. And the reason the bedding looks moist is i have just misted it a bit, and had cleaned out the tank a bit, his hide stays in all the time. Just wasnt in at the time do to cleaning. As for the bedding being expensive, its not to bad i dont think, about 9 bucks for the jungle mix for a bag, and about 6 for the coconut husk. Mix the 2 together and it makes a lot. I am OPEN for ANY and ALL suggestions of what i should get or anything im doing wrong so far. Every time he Urinates or Defecates i scoop out a fairly good size chunk of the bedding just incase.

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Well, I pay $0 for my bedding - I just gank a stack of free publications (SF Weekly), about once every two weeks. :D:gj: Some people prefer a nicer looking bedding, but I'm all about function and low cost! I also happen to be allergic to wood scents, so I don't have much of a choice. Most people would recommend aspen for BPs, if you're not down with newspaper or paper towels... just make sure to keep an eye on the humidity and smell, since urine/feces can collect underneath the substrates.

Btw, you didn't answer the question of how you're measuring temps/humidity? If you don't have one already, get an Acu-rite thermometer with humidity and probe... they sell them at Wal-Mart, and I got mine on this site: http://weatherconnection.com/product...curite0&page=3

Also check out the stickies on the various sub-forums, like these...
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=31102
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=56846
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=30763

i cant find the one just like mine, i'll post a pic of it later. But its sorta like this one, but has 2 guages together, side by side. http://www.pet-dog-cat-supply-store....-flypage-15201

Its what the guy at the Pet store recommended. But the one u posted looks a lot better and more accurate.

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Originally Posted by Nickcb

i cant find the one just like mine, i'll post a pic of it later. But its sorta like this one, but has 2 guages together, side by side. http://www.pet-dog-cat-supply-store....-flypage-15201

Its what the guy at the Pet store recommended. But the one u posted looks a lot better and more accurate.

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Yeah, definitely get an Acu-rite (or other digital with probe) if you can... those analog ones are fairly inaccurate, and you need to measure both sides of the tank. There are some threads on using the Acu-rite, which you can probably find with a forum search.

yes digital is best. another thing i noticed, since hes in a glass tank, its recommended that u cover 3/4 of the sides with dark paper to make your bp feel more secure.

and with the water bowl on that side, where do u put the 2nd hide? theres supposed to be one on the warm end, and one on the cooler end.

very very nice looking and colored BP =]

Alright, thanks for all the info. Next time i have time to get to a place that has reptile stuff, ill be sure to pick up a Acu-rite. And another hide, the guy at the pet store told me one hide was all that was needed, guess ill be needing to get a bigger tank too to fit in the extra hide.

The Acu-Rite you can get from WalMart in the section with the lawn stuff. Also, be careful getting a bigger tank, you dont want it too big. My waterbowl is in the corner with the hide on that side in the other corner so they both go on the same side.

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Originally Posted by Nickcb

Alright, thanks for all the info. Next time i have time to get to a place that has reptile stuff, ill be sure to pick up a Acu-rite. And another hide, the guy at the pet store told me one hide was all that was needed, guess ill be needing to get a bigger tank too to fit in the extra hide.

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ya the guys at the pet stores tend to not know much ;p.

the guy at the pet store told ME that a 40g tank with an UTH (no t stat required), 1 half log hide, and a heat lamp will do just fine for my baby bp

Ok, so i've been cruising around on here for a few days have have seen several references about people thinking a tank might be too big. I'm curious, what's the down side of a large tank? I just aquired my set up from some folks off craigslist and the tank is a 90 gal., which is huge, I know. But is there really a down side, or is it just harder to maintain the correct conditions in a larger tank that is the concern? I suppose to some degree its a waste of space, but I want to make sure its not going to be a detriment to her health to have that big a space.