just got a new ball python

hey i just got my first ball python... yea! i have done alot of reasearch but i still would like some more info. i bought it(i dont know the sex yet) saturday and i let it get used to its habitat for two days but the store said he was last fed tues and i have read that i need to feed him weekly but i also need to give him one week in his new habitat before feeding him. so i dont know what to do. any help?

I would give him 5-7 days to get used to his surroundings and then feed him. It's not going to hurt him to miss a meal. He needs a little time to adjust to his new surroundings. You don't want him thinking there is a mouse living in there with him right? :) Good Luck, and remember not to handle him for at least another 3 days, then food, then 2 days digestion, then play time!

thanks i was also wondering what the chances of him stricking at me during "playtime" is and also what you do during "playtime"

Lol. No, he shouldn't. Just make sure he gets a good meal for the first one. We have a different heat signature than mice and rats, so usually the only time they will strike is if they are hungry and smell a rodent. I have only been struck by hungry hatchlings.

I just let them crawl around my hands. Let him get used to your scent, and the feel of your hands on him. Remember their heads are really sensitive and it will take awhile for him to let you touch it, so avoid that area.

I had one that I could sit on my stomach under my shirt and he would just chill there. You can also just let them crawl around on the floor. You might get a periscope if your quiet. Just make sure you watch him. They can get into the tiniest places.

thanks again. one more thing i dont have a uvb bulb yet (i ordered a zoomed bulb that does everything) and someone told me to just take him outside and let him get it from the sun. can i do this and just let him wander around the yard as long as a keep an eye on him?

Yes, you can take him outside, but he doesn't need any uv at all. They are nocturnal, so they thrive without it. They get all their calcium from the rodents. I don't use any light. There is a little natural sunlight, but not much.

Just make sure where you put him isn't too warm. Check the concrete or where you set him. It can get pretty hot on nice summer days, and their scales can burn easily.

ok in my tank the temp is pretty much 86 degrees constantly but the humidity fluxuates like crazy from like 25% up to 60%. how do i make it more constant and what should it be at?
and thanks again.

i love this forum!!!!!:)

here is a picture of my python
http://www.ball-pythons.net/gallery/...all_python.bmp

he is about a foot and a half

http://ball-pythons.net/modules/Sect...warticle&id=59

Yeah, he should have a hot side of about 92 and a cool side of about 82. He is such a cutie! If you have him in a glass aquarium, cover the top with a damp towel to keep the humidity in. You can also get a tupperware tub and fill it with damp moss or a spone and punch some holes in it. That will also raise humidity.

Please don't forget to get the BP to a vet, preferably one specializing in reptiles. You can ask them to sex it but they will probably decline due to it's small size. Besides, not knowing is kind of fun! First you think you know, then you think you got it wrong, then you reverse course etc... Mine was sold to me as a male, so I gave it a male sounding name. Only to find out later that it was female, but I kept the name anyway.

Back to the vet: A 100% healthy animal is the only acceptable outcome. If it has problems you should take it back, as heartbreaking as that is. If you accept a sick snake you will be far more heartbroken down the road.

Congratulations and enjoy, my BP was the start of my snakes. I only have three total but it lead to a northern pine snake and a boa constrictor. I love em all!

It's easy for me to say but don't be afraid to get bitten. They can't do much damage, it's more of a mental scare than anything. For me the first "swing" was when I did not know what I was doing, and was removing shredded aspen bark bedding from her cage -- right in front of her hide. I heard a whooshing sound and saw a blur as she took a swing at me and went back in. Whoa, FAST!

The only time I did get bitten, it was my fault. I was holding her in front of my computer, and paying more attention to the computer than her. I kept reaching my hand away from her, then back, away, back... sometimes smacking her head with my thumb. Being the patient little thing she is, it was not until the 7th smack that she bit me. I was shocked but I laughed because it was also funny because a BP trying to be angry is just cute.

You'll learn, it just takes time and experience. If you do get bitten, try not to react, in particular try not to yank your hand back as this could break a tiny tooth off. There is a chance that it could then get infected (where the tooth was, in the mouth not on your hand). Try to ensure that the snake gets the idea that threatening to bite you or biting you will not make you go away, this takes persistence but eventually they give up because it doesn't make you go away.