Questions Regarding My 2 Ball Pythons

Hi, I have 2 ball pythons , I don't think they are adults yet..

I have them both in a 10 gal dose this mean one is a boy and one is a girl or can the same genders be together and act good , like not fighting with each other?


One of my snakes have 2 silver eyes, I have read about this but I don't want to hurt my snake . Will they silver eyes fall off by its self?

How many times should I feed them?

Should I pick them up every day?


Any other helpful tips?

Doesnt sound like you have done much research on ball pythons. But I feed mine once a week but babies i want to get to breeding size quick(mostly new males) I feed twice a week. You dont have to handle them everyday either. And If they are hatchling i guess you could keep them in a 10 gal as long as it has proper heat, humidity, and hides and a water bowl. I Like rack systems better than aquariums though. If they are adults 10 gal wont be enough for 2 adults. How much do they weigh and how old are they?

I would not recommend housing the two snakes together. If one gets ill the other will certainly become ill as well. The silver eyes you are seeing could be that your snake is in shed or it could be retained eye caps. You need to make sure your humidity is adequate for when the snakes are in shed. Please take a look at the caresheets that we have here and that will help you with any questions that you may have, and if you still have questions after reading the caresheets, please don't hesitate to ask. There are a lot of knowledgeable people on this forum that would love to help you out.

1. Welcome to BP.net. There's a ton of good info on here.
2. Seperate the snakes. You need one enclosure per animal.
3. Check on the caresheets here for setting up the enclosures for each snake.
4. Once a week feeding is fairly normal. But if you don't have proper heat/humidity/cages you may not end up with well feeding healthy snakes.

Posting pictures and specifics as to your cage would help a lot. What kind of thermostat do you have to control the temps? What sort of heat? What kind of hides?

Looking forward to pictures of your new snakes!

Don't put 2 snakes in one tank you havint been doing research

Here is the caresheet if you haven't found it on the site yet: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ius)-Caresheet

As others have said, please separate them, they both need their own enclosure.

For 2 being in a 10 gallon that seems a bit small, even for hatchings (IMO) but since you are on the fence about them being adults or not I'm assuming they are not hatchlings and probably subadults. Do you have a scale? If not, I recommend getting one asap, I got mine for $15 at Walmart (get a food digital scale). Once you know weights we can better recommend a good sized tank (or tub which is what I personally recommend) for your two BPs.

As for feeding, I recommend either every 5 days to every 7 days. Again, if you know the weight of your snakes in grams we can give you recommendations on what sized prey they need if you're unsure (or you can eyeball it yourself: feed a prey thats about the same size as the largest part of your snake's body (width)). I would again assume that they arn't hatchlings and they can be taking at least adult mice right now.

Handling: I wouldn't handle everyday as this could stress out your snake, but a few times a week is perfect IMO. Don't handle 1-2 days after feeding.

Hope that helps!

There both in a 10 gal for now probably for another week or two. My cuz bought me them one for me and one for my sister..

Right now they both have silver eye caps, I think they are shedding do they usually get this before they shed?

I'm going to upload some picture soon maybe in a hour or two... Im moving sometime this week into my new apartment and when I do I am going to separate them both each in its own 10 gal tank.

One already bitten my sister because she touched it right after they ate..

I am going to take a look at the Caresheet right now and study it..

I have had a red tail boa for about 3 years its about 5ft.

Everyone gave great advice.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ReMiXeDg

Right now they both have silver eye caps, I think they are shedding do they usually get this before they shed?

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If you're referring to the fact that its eye has some silver in the iris than thats normal. Lots of normals have silver or gold in there eyes. If you were refering to the eyes being completely cloudy looking then yes, that is the "opaque" or "blue" stage of the shed cycle. Just keep your humidity right during this time, even providing a humid hide is a good idea if the tank is on the dryer side.

Good luck on your move and keep reading :). We are never done learning about these awesome animals.

how can i control the humidity?

I recommend getting an acurite indoor outdoor thermometer/hygrometer. If the humidity starts to fall, use a spray bottle and most the enclosure to get it back up.

Hi,

Is there any way to get nice clear pics of these "silver eyes" - I ask because it could be describing a normal shed or stuck eyecaps and it is important to know which before we give you advice. :gj:


dr del

Alright , I just finish taking some photos. Its the best I can do right now, as The snakes are sleeping (i think) and they are not active...

Here is a photo of my Red Tail Boa,
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k4...4/100_0019.jpg
And its 35 gal tank, (well i think it is)
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k4...4/100_0020.jpg

Here is one of the Ball Pythons face, See what I'm talking about with they eyes?
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k4...4/100_0017.jpg
And the body,
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k4...4/100_0017.jpg

Heres a photo before i moved anything or touch them, they both under the water bowl,
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k4...4/100_0006.jpg

Then after I moved the water bowl,
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k4...4/100_0007.jpg
Here's another one
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k4...4/100_0005.jpg

And then the tank it's self
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k4...4/100_0004.jpg

Please give me any tips, I notice on one snake the silver eye diapered or what ever you want to call it....


P.S I am going to buy more stuff for them once I get them both a separate tank.

As for the lighting I have a black light witch gives off a lot of heat, when should I turn it on and off?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dr del

Hi,

Is there any way to get nice clear pics of these "silver eyes" - I ask because it could be describing a normal shed or stuck eyecaps and it is important to know which before we give you advice. :gj:


dr del

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They where silver like really silver where it looked like they could not see like a cover .. for example like this
http://justballpythons.com/bpfaq_eyecap.jpg

are those photos good? or do you need another one?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ReMiXeDg

how can i control the humidity?

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This is what I use. It's easier than misting and allows the snake to choose when it wants to go in or out of the more humid environment. Plus it helps keep ambient humidity up.

Humid Hide - Sterilite tub with hole in the side, Forest Bedding reptile substrate inside and kept damp, not wet.

http://ball-pythons.net/gallery/file...4/100_7867.jpg

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jsmorphs2

This is what I use. It's easier than misting and allows the snake to choose when it wants to go in or out of the more humid environment. Plus it helps keep ambient humidity up.

Humid Hide - Sterilite tub with hole in the side, Forest Bedding reptile substrate inside and kept damp, not wet.

http://ball-pythons.net/gallery/file...4/100_7867.jpg

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Thanks, I'm going to make something like this once I get a bigger tank and after I move into my new place. I never knew there was so much you could do for these snakes and the creativity you could use :)

Looking at your pics, the first thing is that they need some good, tight fitting hide boxes. And definitely separate them as soon as you can. Second, the silver on the snake's eye in the last picture is a retained eye cap. I would just leave it alone, bump up your humidity and MAKE SURE the humidity is hight for it's next shed. It should come off at that time. If it DOESN'T there are a few tricks you can try but I'll save those for the instance it doesn't come off with the next shed.

I am having second thoughts on there eyes looking like that example picture I posted it was not that much silver but it was silver


I also notice there belly is pinkiess.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ReMiXeDg

Thanks, I'm going to make something like this once I get a bigger tank and after I move into my new place. I never knew there was so much you could do for these snakes and the creativity you could use :)

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No problem :). There is a whole Do-It-Yourself (DIY) forum on this site that is FULL of useful, easy to make stuff for your snakes.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ReMiXeDg

I am having second thoughts on there eyes looking like that example picture I posted it was not that much silver but it was silver


I also notice there belly is pinkiess.

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Can you get a picture of your snakes eyes? I'm thinking they are just going into shed and their eyes are clouding over which is perfectly normal. Also, a pink cast to the snakes entire belly is also perfectly normal in that stage of the shed cycle.

They have not shed sins I got them and if you look at the pics the head of one of them is starting to peel. I think 100% they are shedding I feed them like 3 days ago is it most likely they are? Also when I look now there eyes well I only check one didn't look how it did before and it looks normal.


When is the next time I should feed them? After the shed or in a week or two?



Thanks spoooo much guys if it was not for this site I would be worried and stressing a lot .

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ReMiXeDg

They have not shed sins I got them and if you look at the pics the head of one of them is starting to peel. I think 100% they are shedding I feed them like 3 days ago is it most likely they are? Also when I look now there eyes well I only check one didn't look how it did before and it looks normal.


When is the next time I should feed them? After the shed or in a week or two?



Thanks spoooo much guys if it was not for this site I would be worried and stressing a lot .

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Sounds like a regular shed. Keep the humidity up and after they shed always check to see if the shed has BOTH eye caps attached to it (or at least check to make sure the eye caps came off the snake). I would feed them on your normal schedule (its best to feed them once a week). Since you fed them 3 days ago they should be ready to eat in another 4 days.

For your boa: is that a photo of what is always in the enclosure or is there anything missing from it (like a water bowl)?

Lol I did not even notice there was no water bowl, shed actually laying in it still right now. I'm going to have to change the water first thing in the morning. Also I'm wanting to get her a bigger bowl once I get my pay check . Thanks for pointing that out.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ReMiXeDg

Lol I did not even notice there was no water bowl, shed actually laying in it still right now. I'm going to have to change the water first thing in the morning. Also I'm wanting to get her a bigger bowl once I get my pay check . Thanks for pointing that out.

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Also so suggestions for her set up too:

How are you measuring temps?
Is she always in a windowsill?
Do you usually have something in there for her (a hide, fake plants, a log or something to climb on)?
And do you have a UTH for her or just the heat lamp?

Only reason I ask is that if she's always in a windowsill and that part of your house gets a lot of sunlight in (if you have the blinds always open) that can get really hot if the boa is in the direct sunlight. Plus being in a tank and I would image she could be roasting in there.

If you don't have a reliable thermometer in there (I use acurite ones from Walmart, the stick on guage ones that are sold in pet stores arn't accurate) then you don't know the acutal temps in there. There's free standing ones for ambient temps then ones with probes to put over the hot spots.

My boas LOVE their fake plants, and I have hides for them as well that they use from time to time. Your tank is very open, maybe she'd like something to "play" in and if you make her set up more jungle-y you might enjoy the new set up better as well.

Using both a UTH and a heat mat could work (if you're house gets extra chilly) but it could make things too hot as well. Do you have dimmers/thermostats controlling both devices?

The sun never really hits onto any of the tanks, and they both stay by the window I live in U shape building and am in the middle of the U so the sun never really gets to come into the window and hit the tanks, im going to buy a UTH and plants and some other stuff this week end.

Thanks for the tips.