please help me I found a snake

Hi everyone

I was walking home from school the other day and I found a snake, a ball python. There was no houses nearby really so I didnt knock and see if it was theirs. I recognized it because my cousin used to have one. He is black and gold, the kind you see at the pet store. I am really afraid of snakes but its cold here only 55-60 degrees and I couldn't just leave him there because I think that is too cold. I thought he was dead but I poked him with a stick and he moved so I picked him up with my sweater and shoved it inside my jacket for warmth.

My mom doesnt want anything to do with it so I have it in a little rubbermaid tub thing not very big, maybe 2 feet by 1 foot. It is a big snake, maybe 2 or 3 feet long and a little bit bigger around than a quarter but I did not measure. I dont know what to do with it. I cant put him back outside because he will die. his rubbermaid tub has holes poked in it and some water and a paper towel on the bottom and I put it on my heating blanket but I dont know how to take care of him.

he is moving around now, slithering around the tub. What do I feed him? What else does he need? i have some allowance saved up so I can buy what he needs. I probably have 200 dollars. I am afraid of him a lot but he doesnt seem like he will bite and I want to make sure he gets taken care of amd I want to learn to not be so scared of snakes. can i keep it in a fish tank type thing? We have a 5 gallon one that isnt being used. should I get a heating lamp and a hidey hut for him?

Sorry i cant post pictures, I just have a flip phone with a broken camera. I will try to borrow my friends this week. I would really appreciate some help.

Where are you located? But if it is 2-3 feet long is should be tons thicker than a quarter if it's a ball python.

I have an update. I am in Idaho, first of all. I think he is smaller than I thought maybe closer to 2 feet. I found a water dish for him, one of the stainless steel wide based dishes we had for our cat. I cut holes into some cleaned deli containers for him to hide in. what kind of heater does he need? there are a lot of kinds of basking lamps. I can go to the pet store and get things. Can he use cedar bedding? how do I feed it?

Yes a UTH is needed. Never use pine or cedar as substrate. I use ecoearth coconut fiber. Hot side at approx 92. Cool side at approx. 82. Humidity no lower than 50 bit I try to keep mine up around 65-75 percent.

I have a bp that is approx 31" and she is approx 4 or 5 inches in diameter.

I use aspen or the cypress mulch.

I have a bp that is approx 31" and she is approx 4 or 5 inches in diameter. My guess is its likely a garter snake which is native to idaho. I would Google pics of ball pythons as well as native species of snake. Ball pythons are nocturnal so it's unlikely it would be laying put in the middle of the road. Garters are known to sun themselves.

Hard to imagine it surviving out there in winter. We have had a mild winter on the West coast here though because of El Nino so it is possible if the snake was recently released. Since ball pythons don't hibernate during winter months like other snakes that naturally live out here, it must have been a recent release, unless it's not a ball python. The only thing you have in Idaho is humidity these days.

You sure it's a ball?

Yeaaaah, are you sure that's a bp? If it's 2-3 feet long I'd imagine it should be a lot bigger around. My 5 month old hatchling is bigger around than that, and she's just under 2 feet nose tip to tail. I'm guessing the poor thing is super emaciated if that's an accurate estimate.

But $200 and a tupperware tub, we can make this work. A lot of people here actually keep their snakes in tubs on a permanent basis, myself included. You want a correct sized one, probably a 28 or 32 qt from Walmart or Homedepot or the like will work. Okay, first thing, run to your local pet shop and grab of of these zoomed thermostats and a heat pad.

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...DL._SY355_.jpg

This is gonna be the largest chunk of your change, but it is absolutely the most critical part of your setup as you can not run your heat unregulated, it will get too hot and burn or kill the snake. Walmart should have the right sized tubs (look for Sterilite or Rubbermaid brand storage containers) and while you're there grab an Accurite thermometer/hygrometer for your temps and humidity. Last things you can grab at Walmart too, or even go to a local dollar store type place. Find some plastic bowls that are opaque, and just sized enough that the snake would touch all the sides with it's body when it's coiled up, and one of those ceramic pet water dishes.

Once you get your loot home, you got a little DIY to do. Either cut access holes into the bowls, or get someone else to do it if you're not confident in doing it yourself. You'll need to put holes into the sides of the tub for ventilation too, but that can easily be done with a soldering iron, or even a hot glue gun if you have one. Once you get those prepared, proceed to set up your snake tub following this guide. Your target temps are gonna be a 78-80F ambient, 88-90 hotspot, and humidity at about 60%. You can use paper towels for substrate. Keep the snake and his setup some place warm and quiet, a bedroom with a closed door is best.

For reference, here's a pick of one of my girls' tubs sans thermometer/hygrometer. The black strip in the back is the heat tape (you only need a single pad for one tub) and the red glowing numbers you see down in the bottom right is my thermostat.

https://36.media.tumblr.com/be5890b8...bnigo1_540.jpg

I am sure he looks just like the pictures when I google ball python, but he is the black and gold one, not one of the other colors. he even has the little holes by where his nose is along his mouth. (what are those?) he is black with gold blotches on his sides and a bit of a gold stripe down his back near the tail. he has a gold stripe going through each eye too.

Can you post a picture of the snake? Based on where you are and how big around you say it really sounds like it's not likely a ball python. This could be important because if it's something common in your area like a garter you'll have to spend a lot less money on equipment to keep it happy.

thank you LizardLicks that is super helpful! I have a tub like that I can use, it has craft stuff in it but I can take it out. I opened my container and looked at him and I think he is shorter and fatter than I first thought. I put him in there and he curled up so it was hard to tell. I will try and get a better estimate of thickness and length.

I do have a hot glue gun so i can poke holes in my container. i will do that and put his things in there and move him over. I dont have anything to keep him super warm right now but I will keep him on the heating blanket on low maybe.

this is on my list:

heating pad
thermostat
thermometer
I had bedding but I will stick to paper towels for now

they really dont need any thing else? I have the black deli cups for his hidey huts if I have extra money I might get nicer ones. Does the pet store sell mice to feed him? when should I try and feed him? how do I do it?

I can try to post a picture this week, i will try and borrow a friends camera from school. my phones screen is broken so I cant take one with it.

He sounds very emancipated. I would take him to a vet to get him checked. Whoever had him was not taking care of him and was no doubt starving him. Is he round of is he triangular? If he is some what triangular than he is for sure under weight.

might be a pastel

i'm waiting for pictures

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Originally Posted by shaneswife828

Never use pine or cedar as substrate.

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You can use pine as substrate.

okay I definitely am not good at scale, he is bigger than i thought around but shorter. maybe a silver dollar instead of a quarter. it was hard to tell and then I put him in the container and havent opened it since then, just was trying to look through the sides and he was all curled up. he is mostly round looking to me but his back has some angle to it. he is probably 2 feetish I will try to measure better when he stretches out he was crawling around but he is in a ball in his deli cup hidey hole now.

his colors are a lot like this picture I found, some that I see have black spots in all of the blotches but his are mostly solid gold with only a few having black spots inside.

http://www.worldofballpythons.com/fi...normal/001.jpg

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Originally Posted by 200xth

You can use pine as substrate.

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From a vet tech stand point pine and cedar both are bad for almost all animals. For rodents we recommended care fresh, aspen, or shredded newspaper(yesterdays news works as well). for ball pythons and the likes we recommended coconut fiber, reptile carpet, birch bark, newspaper,paper towels, aspen, and such. Pine and cedar have oils in them that are harmful. They can cause respiratory issues, skin and scale issues, and worse. I have snakes come in with damaged ventral scales do to the pine bedding their owner was using. After switching from the pine the problem stopped. Any "good" reptile owner will tell you to avoid pine at all cost as well as cedar. I have a feeling more people will agree with me rather than disagree. A quick google search will tell you that both cedar and pine are not good substrate for any animal whether it be mammalian or reptilian.

I would start by feeding him a weaned rat ever 5-7 days until he fills out more. Try frozen thawed first. If he won't take it place it in his tub cover it and let him alone for awhile and he may eat it. If he won't take the frozen thawed than he was likely live fed which means he will need to be fed live rats of the appropriate size(approx the same size as the widest part of the snake. Once he/she has gained to the appropriate weight feeding every 7 days will be fine. I feed my girl one frozen thawed rat every 7 days and the vet said she is ideal.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by shaneswife828

Yes a UTH is needed. Never use pine or cedar as substrate. I use ecoearth coconut fiber. Hot side at approx 92. Cool side at approx. 82. Humidity no lower than 50 bit I try to keep mine up around 65-75 percent.

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A uth is not always necessary. Many keepers heat the room only and have thriving collections.

If a hotspot is offered I like it to be 88-92, with the ambient temp 76-85.

Humidity does not need to stay above 50. During a shed it needs a boost but I get perfect sheds with my humidity staying in the 30-40% range.

Also a vet check is gonna deplete the $200 budget real quick.

Op, check out the caresheet. http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ius)-Caresheet

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Originally Posted by KMG

A uth is not always necessary. Many keepers heat the room only and have thriving collections.

If a hotspot is offered I like it to be 88-92, with the ambient temp 76-85.

Humidity does not need to stay above 50. During a shed it needs a boost but I get perfect sheds with my humidity staying in the 30-40% range.

Op, check out the caresheet. http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ius)-Caresheet

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yes but since it's her only snake I have a feeling she isn't going to want her room up at 80 degrees lol.

Where abouts in Idaho do you live? I'm over in Spokane, if you're near the area I can suggest some local places to get mice for him. None that I know of sell appropriately sized rats frozen, and the ones that sell live only have the rats stocked occasionally (they sell quick, either as pets or as food) so you might be limited to mice. You can order frozen prekilled rats online though. He's likely very stressed from his roaming adventure outside in the cold, and stressed BPs are notorious for being finicky eaters, so you probably want to give him a couple days to get settled in after you get his set up squared away. Then you can start by offering him a prey item that's about the thickness of his body. Oh, get a pair of feeding tongs or a hemostat to feed him with, as you don't want to put your hand into a snake's cage when feeding where he could mistake it as part of the mouse. If you have the cash after everything else, you should pick up a heat gun too. You'll use it to double check your temps in the enclosure, and you can use it like I do to check to temp of a heated up f/t food item.

You can try offering live or frozen/thawed, but there is a proper way for each. I would personally try live for the first couple of feedings to make sure he's got a few good meals in him, then try making the switch to f/t. If you get live, make sure you stand by and watch so you can intervene if the mouse or rat decides to take a bite out of your snake. If he doesn't act interested, remove the prey, DO NOT leave it in with the snake. That's a sure fire way to come back to a chewed up snake

When you want to try f/t let it defrost slowly, then heat it up to live temps when you're ready to feed. I way I do it is I put mine in a cup of cool water in the morning, then run it under the hot tap water in the evening before I feed them. Live rats and mice have a body heat of around 101F. My hot water comes out of the tap at around 115-120F, I leave my rat pups under it long enough for them to temp at around 109F with the temp gun, and then by the time I get them up stairs and ready for eating they've cooled off another couple of degrees so their just a little warmer. Others will use a hair dryer or a heat lamp. Some forum members swear by heating the rats/mice up in the room so the snake can small it and get hungry. You might also find you need to wiggle the prey around at the end of the tongs to make it do the "zombie mouse dance" to entice a snake to eat.

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Originally Posted by shaneswife828

yes but since it's her only snake I have a feeling she isn't going to want her room up at 80 degrees lol.

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I know I don't but a small space heater and a utility room or closet could be an easy option.



Op, I think we need to make sure this is a ball python before you start spending money and effort on it. You must know somebody that could snap a pic and email it to you. You have a laptop with webcam?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by KMG

I know I don't but a small space heater and a utility room or closet could be an easy option.



Op, I think we need to make sure this is a ball python before you start spending money and effort on it. You must know somebody that could snap a pic and email it to you. You have a laptop with webcam?

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beautiful blood in your profile pic.:)

Thank again everyone!

I am smack in western idaho in Boise, there is a petco here. I do have a friend who can take a picture I think but its late on a school night it will have to be later this week. I dont have a laptop just a desktop the family shares. Would the pet store employees know? I could bring him there and ask them, but I am 99% certain it is a ball python with his coloring and heat pits (I looked up what they are called). I dont mind feeding him mice I think I would like to try frozen ones first though. Mom said she would bring me to petco tomorrow if I need to go after school

Quote:

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Originally Posted by shaneswife828

From a vet tech stand point pine and cedar both are bad for almost all animals. For rodents we recommended care fresh, aspen, or shredded newspaper(yesterdays news works as well). for ball pythons and the likes we recommended coconut fiber, reptile carpet, birch bark, newspaper,paper towels, aspen, and such. Pine and cedar have oils in them that are harmful. They can cause respiratory issues, skin and scale issues, and worse. I have snakes come in with damaged ventral scales do to the pine bedding their owner was using. After switching from the pine the problem stopped. Any "good" reptile owner will tell you to avoid pine at all cost as well as cedar. I have a feeling more people will agree with me rather than disagree. A quick google search will tell you that both cedar and pine are not good substrate for any animal whether it be mammalian or reptilian.

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I have 21 snakes on pine. There are people on here ("good" people, too) who have kept snakes on pine for much longer than you or I.

I hope the snake will be ok. You are doing very well for someone who is afraid of snakes. Keep up the good work. I can't wait to see a pic of the little guy/girl.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Quote:

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Originally Posted by shaneswife828

From a vet tech stand point pine and cedar both are bad for almost all animals. For rodents we recommended care fresh, aspen, or shredded newspaper(yesterdays news works as well). for ball pythons and the likes we recommended coconut fiber, reptile carpet, birch bark, newspaper,paper towels, aspen, and such. Pine and cedar have oils in them that are harmful. They can cause respiratory issues, skin and scale issues, and worse. I have snakes come in with damaged ventral scales do to the pine bedding their owner was using. After switching from the pine the problem stopped. Any "good" reptile owner will tell you to avoid pine at all cost as well as cedar. I have a feeling more people will agree with me rather than disagree. A quick google search will tell you that both cedar and pine are not good substrate for any animal whether it be mammalian or reptilian.

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Pine is fine. Even for an "emancipated" ball python.

The fact that you recommended reptile carpet is cute.

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Originally Posted by AliceE

I am sure he looks just like the pictures when I google ball python, but he is the black and gold one, not one of the other colors. he even has the little holes by where his nose is along his mouth. (what are those?) he is black with gold blotches on his sides and a bit of a gold stripe down his back near the tail. he has a gold stripe going through each eye too.

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Sounds like a bp to me! Main thing now is rewarming and rehydration! Secondary would be decreasing stress levels and monitoring for any signs of illness and or severe cold exposure. Good job AliceE.:gj: :gj:

Yeah, petco is only going to sell frozen mice. They don't have f/t rat pups, only small medium and large adult f/t rats, they won't sell you the live ones as feeders, or if they think you're going to use it as a feeder, and even if you buy them sneakily, they're still way more expensive than what you would pay for a feeder mouse/rat elsewhere because they're intended as pets. Search around and see if there are any local reptile stores. This place is in Boise, idk how close to you it is, but they might carry better live and frozen feeders than petco. Probably more knowledgeable and can identify the snake too. If you feel you want to keep the snake long term, you can order bulk f/t rats online from lots of different places and usually for much cheaper, but it takes a couple weeks for orders to ship, so stock up locally until then. I get my rats from Big Cheese, and so far I haven't been disappointed in quality.

Alice, please keep us updated. I'm very interested to see a BP who survived the temps in Idaho. They don't really need much if it's a ball python. They do sometimes get stressed if they are in a big open cage. That (and some BP's like to climb) is the main reason people add lots of fake plants and whatnot. As long as you have two hides (preferably the same) on each end they can be whatever type you want. Well, more so whatever the snake wants. If the snake is comfy in a black plastic one, choose the black plastic one.

if you do get a heat mat (UTH) make sure it's outside of the enclosure and on a THERMOSTAT. Not a thermometer. If Uth's aren't regulated they like to burn your snakes.

Newspaper (not the shiny add type) and paper towel is just fine for substrate.

Give him/her fresh water and make sure the cage is humid enough for it. Start looking into vets around the area that deal with exotics. Petsmart/petco are fine to get a frozen feeder from. Size wise, the food should be no bigger than the snakes fattest belly section. A "pointy" spine is an indicator of underweight (and possible dehydration).

Let us know how it goes!

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Originally Posted by Lizardlicks

Jeez guys, I look away for 5 minutes... :confusd:

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Me too... OP please keep us updated. I have not posted because everyone else gave the advice I would have.

Hi everyone

I no longer have the snake. We called up my cousin this morning, the one I mentioned in the first post who used to have a ball python (I guess still has some of them). He is a few hours out but he agreed to come down and take a look after school so he met me at my house. He said it is a normal ball python and looked decent and is probably young but he said the breathing sounded bad and he would need a vet visit, and that was why he was probably put outside beause he is sick. Mom did not want to pay to take him to the vet so my cousin offered to take him and give him a home, he has a few others and said he would be brought to the vet and kept separate from the other snakes until he is better. He said he has most of the necessary things but will pick up what else he needs from the pet store on his way home.

He showed me some pictures of his snakes, he has gotten a few more since I remember last. he says they are all ball pythons but he called one a clown snake? It was really pretty. He has three total, four including the new one. I wont lie I am a little bit sad, I am afraid of snakes but I kind of liked him he was very curious and I was kind of warming up to him, I even petted him goodbye a little bit before they left.

Thank you for your help anyways, though. Maybe I will stick around and learn some more and get one of my own some day.

Although you weren't able to keep your new pet, I am very happy he has a loving home and hey, now you can visit him/her! Thanks for being a caring individual and picking the snake up. Especially, since you are afraid of snakes, that was brave and thoughtful of you. I wish the snake good luck in his new home!

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Originally Posted by AliceE

Hi everyone

I no longer have the snake. We called up my cousin this morning, the one I mentioned in the first post who used to have a ball python (I guess still has some of them). He is a few hours out but he agreed to come down and take a look after school so he met me at my house. He said it is a normal ball python and looked decent and is probably young but he said the breathing sounded bad and he would need a vet visit, and that was why he was probably put outside beause he is sick. Mom did not want to pay to take him to the vet so my cousin offered to take him and give him a home, he has a few others and said he would be brought to the vet and kept separate from the other snakes until he is better. He said he has most of the necessary things but will pick up what else he needs from the pet store on his way home.

He showed me some pictures of his snakes, he has gotten a few more since I remember last. he says they are all ball pythons but he called one a clown snake? It was really pretty. He has three total, four including the new one. I wont lie I am a little bit sad, I am afraid of snakes but I kind of liked him he was very curious and I was kind of warming up to him, I even petted him goodbye a little bit before they left.

Thank you for your help anyways, though. Maybe I will stick around and learn some more and get one of my own some day.

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Haha yeah, ball pythons can easily live well into their thirties or longer if they're well taken care of. Does not surprise me your cousin still has his, sounds like he's taking pretty good care of them. Even has a quarantine practice in place, good on him! You're more than welcome to hang out here and ask any questions you'd like. I hope this positive experience helped you warm up to snakes a little. who knows, maybe you'll get a nice healthy one for your own pet some day. :gj:

This thread was definitely hijacked...and I just read through it stupidly.....but glad something was figures out for the snake.....sorry to the OP for the nonsense.

Glad to hear the snake found a good home. This is the place to be if you're curious or think you'd be interested in getting one sometime!

Even though your thread was derailed over a completely petty argument, I am very glad to hear the snake has found a good home. Thank you for caring about that animal's life and doing what you could to help, even if you were afraid. It speaks volumes. :gj:

To the OP, thanks for the update on the snake! Maybe this was meant to be your way of getting into the BP world. :) Anyways, welcome and I hope at least one day you'll be able to get over your fear (which really doesn't seem like you have) and get one of your own. Oh and we apologize for the bickering. Usually most people have more common sense than that.

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Originally Posted by AliceE

Hi everyone

I wont lie I am a little bit sad, I am afraid of snakes but I kind of liked him he was very curious and I was kind of warming up to him, I even petted him goodbye a little bit before they left.

Thank you for your help anyways, though. Maybe I will stick around and learn some more and get one of my own some day.

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I am a 6' 3... 300 lb man that is known to be manly from friends and family etc, and this almost made me tear up at work lmao. My heart sank. Last time I felt like this is the end of the Disney movie "The fox and the hound" when i was a kid."

I hope you get a snake for yourself!

In all seriousness though, OP: you did an amazing job and that little snake has you to thank for saving its life. Not many people show such compassion and dedication for things that scare them. It's sad to see him go, but if you get really interested in reptiles you'll be able to enjoy them at your own pace. With any luck maybe your cousin will even give back the little guy you rescued! Don't let the disagreements in this thread detract from how you handled things. You owe yourself a hearty pat on the back!

Good job rescuing him/her! :grouphug:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by AliceE

Hi everyone

I no longer have the snake. We called up my cousin this morning, the one I mentioned in the first post who used to have a ball python (I guess still has some of them). He is a few hours out but he agreed to come down and take a look after school so he met me at my house. He said it is a normal ball python and looked decent and is probably young but he said the breathing sounded bad and he would need a vet visit, and that was why he was probably put outside beause he is sick. Mom did not want to pay to take him to the vet so my cousin offered to take him and give him a home, he has a few others and said he would be brought to the vet and kept separate from the other snakes until he is better. He said he has most of the necessary things but will pick up what else he needs from the pet store on his way home.

He showed me some pictures of his snakes, he has gotten a few more since I remember last. he says they are all ball pythons but he called one a clown snake? It was really pretty. He has three total, four including the new one. I wont lie I am a little bit sad, I am afraid of snakes but I kind of liked him he was very curious and I was kind of warming up to him, I even petted him goodbye a little bit before they left.

Thank you for your help anyways, though. Maybe I will stick around and learn some more and get one of my own some day.

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I'm pretty sure everyone on here is happy you took the time and had the caring heart to help a creature so far out of its element. Thank you for the update!

AliceE, I'm glad you were able to find a good home for the snake. To those complaining about derailment, wasted time, etc.. AliceE asked for advice on how to setup a snake. Their was a conflict of opinion on a discussion forum. I'm not sure what you were expecting if not a... discussion?

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Originally Posted by python_addict

This thread was definitely hijacked...and I just read through it stupidly.....but glad something was figures out for the snake.....sorry to the OP for the nonsense.

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Originally Posted by WarriorPrincess90

Even though your thread was derailed over a completely petty argument....

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All fixed


Alright the thread has now been re-opened (after some slight clean up) for those wishing to continue the "great pine debate" you can continue to do so here http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...at-pine-debate

Now back to our regular ON TOPIC programming.