First time Owner: Loads of Questions

Hello, my name is Julie and I am a first time ball python owner (though not by choice) I have always loved snakes, but have never owned one because Ive never had the interest of learning to care for them. Then one day, about a month ago my sister arrived with a cardboard box and a little 15inch or so ball python. Since then I have turned into its mayor caregiver.

I have tried reading up on everything and anything to do with pythons yet this little snake has been a huge worry for me. The pet shop said he/she was eating once a week, frozen mice. I went to another petshop and they said we could start her on hoppers and work our way up so she could eat live prey. I preferred this method as I panick at even the thought of dealing with dead animals, and I kind of enjoy watching snakes hunt lol.

First time she fed, but only after I left the room. Second time, same thing. Third time, after 3 days of trying to get her to eat she did. But she refuses to eat, seems scared of her prey and hides. Today she got bit and boy is it nasty :(

She still has not finished shedding, still has skin on her head and neck and is always lethargic. The pet shop where I buy the mice have ball pythons and they are active, moving from side to side, trying to escape etc. Ive thought about buying a frozen mouse, or even conking the live one over the head (sounds cruel sorry, im too chicken to do it anyway) and trying to feed her but Im positive she will refuse it as well, then i'll be stuck with a rotting mouse.

I dont know what to do anymore, I didnt ask to have her in my care but I would still like to do whats best for her! Please help

#1 question, what is her setup like?

What are the temps and humidity. What are you using to heat? Do you have hides/how many? Is the setup in a high traffic area? How long has she been with you? How often are you attempting to feed? What is the size of the snake compared to the size of the prey?

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Originally Posted by Asherah

#1 question, what is her setup like?

What are the temps and humidity. What are you using to heat? Do you have hides/how many? Is the setup in a high traffic area? How long has she been with you? How often are you attempting to feed? What is the size of the snake compared to the size of the prey?

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My sister bought her one of those reptile kits at the shop, with a water dish, and a little cave. It brought a day lamp and a heating lamp. Ive read that the tank should ve about 80+ degrees is that right? And cooler at night. But because of the temp of my home it never seems to go higher than 80 degrees, though I feel skeptical that the gauge is actually acurate. Humidity is always at about 65 from what I can read on tge gauge. Dont really know how to adjust it but she always has clean water.

She is currently in my room/office, which is higher traffic than when she was in my sisters room, but if my kids are home I will close off the room or throw a towel over the tank.

She has been with us a little over a month I believe. She is very small, about 15 inches or so and when I took her into the pet shop (I know they are not vets but Im doing my best for this little guy or gal) they said hoppers were too small and gave me an adult mouse. I have been attempting to feed once a week as the people at the shop told my sister but she has actually eaten maybe once every 9-11 days.

Then theres the problem that she refuses to eat if anyone is near by. That cannot continue as I refuse to allow her to get bitten again. I will post pics!

http://www.petage.com/wp-content/upl...it-300x300.jpg
Cant for the life of me figure out how to upload a pic. I am using my cell. But this is the kit she has, and we bought Aspen Snake bedding

http://i387.photobucket.com/albums/o...s2/pets053.jpg
Shes also about this small, maybe bigger its hard to compare from photos but shes just over a foot long. 15 inches max

I am a beginner as well... only having my first snake, a ball python, for just a week and a half. I like to think I've done some of my homework... I'll pass on what I know, and believe to be sound knowledge. Hopefully more of the experienced folks will chime in and correct me if I'm wrong.

- Cage - Her enclosure should have a warm spot, around 90 degrees, and a cool side, around 80 degrees. You need a thermometer at both sides so you can adjust as close to these temps as possible. You also need two hides for the snake. one on each side. Ball Pythons like to hide most of the time. Putting one on both sides allows them to be hidden at what ever temperature they need to be at any given time.

- feeding - If she was eating frozen before, you should keep her eating frozen. For one, as you found out, it's safer for the snake. secondly, it's easier to store frozen mice than live ones. Thawing and heating them is simple. Just put them in a small Ziploc bag and put it in warm water for 15 minutes, then put the bag in some pretty hot water for about 5 minutes, then remove the rodent with tongs and present it to the snake. She'll probably take it right away. If the snake doesn't eat in a few minutes, wait a day or two and try again.

If the snake has been bitten by prey, you should probably take it to a reptile vet to get checked out. First and foremost, get the cage warm enough and give the snake a few hides to choose from. It needs to be the same temperate at night as it does during the day, just without lights. Night time needs to be dark, but warm. Humidity is good at 50-60% with a little higher during shed. Once you get the cage set, leave her alone for a few days. It's good to cover the cage if there is a lot of open traffic near her. I think once she's settled in and stress free, the feeding and shedding will work themselves out.

Best of luck!!

Ok , it sounds like there are a few things that can be tweaked. Pictures of the actual setup and snake would be great.

Your ambient temps in the enclosure should be in the low 80's but she should have a hot spot of 90. There is no need to drop the temps at night.
Incorrect temps can be a factor in food refusal.

Also from the sound of her the mice you are giving her might be too large. They should be about the same diameter as the largest part of her body. When she eats them they should make a noticeable bump but they should not be so large that she struggles to get them down.

Try keeping her in a nice, quite corner of your house. Provide lots of clutter and hides in the tank so that she feels safe. For feeding as long as she has struck and coiled the mouse she will be fine to leave alone and eat in peace. However, you should never leave a live rodent unattended with the snake. Oftentimes the snake will become the prey and get chewed on.

Hopefully this helps and you get your little one eating again.

Thank you for the responses! I will definately get her a new spot to hide, wish I could actually post pucs but I dont see an option of uploading pics, just putting a link.

She basically has har rock in one end, the water dish in the other, and I have been alternating the heat lamp from one side to the other in her 20 long tank. Getting a second gauge for the temperature sounds like a good idea.

Now how do I go about increasing humidity if need be? And with frozen mice, if she refuses to eat, can the same mouse be used or does it go bad?

I feel so guilty for not knowing these things, but I am very glad I found tgis forum, I feel alot better getting advice from real people rather than google.

You can make another hide out of a bowl or plastic container you may have around the house. an old cool-whip bowl or a black take-out plastic bowl would work. Cut out a little door and go over the edge of the cut-out with a lighter to smooth the plastic a little, and there you go. simple and cheap.

If you need to increase the humidity, you can get a spray bottle and mist some water in there a few times a day. Depending on how you heat, the humidity could stay well, or evaporate quickly.

the Frozen mice... if she refuses to eat... some will say throw it away, others say you can keep it for a day or two. Being that you can get them for about a dollar or less, I'd probably throw it away to be safe. If you go the pet store and they have frozen mice, you'll want a frozen hopper mouse. that should be a decent size for your snake if it's as small as you mentioned above.

http://ball-pythons.net/gallery/file...8/imag0199.jpg

Tank Set Up...I took everyones advice and improvised a second hideout but I think the opening is too big! Will post another pic, but I am on a cell phone and doing this tge hard way!

http://ball-pythons.net/gallery/file...8/imag0122.jpg

I know you've spent some money on the aquarium and all that so this may be hard to hear, but the best thing for your snake is to go buy a cheap Sterilite 15 quart tub (I like this one: http://www.sterilite.com/SelectProdu...=252&section=1 ) at Target or Walmart. Then read this thread: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...e-Basics-*DUW*

Make a basic tub setup and your snake will be much happier and start eating. I've had two baby snakes that just couldn't handle the glass aquarium and turned around within about a week in the tub enclosure.

Wow...that just looks complicated. My sister bought the snake and its enclosure and since then I am the one caring for it. I will keep covering the tank, and hopefully with an additional hide and proper humidity she will start to feel happier. I will move soon and will have a walk in closet which if need be I can make the arrangments to put her in there.

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Originally Posted by treaux

I know you've spent some money on the aquarium and all that so this may be hard to hear, but the best thing for your snake is to go buy a cheap Sterilite 15 quart tub (I like this one: http://www.sterilite.com/SelectProdu...=252&section=1 ) at Target or Walmart. Then read this thread: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...e-Basics-*DUW*

Make a basic tub setup and your snake will be much happier and start eating. I've had two baby snakes that just couldn't handle the glass aquarium and turned around within about a week in the tub enclosure.

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I would clutter the tank a little more to make her feel better and to help humidity you can put plastic wrap on half of the screen top (I do that with mine). Also a heating pad from a pet store will create a hot spot if you don't have one already.


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You've already got a tank, no need to go buy another enclosure. Tanks are not the best for ball pythons, but they can certainly be made perfectly suitable with a little work. If you search the forum you will find a number of display tanks and tank setups that people have done that can help you with ideas.
Close off as much of the top as you can, while still providing airflow and mist a couple times a day. You will be fine.

From the picture I would go with mice that are a step up from hoppers but not quite adult mouse size. Look for mice that have been weaned for a week or two. That should put you in an appropriate size range for her. This is just a guess based on a picture, so make sure you pay attention to the size of the mouse compared to the largest part of her body.

That is also a big tank for such a small guy. You've done great with adding the extra hide. I would add a bit more clutter for security. Do you have some driftwood, a log or some fake plants that you could add? Try to pick something that will not be overly difficult to clean. Stay away from cedar as well. Even balled up newspaper will work, though it wont look the best. Clutter up the tank so she feels less exposed.

You're on your way to providing a great home for her. Keep on reading and asking questions. :) Let us know how it goes.

Fake plants would be a great way to add some clutter in her tank, give her some more cover and make her feel more secure. Keep her heat up as other people have been suggesting with a warm spot of 90 and the cool side being in the low 80s. Something i've done for my little boy is I took some pieces of scrap-booking paper and covered the sides of the tank on the outside so it felt a bit more closed in and it looks great with his backdrop image. It also helps keep the tank a bit darker as well. These snakes are usually nocturnal and mine is pretty much a pet rock most of the time. If the plastic wrap trick doesn't work for you (strangely enough plastic wrap doesn't work in my house) another option is to wet a towel and place it over the top of the tank to keep the humidity between the recommended 50-60%. I usually have to do this all winter as it gets dry where I live. You might want to look into buying a kitchen scale to weigh her. I'm terrible at eyeballing the size of rat my baby needs to eat so I weigh him and then check the rat's weight every now and again to see about how long before he moves up to the next size. If you're good at eyeballing that's not as necessary but being able to check her weight if she's not eating is a good indicator if a vet trip is in order. Like the others said, if she's on frozen it's probably a good idea to keep her on frozen and she may be scared now since she's already been bitten. It's a life or death struggle for both parties if you feed your baby live and if she ends up sick at some point and that live rat or mouse is in there with her and she won't eat with you in the room, that rodent can very well start chewing on her and eat her alive. There are some terrifying horror stories about it around the web. I know it may be uncomfortable for you to deal with dead animals but she seems to be used to being left alone when she's eating in which case the only safe route is f/t or freshly killed. Keep us updated and hope this info helps a bit.