I feel like I can't do this

I recently rescued a 1 year old Lesser BP named Henry who's been cared for miserably, and he's my first snake ever. I've only had him 24 hours and I'm terrified that I will never know what I'm doing. He's in a kind of makeshift tank from his old owners right now so I know whatever I give him will be better, but it doesn't seem like I will ever do it right after reading the caresheet and setup guide on here. For starters, he's tiny and in a 29 gallon tank, which is way too big, right? But he came with it... he has a heat lamp and that's about it. Here's what else I got him:

under tank heater
double dome lamp fixture
daylight bulb 60 w
nighttime bulb 60 w
repti-bark bedding
a bit of moss bedding

ehh, and a bunch of other things, but those seem to be the big ones. I forgot a thermostat, though! So now I have to get that. And I didn't know to get the fancy thermometers/hygrometers so I got these. It's like, wow, if I did that, what else did I do wrong?! (And never mind the cost of replacing his thermometers and getting a thermostat on a student budget, ugh.)

What if I never figure it out? He's been abused, he deserves the best life possible, and his mom can't even remember that he needs a thermostat, let alone how to use one. And none of it's even been shipped yet. And, and, and. I have raised horses, I've had aquariums, and nothing's freaked me out more than setting up a ball python tank.

Is this normal, or am I just unfit to have a BP? It seems like you guys know how to do everything and I freeze just trying to pick out a water dish. OH, AND? Some people say NOT to get an under tank heater and some people say not to get a heat lamp and use an uth instead and some people say use both and WHO IS RIGHT? WHO DO I TRUST? AGHHHH.

Check this out
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...-With-Pictures!

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Originally Posted by m1lkhoney

I recently rescued a 1 year old Lesser BP named Henry who's been cared for miserably, and he's my first snake ever. I've only had him 24 hours and I'm terrified that I will never know what I'm doing. He's in a kind of makeshift tank from his old owners right now so I know whatever I give him will be better, but it doesn't seem like I will ever do it right after reading the caresheet and setup guide on here. For starters, he's tiny and in a 29 gallon tank, which is way too big, right? But he came with it... he has a heat lamp and that's about it. Here's what else I got him:

under tank heater
double dome lamp fixture
daylight bulb 60 w
nighttime bulb 60 w
repti-bark bedding
a bit of moss bedding

ehh, and a bunch of other things, but those seem to be the big ones. I forgot a thermostat, though! So now I have to get that. And I didn't know to get the fancy thermometers/hygrometers so I got these. It's like, wow, if I did that, what else did I do wrong?! (And never mind the cost of replacing his thermometers and getting a thermostat on a student budget, ugh.)

What if I never figure it out? He's been abused, he deserves the best life possible, and his mom can't even remember that he needs a thermostat, let alone how to use one. And none of it's even been shipped yet. And, and, and. I have raised horses, I've had aquariums, and nothing's freaked me out more than setting up a ball python tank.

Is this normal, or am I just unfit to have a BP? It seems like you guys know how to do everything and I freeze just trying to pick out a water dish. OH, AND? Some people say NOT to get an under tank heater and some people say not to get a heat lamp and use an uth instead and some people say use both and WHO IS RIGHT? WHO DO I TRUST? AGHHHH.

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I go through this all the time even now when I have had 3 snakes for over a year and am getting a 4th tomorrow. I don't think it means you are a bad parent just learning. Think of these mistakes as you getting prepared for the future. You will get more comfortable as time goes on and snakes are relatively low maintenance pets. Just ask questions on this forum and keep trying and you'll do fine. Just the fact that you read the caresheet is better than owners buying from a petstore or what you rescued him from

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First, calm down and down't worry so much. Ball pythons are much less sensitive on a minute-to-minute basis than aquariums!

Start by just keeping in mind the basic conditions they need: temperature, humidity, and secure places to hide, plus a water bowl and food at appropriate intervals. There are lots of ways to achieve those conditions!

And your snake won't be floating belly-up bby tomorrow just because the ambient temp drops by five degrees, either.

The size tank you have can be perfectly fine, just fill it up with lots of clutter so he doesn't feel like he's just stuck out in the scary open. It doesn't have to be expensive - makeshift hides out of boxes, flower pots, upturned bowls, decorations, etc, are all fine. If you would eat potato chips out of it or off of it and it has no sharp or sticky parts, it's safe for your snake.

Everyone says it's really hard to keep the humidity up in a glass tank, but that's actually not really true. It's not the glass that's the problem, it's the screen top; and if you cover up the screen to limit the ventilation, the problem goes away. Tape a bunch of tin foil over it except where the lamp goes. BTW, you only need the dome lamp for heat; normal indoor light will give the snake a normal enough day-night cycle, and that's all you need. So you can just put on the night bulb and leave it all the time; no need to switch during the day or use a timer or anything.

Using a UTH is fine, you just need to make sure it can't burn your snake. A thermostat will take care of that. Even a lamp dimmer can do the job, just make sure you test it extensively to mmake sure that no surface your snake can touch can get hot enough to burn, even if the snake's body is sitting there trapping heat. An infrared thermometer is useful for that, and they're really cheap.

http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h1...psp2koldrd.jpg

Just relax and make sure your heat is regulated.
Read the care sheets and then read them again.
All will be good.

You can do it. A good thermometer/hygrometer is the acurite 00891, you can put the probe on the hot side and the whole unit on the cool side for cool temp and humidity. They are only $12 on amazon and some Walmart carry them.

Keep the uth off until you get something to regulate it. If you can afford it get a spyder robotics Herpstat 1 or a ve-200 from reptile basics. You should also get a lamp dimmer for the heat lamp but you can raise it up if it's to hot until you get one. Once you have a thermostat or something to regulate the uth you may not need the heat lamp unless your cool side is under 78, if it is under 78 you can have the uth for the hot side and move the heat lamp over the cool side and dim it down to around 80. Also only run the night heat bulb 24/7, bps don't need the daytime light bc they can go by the natural light in your room and you will have to flip the dome every day and night so the night time will be heating the same spot as the day time and that will be a pain so it's easier just to run the night time all the time so just take back the day time. I would position the night heat bulb so it is directly over the hide and then when you get the thermostat or something to regulate uth put the uth so its under the hide.

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Tip for the thermostat---get a hydrofarm seedling thermostat from Amazon, around $30 (price kind of fluctuates a little). It's not a proportional thermostat like the fancy ones but it'll keep your snake from getting burned.

Personally, once the UTH/thermostat is all set up, I'd ditch the lights. Too much trouble. If it gets extra cold in his room during the winter you can break them out of storage, but for the summer at least, they shouldn't be necessary.

For cluttering up the tank, I like fake ivy vines. You get them at Hobby Lobby or whatever, it's like $10 for a 20-foot vine, less if you find them on sale. Just give 'em a quick rinse and crumple the whole thing around the tank so the snake has a lot of cover. My guys really seem to enjoy their vines!

lol take a deep breath and calm down.

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Originally Posted by m1lkhoney

Is this normal, or am I just unfit to have a BP? It seems like you guys know how to do everything and I freeze just trying to pick out a water dish. OH, AND? Some people say NOT to get an under tank heater and some people say not to get a heat lamp and use an uth instead and some people say use both and WHO IS RIGHT? WHO DO I TRUST? AGHHHH.

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takes more than 1 way to achieve ideal husbandry including temps and humidity. some use heatpads for a bellyheat hotspot and keep then everything else at room temperature. some use lamps, ceramic heat emitters, radiant heat panels, etc. to provide a heatsource. some peeps add damp moss for humidity, others will spray/mist, etc. etc. some folks just use newspaper or paper towel for bedding instead of Reptichips or aspen.

u might find out that a heatlamps and Reptichips works best for u. maybe it wont work out and u had a heatpad. sometimes it will be trial and error.

anyway when u get all set-up, i think u will be rewarded with a happy and growing BP. :)

Thank you guys all so much!!! And... Yes I may have gotten a few decorations...:omg: Well, maybe more than a few.

Ok, buying a jump start heat mat thermostat and an acurite digital thermometer and humidity sensor. Am I missing anything else super important?

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Originally Posted by m1lkhoney

Ok, buying a jump start heat mat thermostat and an acurite digital thermometer and humidity sensor. Am I missing anything else super important?

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i would get feeding tongs or a hemostats to help with feeding. 1) i don't wanna get bit, 2) i don't like touching dead rats. lol

also aluminum tape (or electrical tape) to secure your heatpad and thermostat probe in place. also an infrared/laser thermometer gun is really nice to have so u can do quick and accurate temp checks throughout your BP's enclosure.

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Originally Posted by m1lkhoney

Ok, buying a jump start heat mat thermostat and an acurite digital thermometer and humidity sensor. Am I missing anything else super important?

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You could get a temp gun for temperature (it giver you readings at specific spots that the combo unit can't give you) and maybe a dechlorination agent for water treatment.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0083...words=temp+gun

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0002...236_SY340_QL65

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Originally Posted by Soord

You could get a temp gun [URL]https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00837ZGRY/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1465414411&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40&keywords=temp+gun/URL] for temperature (it giver you readings at specific spots that the combo unit can't give you) and maybe a dechlorination agent for water treatment. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0002568SG/ref=sxl1?qid=1465414504&sr=1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65

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Lol sorry, I don't know how to do links on phone

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Don't worry you are on the right track and are doing all the correct things by seeking information. If you are willing to learn and listen all will be fine. I totally felt the exact same way...we didn't know everything beforehand and learned after we had her which was quite stressful because we didn't know what we were doing. In a month from now you will be much more knowledgeable and hopefully have the husbandry dialed in. There's a lot of hurdles you will cross in the near future but I promise after your husbandry is in, you go through a shed, your snake excretes it's first pees/poo you will be a lot more comfortable...it takes a good while though so be prepared and just know in a few months it will be smooth sailing...minus other oddities that pop up =)

It's very rewarding though and you will end up with a life companion!

BE PREPARED TO SPEND MONEY OR DON'T BUY REPTILES

I don't know if anyone has said this yet but I feel it's important to leave him alone to settle in. I know how hard it is to not want to check on him and hold him a lot, but he'll be better for it if you wait at least until he eats (and 24-48 hours past that). I recently got a new pair of snakes and even after keeping reptiles for my entire adult life I was crazy stressed until they both ate and pooped in my care; checking care sheets, obsessing over temps etc. Last but not least, enjoy your new buddy! Snakes are amazing creatures with interesting habits and great personalities. It's stressful and requires patience at first but they really are low mantainance and very rewarding in the long run.