New member with Pastel BP

Hey guys I'm looking for some critique on my setup. Definitely having trouble keeping the humidity high as well, looking into plexiglass/vinyl covers for the screen. I've had Montie (female) for about 2 weeks and age was unknown at time of purchase.

Hot side on left with zoomed UTC under the half log. I have a daytime bulb 100w and a nighttime bulb 100w. Fresh water bowl, log, fake plants, and that's about it. I will be adding a backdrop paper to the tank sides as well as what's already on the back.

Looking for critique as far as the size of enclosure and anything you would change. Thank you

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And yes she is dumb and ate her first mouse (firsr since I got her) backwards. She eventually got it down though and I'm going to try to avoid that happening in the future

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What's the in the middle of your tank? Plastic wood above the water bowl?
I'd say your hands aren't big enough for a snake to live in :D but he's a very cute pastel.

It's an "L" shaped log bordering the water bowl. I'll get a better pic

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You're off to a good start! I highly recommend swapping out your half log hide for two cave-like hides with only one entrance. Ball pythons like to feel really secure with the hide snugly touching them on all sides. Plus it's good to have a hide on each side of the enclosure so the snake doesn't have to choose feeling secure over getting warm/ cooling down.

Also do you have a thermostat for your UTH? It's really important because without a thermostat the UTH can reach dangerously high temps and harm the snake.

She's a pretty snake and I hope you enjoy the many years to come with her :)

How to Setup a Glass Tank (20 long) With Pictures!

https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink?sha...0&share_type=t

There is all you could need, anything else is extra.


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Originally Posted by Mike17

How to Setup a Glass Tank (20 long) With Pictures!

https://r.tapatalk.com/shareLink?sha...0&share_type=t

There is all you could need, anything else is extra.


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I did look through that. A lot of great info but also seems like a lot of overkill

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Originally Posted by codycat91

I did look through that. A lot of great info but also seems like a lot of overkill

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Kira's suggestions were spot-on.
and what did you think to be overkill? imo the only overkill is bulbs, but that's only because i don't like bulbs. ��

you're going to need two identical hides, otherwise you might find your snake roaming around which is a sign of stress, especially with a light shining in their face all day. that log doesn't look big or secluded enough for the snake to feel secure, but i could be wrong.

ALL sources of heat MUST be regulated. do you have a thermoSTAT/lamp dimmer for all sources of heat? you never state how you measure hotspot temps: a probed thermometer or laser temp gun are good ways to monitor them.

and yes, she's very pretty. congrats!

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Originally Posted by tttaylorrr

you're going to need two identical hides, otherwise you might find your snake roaming around which is a sign of stress, especially with a light shining in their face all day.

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I am no expert and don't pretend to be, but in my experience, I have 3 different hides and my baby girl loves one in particular. Contrary to what I expected it is NOT the most secluded, it has various openings and it is very tall, but she loves it. If I put that feature on the warm side she goes there, if I put it on the cold side, she goes there so I figured the best was to put it in the middle, and she's always there! LOL [emoji23]

The entrances of that hide are quite reduced so I'll feel sorry for her when she just won't fit in anymore. [emoji51] I understand these are very delicate animals, so any redundancy in weather control is never an overkill. IMO.

A couple of days ago there was a post of someone's BP dead apparently because of a decrease in temperature just after his snakes' meal. I took that as a heads up to double backup all my weather controls.

BTW that's a very pretty animal you've got, again, CONGRATS!


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Originally Posted by Mike17

I am no expert and don't pretend to be, but in my experience, I have 3 different hides and my baby girl loves one in particular.

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the idea in having identical hides is that they don't feel they need to choose their favorite for security over their need to regulate. it's just another way to reduce any unnecessary stressors.
your snake choosing one over the others is just your snake's preference, that doesn't mean it's not secluded enough for her, it's that she doesn't like the others.
two identical hides is a tried and tested method for keeping balls happy; whether you believe it or not is up to you.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by tttaylorrr

the idea in having identical hides is that they don't feel they need to choose their favorite for security over their need to regulate. it's just another way to reduce any unnecessary stressors.
your snake choosing one over the others is just your snake's preference, that doesn't mean it's not secluded enough for her, it's that she doesn't like the others.
two identical hides is a tried and tested method for keeping balls happy; whether you believe it or not is up to you.

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Thanks for the tip, it is a reasonable explanation and I will change them for identical hides, honestly when I bought them I was thinking more on the aesthetics rather than the stress factor. [emoji1303]


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Originally Posted by Mike17

Thanks for the tip, it is a reasonable explanation and I will change them for identical hides, honestly when I bought them I was thinking more on the aesthetics rather than the stress factor. [emoji1303]


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i have three identical hides for Yellow in my T8 and he still has a preference for one lol. but since they're all the same he won't be so apprehensive to leave it if he's cold. balls can be weird. 😛

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Originally Posted by tttaylorrr

Kira's suggestions were spot-on.
and what did you think to be overkill? imo the only overkill is bulbs, but that's only because i don't like bulbs. ��

you're going to need two identical hides, otherwise you might find your snake roaming around which is a sign of stress, especially with a light shining in their face all day. that log doesn't look big or secluded enough for the snake to feel secure, but i could be wrong.

ALL sources of heat MUST be regulated. do you have a thermoSTAT/lamp dimmer for all sources of heat? you never state how you measure hotspot temps: a probed thermometer or laser temp gun are good ways to monitor them.

and yes, she's very pretty. congrats!

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Yeah, whoops. I didn't even open the link, I thought it was a different sticky that had the layout of like 4 or 5 different thermometer probes, with the mat on the bottom. Anyway, in this link, I don't understand what the difference is between the thermometer probe taped under the tank above the UTC and the probe placed inside the tank over the UTC.

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Originally Posted by codycat91

Yeah, whoops. I didn't even open the link, I thought it was a different sticky that had the layout of like 4 or 5 different thermometer probes, with the mat on the bottom. Anyway, in this link, I don't understand what the difference is between the thermometer probe taped under the tank above the UTC and the probe placed inside the tank over the UTC.

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the thermoSTAT probe is placed between the UTH and the glass, the UTH is plugged into the thermoSTAT and monitors the UTH temp and the thermoSTAT adjusts accordingly to what it's set at.

the thermoMETER probe is to get the temperature of the inside enclosure floor.

my thermoSTAT is set to 94°, and by the time it reaches the thermoMETER probe inside the tank, it's at 90°.

thermostat controls temp, thermometer reads temp.

does this make sense? it is vital to have the UTH controlled by a themoSTAT.

Yep gotcha. Thank you for the clarification. I just ordered 2 bigger cave-style hides with only one opening, one for each side, and also ordered a humidifier. The humidity has been too low. I will look into a thermostat soon, however the several pet stores I have been in including the one I bought Montie from do not have thermostat controlled heaters, and they didn't even seem to know what I was talking about when I asked if they sold them. So although I'm sure they are very helpful to maintain a healthy BP, they can't be vital for survival. Can you recommend a decent one for me please?

And back to the thermometer/stat conversation, the meter is only for you to visually monitor correct? And the stat is what is actually controlling the on/off of the UTC.

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Originally Posted by codycat91

Yep gotcha. Thank you for the clarification. I just ordered 2 bigger cave-style hides with only one opening, one for each side, and also ordered a humidifier. The humidity has been too low.

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awesome! sounds good. let us know how your upgrades go.

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Originally Posted by codycat91

I will look into a thermostat soon, however the several pet stores I have been in including the one I bought Montie from do not have thermostat controlled heaters, and they didn't even seem to know what I was talking about when I asked if they sold them. So although I'm sure they are very helpful to maintain a healthy BP, they can't be vital for survival. Can you recommend a decent one for me please?

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honestly, pet stores will sell you anything they can if it means you'll buy; if they don't sell it, there's no need to push it. almost every UTH instruction manual states they need to be regulated with a thermostat; they are vital for the safe use of a UTH. home improvement stores sell lamp dimmers for $15 or so that you can get right away, or you can get the JumpStart model from Amazon that i use as well as many others. if you decide to order from Amazon, you can unplug the UTH until the 'stat arrives and your snake will be okay for the time being: they handle colder temps WAY better than warmer temps. and when the JumpStart is set up correctly (explained in the How to Set Up a Glass Enclosure sticky) they work awesome.

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Originally Posted by codycat91

And back to the thermometer/stat conversation, the meter is only for you to visually monitor correct? And the stat is what is actually controlling the on/off of the UTC.

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you got it, dude :gj: that's why 'stats are so important.

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Originally Posted by tttaylorrr

almost every UTH instruction manual states they need to be regulated with a thermostat; they are vital for the safe use of a UTH.

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just to further explain: an unregulated UTH can reach 140 degrees easily and quickly and can kill your snake. this is why regulation is so important!

I'm going to chime in and agree with tttaylorrr's recommendation of the Jumpstart thermostat. I use that one as well and it works great. Mine is set for 90 degrees so it will turn off the UTH if it gets hotter than that. It turns the UTH back on once the temperature gets below 88 degrees.

Just picked up a jump start last week and it's awesome and easy to use. Set it and forget it pretty much. Only thing I don't like about it is the cables coming out of the right beside where you plug your uth in. Only because of course I have 2 uth plugged into that one hole so I had to buy an extension cord bc I couldn't put my adaptor in the holes.


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Originally Posted by Kira

I'm going to chime in and agree with tttaylorrr's recommendation of the Jumpstart thermostat. I use that one as well and it works great. Mine is set for 90 degrees so it will turn off the UTH if it gets hotter than that. It turns the UTH back on once the temperature gets below 88 degrees.

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It's ordered thank you

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Originally Posted by codycat91

It's ordered thank you

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let us know how your new setup works 😀

Working out great so far. She wouldn't eat last week though and it looked like she was beginning to shed. Her eyes got milky and her skin pale but she never actually shed. Now it's a week later. Should I try to feed her again or wait until she does in fact shed. Humidity is between 50-85 between the hot and cool side, and she moves around back and forth between sides

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by codycat91

Working out great so far. She wouldn't eat last week though and it looked like she was beginning to shed. Her eyes got milky and her skin pale but she never actually shed. Now it's a week later. Should I try to feed her again or wait until she does in fact shed. Humidity is between 50-85 between the hot and cool side, and she moves around back and forth between sides

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sounds like an upcoming shed to me. offer like you normally would, but don't be surprised if she refuses.

try to keep that humidity around 70% throughout the shedding process. if you need help raising humidity get some sphagnum moss (found at almost any pet store) to wet and place in one of the hides.

She finally shed great and ate the day after :) https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...a9c93a461f.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...3ae2f22cd2.jpg

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Some updates:

Determined she's actually a Ghost, and not a Pastel. Bunch of tank updates too and she's doing great, aside from not eating the last couple months. Hopefully she'll start again soon.

More pics and a cool video on Instagram @montie_raehttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...2a5a51df44.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...dc8df19ade.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...00a41a8b71.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...90b65564b5.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...423b6deb55.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...bd7ab08631.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...5b608c97e4.jpg

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