Temp of snake?

Hi, if i used a laser temp gun to measure the temperature of my ball python what should it ideally be? Also i assume the minimum it should be would be in the low 80s?
Thanks guys.

they might be running a bit cooler than that but yeah that's what i'd expect.

they get their body heat from their surroundings, so they will be the temperature of their environment.

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Originally Posted by tttaylorrr

they might be running a bit cooler than that but yeah that's what i'd expect.

they get their body heat from their surroundings, so they will be the temperature of their environment.

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Thank you. I assume the max temp it should be would be in the low 90s?

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Originally Posted by Neilp

Thank you. I assume the max temp it should be would be in the low 90s?

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i would assume so, yes. :)

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Originally Posted by tttaylorrr

i would assume so, yes. :)

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Cheers mate

Interesting question, I've never actually temped one of my snakes...

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Originally Posted by craigafrechette

Interesting question, I've never actually temped one of my snakes...

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neither have i!

I measure my GTP to ensure she is staying a good temp while in quarantine and if I need to soak one of the snakes to get the water temp close to their surface temp of their body.

Everyone has their temps preference over the years I have significantly dropped mine, I started of with 80/82 and 90/92 and now I am at 76/78 and 86/88, and most of the year I don't even provide a hot spot just ambient temp at 84/85

Find what works for you and your animal.

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Originally Posted by Deborah

Everyone has their temps preference over the years I have significantly dropped mine, I started of with 80/82 and 90/92 and now I am at 76/78 and 86/88, and most of the year I don't even provide a hot spot just ambient temp at 84/85

Find what works for you and your animal.

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That’s what I’ve been doing lately also.
They seem very comfortable and content at these temps


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I've temped mine before. He usually reads between 78 - low 80s, but I've never ended up temping him after he's been hanging out in the hot spot for a while.

I learned over twenty years ago with boas, sometimes it’s better on the cool side (Jeff Ronne). I have no need for temps in excess of 86, let alone 92 for a ball python. Juveniles even more so. Just my personal opinion. I imagine a ball python would be moving mighty fast at a body temp of 92 degrees.

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Originally Posted by Sonny1318

I learned over twenty years ago with boas, sometimes it’s better on the cool side (Jeff Ronne). I have no need for temps in excess of 86, let alone 92 for a ball python. Juveniles even more so. Just my personal opinion. I imagine a ball python would be moving mighty fast at a body temp of 92 degrees.

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Hi im new to snakes but if you are correct why does everyone say basking spot of 90 minimum?
Im not saying you are wrong its just you're the only person ive noticed say that. And im still learning new things everyday and dont want my snake th suffer if im wrong. Surely the idea of the basking area is that it warms up then moves away to a lower temperature area?

Mine are on average 83/86

Mine like their cool hides most of the time so they range from 76 to 88. My Hot hide is 90/91 but when i check their body directly it reads 88 when they are in there. Also there is error in thermometers and temp guns so you get the idea.


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Originally Posted by Neilp

Hi im new to snakes but if you are correct why does everyone say basking spot of 90 minimum?
Im not saying you are wrong its just you're the only person ive noticed say that. And im still learning new things everyday and dont want my snake th suffer if im wrong. Surely the idea of the basking area is that it warms up then moves away to a lower temperature area?

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I am telling you what works from my personal experience, a moderator on here says something very similar if you read thru the whole thread. And so do a lot of other breeders if you really researched. I am not saying they are wrong or right at 92 degrees. I just think it’s to high for them, 86 to 88 degrees is more then enough in my humble opinion. Snakes over heat easier then most realize, and at 92 it’s just a little to warm for my personal liking.

I'm with Deborah. I stopped worrying and started observing what kept my BP happy. I have it dialed in now and he chooses exactly where he feels like curling up. I have temps ranging from 90 all the way to mid 70s on the walls and he cruises around the enclosure and decides where he wants to rest. Then again I do have a 4 foot by 2 foot PVC and it has made a world of difference in stabilizing the temps. That to me is the key, providing stable temperatures.

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Originally Posted by Sonny1318

I am telling you what works from my personal experience, a moderator on here says something very similar if you read thru the whole thread. And so do a lot of other breeders if you really researched. I am not saying they are wrong or right at 92 degrees. I just think it’s to high for them, 86 to 88 degrees is more then enough in my humble opinion. Snakes over heat easier then most realize, and at 92 it’s just a little to warm for my personal liking.

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Point taken. I have only just joined the forum so havnt had time to go through every post, my limited knowledge come from internet searching which i have done a lot of. i think i will observe my snake and let her tell me what she wants.
Thanks again for your input it has made me not worry so much about getting temps exact.

I also have experienced that a little cooler than the recommended can work. I'm even a little lower on the cool side than others here, not by choice but just what my temps come to with my particular situation. My cool side is only 74-75 in the winter months and 75-76 in the summer. It's almost like a cooling system for the breeding season even though I know cooling is now believed unnecessary, it just works out that way. My setup is homemade racks with 11" heat tape that runs across a little less than the back half of the tub. It is set at 90 which creates a hot spot of 86-88 in the tub. Because the hot spot is controlled by a thermostat, it does not fluctuate from winter to summer like the cool side. So they can regulate their temp between 74-88 degrees. I would of made adjustments to get temps up if I saw any issues but to my surprise they are actually all doing very well. They all eat well and breed incredibly well. After the first initial month of introducing males, I've had 100% lock success within 24 hours of introduction. This is not just with 2 ball pythons, it is with 15 females and 6 males being paired monthly, some of both being their first season. So in my opinion, if there are no signs of stress and the animals are all eating and breeding incredibly well, then these lower temps are not affecting them negatively in any way. Time will be the true test but this is not a super new setup either, I have been using this setup for two years now.

Just remember, you may not need to worry about getting temps exact to what the 'books' say, but it is very important to give your ball python a very consistent range so that it can regulate its body temp. If the whole cage is 80, that is not good. You need the cool side and the warm side so that your ball python can choose which side to be on and be able to regulate it's own temp as needed. The exact temp on each side is not near as important as the range.

I temp gun my snake quite often. I live in Northern Canada and it has been very cold lately. So when I take my snake out for a visit, I monitor her temp and put her back if she gets too cold. Usually she reads in at 82-83F when I get her out and, at least in my house and with her resting on my body-heat, she drops by approximately .5F in about a half hour. If she drops to 79-80F, or if she just feels cool to the touch, I put her back to warm up. The warmest I have ever seen her body at is 88F while in her warm hide.

I've had my BP for almost two weeks now (and she's AMAZING lol) but the first thing I did was buy a temp gun and ran into the same issue, no one really has any info on what the ideal BP body temp should be...

so I did an experiment. I've been recording her temps every few days (she's very content so I see no need to bother her to check her temp every day) that being said, my cool side is 73-75, hot spot is 89-92 and ambient around 80. what I've noticed is that her average is 78-80 when she's content. when she does make her way to her hot spot (set at 92, I played around with this temp and this is what she prefers) she will regulate to 86-87, I've never seen her body temp above 89(after she eats she does like to be a little warmer) one cool thing I've noticed on my thermostat is the temp is set at 92 and when she goes in there I will watch the temp on the thermostat drop pretty quickly as she absorbs the heat! I'm a dork, I thought it was cool to share hahaha.

BUT one thing I have noticed in the very short time I've been a snake owner is people aren't kidding when they say every snake is different.... from feeding habits, to personality, to personal prefference such as temp regulation/humidity. just monitor your baby and keep a little record book, as long as he is happy and not showing signs of stress or discomfort, you know you're doing good! within a week or two of doing this you should have enough data to calculate an average and have an idea of what your snake regulates at :)

ALSO, not sure if most people do this but just something I've observed with my girl. she has two water dishes, one on hot side (about 80) and one on cold side (75) and she does pick and choose between the two. not sure if this is associated with the temps of the water, or she's just spoiled because she's my only one lol


Hope that helped!!!

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Originally Posted by rufretic

I also have experienced that a little cooler than the recommended can work. I'm even a little lower on the cool side than others here, not by choice but just what my temps come to with my particular situation. My cool side is only 74-75 in the winter months and 75-76 in the summer. It's almost like a cooling system for the breeding season even though I know cooling is now believed unnecessary, it just works out that way. My setup is homemade racks with 11" heat tape that runs across a little less than the back half of the tub. It is set at 90 which creates a hot spot of 86-88 in the tub. Because the hot spot is controlled by a thermostat, it does not fluctuate from winter to summer like the cool side. So they can regulate their temp between 74-88 degrees. I would of made adjustments to get temps up if I saw any issues but to my surprise they are actually all doing very well. They all eat well and breed incredibly well. After the first initial month of introducing males, I've had 100% lock success within 24 hours of introduction. This is not just with 2 ball pythons, it is with 15 females and 6 males being paired monthly, some of both being their first season. So in my opinion, if there are no signs of stress and the animals are all eating and breeding incredibly well, then these lower temps are not affecting them negatively in any way. Time will be the true test but this is not a super new setup either, I have been using this setup for two years now.

Just remember, you may not need to worry about getting temps exact to what the 'books' say, but it is very important to give your ball python a very consistent range so that it can regulate its body temp. If the whole cage is 80, that is not good. You need the cool side and the warm side so that your ball python can choose which side to be on and be able to regulate it's own temp as needed. The exact temp on each side is not near as important as the range.

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Hi thanks. I do have a gradient from 90-92 hot end to about 70 cool end sometimes slightly less depending on the weather but have recently changed from a viv system to a rack so i think was just panicking about changes. Im glad i did this post because i have had some good feedback about not stressing so much about temps, obviously they are important but again if you have sensible gradient thats more important.

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Originally Posted by Zach_este93

I temp gun my snake quite often. I live in Northern Canada and it has been very cold lately. So when I take my snake out for a visit, I monitor her temp and put her back if she gets too cold. Usually she reads in at 82-83F when I get her out and, at least in my house and with her resting on my body-heat, she drops by approximately .5F in about a half hour. If she drops to 79-80F, or if she just feels cool to the touch, I put her back to warm up. The warmest I have ever seen her body at is 88F while in her warm hide.

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Brilliant, i live in the lake district UK, always cold and damp so have worried about constant low ambient temps. So i think stop worrying about hot spot and concentrate on the gradient?
Cheers everyone for comments.

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Originally Posted by Neilp

Hi thanks. I do have a gradient from 90-92 hot end to about 70 cool end sometimes slightly less depending on the weather but have recently changed from a viv system to a rack so i think was just panicking about changes. Im glad i did this post because i have had some good feedback about not stressing so much about temps, obviously they are important but again if you have sensible gradient thats more important.

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You have to be careful anything below 75 is unhealthy and could lead to issues.

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Originally Posted by rufretic

I also have experienced that a little cooler than the recommended can work. I'm even a little lower on the cool side than others here, not by choice but just what my temps come to with my particular situation. My cool side is only 74-75 in the winter months and 75-76 in the summer. It's almost like a cooling system for the breeding season even though I know cooling is now believed unnecessary, it just works out that way. My setup is homemade racks with 11" heat tape that runs across a little less than the back half of the tub. It is set at 90 which creates a hot spot of 86-88 in the tub. Because the hot spot is controlled by a thermostat, it does not fluctuate from winter to summer like the cool side. So they can regulate their temp between 74-88 degrees. I would of made adjustments to get temps up if I saw any issues but to my surprise they are actually all doing very well. They all eat well and breed incredibly well. After the first initial month of introducing males, I've had 100% lock success within 24 hours of introduction. This is not just with 2 ball pythons, it is with 15 females and 6 males being paired monthly, some of both being their first season. So in my opinion, if there are no signs of stress and the animals are all eating and breeding incredibly well, then these lower temps are not affecting them negatively in any way. Time will be the true test but this is not a super new setup either, I have been using this setup for two years now.

Just remember, you may not need to worry about getting temps exact to what the 'books' say, but it is very important to give your ball python a very consistent range so that it can regulate its body temp. If the whole cage is 80, that is not good. You need the cool side and the warm side so that your ball python can choose which side to be on and be able to regulate it's own temp as needed. The exact temp on each side is not near as important as the range.

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That's great and very helpfull to my sanity, i have been consumed with the hot spot and not the general gradient and because other members have confirmed the issue i am very glad i posted what could have been a stupid question to some people, so again thank you and to everyone else for response.

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Originally Posted by jcorsaletti

I've had my BP for almost two weeks now (and she's AMAZING lol) but the first thing I did was buy a temp gun and ran into the same issue, no one really has any info on what the ideal BP body temp should be...

so I did an experiment. I've been recording her temps every few days (she's very content so I see no need to bother her to check her temp every day) that being said, my cool side is 73-75, hot spot is 89-92 and ambient around 80. what I've noticed is that her average is 78-80 when she's content. when she does make her way to her hot spot (set at 92, I played around with this temp and this is what she prefers) she will regulate to 86-87, I've never seen her body temp above 89(after she eats she does like to be a little warmer) one cool thing I've noticed on my thermostat is the temp is set at 92 and when she goes in there I will watch the temp on the thermostat drop pretty quickly as she absorbs the heat! I'm a dork, I thought it was cool to share hahaha.

BUT one thing I have noticed in the very short time I've been a snake owner is people aren't kidding when they say every snake is different.... from feeding habits, to personality, to personal prefference such as temp regulation/humidity. just monitor your baby and keep a little record book, as long as he is happy and not showing signs of stress or discomfort, you know you're doing good! within a week or two of doing this you should have enough data to calculate an average and have an idea of what your snake regulates at :)

ALSO, not sure if most people do this but just something I've observed with my girl. she has two water dishes, one on hot side (about 80) and one on cold side (75) and she does pick and choose between the two. not sure if this is associated with the temps of the water, or she's just spoiled because she's my only one lol


Hope that helped!!!

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Thanks mate, thats a good idea about two water bolls, i think i will put another one in just to give her another choice. By the sounds of it choice is more important than we think.

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Originally Posted by Neilp

Thanks mate, thats a good idea about two water bolls, i think i will put another one in just to give her another choice. By the sounds of it choice is more important than we think.

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No problem! best of luck to you!! :)