So i'm new and have some ?

So i'm new to owning a ball python, and have had mine now for probably 2 to 3 months. He was very young when i got him, and probably only a month or two old.

Some concerns i've had lately are when do they usually start shedding? I know what to look for but have seen no symptons as of yet.

But my MAIN concern is, tonight as i was going to clean the cage, he started striking at me, now i know these are usually a pretty clam species of snake, and mine has been great to me since i've had it so far. But last week after it had gotten done eating, i misted the cage and right away it started striking at me. I figured it was sensitive and didn't want to be bothered, then the incident happened tonight. THIS HAS ME CONCERNED? Could this be because he is starting to shed, or could something else be wrong?

Any information would be great, and i'm sorry if these are on other posts, i tried to look around but felt it'd be better as i'm new to this, to hear it from people when they know the situation.

THANKS AND GOOD TO BE HERE!

Hi and welcome! Glad to have you here with us!

He hasn't shed in two to three months since you've had him? Can I ask what you are feeding him, and how often? Is he eating each time you offer food?

Now for the striking, can you describe your set-up? What are you keeping him in? What are your temps and how are you measuring them? How many hides, and how big are they? Where is the enclosure located? In a quiet room, or a high traffic room?

Just need a little more information to help you out!

Welcome to the forum.

First off most babies shed about once a month. He is a baby right? What are you feeding him as in prey item size?

As for the striking goes... don't be to worried... he's just a baby and they tend to be a bit flighty in the mood swing department LOL. Remember you are A LOT bigger then he is and well in the wild... big things eat them so he is only trying to cover his butt from possibly being hurt or eaten. Also remember like all living creatures, snakes have bad days too. A thing to watch out for is if you are making any fast movements around him. That could be causing it.
Does he have two hides(one on the warm side and one on the cool side) ?
If not that would be stressing him out and causing him to strike at you.

The right questions have already been asked so I just say....welcome to BPNet! :)

looks like you are getting the advice you need. and keep the questions coming .
post pics of you setup so we can tear it apart. j/k LOL

we relly just would give you ideas to make it better for your snake and you.

welcome welcome

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Originally Posted by MATT FISHER REPTILES

looks like you are getting the advice you need. and keep the questions coming .
post pics of you setup so we can tear it apart. j/k LOL

we relly just would give you ideas to make it better for your snake and you.

welcome welcome

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Matt, I know you say you were just kidding, but I really don't think that members are trying to pick apart set-ups, rather than make suggestions for improvement. Please shoot me a PM if you would like to discuss any concerns you have!

Alright. So i have i believe it's a 20 gallon tank, the guy at the store said it would be a good size for him to grow in, so it's a pretty big tank for a little guy, even though he's gotten rather big since i've first had him.

I'm not going to lie, i've been concerned about his living area, i had some trouble keeping the levels of heat on both sides adjusted, and the humidity stable ( I'm still not sure how to do this, i just mist the cage a couple times a day ) But i've been happier with it lately, but still not sure, It's about mid 90's on the warm side, and maybe about mid 80's on the cold side. maybe a little less. I use to have hiding spots on both sides, but now just the warm side. I should probably change this right? I have about 3 hiding spots for him 2 on the warm, and 1 in the middle. I have a large water bowl for him on the cold side. But i never see him in it. I too am a night person and watch him when he's out and about.

As far as where his cage is, he was in my basement where there isn't any traffic really, but it's very cold in my basement and couldn't keep the temperture right, especially at night. So i moved it to our boiler room, where there is no traffic, but every once in awhile there is stuff going on and off, loud noises, etc. It's also very warm in there.

If i have caused him to be stressed from the living areas, is this something i can make better? Or will he be damaged etc? ( kind of a stupid question ) HE ALSO HAD NOT SHED ONCE SINCE I'VE HAD HIM! I've been worried about this.

Other than that, i appreciate everything and the welcomes. I love owning this snake, and want it to be as healthy and get to know the ropes. I just feel like i'm doing it all wrong, and it's making me feel terrible!

thanks

Hey MM, :)


You forgot to mention what type/size prey item you were feeding him.

The general concensus is that the best setup has two identacle (sp - me= tired)hides - one at the cool end and one at the warm end so the snake doesn't have to choose between security (i.e. fave hide) and thermoregulation.

A good clue on how happy the snake is can be gleaned from how well he eats -which is another reason it could be good to say what and when he eats etc.

Don't panic though - the folks here are a great resource for information and will fall over themselves to help.


dr del

Thanks, i do appreciate it. I've been stressing to find a good site that will give me the right information.

When i first got him he wouldn't eat for the first couple of weeks, i knew this was normal. The end of the second week i had him he ate a mouse. Ever since i've been feeding it 1 mouse a week or about every 5 days i guess. I put him into a seperate feeding area, like a tub thing. He eats the mouse within seconds of being in there. He doesn't refuse food, and is pretty good about his eating.

Cool,


What size of mouse? full grown or half grown or fuzzy? Just trying to get an idea of how much food he's actually taking. Most people say theres little reason to feed in a serperate enclosure now but the main thing is to stick with what the snakes accept so I wouldn't stress on that either.:)

Is the mouse alive,fresh killed or frozen/defrosted?

What kind of size (approx) is yer lil darlin? I ask as they do go longer between sheds as they age and if you could take pics it would be cool ( the site is kind of picture addicted as I suppose you have noticed by now. :D )

You mention keeping the humidity stable but I couldn't see the actual figure so what is the actual humidity in the tank at the moment? If it is too hard to maintain the whole tank at the correct humidity it might be possible to put a damp hide in ( usually a tupperware box containing either damp moss or damp peat in my house - note damp NOT wet) so that he can also chppse the humidity level he needs.

Thinking about it as i re-read you initial post something struck me....

If a massive pink giant came in and threw water all over me I'd probably have a slight hissy fit myself.:P



dr del

Hahah yeah. I figured that usually, but it was just weird behavior i guess for him, i hadn't misted in the cage that day and he was just out and about when i went to pick him up and he snapped. He never does this, he's always very gentle and curious, that's what i was just thinking it was stress.

The mice i feed him are usually full grown mice, pretty big. They're just you're normal hairy mouse i guess? i don't know. I like the idea about the tubawear, i notice people do this with their gekos and what not, didn't know if it worked with snakes.

the humidity is at 10 on my gauge. I also noticed tonight that his eyes were a bluish color, i knwo this is a sign of shedding. Could this be why he got angry? What's the best thing to do for them when they're shedding.

Hey,


What is the scale of the gauge? % or just a 1-10 scale? If its one of the small round stick on ones they are widely regarded as inaccurate at best and a bloody nuisance at worst.

They apparently do some good cheap digital temp/hydro gauges with in/out probes in wallmart if you are based over there (acurite I think).One of the others should be able to give you more info on those if you need it.

Yes the blue eyes are a definate sign of shedding and they can become "crotchety" at this time - it may be related to the fact the blueing means they cannot see as well as normal so might be nervous and easily surprised.

You probably already know this but the recomended humidity is %50- %60 normally but you want to up it a little when they are actually in shed (to about %70 if memory serves). ONce the eyes clear you normally have between 3-5 days before they actually shed ( don't take that as gospel because it changes as they age and most of mine are older).

I use humid hides for all my snakes and have found it can definately help with problem shedders - especially if you have trouble with humidity. Make sure you use good clean moss or peat though (sphagnum moss is the one recomended ans shoudl be for sale in most pet stores that carry exotics) and it will need cleaning and replacing fairly often to prevent any nasties growing in the nice warm moist environment.

Have a look at the care sheet if you havn't already and I think there was a really good article on shedding linked to from the forum a while back. It may have been called ecydysis (noooo idea how you spell that - sorry :oops: ) but google might also be able to help.

One feeding a week is pretty much what everyone seems to recomend so that's fine - the prey item should be about the same thickness as the snakes thickest section as a rough guide, though apparently they eat more reliably with slightly smaller meals than this as they age. Some don't eat when they are in a shed cycle and some don't seem to care. I swear they do it just to wind us up some days. :mad: :P


dr del

ok for starters... it might sound weird, but i over obesessed about EVERYTHING when i got my first ball in high school. dont worry so much. balls are one of if not the easiest snake to care for.. sometimes worrying about every little thing, even though its ok, can make owning the snake stressfull.

yes the bluish tint to his eyes means he will shed. they will be blue for a day or maybe two or three. then they will return to normal. usually within a day or two after that he will shed. dont handle him while hes in this process. let him do his own thing. just make sure you mist the tank, which it sounds like your already doing, and leave him alone.

one way to keep the humidity up in the tank, especially if you have a screen top, is to cover the top as much as you can with something. i use books. just dont put paper or anything where the heat light can set it on fire, which it prob wont anyways, but i dont want you to blame me if it does. but use whatever you like to cover as much area of the screen top as you can, and it will keep in the moisture.

with heat in the mid nineties in a 20 gal, it prob dries up pretty quick. i would set it up like this... hide box on each far side (warm and cool sides) and water bowl in the middle. the water bowl under the heat light will add to the humidity level as well.i would use the biggest/deepest water bowl that will fit your cage. more water = more humidity. dont expect him to swim in it or soak all the time. some snakes never do. i had a boa once that would poop in his water bowl all the time lol. especially right after i filled it up.

i dont know what kind of hideboxes you have,, (half log, cardboard box, whatever) but make sure he has something he can rub against to get the skin off in a few days. usually a wood half log will work fine.

but yeah as far as the snapping... snakes have two modes... eat, and shelter. once they smell prey, wether its on your hands, or because they just ate, they go into eat mode. this is the best time to get bit. i made the mistake of handling rats i was thawing out and then reaching into a 11ft burmese pythons tank to remove him for his dinner time. i got bit. it wasnt horrible but it did suck. make sure you wash your hands! my first ball used to hate it if i misted the tank. he would go nuts and snap at the air. so i stopped misting. one other problem with misting is that moisture like that can grow mold and stuff. i would just mist from when his eyes blue up till he sheds. otherwise if he needs it he will soak on his own.

anyways the biggest thing is just to not worry so much and relax. if hes eating, and looks healthy, he probably is healthy.

.

forgot to add, do you have an undertank heater on one side? this usually helps alot... and also what kind of thermometer are you using and where are you putting it in the cage..

good advice...you even gave me some ideas

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Originally Posted by speepdaedeesi

one way to keep the humidity up in the tank, especially if you have a screen top, is to cover the top as much as you can with something. .

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Good catch,

You can also use cooking foil and the plumbers aluminium tape stuff - have a look in the caging forum and there should be some threads with nice pictures of how others have done it.


dr del

you should duct tape alluminum to the TOP of the screen with 1/3 of it open for your light and air flow. Also when you get a chance or right now ,go to the local walmart, to the home improvement section and pick up an accurite thermometer/hygrometer. this will tell you what your real temps/humidity are. This is pretty important especially during shed... I would start thinking about getting a tub, some heat tape, solder wand, and some newspaper, because with a tub setup it would be a load of your shoulders, as far as daily maintenance and tweeking temps and stuff. Just trying to help..... judd

Thank you guys so much, i can't even tell you how much you've helped me, but i'm sure you all know this :D

cheers!