New member saying hello and asking advice!

Hi everyone! I have been waiting a long time to finally get a ball python. I will be picking her up in about a week and am very excited. I have done a ton of research of the years and feel very prepared for my new housemate.

But despite all the research you can do in books and online articles, I still think message boards are the best resource. So, on that note, what advice do you have? In other words, what things do you see people doing wrong or what mistakes have you made that you wish you hadn't? I have read all the FAQ's, I'm just asking personal opinions.

my advise is be a stickler on temperature... so many new owners think that the temp requirements are just suggestions and don't take steps to ensure that they get it right.

advise #2: get your animal from a private breeder that obviously cares each animal individually.

good luck and welcome....

Hi Clawlan,


Main thing we see people causing themselves problems with is housing I think at first.


The longer you can have the enclosure set up before adding the snake the better you will know how it deals with temp fluctuations/humidity etc. and be able to sort them before the animals wellbeing depends on them.

There are some great threads on setting up the housing (either tubs or glass tanks) which might be worth your while reading.

I think the single biggest mistake in housing is trying to be too kind in regards to giving it a huge tank whereas the snake is actually far happier in a small enclosure.

That and not providing 2 identical hides in the tank I think.

If you have any questions there will be no shortage of people who wil try and help.:)


And welcome to the site.:welcome:


Oh and, as you may notice as you browse the ite, we are all addicted to pictures so feel free to share when you have your new friend or want advice on housing ( a pic is worth a thousand words).


dr del

Quote:

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Originally Posted by clawlan

what things do you see people doing wrong

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Hi and :welcome: to the forum

I would say the main mistakes when it come to new owner would be

Not having the proper temp gradient or proper humidity
Using stick or dial thermometer instead of digital
Having hides that are not identical or not tight enough
Having an enclosure that is too big
Overfeeding their BP

Quote:

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Originally Posted by GA_Ball_Pythons

Having hides that are not identical or not tight enough

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So I should have identical hides or non-indenticle hides?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by GA_Ball_Pythons

Having an enclosure that is too big

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I am planning on a 30g breeder tank. Will this be alright?

How big is the snake? 30 g is prolly for a full grown one...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by whyteboi

How big is the snake? 30 g is prolly for a full grown one...

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I don't have the snake yet, but it will be a juvenile. So, it sounds like having a smaller tank (10g? 20g?) for a juvenile and eventually moving up to a 30g for an adult is better than just starting with a 30g and not upgrading?

Hi,


Yes, putting them in too large an enclosure can make them feel exposed and stressed - and stressed ball pythons tend not to eat.

dr del

ok, good to know. so with regard to hides, do I want them identical?

yes.................................................

definately identical.


And nice and tight - they like to be able to feel the hide on all sides.

This does mean you need to replace the hides fairly often as they are growing but this needn't be expensive - search for hides to see some of the ingenious things people have adapted ( or made).

One point worth mentioning - the "half log" hides look very nice but don't have the "tight on all sides" thing going on - but you can use them to hide the smaller hide inside.

There are a lot of ways to house them but it depends on your plans for the long term which one you want to go for.


dr del

I think everyone else has covered most everything. The one thing I would add is that when I got my first snake I was very nervous and jumpy when I handled him... Confidence, confidence, confidence. Very important IMO. It seems like you may have that covered already. Also, never be afraid to ask questions (you've obviously got that covered too) Welcome, and good luck with your new pet :)

thanks! As you will find out, I love to ask questions. I'm the kind of person that wants to know everything I can before starting. One of my big hobbies right now is freshwater aquariums. I joined a forum (aquariacentral) and posted a good 300+ times before actually starting the hobby. Hopefully I don't bugyou guys that much before getting my first BP :)

Looks like everything I wanted to say has been covered..So

Welcome to BP.NET and congrats on your upcoming companion

Quote:

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Originally Posted by clawlan

So I should have identical hides or non-indenticle hides?

I am planning on a 30g breeder tank. Will this be alright?

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Your enclosure should grow with your BP, if the enclosure is too big it will stress your BP which can cause him to go off feed, here is an idea of the type of enclosure you should get:

For glass enclosure use the rule of thumb the enclosure should be 2/3 of the length of your Ball Python.

For plastic tub setup
Baby – 15 Quarts (17"L x 11 1/8"W x 6 3/8"H)
Sub Adult – 32 Quarts (23 1/2"L x 16 1/4"W x 6 3/8"H)
Adult – 41 Quarts (34 3/4"L x 16 1/2"W x 6"H)

You want your hides tight with all sides touching your BP's body and identical so your BP does not chose security over thermo-regulation.
Depending on the size of your BP you can make your hides out of plastic flower pot dish, plastic bowls or kitty litter pans for an adult BP, you can also purchase something similar to this http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p.../CUBBYHOLE.jpg Note: Avoid log hides sold in pet stores as the don't provide enough security.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by GA_Ball_Pythons

For glass enclosure use the rule of thumb the enclosure should be 2/3 of the length of your Ball Python.

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Could you give me an example? Lets say I have a 48" BP. Does that mean the length of the glass enclosure should be about 32" long? Or does that mean the tank should be about 32 gallons?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by clawlan

Could you give me an example? Lets say I have a 48" BP. Does that mean the length of the glass enclosure should be about 32" long? Or does that mean the tank should be about 32 gallons?

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For a full grown BP a 30 gallons tank will do, a 30 gallons tank is 36x18x12

one thing i could add is purchase a thermostat. it will keep your snake happy and health avoiding temp fluxations. it maybe costly but over the life of your snake it will be one of the most important tools you can have.

Welcome to BPNet and let me say it's refreshing to see someone doing this kind of work before they actually get the snake. Some things to think about....

- we see a lot of folks that get sucked into buying some very expensive and rather needless setups from pet stores....look around here and you'll see a lot of information on how to set up very cost effective and great setups for BP's

- get your enclosure setup and tweaked well before purchasing the snake

- don't buy it from a pet store if at all possible, that causes more grief than I can think of when newcomers get their first BP from that type of source, then don't know it's age, it's gender, anything about it's feeding or health history....use the cash you saved on the setup to pay for the shipping from a good breeder or attend a good herp show and buy direct from a reputable breeder there...you'll be far happier in the end

- locate a herp vet now before you bring a snake into your home, you may not need a checkup but if something happens, you'll need to know where to call and good herp vets aren't always easy to locate in an emergency

- make sure you know where your prey will be coming from week after week...decide if you wish to feed live, frozen/thawed or pre-killed, then do the research on how to do each method, once that decision is made buy a snake that is already eating with the method and type of prey (rats or mice) that you are most comfortable feeding and can provide on a regular basis

- understand what a snake can bring into your life and what it cannot....we see a lot of folks that just don't understand that a snake is a very unique and wonderful "pet" but not a pet in a true sense of that word....understanding your snake will make the experience work better for both you and the snake

- start out with a well started, healthy snake that has an established feeding response and again, that's best found through a reputable breeder

- please, please be careful as this time of year pet stores are literally flooded with baby BP's fresh out of Africa, they often aren't eating, aren't shedding well, are dehydrated and underweight as well as often infested with external and internal parasites....they are awfully cute but each and every year we see so very many that end up with newcomers and it's a very sad situation all around for both they struggling new owner and the poor little snake

thanks for the info. I have been doing a lot of research and think I have the enclosure idea pretty nailed down:

20g glass tank
Two UTH (either pad or heat tape)
Herpstat II (to control each UTH separately for hot side and cooler side)
2 identical hides
Climbing/shedding branch and maybe other fake plants
Repti-carpet (to protect snake from hot glass)
Substrate (thinking repti-bark or bed-a-beast)
Large water dish
Digital thermo/hygro

How does it all sound?

Hi,


I would only use one substrate to avoid over insulation the animal from the heat.



dr del

ok, thanks for the advice. what do you recommend as far as substrate? I'm thinking the repti-bark or bed-a-beat because it can hold/release moisture to aid in keeping up humidity.

newspaper is 100X easier for my ball python. i use aspen for my corns since they like to burrow a little. but all balls do is lay around, so newspaper does the trick.

haha. alright alright. I king of want a nice african looking landscape but newspaper might be the best way to go to keep it simple.

now for thermostat sensor placement, just set it on top of the newspaper under their hides?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by GA_Ball_Pythons

http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p.../CUBBYHOLE.jpg

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Just wanted to add that these are the things that I use and I love them. I started with smalls, and when my BP outgrew them I just threw the next size over the top as opposed to replacing them all together. Now she can go in the small one, go in the big at wrap around the small, half in the small/half in the bigger... you get the idea.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by clawlan

ok, thanks for the advice. what do you recommend as far as substrate? I'm thinking the repti-bark or bed-a-beat because it can hold/release moisture to aid in keeping up humidity.

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I've been very happy with Bed-A-Beast. It holds humidity well, is attractive/natural, etc. Although, is does require a considerable bit of time when you change out the old for the new and it gets a bit dusty when it's dry.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by clawlan

what are those exactly? (brand, name, where to buy)

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Zilla Creature Cubbyhole. I got mine at www.reptilesupply.com. "Cage Accessories-->caves, huts, hides"

what are those exactly? (brand, name, where to buy)

Welcome!

Your set up sounds good but you may want to look at our sticky about glass tank set ups. I was a long time fighter of the "Glass tank" battle but recently put one of my babies in a tub when I brought him home from a show and didn't have a tank ready. It's so much easier to keep the tempatures stable and all. Dont get me wrong, I'll still keep some in glass and deal with the extra work to keep everything perfect, but to keep things easy, tubs are the way to go.

If you choose glass that's cool too, just keep in mind it's a bit more work. That sticky helps a lot!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Holbeird

Welcome!

Your set up sounds good but you may want to look at our sticky about glass tank set ups. I was a long time fighter of the "Glass tank" battle but recently put one of my babies in a tub when I brought him home from a show and didn't have a tank ready. It's so much easier to keep the tempatures stable and all. Dont get me wrong, I'll still keep some in glass and deal with the extra work to keep everything perfect, but to keep things easy, tubs are the way to go.

If you choose glass that's cool too, just keep in mind it's a bit more work. That sticky helps a lot!

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yea, i have read it over like 10 times, haha. I'm still on the fence. either way, all my equipment will be the same, it will just all go in a tub instead of a glass tank if i go that route. i have some contemplating to do on that mater...

I'd avoid the reptile carpet stuff, it tends to be a bugger to keep really clean (you need at least two pieces) and can grow some rather nasty bacteria. I'd go with a nice natural substrate like aspen or bed-a-beast since GA's had good experiences with it.

As far as heating you can't beat Rich at Reptile Basics. Let him know what size of tank you are heating, the sorts of ambient room temps the tank will be in and he'll wire you up some flexwatt for that tstat so it's basically plug-and-play setup. He's an excellent online source that many of the members here use regularily.

www.reptilebasics.com

For monitoring temps and humidity I'd suggest an Acu-Rite from WalMart (in the outdoor weather station area). It's about $12.00 or less plus 1 AAA battery. You place the actual unit on the cool side, run the probe over to your warm side and tuck it into the warm side hide. Push a few buttons and you get:

IN - cool side temp that the unit is reading
OUT - warm side inside the hide temp that the probe is reading
HUMIDITY - overall enclosure humidity

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...g/Acu-Rite.jpg

You can see the Acu-Rite set up in this simple enclosure....
http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...MuirnesTub.jpg

As far as a water dish you don't need a large one. BP's don't soak normally nor need to so as long as it's easy to clean, wide based so they can't tip it, you're good to go. I use white ramekins found in the kitchen section of any department store or even in some dollar stores. They work beautifully and come in various sizes.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...ewaterdish.jpg

Another handy thing to have is one of these....

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...nsportCage.jpg

You can find them at all sorts of stores and with the addition of some vent holes you have a perfect snake carrier to bring your snake safely home in or take to vet appointment. We use them all the time to hold the snakes when we are cleaning tubs, etc. They come in various sizes and are just a really handy thing to have when you own a snake. They generally range from $2.00 to $6.00

excellent tips! Thank you!

Going with a tub is the cheapest, easiest to clean and control temps and humidity. Depending on where you live and what the humidity is you can adjust the amount of holes in the tub and width of the waterbowl. For example I live in very dry southern cali so I don't put too many holes in my tubs (4 or 5) and if it's real dry I use a wider, not deeper water bowl to up humidity. Some one in Florida where it's humid would want alot of air holes and probably a smaller water bowl because they don't want it to get too swampy(humid) in there, that can cause problems. 50% humidity is fine and maybe a few mist of water when your snake is in shed to kick it up a bit. Hope this helps.