How do BP's drink?

I have seen my snake dip his head into his water dish and have a nice long drink many times. The dish is not see-thru and I never approach him when he's drinking so as not to disturb him.

So, has anyone seen the actual mechanism of a BP drinking?
Do they scoop, suck, or lap up the water?
I don't see any head movement, so I am guessing it's either suck or lap, not scoop.

okay I was gonna be a wise arse and say with its mouth. lol.
but having seen my corn snake drink I think its a suck motion. I would imagine that it would be same for all snakes. :D

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Originally Posted by Ladydragon

okay I was gonna be a wise arse and say with its mouth. lol.
but having seen my corn snake drink I think its a suck motion. I would imagine that it would be same for all snakes. :D

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I almost said the same thing :rofl:.Yes they do a slurping kinda way to get a drink :gj:.If you watch the sides of thier jaws you will notice them moving :D

Reminds me of a hamster - when they take a big gulp the cheeks inflate.

My BP started drinking while soaking in a clear bin with his mouth against the side slightly. It is most definitely a slurping type of drinking although I am not sure exactly how it works. I mean we use air as the vacuum for drinking that way (through a straw) but when Monkey was drinking his nostrils were submerged and no air was visible (bubbles). I would venture to say that my theory is that they use some air in their lungs (deep breath) and then suck some water in initially. Then they use that water and air combination to create the vacuum to suck more water in much like if you swish water in and out of your mouth while under water. They then swallow a little and push the rest back out to create the vacuum to pull more water in...doing this until they are satisfied. I was going to video tape it but he never gives me enough time to get the camera and if I have the camera ready, he never does it. Little booger.

yeah i agree, i think they kindof slurp and gulp. moving there jaw back and forth may cause suction, i dont know. interesting thought

I read somewhere that their main water source comes from their food..can anyone validate this?

yeah..thats what i have heard as well cause i have never seen mine drink from his water bowl

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Originally Posted by Noek

I read somewhere that their main water source comes from their food..can anyone validate this?

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Never heard of anything even close to this :confused:.They probably drink when no one is around :D

I got it from this site..took a while for me to remember...it stuck with me when i read it because I had never heard of this before.

it's down towards the end of the Q&A section

http://www.kingsnake.com/ballpythonguide/

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...s/IMG_1886.jpg

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Originally Posted by Noek

I got it from this site..took a while for me to remember...it stuck with me when i read it because I had never heard of this before.

it's down towards the end of the Q&A section

http://www.kingsnake.com/ballpythonguide/

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I looked at this guide and it also says its ok to keep 2 or more ball pythons together after the quarantine :rolleyes: :rolleyes:.It looks like it was wrote in 2001.I don't think i would follow that guide just because of the old incorrect info :D

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Originally Posted by Moriar

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...s/IMG_1886.jpg

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Well here is the proof that they do indeed take drinks :gj:

sweet shot!

wierd that you said that i swear not...five mins ago this happened

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y81...n/100_2798.jpg

see her 2 scale freckle?

LOL I had never caught my BP's drinking before... then this post popped up while I was wandering around the net last night looking up info and stuff. I found this link while I was looking for an exotics vet here in K-town. http://www.anapsid.org/drinksnake.html

Then about two hours later I caught Riley taking a few long droughts from his water dish.

This is Gordon driking. I saw my little guy drink a few times but never got a pic of it. When I saw Gordon chuggin the water I get a few shots. You can sew the skin on the lower jaw move letting you know they are taking water in. You can also see his face in it pretty far. I think he was holding his breath because when he came out is was a loud "Hiss". Interesting. I too read that they get most water from food.

https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...onDrinking.JPG

Not a bp, but I caught one of my snakes on video drinking. I think it's the cutest thing how their cheeks work when they're getting a drink. :love:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6x8Kjqq5UXg

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Originally Posted by joepythons

Never heard of anything even close to this :confused:.They probably drink when no one is around :D

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I've heard this too, but my three adults drink occassionally. They remind me of cows and goats drinking... the same positioning and everything :)

ive seen mine drink like those pictures above ..to almost like he is sucking an imaginary straw

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Originally Posted by Noek

I read somewhere that their main water source comes from their food..can anyone validate this?

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I understand (from Brian at BHB) that they get 50% from their food and 50% from drinking.


Moriar, GREAt shot! Didn't know they opened their mouths before drinking. What was the next move?

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Originally Posted by patthesnakeman

wierd that you said that i swear not...five mins ago this happened

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Cute shot. Is that a price tag sticker in the water bowl? Might want to get that out.

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Originally Posted by MedusasOwl

Not a bp, but I caught one of my snakes on video drinking. I think it's the cutest thing how their cheeks work when they're getting a drink. :love:

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Great video!

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Originally Posted by bjfoste1

ive seen mine drink like those pictures above ..to almost like he is sucking an imaginary straw

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I have seen our BP drinking off the sides of the glass when I have misted. But never drinking from his bowl - though I've seen him soak, but his head was not under.

Every time I put our new little Kenyan Sand Boa back in, I offer him the water bowl, and he almost always rewards me with a show. He sticks his face in and seems to suck. Once, his underbelly was facing me and I had the pleasure of seeing the little lumps of water travel down his throat. How cute!!! He also likes to swim sometimes.

I have seen my BP, she flicks her tongue out and keeps her head a couple of cm's above the water's surface. Once she positions herself she will slowly move her lower jaw structure up and down, looks very nice....