Ball Python Questions

I recently bought a Ball Python from a Pet Supermarket near one of my friends house. I had looked at all the Ball Pythons at the local pet stores and this one seemed to be in a clean aquarium and the young lady I talked to said that she had been taking him out frequently and getting him used to people.

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Question One:
I took the snake home and upon taking her out of the box I noticed that she had a couple raised scales. It almost looks like a bit of shed skin is stuck to one scale. That is on a couple of scales along the top of the snake. I'm not entirely sure if this is scale rot or just a raised scale. I truthfully don't know very much about either aside from scale rot being caused by slithering around in their own excriments. But the tank was completely clean of all excriments everytime I entered the store. Is this something I can clear-up by rubbing her back with water or should I take her to the vet and how much would taking her to the vet cost.

Question Two:
I also fed her the day after I took her home because they had fed her a week before and I read that you should feed a young adult once a week. The only problem is I think I fed too big of a mouse. She ate it fine and didn't regurgitate it but now she doesn't coil up in her half log. Instead she leaves the back portion of her body outside of the half log. Is she going to be okay?

Question Three:
I'm new to Ball Pythons so I don't know their attitude but do they not like their head to be touched? I used to handle my Corn Snakes frequently and I was able to lift their head by gently lifting it with my finger by the button of the head. Whenever I get close to my ball pythons head she pulls back.

Question Four:
How long should it take for them to feel at home. I know it stresses them out when you first bring them home because they are in a new environment but I just want to make sure that she will feel at home with no problem. Does anyone have any information on ways to make her more comfortable in the tank as well as being held?

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Thanks in advance for all your replies. If you would like to see pictures of the scales I will gladly post some up just let me know. :confused:

-Ifland

I read the FAQs about Ball Pythons and I read that the head is a sensitive area and may scare them so I guess I will avoid that area and try to make her more comfortable with that. But I still can't find any answers to the other three questions. I can't find any pictures of 'raised scales' thought I read about them on another web site so I'm not sure if there is such a thing. Also all the pictures I find on scale rot ar on the bottom of the snake and look nothing like what mine has.

-Ifland

Question One:
if it is stuck shed I would put a dab of mineral oil on a q-tip and rub it. it will likely fix itself on the next shed even if you dont do anything. its probably not scale rot. it could just be scales that are lifted from rubbing against something.. got a pic?

Question Two:
i usually wait 2 weeks to feed new snakes but since you already did no big deal. its ok if it was a bit large she is just digesting. dont handle her for 2 days.

Question Three:
They are head shy but with alot of handling some will let you touch and some will never let you.

Question Four:
about 2 weeks

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hi2uX

Question One:
I took the snake home and upon taking her out of the box I noticed that she had a couple raised scales. It almost looks like a bit of shed skin is stuck to one scale. That is on a couple of scales along the top of the snake. I'm not entirely sure if this is scale rot or just a raised scale. I truthfully don't know very much about either aside from scale rot being caused by slithering around in their own excriments. But the tank was completely clean of all excriments everytime I entered the store. Is this something I can clear-up by rubbing her back with water or should I take her to the vet and how much would taking her to the vet cost.

Question Two:
I also fed her the day after I took her home because they had fed her a week before and I read that you should feed a young adult once a week. The only problem is I think I fed too big of a mouse. She ate it fine and didn't regurgitate it but now she doesn't coil up in her half log. Instead she leaves the back portion of her body outside of the half log. Is she going to be okay?

Question Three:
I'm new to Ball Pythons so I don't know their attitude but do they not like their head to be touched? I used to handle my Corn Snakes frequently and I was able to lift their head by gently lifting it with my finger by the button of the head. Whenever I get close to my ball pythons head she pulls back.

Question Four:
How long should it take for them to feel at home. I know it stresses them out when you first bring them home because they are in a new environment but I just want to make sure that she will feel at home with no problem. Does anyone have any information on ways to make her more comfortable in the tank as well as being held?

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Question one - A picture would help but most likely it is just a stuck shed. If you don't know how to deal with stuck sheds I think there is a sticky on it somewhere in the Ball Pythons section. :)

Question two - Well, it depends. This seems fine but it might be an indicater that his hide is too small. Either way, it does no damage and probably the snake didn't even realized he was partially out of his hide.

Question three - Most Ball Pythons are head-shy but you can slowly get them used to being touched on their heads. An easy way to do this is to touch them down on their 'neck' and ease your finger along their spine until you reach their head. If you do this a lot, I've found with my Ball Python, that they don't really mind you being near their head anymore.

Question four - You shouldn't hold them for at least a week, even better if you leave them alone for two, but it takes differing amounts for different snakes. Mine was fine after around a week while others could take a month to adjust. As for making them comfortable, just hold them lots and let him get used to you... and two identical hides are also loved. :D If you have a tank you could also put black paper around three sides to make them feel more comfortable.

Welcome to the wonderful world of Ball Pythons. :)

Thank you both very much for your replies and I will definately do as you both suggested!

-Ifland :snake:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gothkenny

If you have a tank you could also put black paper around three sides to make them feel more comfortable.

Welcome to the wonderful world of Ball Pythons. :)

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another thing that works is the blue foam insulation that you can get at lowes...spray paint it black and it keeps them secure and creates a little warm air pocket around the tank...

and I second the welcome

If you post a picture of your setup we could help point out any potential issues too..

The tank she is in is a 30 gallon long. Has a square glad tupaware for a water dish a branch from petco i got a while back to climb on. He was coiled around a branch at the pet store when I went to buy him but he hasn't gone onto this one yet. And then on the other side is the half log. I have a lamp sitting on top of the screen with a 100w bulb and the substrate is a fir tree mulch. I can take a picture tomorrow but my girl friend currently has my computer.

Right now the only bulb I had was a 100w and I think it is fine since its about 18 inches above the mulch and is only on the left side of the tank. I could be wrong but the corn snakes that I have in a similar tank don't mind at all and they have no problems shedding or eating. But If I am wrong and they need a lower wattage please let me know so I can get that taken care of.

-Ifland

Ok a few things I would say are problematic.. corn snakes and ball pythons have fairly different requirements. Nothing we can't help you fix though.

1. Your half log is not a great hide for a ball python. They like security and will spend days inside a hide. It needs to be tight so the snake can feel it on all sides with only one opening. They also need 2 hides, one on cool side one on the warm side simply because the snake will choose security before heat if it has to. you can use an upside down bowl with a hole cut out or a tupperware container etc..

2. many keepers use heat lamps to heat ball pythons, however they are better suited to under tank heating pads. make sure the temperature where the bulb is pointing is no more than 95 degrees. ball pythons are not smart and will burn themselves..

3. you will have humidity problems, resulting in bad sheds perhaps poor apetite. I keep mine in the 60-80% humidity range. This is going to be your biggest problem. Tanks with screen tops are very hard to keep humid. You could try putting moist moss inside the snakes hide. Also covering the top of the tank with something will help keep in the humidity. The heat lamp will also lower the humidity (thats mostly why we prefer under tank heaters) there is a sticky post on how to keep humidity up in tanks.

4. brances are not necessary, they are terrestrial and don't climb trees. as long as it dosn't allow the snake to fall very far it shouldn't cause any problems.

Don't take this as a negative post, I am glad you came here for suggestions and are willing to make changes.

Richard

Once again thanks and I will get the intruments to measure temp and humidity as soon as possible and will be putting in new hides asap! Also I have a cover for the 30 gallon tank that we used on a fish tank we had the only problem with that is it doesn't have a lock and I can't stack anything on top of it. I don't think the snake can get to the top of the tank as it is now but I don't want to risk losing her. THANKS SO MUCH!

-Ifland

Would you guys be able to post pictures of your tanks so I could get an idea of what I should do.

-Ifland

:) Check your private messages. I sent you pictures of some of my tanks as well as a checklist of sorts for setting up tanks well for BPs.

Good luck getting everything going properly!

I just noticed that she also does have a small case of scale rot on the under side of her body and was reading about some methods of getting rid of it. I was wondering if I was able to bathe her in a water and tea tree oil mixture and then rub neosporin on the infected area like the guide said to do. If the tea tree oil is bad is there any other type of substitute? They mentioned some sort of liquid that is used to clean poultry and meat and such.

Argentra, can you sent me pics of your set up as well?? thanks

WELCOME!!!!

As a new BP owner myself (I got mine about 1 1/2 months ago), I very quickly learned that the people here aer extremely friendly and knowledgeable as well. They will be quick to point out a mistake, but as long as you realize they are trying to help, you will be ok.

You didn't say how big your snake is... Just an FYI, as someone said earlier, BP's like security. A good measurement is the snake should not be longer than the length plus the width of the tank. You should get a screen lid ASAP, as I can almost guarantee you your snake will find a way out fast.

I started handling mine about 2 days after bringing her home. She has been ok the entire time.

There is an EXTREMELY good how to somewhere in this section on the setting up of a tank, I would suggest you read it and possibly use it to guide you on your set-up. Every snake is different, so use your snake's behavior as your guide.

I now have my baby in a 20L tank, and here is how I set it up:

I started off by painting some cardboard black, and taping it to the sidea nad back of the tank to create a more secure feel.

I used a medium sized under tank heater on the warm side, and a small sized one for the cool side.

I have an ACU-RITE temperature/humidity monitor device on each side of the tank. (I did this so I could better monitor the temps and humidity.)

I used 4 layers of aluminum foil (shiny side facing substrate), taped in place on the inside of the screen lid with black duct tape. I then cut a square hole slightly larger than my heat lamp in the foil layer in order to allow for heat and air. I use the heat lamp in addition to the under tank heaters because my house is kept at 68* all of the time.

I put the water dish (a simple 1/2" deep dish from the pet store) on top of the substrate on the warm side to help with humidity.

I use coconut bark substrate, mixed with sphagnum moss, about 1 1/2 - 2 inches deep. This helps hold humidity extremely well, when misted 2-3 times a day.

I have 2 hollowed out coconut shells with openings cut into them as hides, 1 on the cool side, and 1 on the warm side.

I bought some cheap plastic vines from the craft section, and used them and a pair of logs to help "decorate" the tank. To help hang the vines, I used the plastic suction cup hangers found in the Christmas decoration section.

All in all, my enclosure is pleasing to look at (it is in my living room), while maintaining an extremely secure environment for my snake to live.

If you have any questions, please let me know. I will do my best to answer them and help you out. I will also try to post pictures of my tank later tonight.