Help! I found a ball python in the wild

[straydog1980]

hi guys! Kismet is doing great! I just bought him a new tank this morning

One of my employees found it at a customer's home and I only had to pay $50 for it! It's a nice big 48x12x18 with a wooden stand and everything! I let him out to check out his new digs but he was more interested in wrapping around my neck and sleeping behind my keyboard

His old home:



His new home:



I've still got to finish cleaning it up, and of course have to order my screen top for it. I've already got my plan together. I'm going to get a new UTH and drill a hole out of the wood frame for the cord to go out. He should be very happy when I'm done!

He's also gotten to be surprisingly affectionate. He will wrap around my head and then keep putting his head under my chin or around my ears. He's awesome! He's definitely not head shy either, I can touch him freely and he doesn't shirk away like he used to. I guess he trusts me now!

[straydog1980]

[Jenn]

Hey... so nice to see this thread again! I'm happy to see things are going so nicely for you and Kismet. Don't forget to keep the humidity up.

That's one lucky snake!

[Vypyrz]

I'm glad to hear everything is going good. Just make sure you put some fake vines and stuff in there to clutter it up a bit...

[straydog1980]

I'm glad to hear everything is going good. Just make sure you put some fake vines and stuff in there to clutter it up a bit...

Yeah, I've been thinking about getting a couple large rocks, and maybe a piece of driftwood or two? Are those sorts of things safe for a ball? Also, where would I get these vines you're talking about?

[olstyn]

Just about any pet store should have some fake plants you can use for a couple of dollars. For that matter, craft stores like Michael's may even have a better selection. Rocks & driftwood should be fine; just make sure they're set up in such a way that Kismet can't knock them over onto him/herself and get injured.

[angllady2]

Awww!

It's so good to hear from you and to know you and Kismet or bonding so well. What a fortunate little snake!

Congratulations on the tank find, I bet you had to re-arrange the office to make room for it didn't you? We warned you these guys were addicting!

With a tank that size, you probably want to consider 2 UTH, one for each side hot and cool. But I don't know, if your office is warm enough you might only need one. The biggest problem is going to be keep the humidity up in that cage, believe me I know, I had one that big. I'd suggest if you are a little bit handy, you can make one out of Plexiglas and screen that would help a lot.

Basically, we made a wooden frame around the top from 1" X 2"s. We carefully drilled holes in a piece of plexiglas that covered all but about 3" of the top of the tank, and then screwed the plexiglas to the frame. We used a piece of heavy duty window screen stapled to the frame to cover the last 3". Then we fitted the frame over the top of the tank. Does that make sense? It really helped our humidity levels, especially when combined with a big water dish. Just a thought.

Gale

[cweimer4]

Congrats on the tank find and everything, glad to see the snake is doing well. I give u kudos. I wont let my ball anywhere near my neck. It just takes a trip and your adrenaline to rush before he/she squeezes and a snake the size you have there would easily take 3 grown men to get him off.. IF they were able to.

[Jenn]

Congrats on the tank find and everything, glad to see the snake is doing well. I give u kudos. I wont let my ball anywhere near my neck. It just takes a trip and your adrenaline to rush before he/she squeezes and a snake the size you have there would easily take 3 grown men to get him off.. IF they were able to.

Dear god I hope you're joking!!!!

[straydog1980]

Awww!

It's so good to hear from you and to know you and Kismet or bonding so well. What a fortunate little snake!

Congratulations on the tank find, I bet you had to re-arrange the office to make room for it didn't you? We warned you these guys were addicting!

With a tank that size, you probably want to consider 2 UTH, one for each side hot and cool. But I don't know, if your office is warm enough you might only need one. The biggest problem is going to be keep the humidity up in that cage, believe me I know, I had one that big. I'd suggest if you are a little bit handy, you can make one out of Plexiglas and screen that would help a lot.

Basically, we made a wooden frame around the top from 1" X 2"s. We carefully drilled holes in a piece of plexiglas that covered all but about 3" of the top of the tank, and then screwed the plexiglas to the frame. We used a piece of heavy duty window screen stapled to the frame to cover the last 3". Then we fitted the frame over the top of the tank. Does that make sense? It really helped our humidity levels, especially when combined with a big water dish. Just a thought.

Gale

I think I might be able to do that! That would probably help out a lot also, I could always just spraypaint the wooden frame to match the base so it would look nice. Isn't plexiglass pretty good about retaining heat also? Better than glass, anyway.