Hello . New BP Owner Few ?

[KrasnoPL]

Just wondering a few things here as i just got my bp yesterday rookie mistake.. didnt ask sex and really dont know how to check.. lol
Im super happy and pumped up to learn a little bit about these gorgeous animals.
I purchased from a Local Reptile Store here in Ontario, BP Babys for 49.99.. sold.
Anyways.. limited funds till this weekend.. but i got the basic setup..

My question.. 1. Should i cover any of those sides of the aquarium?

2. My 55w UVA is on the left side there.. i have a cork wood "stump" leaning there.. this baby loves to just lay under that cork and curl up in the shade.. its 87 in that corner basically even in the shade.. blah blah sorry... without those rays of the light is he ok?
3. DO i Leave the light on at night?

[Coleslaw007]

An under tank heater would be much better for heating than a light, the light will dry the cage out too much, as will the screen top. They also need belly heat to digest. Sand is not a good substrate for a BP, newspaper, aspen, or cypress would be much better.

Congrats on your first BP. I can't really help with the sexing much.
I'm sure others will chime in.

I would use foil to cover most of the top so that the humidity stays in.

[KrasnoPL]

An under tank heater would be much better for heating than a light, the light will dry the cage out too much, as will the screen top. They also need belly heat to digest. Sand is not a good substrate for a BP, newspaper, aspen, or cypress would be much better.

Congrats on your first BP. I can't really help with the sexing much.
I'm sure others will chime in.

thanks ! This weekend i shall pick one up. no light needed if i have a underpad?
that is carpet basically, not sand.? Make a difference?

[The Serpent Merchant]

Ball pythons do not need UV light, in fact they rather dislike bright whit light being that they are nocturnal.

You are going to need better hides, and a heat source that can be left on 24/7... The white light won't work. I agree with above that a under tank heater is best, but they must be regulated by a thermostat, so if you are on a tight budget they might not be the best rout to go at this moment.

An infrared heat lamp can be (and should) be left on 24/7 to create a 88-92 degree hot side in the tank. This is the type of bulb you should get:

http://m.petsmart.com/mt/www.petsmar...3&lmdn=Reptile

A good digital thermometer with a probe is also a good thing to have. This unit can be found at Walmart, as well as online for $12 they measure 2 temperatures and humidity.



Finally I suggest that you read the BP caresheet.

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ius)-Caresheet

[alittleFREE]

The carpet is fine, but newspaper or another sort of disposable substrate (or alternatively, a loose substrate like aspen or cypress which you can spot clean) would be much easier for you to clean. That's up to you of course - just a suggestion.

Make sure that you get a thermostat to regulate the under take heater and keep your snake safe from extreme temperatures. He will be fine without a light

Lookin' good so far! Congrats on your new addition, welcome to the site!

[The Serpent Merchant]

thanks ! This weekend i shall pick one up. no light needed if i have a underpad?
that is carpet basically, not sand.? Make a difference?

Your substrate is fine. Sand is bad, but reptile carpet is fine.

as I said in my previous post, UTH's must have a thermostat to control them. To get a basic thermostat and a UTH it will cost around $60. If you do go with a UTH there are a few things to know.

Mainly UTH's do not change the air temperature in the tank so if the room that the tank is in gets below 75 degrees a heat lamp will be necessary as well.

Here are 2 good thermostats, don't bother with the junk sold in pet stores.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000NZZG3S

http://spyderrobotics.com/

[Slim]

Welcome to BP.net!

These guys will get you going in the right direction, but please make sure you read the ball python care sheet and also read through the recent posts in the BP Husbandry Forum.

[KrasnoPL]

The carpet is fine, but newspaper or another sort of disposable substrate (or alternatively, a loose substrate like aspen or cypress which you can spot clean) would be much easier for you to clean. That's up to you of course - just a suggestion.

Make sure that you get a thermostat to regulate the under take heater and keep your snake safe from extreme temperatures. He will be fine without a light

Lookin' good so far! Congrats on your new addition, welcome to the site!

awesome! thank you very much! i appreciate the help.. and sounds good to me. ill have it all Friday . can i leave the light on till then?
sorry for asking so much lol. small apartment.. obviously no smoking of any type around it? (makes sense but have to ask lol)

k ill go read now haha

[The Serpent Merchant]

I wouldn't smoke around it... I would not leave the light on 24/7, but turning it off at night is even worse... I strongly suggest that you get an infrared heat bulb as soon as possible.

[KrasnoPL]

I wouldn't smoke around it... I would not leave the light on 24/7, but turning it off at night is even worse... I strongly suggest that you get an infrared heat bulb as soon as possible.

be back in 20 minutes