Getting A Ball Python

[vrp98]

Hello! I am planning on getting a male baby Pastel Ball Python hopefully this semester (I'm in college). I have made a list of supplies I want/need to get for my ball python. I have done plenty of research (and more) but advice would be greatly appreciated. If you believe I am missing something on my list or don't think something on my list is appropriate for a ball python, feel free to add to my list!

~~~

Baby Pastel Ball Python $59.00 + $49.99 Shipping (XYZ Reptiles)
What are your thoughts on this company?

Thermometer Humidity Gauge (two) $14**
One for each side of the tank!

Exo Terra 36 x 18 x 12 Glass Terrarium $149.99***
I realize this is a large tank for a baby, but I will provide my bp with plenty of decorations and hides so he feels comfortable and not so out in the open.

Zoo Med ReptiRock Water Dish $10.12*
Will be getting a large.

Zoo Med Forest Floor (ordering two) $29.98 total****
What is your experience with this substrate?

Zoo Med Reptitherm Under Tank Heater $24.99*
Would the 30-40 gallon 8x12 size be okay?

Feeding Tongs $6.29**

Exo Terra Small Forest Branch $6.53****

Conceptual Creations 13 x 9 x 5 Hideaway $13.19*****
Is this size okay?

Exo Terra Small Moss Vines $10.49*

Conceptual Creations Large Bark Log Reptile Hideaway $12.99*****
Is this size okay?

LATOW Kitchen Scale $11.98**

Pangea Mossy Vine $12.99*

Suction Cup Tree Branch $11.99*

Reptology Green and Red Hanging Vine $8.99*

Suction Cup With Vine Hook (six) total of $3.54*
They each can hold up to three pounds. Should I get the three pound or six pound suction cup hooks? Are a quantity of six okay or should I get more?

Exo Terra Large Ficus Hanging Silk Plant $12.99

Zoo Med Reptisafe Water Conditioner (two) total of $6.98
For the drinking water.

Reptile Thermostat $33.99**
Where exactly do I place this?

Zoo Med Medium Terrarium Moss $4.99*

Temperature Gun $13.99**

Conceptual Creations Mistr $4.59*****
It's just a fine mist spray bottle. I'm going to fill it with water and mist the tank.

F10 SC Veterinary Reptile Disinfectant (3.4 oz) $19.99*
For cleaning the enclosure.

Sea Grape Leaf Litter $5.99*

Zoo Med Wipe Out Disinfectant $5.99*
For cleaning the enclosure.

(*=pangea reptiles
**amazon
***=petsmart
****=chewy
*****=petco)

~~~

Notes:

My ball python will be fed hopper mice (that is what the company I am getting my snake from is feeding and recommended). I am going to start with buying 8-10 hopper mice and go from there. I am ordering from South Florida Rodents.

I will spot clean the tank AT LEAST every other day. I will entirely clean the enclosure once a month. I will switch between using F10 and Zoo Med Wipe Out every other month.

The top of the tank is a mesh(?) filter separated into four sections. I plan on covering 3/4 of the tank lid with aluminum file to help trap in humidity. Would it be okay to put stickers on the top of the aluminum foil just to make the top of the tank look nice?

I plan on not holding my ball python after I get him and place him in his cage for a week so he can get well adjusted to his new environment without added stress.

This is my first reptile and I am very excited. I'm not kidding when I say that my future ball python is the first thing I think of when I get up in the morning!

Also, I am registering my ball python as an emotional support animal. I have depression and anxiety and I believe a pet will be a great deal of help and will benefit my mental health. Animals are very beneficial for helping people.

Hopefully I'm not forgetting to add something. Anyway, advice is appreciated. Thank you!

-Victoria

[Craiga 01453]

Hello and welcome!!

Sounds like you're on the right track.

I personally would look elsewhere as far as where to purchase the snake itself though. I've not heard much good about xyz. I would check out morphmarket.com and look around. You can find plenty of reputable breeders on there.

You're not going to want to get hoppers either. BPs eat hoppers right out of the egg for their first few meals, typically 3-5 and quickly move up to small adult mice.

Since this will be your first reptile you want to make sure your new snake is a well-established eater before he comes to you. If you plan to feed F/T (frozen/thawed) prey to your snake you'll want to try to purchase a snake already readily accepting F/T.

Now on to your shopping list... I'll just comment on some of the things that stand out to me:

- you can get thermometer/hygrometer combos cheaper. Many of us use Accurite brand. They can be found at Wal-Mart for $10

- those hides are HUGE for a juvenile BP. You'll want to start smaller. Just stick to simple, cave style hides with single entries. They like them snug and low fitting. Avoid the half log hides, they don't offer the security BPs crave.
It's also beat to have identical hides. This will prevent the snake from choosing security over proper temps.

- you don't need the water conditioner. It's a waste of money and just not needed. They can drink tap water just like you and I.

- for a thermostat, you're better off going with a HerpStat if you can swing the upfront cost. If not, JumpStart is a much better entry level t-stat.

- one thing I noticed, you only have one heat source. Unless the ambient temps in the room where your snake will be kept stay in the upper 70s-low 80s you will need an additional heat source. Your UTH is there solely to provide a hot spot and not for ambient temps. So if your room gets cooler than high 70s you'll need a heat lamp with a CHE (ceramic heat emitter) or heat bulbs or a RHP (radiant heat panel). And remember, ALL heat sources should be regulated by a thermostat.

- Lastly, have your enclosure setup, dialed in and ready to roll before bringing your new snake home.


As for handling, I strongly advise no handling until the snake has eaten three consecutive meals without refusal. You'll have 20+ years to handle the snake, getting him well established should be priority.

This link will teach you how to set up your tank and thermostat: pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?201740-How-to-Setup-a-Glass-Tank-(20-long)-With-Pictures!

This link will teach you about appropriate prey size for your BP: pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?243687-Ball-Python-Feeding-Guidelines

I hope I helped you out! Feel free to ask plenty of questions. The more prepared you are the better the experience will be for you and your new pet.

[ryu80]

Hello and welcome!!

Sounds like you're on the right track.

I personally would look elsewhere as far as where to purchase the snake itself though. I've not heard much good about xyz. I would check out morphmarket.com and look around. You can find plenty of reputable breeders on there.

You're not going to want to get hoppers either. BPs eat hoppers right out of the egg for their first few meals, typically 3-5 and quickly move up to small adult mice.

Since this will be your first reptile you want to make sure your new snake is a well-established eater before he comes to you. If you plan to feed F/T (frozen/thawed) prey to your snake you'll want to try to purchase a snake already readily accepting F/T.

Now on to your shopping list... I'll just comment on some of the things that stand out to me:

- you can get thermometer/hygrometer combos cheaper. Many of us use Accurite brand. They can be found at Wal-Mart for $10

- those hides are HUGE for a juvenile BP. You'll want to start smaller. Just stick to simple, cave style hides with single entries. They like them snug and low fitting. Avoid the half log hides, they don't offer the security BPs crave.
It's also beat to have identical hides. This will prevent the snake from choosing security over proper temps.

- you don't need the water conditioner. It's a waste of money and just not needed. They can drink tap water just like you and I.

- for a thermostat, you're better off going with a HerpStat if you can swing the upfront cost. If not, JumpStart is a much better entry level t-stat.

- one thing I noticed, you only have one heat source. Unless the ambient temps in the room where your snake will be kept stay in the upper 70s-low 80s you will need an additional heat source. Your UTH is there solely to provide a hot spot and not for ambient temps. So if your room gets cooler than high 70s you'll need a heat lamp with a CHE (ceramic heat emitter) or heat bulbs or a RHP (radiant heat panel). And remember, ALL heat sources should be regulated by a thermostat.

- Lastly, have your enclosure setup, dialed in and ready to roll before bringing your new snake home.


As for handling, I strongly advise no handling until the snake has eaten three consecutive meals without refusal. You'll have 20+ years to handle the snake, getting him well established should be priority.

This link will teach you how to set up your tank and thermostat: pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?201740-How-to-Setup-a-Glass-Tank-(20-long)-With-Pictures!

This link will teach you about appropriate prey size for your BP: pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?243687-Ball-Python-Feeding-Guidelines

I hope I helped you out! Feel free to ask plenty of questions. The more prepared you are the better the experience will be for you and your new pet.

Agree with Craig. Cannot stress enough to have setup all dialed in and tested before bringing animal home.

[JodanOrNoDan]

Take it for what it is worth...

You are spending too much for that animal. What I mean by that is not a high dollar animal. It would be much cheaper to get something like that local to you and not incur the shipping costs.

The "weather" outside of the enclosure can dictate the degree of difficulty in keeping the animal's environment right. For example AC zaps humidity and you should equip accordingly.

I think also you are buying way too much stuff up front. A baby ball needs nothing more than a shoe box size plastic container. Focus on the heating and humidity aspects and you will have a much better start to your experience. Once you have it eating, shedding well and growing, then start thinking what you want your final setup to be. A good thermostat, heat gun and heat tape/pad are the most important things to spend money on.

[vrp98]

Thank you! I will look into everything you have suggested, glad I posted this! I want to make sure I do everything right!

[MissterDog]

I agree with Jordan. I'm not sure what your budget is but I'd honestly ditch the Exo Terra tank in favor of a tub set up and use that money to buy a Herpstat thermostat (if you foresee yourself having more than one heat source in the future you might as well get the Herpstat 2) Honestly the best thing you can spend money on and early on. Cannot recommend Herpstats enough!

You can always upgrade baby to their final enclosure later and even then you might as well buy a PVC cage like Animal Plastics. Up to you in the end of course!

[skydnay]

On top of what everyone else has said so far, I'd like to comment on the Emotional Support Animal aspect. Unless you're living somewhere where pets are not allowed, registering your animal as an ESA is not necessary. In fact, there's not really a good registry system for ESAs, since they don't really need to be registered at all, so the whole thing ends up being a giant process where you throw away a lot of money. The main bulk of the process is going through a doctor to be essentially prescribed a pet. I've gone through this process before, and it is costly and not entirely worth it, IMHO.

If you think a pet will help your anxiety and depression, then just get a pet; don't worry about having an ESA. In fact, you'll get a lot more grief than you bargain for if your ESA is anything other than a cat or a dog, even though ESAs can be other kinds of animals, though it is more tricky to get a recommendation for a reptile ESA. If you're living somewhere where pets in general are not allowed, forcing their hand with an official ESA recommendation for a reptile is tricky business. Anywhere that allows pets will generally also allow reptiles that are secured in tanks.

I don't mean to step on any toes here, but in general, I think an animal doesn't really need to be an official working animal unless it is a service animal that will be required to be with you at all times. Otherwise, it's just a pet, doing what pets do, which certainly includes helping with mental disorders! I also have anxiety and depression, and have a lot of pets. They all help, but none of them are ESAs because they just don't need to be.

[Trisnake]

Sounds like you’ve gotten a lot of good advice to help guide your further research! One thing I would encourage that I didn’t see mentioned yet is to check out your local reptile and exotic animal expos!

At these expos you’ll get to meet and network with local reptile enthusiasts, browse hundreds of ball pythons (and other herps) and check them out in person, hold them, get an idea of their health and temperament, ask the breeder any questions in person, etc... vs just looking at pictures on morphmarket and corresponding through email. Plus you’ll have a wider variety of morph options available to you for your price range as there should be no shipping required, and there will be lots of reptile supplies, caging, feeders and so on for lower prices than generally offered in store or online. So TONS of pros, especially if you still need to purchase supplies and caging. Pet stores will generally gouge you pretty good and you’d be surprised at the quality low price options you’ll find at an expo.

I see you’re in Louisiana, I used to live in Lafayette and I’ve heard expos are held at least once yearly there and in Westwego near NOLA, just to name a couple venues. I’m sure there are plenty more though. I hope this helps!!

[Trisnake]

I would also like to add, that as a university student who helped train service animals for my pre-veterinary society, and who used to run into issues with confused college students claiming their ESA’s are “registered service animals”— there is no official registry for ESA’s. They are all scams. Don’t waste your money on them, if you do plan to have your ball python as an ESA then a doctors note stating why you need the animal for your mental health is the only officially required piece of documentation you will need and any website stating otherwise is out for your money.

[vrp98]

On top of what everyone else has said so far, I'd like to comment on the Emotional Support Animal aspect. Unless you're living somewhere where pets are not allowed, registering your animal as an ESA is not necessary. In fact, there's not really a good registry system for ESAs, since they don't really need to be registered at all, so the whole thing ends up being a giant process where you throw away a lot of money. The main bulk of the process is going through a doctor to be essentially prescribed a pet. I've gone through this process before, and it is costly and not entirely worth it, IMHO.

If you think a pet will help your anxiety and depression, then just get a pet; don't worry about having an ESA. In fact, you'll get a lot more grief than you bargain for if your ESA is anything other than a cat or a dog, even though ESAs can be other kinds of animals, though it is more tricky to get a recommendation for a reptile ESA. If you're living somewhere where pets in general are not allowed, forcing their hand with an official ESA recommendation for a reptile is tricky business. Anywhere that allows pets will generally also allow reptiles that are secured in tanks.

I don't mean to step on any toes here, but in general, I think an animal doesn't really need to be an official working animal unless it is a service animal that will be required to be with you at all times. Otherwise, it's just a pet, doing what pets do, which certainly includes helping with mental disorders! I also have anxiety and depression, and have a lot of pets. They all help, but none of them are ESAs because they just don't need to be.

Animals at my dorms aren't allowed unless they are a service animal or esa! I should have put that, my bad! I have already talked to housing about it and they just told me to get approval from my therapist and of course approval from my roommate (already granted). There is a fumigation fee at the end of the semester ($100 I believe), not sure if it applies to a caged animal or not.