Newbie Questions & horrible Ex preparedness.

[fa1321tx]

Hello everyone! My daughter has been asking for over a year to get a snake. We had the opportunity over the weekend to pick up a 16 year old 4' ball python named Hunter. The previous owner had Hunter his whole life got him when he was a teenager. He said Hunter is super chill never bit anyone and eats frozen thawed rats. I am not a snake person but my GF who I live with loves reptiles and owned snakes in the past. My daughter is 9 and loves him already. We put him in a 55 Gallon tank with coconut substrate, water and 2 hides. He a hot side using a 100 watt red lamp on a thermostat. The hot side seems to be in high debate on the heating choice. Many YouTube videos suggest heater under the tank with a thermostat. 2 local reptile shops have said no use a lamp. So thoughts on that would be great. Next thing is Hunter in 16 years has never tried to escape. Regardless my ex wife will do anything to take my custody away. I need a good plan for securing our friend Hunter. Can anyone suggest a good display enclosure that is the right size, holds humidity and locks?

[Hugsplox]

First off, welcome to the forums and congrats one your new snake!

A lot to unpack here so I'll try to touch everything very briefly and I'm sure some other users will jump in. Personally in a glass tank, I'm using both a overhead head source and a UTH both controlled by a thermostat, and remember any heat source you use 100% needs to be controlled by a thermostat. Don't let anyone tell you differently. If you don't have them already I'd also pick up some reliable digital thermometers/hydrometer that you can stick in there and see where your temps and humidity are. Also grab yourself a handheld temp gun to spot check surfaces. It's hard, not impossible, but hard to maintain proper humidity levels and heat in a glass enclosure without making some alterations to the enclosure. You can go to the below link to take a look at a tutorial on how to make it work.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...With-Pictures!

I would recommend looking into a PVC enclosure, as most of them will meet all your needs, specifically locking doors. The issue is, the wait times for most vendors are over the top long right now, for an assortment of reasons. You didn't mention what you were using on top of the enclosure, and I assume by 55 gallon you're just using a fish tank. You can buy mesh lids for them, and most come with clamps that will lock that lid down to where he can't get out, but snakes are escape artists and if there's a way, they will find it.

It's possible to make it work and it's not that hard, but I think your biggest hurdle is going to come from something other than the animal, which is unfortunate, but we won't get into that. Take a look at the care guide below, spend some time browsing the husbandry sub-forum here, and I'm sure you'll find everything you need.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...s%29-Caresheet

[nikkubus]

UTH can sometimes have difficulty heating tall enclosures like a 55g tank so this is probably why red light is being suggested.

I'm fond of Animal Plastics but there are a lot of good choices out there. If you change to something like that, which is a lot more ideal than a tank, you are going to have to change to a radiant heat panel (also more ideal) instead of the red light, because they don't have screens on top like a tank does. There are models that have screen on top, but that's really a poor choice for a ball python anyways.

[jmcrook]

I agree with all that has been said here so far. As for a pvc enclosure with a shorter lead time for production, Reptile Basics looks pretty solid. Never used them personally, but they look like quality enclosures in my opinion. Also only 6-8 week lead time vs 6 months+.


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[WrongPython]

Welcome!

I also agree with what's been said so far. On top of Animal Plastics and Reptile Basics, some other PVC caging manufactures out there are Kages (currently a 9-12 week lead time), Focus Cubed Habitats (currently a 10-20 week lead time), and Custom Reptile Habitats (currently a ~4 week lead time for basic 4'x2'x2' models). I have a 4'x2'x2' Kage (with a ProProducts RHP) and it's a good enclosure.

[dakski]

I'll add Boaphile Plastics into the mix as well.

Jeff Ronne, the Boaphile, generally has a 6 week +/- lead time and makes a good product. I have 12 of his enclosures.

They also come assembled, and have everything you want installed by him (RHP, heat tape, etc.). He's soup to nuts.

He does not do well with emails though, but will happily talk to you about your options.

http://www.boaphileplastics.com

You can call him on the number on his site.

He can install locks with keys as I am sure the other PVC manufacturers can as well. I have nothing bad to say about AP or Reptile Basics, I just have not had experience with their products. I have had good experiences with Boaphile. I know many people happy with AP as well.

Regarding the ex - I'd have a hard time imagining loosing custody over a Ball Python, but I've seen stranger things. Not sure how well kids keep secrets .

Finally, if you just got Hunter, let him settle in for a bit and make sure he eats a few meals for you before you start handling him.

If he eats F/T already, that's great. If you have questions on defrosting and offering F/T prey, just ask, and we are happy to help with that or anything else.

Good luck!

[Bogertophis]

Welcome fa1321tx- you've got plenty of great suggestions so far, so all I'll add is that ANY snake will escape if given the chance, so don't use his "past behavior" to predict the future- just don't give him an opportunity. BPs are generally very chill snakes & do not pose any danger to humans...but as you know, snake-haters (& "ex"s) will never be convinced anyway. It's awesome that he's used to eating f/t rats, but I'd give him some time to settle in anyway without handling him- snakes know they're in a new location, & that can be scary for them. We're very glad to have you join us & look forward to hearing about your new snake adventures.

[fa1321tx]

Thanks for all the helpful information everyone! The previous owner was feeding him big frozen thawed rats once a month. We though he might eat more frequently if we fed him smaller rats more often. Thoughts? He is 4 feet long and round as a can of coke maybe even a little bigger. We like the PVC suggestion what would be a good size for him? I personally had no interest in snakes but find myself peeking in the room at night to see if he is coming out of his hide. The last 2 nights he has stretched across the tank so his head is in the warm side. He seems to prefer the hide that is more enclosed vs the one that is a little more open. Should we move the heat lamp to the side with the more secluded hide? We definitely want him happy and working to try and get him settled to the new family.

[Hugsplox]

Thanks for all the helpful information everyone! The previous owner was feeding him big frozen thawed rats once a month. We though he might eat more frequently if we fed him smaller rats more often. Thoughts? He is 4 feet long and round as a can of coke maybe even a little bigger. We like the PVC suggestion what would be a good size for him? I personally had no interest in snakes but find myself peeking in the room at night to see if he is coming out of his hide. The last 2 nights he has stretched across the tank so his head is in the warm side. He seems to prefer the hide that is more enclosed vs the one that is a little more open. Should we move the heat lamp to the side with the more secluded hide? We definitely want him happy and working to try and get him settled to the new family.

You want both of the hides to be the same, so whenever you replace them just order two of the same hide. BPs will sometimes sacrifice warmth for security, so whichever he feels more secure in is where he's going to be. You want a hide that when he balls up in it, he'll be touching the sides and top. Fortunately for you, your guy is probably about as big as he's going to get so you won't have to upgrade hides often. I prefer Pangea's hides because they're super easy to clean, but you can go with whatever you want as long as they're identical. As far as a PVC enclosure, I think most people go with 4 feet long by 2 feet wide with varying heights. Animal plastics is a good place to start to see what kind of dimensions are available, but all the other vendors that people have mentioned are great options as well and you'll for sure get what you order quicker than with Animal Plastics.

Just remember, when you move over to PVC you have to change your heat sources up. Most of us are or are going to be, using radiant heat panels, which are attached to the top, inside, of the enclosure. I say this because they aren't super expensive, but depending on what your situation is like, it may be something you want to put a little money aside for. You spend a little more up front for a PVC enclosure with all the bells and whistles, but this will be a forever home for Hunter, so you'll never have to upgrade.

As far as the feeding frequency and size of the prey, I'll give way to a more experienced keeper with an older snake to give you some advice, but for me with my other snakes I've always preferred to go slightly smaller than what I'm sure they're capable of eating, just to make sure they don't have any digestion issues.

[Bogertophis]

Thanks for all the helpful information everyone! The previous owner was feeding him big frozen thawed rats once a month. We though he might eat more frequently if we fed him smaller rats more often. Thoughts? He is 4 feet long and round as a can of coke maybe even a little bigger..

Actually that's a great question- the very large (old "breeder") rats aren't that healthy to feed your snakes (they're higher in fat) & we agree with feeding small rats more frequently for best results.

Here's a chart that may help -& for a mature snake, I'd also add that weekly may be too much as well- so don't be afraid to make individual adjustments- when you describe your BP as "round as a can of coke" that suggests to me that he may be overweight, which is no better for a snake than it is for any of us.