Help, ball python trying to escape

[Erie_herps]

I don't think "sterilizing" would remove pesticides at all- if there's ANY chance that decor (branches etc) from outside contains any pesticides, DO NOT USE THEM.

Also, while baking (etc) will kill most pests in the wood, it won't stop mold from growing later on. Mold spores are floating around most everywhere, just looking for a home.

Boiling usually removes some/most pesticides but I agree, if pesticides are known to have been used in the area natural items should not be used. Sterilizing would likely increase the chance that it would mold later because there's nothing eating spores or stopping the mold from growing.

[Bogertophis]

Those kind of hides you showed me definitely don't look aesthetically pleasing, but something cheap and especially safe for my BP will be perfect. I order things from amazon, but the problem is i really struggle with inches, i only know what cm are ahah ^^". My boy is about 50 cm with something, and he got wider and stronger compared to before when i bought him (he got fat, but not overweight i mean haha). Have you got an idea of what size i should get him? I don't want to do any big mistake again and get him a hide that is too big or small, and almost everyone on this forum knows more things than i do.

No, I wouldn't call them aesthetically pleasing at all. But you are the only one that will care, your snake will be happy with a secure-feeling "cave", & you can put some foliage over the top anyway to camouflage it- black tends to just become a shadow that doesn't stand out much. What's most important is making a snake feel safe & secure, so they eat & thrive.

As far as converting inches to cm, just google "convert cm to inches" & you'll have a easy-to-use tool come up; you can plug in various measurements to see what size is going to work for your pet.

A little too big won't hurt, you can always wad up some paper or more substrate inside it to make it temporarily more cozy while he grows into it. OK? I'd probably get 2 mediums (@ Reptile Basics https://www.reptilebasics.com/medium-hide-box) for him right now- from what you said, he's about 20" long, so curled up, he'd have plenty of room for a while in their size medium. It would probably save $ in the long run (on shipping) to get a couple large ones too, for him to grow into- at least, that's the way I do things- plan ahead- snakes do grow.

I don't think in C* temperatures either, so I do the same thing when some threads ask about centigrade temps. (just google "convert C* to F*- SO easy!)

Don't worry, nobody knows everything, not even me. That's why we share our experience here, so we all get smarter & find good solutions. You will too, in time. If there's something you don't understand, just ask.

[Nephil]

No, I wouldn't call them aesthetically pleasing at all. But you are the only one that will care, your snake will be happy with a secure-feeling "cave", & you can put some foliage over the top anyway to camouflage it- black tends to just become a shadow that doesn't stand out much. What's most important is making a snake feel safe & secure, so they eat & thrive.

As far as converting inches to cm, just google "convert cm to inches" & you'll have a easy-to-use tool come up; you can plug in various measurements to see what size is going to work for your pet.

A little too big won't hurt, you can always wad up some paper or more substrate inside it to make it temporarily more cozy while he grows into it. OK? I'd probably get 2 mediums (@ Reptile Basics https://www.reptilebasics.com/medium-hide-box) for him right now- from what you said, he's about 20" long, so curled up, he'd have plenty of room for a while in their size medium. It would probably save $ in the long run (on shipping) to get a couple large ones too, for him to grow into- at least, that's the way I do things- plan ahead- snakes do grow.

I don't think in C* temperatures either, so I do the same thing when some threads ask about centigrade temps. (just google "convert C* to F*- SO easy!)

Don't worry, nobody knows everything, not even me. That's why we share our experience here, so we all get smarter & find good solutions. You will too, in time. If there's something you don't understand, just ask.

Unfortunately the reptile basics site doesn't accept orders to my country, so i gone to order on amazon with not many choices to choose from (there were only mediums and smalls) and they would also come on November,which i really can't wait for. There was one exception though, so i ended up taking one of the priciest options (a medium) that should arrive on October 21. It's a struggle to get every single good thing here with no problems or high prices, but i hope it will be worth it. Now i have to wait for the hide to arrive, so i have another question (i hope im not wasting too much of your time haha)... Is there any way i can keep my BP calm? I covered the lid with a towel and the most light part of the container with another, but ni ran out of towels to cover up his enclosure with. He keeps being really active and rubbing his nose against the plastic tub's walls while climbing the hides, and it's really concerning for me to see him like this. Should i just calm down and wait? I really don't know what to do to make me and my BP feel better, so i'd really like to get some answers on this.

[Bogertophis]

I forgot that you're not in the U.S.- the "cm" should have reminded me. You can also make disposable hides (dump when dirty) out of cardboard boxes- things like cereal or cracker boxes are about the right height & dimensions, until you find some good permanent ones that work for you. Use what you have available- your snake won't care- only if he doesn't have them. Some people modify plastic containers they buy (like for food, or large plant saucers) but it's hard to find black or dark ones, most (here, anyway) are semi-clear, & your nocturnal BP would rather have a dark "cave". Use what you can both find, afford & cut a doorway into. At least for now- you can worry about being creative later.

[Nephil]

I forgot that you're not in the U.S.- the "cm" should have reminded me. You can also make disposable hides (dump when dirty) out of cardboard boxes- things like cereal or cracker boxes are about the right height & dimensions, until you find some good permanent ones that work for you. Use what you have available- your snake won't care- only if he doesn't have them. Some people modify plastic containers they buy (like for food, or large plant saucers) but it's hard to find black or dark ones, most (here, anyway) are semi-clear, & your nocturnal BP would rather have a dark "cave". Use what you can both find, afford & cut a doorway into. At least for now- you can worry about being creative later.

I put a black and white lamp box half a hour ago, and it was a bit of a struggle to fit it in with my BP in the way (he was climbing my hand after taking the tub lid off, and after taking him he seemed to be calmer but still as always breathing heavily, which is a surprise but not very pleasant i think), but he decided it's a good climbing option to keep trying to get out on. He did see the inside of the box and seemed interested, but still prefers to keep trying to get out. It's morning and surprisingly he is still being active, which is really concerning. He might be too commited to his log, or he just needs some time to relax and decide to try out the cardboard box. Hopefully he just needs time and could care less bout logs, i will wait and see how it goes. What kinda worries me is the magazine smell from the box, (kinda smelling like ink) but not too strong,but you can always warn me bout anything. Also thanks for the help!

[Nephil]

I put a black and white lamp box half a hour ago, and it was a bit of a struggle to fit it in with my BP in the way (he was climbing my hand after taking the tub lid off, and after taking him he seemed to be calmer but still as always breathing heavily, which is a surprise but not very pleasant i think), but he decided it's a good climbing option to keep trying to get out on. He did see the inside of the box and seemed interested, but still prefers to keep trying to get out. It's morning and surprisingly he is still being active, which is really concerning. He might be too commited to his log, or he just needs some time to relax and decide to try out the cardboard box. Hopefully he just needs time and could care less bout logs, i will wait and see how it goes. What kinda worries me is the magazine smell from the box, (kinda smelling like ink) but not too strong,but you can always warn me bout anything. Also thanks for the help!

Update: he doesn't care about the box, he doesn't even enter any hide anymore, he was just lying down on the ground near the skull-hide, and when i opened the tub lid to remove his waste he woke up and started to try to escape again, and now he's rubbing his nose against the lid. It's really stressing me out, since he never was like this before and to me it sounds strange that he is so desperate for a log, unless snakes can really get attached to their fave hides. This situation just seems never ending at this point.

[Bogertophis]

Update: he doesn't care about the box, he doesn't even enter any hide anymore, he was just lying down on the ground near the skull-hide, and when i opened the tub lid to remove his waste he woke up and started to try to escape again, and now he's rubbing his nose against the lid. It's really stressing me out, since he never was like this before and to me it sounds strange that he is so desperate for a log, unless snakes can really get attached to their fave hides. This situation just seems never ending at this point.

I wouldn't use anything that has a chemical smell- plain corrugated cardboard boxes generally don't. You need to find things he can feel snug in that are suitable- no one can do it for you, you need to make it work for your snake. It's always better to have a suitable set-up when a new snake first moves in, than to have to change things around that he may miss- every time you re-home a snake or change their still-fairly-new home, it's stressful for them. That's on you, but forward is the only direction you can go at this point, to find ways to help him settle down. And please do make sure his temps. aren't the problem. How about hunger? Is he due to feed? That's another issue that can make a snake restless.

[Nephil]

I wouldn't use anything that has a chemical smell- plain corrugated cardboard boxes generally don't. You need to find things he can feel snug in that are suitable- no one can do it for you, you need to make it work for your snake. It's always better to have a suitable set-up when a new snake first moves in, than to have to change things around that he may miss- every time you re-home a snake or change their still-fairly-new home, it's stressful for them. That's on you, but forward is the only direction you can go at this point, to find ways to help him settle down. And please do make sure his temps. aren't the problem. How about hunger? Is he due to feed? That's another issue that can make a snake restless.

I tried with half of a cereal cardboard box too, cutting the underside of it also. The entrance is low, the inside is dark, he can fit in there perfectly, but he entered it once and didn't want to go back there again. He continued his escape attempts all day until evening, and now he is just resting his head on the stone hide for some reason.. His temps were and still are the same (cool side 26 C, hot side floats between 29-30 C, but the stat is set up to 5 more degrees cause it doesn't heat up enough if i set it to the exact temp i want), he never moved around so much, and when he was active when he was really hungry it wasn't for a really long while. I give him 2 hopper mice every 5 days, and i should feed him tomorrow, though his restlessness started about a day after he ate if im not wrong. He would still be hungry after 2 hopper mice before, but he'd just keep his head tense waiting for a mouse to pass by while his body would stay in the log. What also i can say is that he did gain weight compared to when he was in the pet shop, but after going to the bathroom he looks thin everytime and doesn't seem that he's in the right BP weight even after 3 months after i took him home,but whenever i try to weigh him he really cant stay still and i cant get his exact weight. I don't know if ball pythons just gain weight very slowly, or if it's cause im not feeding him small rats that will help him with weight.

[Bogertophis]

To weigh a snake, you cannot expect them to sit on a scale. You put them in a container of some kind that they cannot get out of, & weigh them IN that, then weigh the container ALONE and SUBTRACT that weight from the first weight you got of the snake in the container. That will be the weight of the snake. Maybe you're not feeding him enough... And there's no "law" that says it can't be more than one thing making a snake restless, either.

Here's a chart (found under BP Husbandry on this forum):

[Nephil]

To weigh a snake, you cannot expect them to sit on a scale. You put them in a container of some kind that they cannot get out of, & weigh them IN that, then weigh the container ALONE and SUBTRACT that weight from the first weight you got of the snake in the container. That will be the weight of the snake. Maybe you're not feeding him enough...

Maybe.. Or maybe not.. What i can say is long before (when he was really underweight) he'd get full with 1 hopper mouse and wouldn't accept the second, then he would get full with 2, but his latest behaviour suggests he just wants more. I doubt he will accept his food tomorrow, but i will try and see if he will. When i took him from the shop he looked weak and very thin, but after i got to take care of him he gained weight quickly, to the point where his spine wasn't sharply visible anymore. It just looks like after getting to that point he isn't doing much progress anymore, and keeps looking more like a "sausage" than a "salami" shaped BP. I'm scared to overfeed him with 3 hoppers though, so what should i do? I want to switch him to rats when the hoppers will finish, but for now im trying to feed him the right quantity. He's about 7-8 months old, if that info helps. Rn i worry mostly bout making him feel secure, so he can keep eating well. He just keeps trying to escape, resting for some time, trying to escape and so on.