What qualities of enclosures make them great for ball pythons and people too?

[daniel1983]

I am working on designing a 'different' type of enclosure for ball pythons. I have ideas on a design, but I want to make sure I cover all bases...so I was looking for input from everyone.

What are the qualities of an enclosure that make them great for ball pythons?
What are the qualities of an enclosure that make them great for people to use?

If there is something about a current enclosure that you can't stand, what is it?

I want to create a 'Enclosure Checklist' of things needed to make the ball python and the keeper 'happy' with an enclosure. Something that is completely independant of the usual 'enclosure type' discussions....no tanks are bad, tubs are better here.....let me know the issues that make things better for us and the animals.

Help me out

[frankykeno]

Let's see.....

- no edges on tubs to trap urates and feces...oh how I hate ridges and chipping dry urates out....makes life so much easier to have all smooth surfaces so you know when clean is really clean

- secure lids that don't require a locksmith and MacGuyver to get in and out of....escapes are heartbreaking but it's nice to be able to get in and out of the snake's enclosure with a reasonable amount of effort

- personally I really like those rings somebody has in their tub design (sorry can't remember who right now) to hold disposable water dishes....I can see they might be a problem with cleaning but they must be wonderful to help avoid spilled dishes and wet substrate

- might be nice in a glass enclosure in a wooden frame to have additional doors that could be closed so that when you wanted to view the snake you could but you could also close the doors to give it more privacy at other times (does that make any sense?)

- don't know quite how to design it to make it work and be clean but what about levels in a bigger enclosure...so that the snake could utilize vertical space but not be actually "climbing" a tree sort of thing....again hard to verbalize but sort of "platforms"????

[monk90222]

At the NY Reptile show a few months back, I saw this natural enclosure for ball pythons. It was in a 75 gallon tank. it had dirt substrate. It had live grass and plants, and a burrow for the snakes to hide in. The burrow was underground but visible from the front of the tank (sorta like those Exo Terra magnetic hides for geckos). There was a heat pad under the burrow and the burrow was illuminated with a red bulb. There was a naturalistic small pond and some rocks/branches that all really fit well together. There was a natural daylight flourescent bulb for the live plants and a ceramic heater over the water for humidity.

This type of set-up really simulated the African grasslands/termite hills. It was a pleasure to look at, had all the features that a BP would ask for but looked to be a pain to clean.

[daniel1983]

At the NY Reptile show a few months back, I saw this natural enclosure for ball pythons. It was in a 75 gallon tank. it had dirt substrate. It had live grass and plants, and a burrow for the snakes to hide in. The burrow was underground but visible from the front of the tank (sorta like those Exo Terra magnetic hides for geckos). There was a heat pad under the burrow and the burrow was illuminated with a red bulb. There was a naturalistic small pond and some rocks/branches that all really fit well together. There was a natural daylight flourescent bulb for the live plants and a ceramic heater over the water for humidity.

This type of set-up really simulated the African grasslands/termite hills. It was a pleasure to look at, had all the features that a BP would ask for but looked to be a pain to clean.

So the issue with that would be "ease of cleaning". Like I said....I am doing something different....not natural, not a tank, and not a tub....but maybe a combination of all three

What characteristics of enclosures make them appealing to both you and your snakes? If you could change one thing about your current enclosure what would it be?

[heatherhead42]

Well, I'm fairly new to BPs, but not new to small animal enclosures. Here are some people-friendly features I would love to see combined:

Lightweight for ease of cleaning.
Easy to increase/decrease ventilation to control humidity.
The ability to attach toys/decorations in a variety of ways (for instance, in a tub you can drill holes to attach things).
Smooth surfaces--I definitely second that one.
Security and ease of opening combined--second that one too.
Flat floor (tubs often have a concave/convex floor that eats up extra substrate in trying to make it level).
Straight sides (as opposed, again, to concave/convex sides of tubs).
Feet to lift the enclosure high enough to attach heat tape and still have a slight gap.
Feet that are at the far corners and spaced far enough to allow room for 11" flexwatt tape.

That's all I can think of right now. I'll post more if I think of more.

Heather

[JLC]

Well...I'll tell ya what I'm looking for in a BP enclosure that is "not normal"...


I need a rack system to hold multiple animals in a relatively small space. I prefer tubs in racks for ease of maintenance and comfort for the animals. HOWever...they are ugly to look at from the outside.

BP's aren't "display" animals anyhow. SO....I'd like a "furniture-quality" rack/cabinet that can be placed in the living area of the home....with solid doors that close and lock so guests coming into the home are competely unaware that snakes are inside. When no one is expected...the doors can be opened and slid back out of the way (like a TV armoir) so I can see the tubs as I wish and get occasional glimpses of the shy lurkers within.

Inside should be shelves for several snakes (perhaps a breeding pair and their babies each housed in their own tubs ) and some storage space as well for cleaning supplies and such.

[heatherhead42]

Oops--more!

Sides that are clear like glass.

A "dream" idea:

A self-filtering water dish (like the kitty dishes that are available that constantly circulate and filter the water), that is also hooked up to a hose and automatically refills itself when it gets low, :lol: Be great if it were also decorative--like a little waterfall, .

Heather

[recycling goddess]

ah but if your snake poops in it's water fall.... ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

i really like all the ideas shared so far and honestly, i can't think of anything i would want as well... except perhaps a taller enclosure than the usual 6" so my ball can coil around a piece of driftwood (like he used to in his old tub).

[heatherhead42]

but if your snake poops in it's water fall...

:lol: That's why you need a miniature sewage disposal unit built into the filtration system.

[jenakle]

At the NY Reptile show a few months back, I saw this natural enclosure for ball pythons. It was in a 75 gallon tank. it had dirt substrate. ....

niiiice
I MUST SEE this!