Took in an adult BP(have some questions)

[Jessicamarie]

I have not owned a BP in a while so it feels almost new to me again. My new "baby" was born 2003 and she is 5ft and at least 6lbs. I got her in the mail and I had her tank set up when she got her so I put her in and was going to let her be alone for a few days.

Well she knocked over the equiptment I had in there for reading temps and humidity. she was very active when I first put her in and she took out all her greenery too! haha. Anyway, I know it is important to keep things regulated so what should I do to fix things as stress free as possible? she does not seem very shy and may even try roaming out once I open the tank. (and I know you snake owners that are pros will laugh at me but I am nervous to stick my hand in the tank right now because I dont really know the signs to look for in the even that she is about to strike and I am scared of being bitten! most likely because it has never happened before and it is the fear of what I dont know. so any advice on that would be helpful too)
Thanks!

[Skittles1101]

Does she have hides? I've never seen a bp destroy a tank by being active if there were two readily available hides there....Can you explain your setup please?

[Cendalla]

Maybe a picture of the set up would help. Oh, and your new 'baby' too

[Jessicamarie]

Yeah, i guess that would help There is not much to destroy really. It is a very temp set up until I get my bigger tank which will happen at the end of this work week. The greenery was only held up by one tiny suction cup so that was super easy to do. have a hide in there but I do think it is too small for her but I am having a hard time telling because she does not seem interested in it at all. there is a heat pad underneath it though.

THe water bowl is on the cool side which i have a light over(this light doesnt put off a lot of heat but I was hoping it may help with humidity). But that is where she is hanging out. on top of the water dish under the lamp

[Jessicamarie]

I would like to post a pic but I dont know how to do that I have a pic of her as my profile pic I think! LOL

[Skittles1101]

Okay what is regulating the heat pad?

The light will not help the humidity, in fact it will kill any humidity.

You should have two identical hides on either side of the tank.

Here is the caresheet listed on this website, I'd read through it. What are your temps? How are you reading temps?

[Jessicamarie]

Yes I have heard both ways about the heat lamp and I completely understand that. I did write in my post that I can not get a reading on the temps and humidity because she knocked it over and i wanted some advice on what I should do since she is new to the tank and I am not supposed to mess around in there.
When I get the new tank I plan on putting two hides in but the tank is just too small for that right now. temp for just a couple of days until I get the big tank.
I know how big you are on dimmers and thermostats as I have been reading a lot of posts with your advice on it. I have a thermostat ordered and in the mean time I have papertowels folded multiple times on top of the entire length of the pad

[Skittles1101]

Oh....so that means you are probably using analog guages?...I'm sorry they do not work or read temps and definitely not humidity correctly. And LOL yes I am big on dimmers and thermostats along with most of the other bp owners, they are a necessity for UTHs. The only thing I can think of is maybe she is:
A) too cold since she's laying under the heat lamp during the day
B) stressed out because the hide is too small?
C) the light from the lamp is stressing her out

That's all I've got for now....if this is only temporary then it appears you're doing your best to control it as much as you can. I really would not be scared to stick your hand in, a snake ready to strike is easily distinguished. The get very "S"-ey and tense. Chances are she's just scared.

For now you can try crumbling up a few pieces of newspaper and just laying them on top of everything and leave her alone.

[dr del]

Hi,

Well the first thing is to get them hosted somewhere online.

You can put them in your gallery here - this tutorial is a bit old but the basic procedure is the same I think.

And here is another one in video form that might also help.

You can also use a site like http://photobucket.com/

They should also have tutorials to help you.

If you still have trouble just ask any member of staff and we will do our best to get you sorted.


dr del

[Jeo123]

Yes I have heard both ways about the heat lamp and I completely understand that. I did write in my post that I can not get a reading on the temps and humidity because she knocked it over and i wanted some advice on what I should do since she is new to the tank and I am not supposed to mess around in there. When I get the new tank I plan on putting two hides in but the tank is just too small for that right now. temp for just a couple of days until I get the big tank.
I know how big you are on dimmers and thermostats as I have been reading a lot of posts with your advice on it. I have a thermostat ordered and in the mean time I have papertowels folded multiple times on top of the entire length of the pad

I'm not sure if I'm misreading, but while you're not supposed to bother them a lot, you can go in to pick your gauges up. Plus you should be changing water.