Hello,
Recently, I purchased a normal baby ball python, and I am not certain if I setup his cage correctly. I was wondering if you could give me some words of advice. I would really appreciate it a lot. My aquarium is 36"x18"x16". I am using an under the tank heater that is rated for 30-40 gallon aquariums, since my tank is 40 gallons. Does it matter that my tank is a 40 gallon breeder tank? Should I use a larger under the tank heater? Also, I want to create a basking area for my snake, however, when I used an 8.5" dome light with a 75 watt basking light bulb, the overall temperature in my aquarium was too high. Should I use a smaller dome light with a smaller wattage bulb? The humidity inside my tank is 62%. Right now I have an under the tank heater which covers only a small portion of the bottom of the tank. However, my cool side is usually 75 degrees and my warm side is usually between 85-87 degrees. Is this an ideal temperature range? I have two hides for my snake; one on the cool side and one on the warm side. I also have a climbing branch and a water bowl for my snake, which is kept on the cool side.

I have only had my snake for two days, and he is not very active at all. In fact, he spends most of his time in his cool side hide, even at night. Is this because he is not accustomed to his new home yet?

I have an appointment to get my snake checked out by a veterinarian on Wednesday, February 23, 2011.

Also, I am feeding my snake pre-killed 'fuzzies'. Is this the correct size prey for a baby ball python? He is approximately 18" long. Should I feed him pinkies instead? He hasn't exactly eaten yet. I tried to feed him three times today. I tried three times; each time was hours apart from each other. The first two times he struck at the fuzzy immediately, however, he did not eat it nor did he land his strike well. He struck it, but he did not latch onto it and then he became afraid of the food item. So I waited about five hours and tried again, same result. So I waited another three hours and tried again, this time he did not even strike at his prey. I think it had to do with the fact that I accidentally dropped his prey next to him, which scared him.

What kind of substrate should I use? I am using aspen bedding.

I know there are a lot of questions contained within this e-mail, but I am interested in taking care of my snake properly, so I would really appreciate any input.

Thanks,
Joe