-40 gal glass tank
-heat mat set to 92 with thermostat, about ⅓ size of tank.
-heat lamp on during the day from around 10 AM to 5 PM
-two hides on opposite sides for temp gradient
-decent sized water bowl
-some drift wood and fake plants
-cocofiber/sphagnum as substrate
-mist enclosure every few days

I got a baby ball python on July 24th, 2021, so almost a month ago. The breeder said he was fed twice the past two weeks, so he was an established eater for a baby. He seemed ok at first, and I figured he would need at least a week or two to settle in, so I didn’t try to feed him until then. He didn’t take a thawed pinkie, with me trying two separate times, so I emailed the guy I got him from and he suggested putting a background on his enclosure, so I did, and he finally took a pinkie the day after I put it on, which was a week ago. I figured since he took food, he would take food again, But I’ve wasted 2 more pinkies on him these past 2 weeks. I’ve noticed that he tried to strike at the first pinkie after waving it around, and he did 100% seem interested in it, but he missed. He just lunged at it instead of constricting it, but it didn’t seem like a defensive strike. I tried again tonight, and he seemed scared as he started to hiss at it.

Another note is that he seems restless at night, like he’s trying to escape, bumping the visible glass at the front of his enclosure. He also frequently falls off of his drift wood and sides of tank when he tries to stretch too long, which is concerning as I don't want him to injure himself.Sometimes he also just curls up in the front corner of his tank, where the heat lamp is primarily, and then sometimes he will curl up in his cool hide. I’ve only seen him in his warm hide a few times since having him, but it shouldn’t be too hot or small. Is this normal for BP’s sometimes? I really don’t know what would cause that since he will literally just sleep when exposed to the heat lamp. Maybe he’s just weird?

I’ve tried doing some research and I’ve come down to maybe his enclosure is too big, the pinkies aren’t warm enough, and maybe I should try to feed him fuzzies since they are a bit bigger? Anyone’s feedback is well appreciated, I just want to make sure he feels safe and is able to eat; I don’t want him to lose too much weight because he’s still super young.



(I know ball pythons are so picky!! I wish so much that I could get colubrids but I live in Georgia, so sadly most of them are illegal since they are native.)