Yet another beginner with ??

[ethansmom]

Hello everyone! Before I even start I must say that there is so much awesome info on here!!
So after a lot of research on snakes, I got my 9 year old son a BP for his birthday, with the clear idea that my husband and I would be helping him care for it. So we got if from a pet store, they told us it was captive born/bred and it had eaten. (We saw the care sheets) They had 4 babies there and we got to choose from the 2 that had eaten. My son held him and loved him. We don't know if it was a boy or girl, we forgot to ask. So we brought him home and set everything up. We don't have an UTH but from reading this I will get one the next time we are in the city as we live in a small town. We keep check on the temp and humidity.
Now for the questions. So the general rule is not to handle them for 7 days right? Well the pet store was feeding them every Monday or Tuesday but we brought it home Friday. So do I just wait to feed it, because we will feed it in a different container? Also, Tony(his name!!) looks like he is going to shed, at least I think. Eyes kind of looked bluish and I am pretty sure the belly was pinkish at the pet store. We can't see his belly now because we don't want to handle him yet. So should I give it time? He is also not much for curling up into a ball, mostly he assumes a "strike" position if our hands are too close. Could he be aggressive? Sorry about the rambling, we are such novices!!

[RichsBallPythons]

Yes since you just got the snake skip his upcoming feeding day and leave him to settle in for 7 days. After the 7 days you can then proceed to feeding as usual. If he refuses, then i suggest no handling till 3 successful meals

[DustinB]

Wait until 7 days is up or he sheds, whichever comes later. Try and feed him in his tank at first til he get's settled in for a little while. He should stop being so defensive once he's gets comfortable. When you start handling him in a week or 2 try for only 15min at a time a few times a week. No handling for 48 hours after feeding. Don't make any fast movements to scare him and he should calm right down. I've had mine for almost 2 months now and he is fairly calm, not aggressive, just a bit fearful at first and headshy, which they mostly seem to retain fromw hat I've read.

[piper]

Hello everyone! Before I even start I must say that there is so much awesome info on here!!
So after a lot of research on snakes, I got my 9 year old son a BP for his birthday, with the clear idea that my husband and I would be helping him care for it. So we got if from a pet store, they told us it was captive born/bred and it had eaten. (We saw the care sheets) They had 4 babies there and we got to choose from the 2 that had eaten. My son held him and loved him. We don't know if it was a boy or girl, we forgot to ask. So we brought him home and set everything up. We don't have an UTH but from reading this I will get one the next time we are in the city as we live in a small town. We keep check on the temp and humidity.
Now for the questions. So the general rule is not to handle them for 7 days right? Well the pet store was feeding them every Monday or Tuesday but we brought it home Friday. So do I just wait to feed it, because we will feed it in a different container? Also, Tony(his name!!) looks like he is going to shed, at least I think. Eyes kind of looked bluish and I am pretty sure the belly was pinkish at the pet store. We can't see his belly now because we don't want to handle him yet. So should I give it time? He is also not much for curling up into a ball, mostly he assumes a "strike" position if our hands are too close. Could he be aggressive? Sorry about the rambling, we are such novices!!

Ball are pretty nervous snakes. If they feel threatened or what not they will ball up or if you put your hand in front of them the will "spring back" sometimes trying to hide their head and other times just being cautious.

The "no handle" rule for a week pertains to just taking him out and walking around the house, showing your friends the new snake/pet, and just general interaction with the snake. Once the 7 days is up you can try to start handling him. You can handle him to clean up his tank/tub and he uses the washroom, see if his/her belly is pink and if he is actually going into shed.

You can try to feed him but you risk him not taking if he is in fact going through a shed cycle.

Since this is your first(not last ) ball python, you will start to learn what they like/dislike. I have learned absolutely everything I know from this site, so trust more what you read then what I have to say if anything appears to be a little contradicting. Being paranoid is good! I have one you can pet her head like a cat and another where if you look at her head she'll ball up! They all have different personalities.

You will need a UTH, plus some sort of way to control the heat pad as well because they get way to warm for what a ball python needs and you will end up burning your snake. I use light dimmers myself which you will see around here, the only thing with that is you need to monitor the temps daily.

Cheers

Just my personal experience!

[WingedWolfPsion]

I don't personally recommend feeding in a seperate container for ball pythons--they tend to be much pickier about food than many other snakes, and they're much more easily stressed. I have some ball pythons that won't eat the same day they've been picked up and moved, let alone eat in a seperate container.

[frankykeno]

Welcome to the world of Ball Python ownership! I'm sure once your snake is settled in properly it will become a very beloved and unique pet. I've found with having snakes and children (all 4 of my kids have their own personal snakes as well as spend time working with our collection), that the snakes teach my kids about patience, empathy, trusting one's instincts, quiet observation and research skills just to name a few.

Let your little snake settle in for a week. Quietly observe it but other than water changes or to remove waste products, just leave it be for now. After the week is up offer it an appropriate prey item. That item should be about the same dimensions at it's widest girth as your snake is (on a rodent that largest dimension are the hips/butt). Always wait 48 before handling after a feeding and remind your son to wash his hands or use gel hand sanitizer after handling the snake. Also to not handle the snake if his hands smell like rodent (in case he keeps a pet hamster or such like).

Ball pythons are very head shy. It's best if you can pick them up without your hand hovering over their head. Tends to put you in the predator position and freak out the poor little snake. Do not be surprised if it seems a bit on the defensive side right now, little snakes are programmed to know that big things might want to eat them.

Personally I feed all our snakes in their own enclosures. BP's are ambush predators so often they hunt best from the familar confines of their hide. It's up to you if you want to feed in a seperate container but do it only if you understand why. If you are feeding it out of it's home because the store told you to or it would become aggressive and nippy, that's a complete myth.