My BP has stopped eating for no reason. Please help!

[Krissandra]

Those temps are really worrying.

How are you measuring them and can you tell us the temps in the hide over his pad at night and during the day?

You should really be shooting for a warm side of 90-93f 24/7 and a cool side of 80-82f also 24/7.

I only use the thermometer which you see above her hide. It has a range so that you can get a good idea of what the temp is on both sides of the enclosure. Again, this is just what the pet store manager suggested. He's supposed to be really good with reptiles, but I'm starting to question his "expertise" now that you're all saying that I'm doing it wrong. LoL. But I'm just glad that I'm able to fix things now that I know how. I did do research in the beginning for stable BP enclosure temps, and I remember reading a source that recommended the temps that I've been keeping track of. It said that a night temp of around 70 degrees F was best, so I just listened to it. Now I wish I'd read further. Thank you for your temps! I would have never known to change that. How can I keep her tank that warm at night without using a light source? I don't want to interrupt her day/night cycles by using a lamp at night. What do you use? I've read that heating rocks aren't safe with BPs since they burn too easily.

[dr del]

Ah,

That thermometer strip is slightly worse than useless I'm afraid.

It only reads the temp of the glass.

We normally recommend the acurite digital weatherstation with probe - it reads the temp and humidity at the base unit and has a probe that reads a second temp.



They sell for about $12 in wallmart and online.

Until you have an accurate way to measure the temps in the various places in your tank it is going to be a bit tricky to give advice.

Hot rocks are definately bad - but you can use red lights for 24 hour heat.

How are you controling the heat mat? Some brands can get up to 120f which is hot enough to burn the snake if they aren't controled in some way.

We normally recommend a thermostat but if your room temps are really stable you might be able to get away with using dimmer switches.


dr del

[BallsUnlimited]

I only use the thermometer which you see above her hide. It has a range so that you can get a good idea of what the temp is on both sides of the enclosure. Again, this is just what the pet store manager suggested. He's supposed to be really good with reptiles, but I'm starting to question his "expertise" now that you're all saying that I'm doing it wrong. LoL. But I'm just glad that I'm able to fix things now that I know how. I did do research in the beginning for stable BP enclosure temps, and I remember reading a source that recommended the temps that I've been keeping track of. It said that a night temp of around 70 degrees F was best, so I just listened to it. Now I wish I'd read further. Thank you for your temps! I would have never known to change that. How can I keep her tank that warm at night without using a light source? I don't want to interrupt her day/night cycles by using a lamp at night. What do you use? I've read that heating rocks aren't safe with BPs since they burn too easily.

keep the cool side low 80s(if it dips to high 70s you shoudlnt have a problem but try to keep it at low 80s) Hot side keep at 88-91 degrees at all times. Use a temp gun or digital thermometer(my digital thermometer reads 4 degrees cooler than my temp gun at all times). I have my snakes in a rack system so i have the digital thermo on the hot side in one of the middle tubs and add 4 degrees to it. Mind you i always add and subtract a degree or two depending on the tub in the rack. Mind you i check the temps multiple times a day bc i am very anal with my animals. Never had a problem so far. Also different parts of the rack will be hotter or cooler than others so its a good thing to get the temp gun and hit all the areas in the enclosure at the very least once a day to make sure your within range. you will want to check the temps with the gun more often if the snake is in a room that flucuates frequently during the day and night. my room stays at min 74 but normally stays around 75-76 degrees at night and a max of 80 during the day.

[Krissandra]

Wow, that digital weatherstation is very well-priced! I'm glad that it's not expensive, being that we're expecting our first and money has been a little tight as we prepare for his arrival this spring. (I'm very excited, LOL.)

My room definitely fluctuates in temp... Should I buy two thermometers---one for each end of the tank? Or is that what the probe is for? I've always taken very good care of my animals, so I'm really bothered that I've been doing it wrong all this time. I spent a lot of money on things which don't seem to be doing the job that they need to be doing, and that upsets me very much. I might just have to drive down to that pet store and yell at that man.

The heating pad is a stick-on substrate heater that is permanently attached to the bottom of the terrarium. It has no adjuster, since it's supposed to be at a constant temperature. I keep a semi-thick layer of substrate over it at all times to prevent burning, and the only way that I've been able to determine that it's not making that area burning-hot is by testing the area with my fingers. It always just feels nice and warm. The substrate heater is called "Heat Wave" by Exo-Terra. It's 8-by-8 inches and is supposed to heat evenly.

I really like the red lamp idea. That sounds perfect! I'll have to buy one as soon as possible, along with this new thermometer. It makes me happy that I can improve her habitat drastically. She seems very healthy, so I'm glad that I haven't unintentionally hurt her thus far.

Thanks again, everyone!!

[BallsUnlimited]

Wow, that digital weatherstation is very well-priced! I'm glad that it's not expensive, being that we're expecting our first and money has been a little tight as we prepare for his arrival this spring. (I'm very excited, LOL.)

My room definitely fluctuates in temp... Should I buy two thermometers---one for each end of the tank? Or is that what the probe is for? I've always taken very good care of my animals, so I'm really bothered that I've been doing it wrong all this time. I spent a lot of money on things which don't seem to be doing the job that they need to be doing, and that upsets me very much. I might just have to drive down to that pet store and yell at that man.

The heating pad is a stick-on substrate heater that is permanently attached to the bottom of the terrarium. It has no adjuster, since it's supposed to be at a constant temperature. I keep a semi-thick layer of substrate over it at all times to prevent burning, and the only way that I've been able to determine that it's not making that area burning-hot is by testing the area with my fingers. It always just feels nice and warm. The substrate heater is called "Heat Wave" by Exo-Terra. It's 8-by-8 inches and is supposed to heat evenly.

I really like the red lamp idea. That sounds perfect! I'll have to buy one as soon as possible, along with this new thermometer. It makes me happy that I can improve her habitat drastically. She seems very healthy, so I'm glad that I haven't unintentionally hurt her thus far.

Thanks again, everyone!!

what feels warm to us is almost always to hot for a snake. Get yourself a thermostat asap and hook it up to the uth. Set it to the proper temp in the range of 88-91 degrees and get yourself either a temp gun or digital thermometer. I prefer the temp gun to be honest. It has never let me down yet. Also you can run a 40 watt night bulb during the day and night to keep the ambient temps up in the tank. It should heat your cool side up to where it needs to be. IF your gonna get a digital thermo make sure you get two. Have one on the hot side in the middle under a little bit of bedding so the snake doesnt come into contact with it and put one in the middle of the cool side. This way you can always monitor the temps and see if there needs to be any adjusting to be made. Also i never trust any1 in a pet store unless its my local reptile shop. Other than that pet co,petland etc. workers tend to be the people who think they know it all because they work at a pet place but really dont know what there talking about. You wouldnt believe some of the things theyve told me over the years. Luckly ive been keeping reptiles for 10 years now.

[cweimer4]

I got my ball python for Christmas. It ate for the first time yesterday. It was 4 weeks before it ate. They'll be all mellow and comfortable for as long as they want. But when they are hungry you better believe they're gunna eat without hesitation. Just try once a week and when its hungry its gunna eat for you. Dont worry. I also heard that they dont eat as much in the winter cuz they internally know when its cold outside even though their tanks arent. Kind of like a hibernation stage.

[BallsUnlimited]

I got my ball python for Christmas. It ate for the first time yesterday. It was 4 weeks before it ate. They'll be all mellow and comfortable for as long as they want. But when they are hungry you better believe they're gunna eat without hesitation. Just try once a week and when its hungry its gunna eat for you. Dont worry. I also heard that they dont eat as much in the winter cuz they internally know when its cold outside even though their tanks arent. Kind of like a hibernation stage.

you are correct. they tend to go off feed for breeding season(the winter months) and go back on fed as it warms up. Some may or may not go off feed.

[Krissandra]

This thread has been extremely helpful and enlightening. I'm glad I decided to come here instead of asking the pet store where I got her.

[BallsUnlimited]

This thread has been extremely helpful and enlightening. I'm glad I decided to come here instead of asking the pet store where I got her.

you made a very good choice in coming here and asking questions. There are a number of breeders as well as die hard bp fans on here that can point you in the right direction.

[Krissandra]

Oh! One last question! What does "uth" stand for? It was mentioned here:

what feels warm to us is almost always to hot for a snake. Get yourself a thermostat asap and hook it up to the uth.