semi-newbie mltp ?s need help nd suggestions

[Tochigi_R]

The information given to you isn't really contradicting, but just different options you could choose from. Pick one, ignore one, ignore them all, do one after the other. It's your choice.

As far as those two snakes being in the same tank, even if they are "familiar" with each other, they are animals that are driven by instinct and will never truly thrive if they are kept together. Ball pythons are solitary animals, and they will constantly try to dominate and compete with each other over hides, food, etc. They don't display like other reptiles do, so a lot of people never pick up on it, but it's there and it will continue to have a negative (even if only a little) effect on the both of them. If you ever see them coiling together, that's a bad sign too. They aren't getting along, that's one snake trying to dominate the other for space.

Despite this, there are people who have kept ball pythons together for a very long time and have had no problems, but that doesn't mean that there couldn't have been some sort of incident at any time, that being one snake trying to eat the other (though it is very rare it happens), one getting ill out of stress of constantly competing with the other, or one gets ill and soon after the other one does because they live together. It's just not reccomended. And as for that pet store with the boas, I'm not suprised. I've yet to walk into any type of pet store that houses animals - be them reptiles, birds, or mammals - and not be dissapointed by the amount of ignorance they show for the care of their animals.

If you decide to separate them, there are special hides designed for differently shaped tanks. You just have to shop around for them online. And you can make a water bowl out of just about anything that holds water, be it an old butter dish or a dog food bowl. That goes for hides, too. My mojave's favorite hide is a cardboard box from those 12 packs of ramen noodles. Use paper towels instead of newsprint, or use aspen or just whatever's easiest for you as long as it's okay for your snakes. You could even get wood and make a divider out of the tank they're already in to separate them. Just make sure it's a tight anough fit that they can't push it out of place or anything. Get a screen top that hinges in the center so you can access both sides without taking off the whole screen.

There are plently of ways to go about making your snakes happy. Best of luck with your animals.