Obtained my first Ball this weekend, locally from Santa Cruz Reptiles!

[Smoked Oyster]

Congratulations on your new snake. Obviously there are many ways to successfully keep a healthy snake, so there is no "right" way.

However, I find it interesting that you have so much praise for this "Steve" person and yet discount all of the excellent advice that is on this forum. FWIW, I have lived in the Monterey area for about 20 years now, and have never heard of Steve or done business with him. I'm not saying he is a bad breeder, but he probably isn't as popular as you may believe.

I'm not sure why he would claim reptile UTH are bad and would recommend a regular heat pad. Heat pads are designed for occasional use and reptile UTH are designed for constant use. Personally, I have racks and cages with UTH that I have used for many, many years and have not had a single failure. That's not to say that they will never fail, but I would rely on them much more than a human heat pad.

Good luck with your new snake and congrats again.

Thank you. This is the only post I have seen that offers even semi-specific reasons that the setup might not be ideal. Everyone else is just saying the setup is bad, to trash it, that I am a troll, etc. without giving specific reasons why. I still haven't seen anyone say why the cellulose litter is a bad idea, but plenty of people certainly said to trash it.

However, Steve did give me specific reasons why some of the "standard" items are bad. He has had bad experiences with UTH giving uneven heating and shorting circuits. He has seen snakes ingest Aspen, waste is harder to clean and see, and it tends to make a mess when removing the snake from the tank.

So that is why I was going with his advice and not yours. He was specific. Xdeus at least said human heat pads are designed for occasional use. Not too scientific, but at least it's something.

And thank you to the people who are more welcoming, I appreciate it. I guess in any community there are cool people and not so cool people, same with snake enthusiasts.

[jtomb1510]

To clarify the substrate and heating pad issue, basically the heating pads that are designed for human use are not made to be constantly on. Sure, the ones designed for reptiles can malfunction, as can any electrical device, but they are designed to be on for long long periods of time. There's not really a scientific reason for this, it's just what they are made for, but you are much more likely to experience a malfunction with the one you are using that one designed for reptiles due to the already mentioned fact that they are not designed for long periods of use. As for as the substrate goes, sure, aspen can be consumed, as can any substrate including the cat litter you are currently using. It's really just personal preference but most prefer aspen or cyprus mulch because it holds humidity well.
Hope this helps clarify a little bit and welcome to BP.net

[MidSouthMorphs]

I would actually go with a small rack if possible. Most come with Heat tape which is the best option in my opinion. If you decide to get more Ball Pythons, which you probably will. Not many just stop at one .

But racks with tubs are going to hold heat and humidity much better. And Flexwatt heat tape is your best option for heat, I haven't really heard of any cases of those malfunctioning.

[Crawly's Mom]

Hello and welcome to BP.net! I think initially people might have thought your post was a joke just because there was so much information and a good deal of it was information that is not usually supported here.

I think what others have said about the human heating pad is correct. On the picture you posted it even states it has an automatic timer for 2 hours, that means every 2 hours you'd have to go by and turn the pad back on. I use UTH on all my balls and haven't had any issues yet. I will recommend buying a digital thermostat, however, personally I like Hydrofarm's. They are not too terrible price wise, you set a temp, and then it does the rest.

As for the substrate I can only say what I have been using. I have two display tanks that have aspen in them, I also have two tubs with paper towels. I can honestly say the paper towels are a good deal easier than the aspen. You can get white towels for less than a dollar a roll. They will show any mites that might exist, they are also easy to spot any waste or sheds. I think they are a very nice alternative.

I have two adult balls that when I got them the lady said she had never had hides for them and they were perfectly content. Both were happy, ate regularly, etc. I put hides in just to see what would happen, they went straight in. Just because they will do it, doesn't mean its the best situation. You can sleep on the ground, doesn't mean you wouldn't prefer a bed!

Those are my opinions and what I do... but I hope maybe it helped a little.

P.S.

Here's a link for the Hydrofarm thermo... check it out.

http://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-MTPR...7237511&sr=8-2

[Smoked Oyster]

Hello and welcome to BP.net! I think initially people might have thought your post was a joke just because there was so much information and a good deal of it was information that is not usually supported here.

I think what others have said about the human heating pad is correct. On the picture you posted it even states it has an automatic timer for 2 hours, that means every 2 hours you'd have to go by and turn the pad back on. I use UTH on all my balls and haven't had any issues yet. I will recommend buying a digital thermostat, however, personally I like Hydrofarm's. They are not too terrible price wise, you set a temp, and then it does the rest.

Thank you. The sunbeam heat pad has a "continuous on" mode. I made sure when I bought it. I also bought a zoomed heat pad. On visual inspection, the sunbeam appears to be made of higher quality parts. I will test to see if it can be controlled by a tstat tomorrow.

[Smoked Oyster]

Oh and she ate 2 x 100g rats tonight!

[CoolioTiffany]

I'm not sure what's with people and the word "troll" lately.. this thread does not seem anywhere near abnormal.

Steve probably gave the OP some basic keeping advice, hence the heat pad and substrate. Xdues is completely correct, there is NO right way of successfully keeping a snake. If the OP is having success with the way that works for him and his snake, then he should be happy with how he's got everything set up.

Congrats on your new Ball! A nice big Pastel female is definitely an awesome starter .

[Smoked Oyster]

I'm not sure what's with people and the word "troll" lately.. this thread does not seem anywhere near abnormal.

Steve probably gave the OP some basic keeping advice, hence the heat pad and substrate. Xdues is completely correct, there is NO right way of successfully keeping a snake. If the OP is having success with the way that works for him and his snake, then he should be happy with how he's got everything set up.

Congrats on your new Ball! A nice big Pastel female is definitely an awesome starter .

Thank you for the thoughtful reply! Yes, so far the setup is working perfectly. She ate 2 f/t 100g rats last night, no sweat. She went after them immediately, and she clearly isn't stressed.

I am still shocked and dismayed at some of the previous responses in this thread. So far, I haven't seen anyone give specific reasons why the Healthy Pet Cellulose litter is bad, or why the Sunbeam heating pad is bad. If anything, they both seem to be SUPERIOR to the "standard" products mentioned in these forums. The Healthy Pet litter is way more sanitary than any of the other products mentioned here. It is designed to absorb animal waste, is sterilized at the plant, is dust free, doesn't cling to anything, is appropriately sized, and has a pleasing appearance. It is PURE CELLULOSE.

And if the pad works with a tstat (testing this tonight), IMO, it is a superior product to the ZooMed product I also bought. The plastics appear to be higher quality, the plug and cord are higher quality, and the Sunbeam appears to be more like a hospital-grade piece of equipment, whereas the Zoomed uses cheaper plastics and appears flimsier overall. The Zoomed has a 1 year warranty. The Sunbeam has a 5 year warranty... the point is not that I can get my money back if it fails, but rather that the Sunbeam is probably a superior product.

Does anyone actually know if the heating elements in these pads are different, inferior, less lifetime, etc? Does anyone actually have real experience with them? This is not a matter of money for me... I already bought both the Sunbeam and the Zoomed for comparative purposes. If the Sunbeam works with the tstat, I see no reason to go with the flimsier Zoomed product, other than you guys saying to use it because it was designed for reptiles.

Honestly, I think that some of you calling me a troll, a joke, etc, are so invested in your setups that you can't think outside the box and recognize that there are alternatives that might actually be superior. The reptile industry wants you to think that their products are the only products that will work. And since they do work, you believe it. But the reality is that there are other products out there that are similar, and probably higher quality to boot.

[ballpythonluvr]

Thank you for the thoughtful reply! Yes, so far the setup is working perfectly. She ate 2 f/t 100g rats last night, no sweat. She went after them immediately, and she clearly isn't stressed.

I am still shocked and dismayed at some of the previous responses in this thread. So far, I haven't seen anyone give specific reasons why the Healthy Pet Cellulose litter is bad, or why the Sunbeam heating pad is bad. If anything, they both seem to be SUPERIOR to the "standard" products mentioned in these forums. The Healthy Pet litter is way more sanitary than any of the other products mentioned here. It is designed to absorb animal waste, is sterilized at the plant, is dust free, doesn't cling to anything, is appropriately sized, and has a pleasing appearance. It is PURE CELLULOSE.

And if the pad works with a tstat (testing this tonight), IMO, it is a superior product to the ZooMed product I also bought. The plastics appear to be higher quality, the plug and cord are higher quality, and the Sunbeam appears to be more like a hospital-grade piece of equipment, whereas the Zoomed uses cheaper plastics and appears flimsier overall. The Zoomed has a 1 year warranty. The Sunbeam has a 5 year warranty... the point is not that I can get my money back if it fails, but rather that the Sunbeam is probably a superior product.

Does anyone actually know if the heating elements in these pads are different, inferior, less lifetime, etc? Does anyone actually have real experience with them? This is not a matter of money for me... I already bought both the Sunbeam and the Zoomed for comparative purposes. If the Sunbeam works with the tstat, I see no reason to go with the flimsier Zoomed product, other than you guys saying to use it because it was designed for reptiles.

Honestly, I think that some of you calling me a troll, a joke, etc, are so invested in your setups that you can't think outside the box and recognize that there are alternatives that might actually be superior. The reptile industry wants you to think that their products are the only products that will work. And since they do work, you believe it. But the reality is that there are other products out there that are similar, and probably higher quality to boot.

Hi.
I can tell you from my own personal experience that the human heating pad is not going to last very long at all. I was in a pinch once and I had to use a human heating pad to warm up a tub for a snake that I had. Well, the heating pad burned out after a week. I ONLY used the human heating pad because I was in a situation where I needed heat fast. Now, I have three snakes and a rack system with flexwatt heat tape. I love it!

[Smoked Oyster]

Hi.
I can tell you from my own personal experience that the human heating pad is not going to last very long at all. I was in a pinch once and I had to use a human heating pad to warm up a tub for a snake that I had. Well, the heating pad burned out after a week. I ONLY used the human heating pad because I was in a situation where I needed heat fast. Now, I have three snakes and a rack system with flexwatt heat tape. I love it!

Now there is an informed response. Thank you! I will take a look at the flexwatt heat tape option.