quick questions about hatchlings..

[Jessb]

I just have a couple of questions for more advanced keepers... we have 7 brand new hatchlings ( yay! )and they are all in 1 hatchling tub with a bowl of water. Is that too crowded? They are all balled up together. I have the space to separate them when the time comes, just not sure when to. I know snakes are not necessarily social animals..
Also what temp do you keep the babies at? I would imagine it would be the same as the adults, just wanted to double check...
Thanks for any and all advice!! Sorry i'm such a noob!

[TerrieL]

I am new with my first clutch this year too. I kept my hatchlings together with a moist paper towel floor and a water bowl until they all had their first shed. After that I moved them to individual 6 qt tubs with the same heat and humidity parameters as my adult snakes.

[Kaorte]

You are doing everything right! Leave them together in the tiny tub until they all shed and then separate them. Its normal for them to all pile together.

Keeping them at the same temp as your other snakes is perfect

Keep doing what you are doing!!

[decensored]

1. Leave them together until their first shed, after that you can separate them into their own bins, I usually notice they do this within a day of each other - I start separating them as they shed.

2. I usually keep my temps a few degrees cooler than the adults. Usually 78-88. Normal body temperature for a ball python is 84-86 degrees, the sheer body mass of an adult requires a slightly more substantial heat source, where as the size of the babies requires less heat to maintain that optimal BT. If you're like I was my first year, I had my hatchling bins in with my Juvy/sub adult rack. I just pull the bin a little further from the heat tape, and it helped with the thermo-regulation.

Hope this helps,

Cheers.