HELP! I fear I'm doing something horribly wrong!

[angllady2]

It sound to me like the first thing you need to do.... Is stop listening to your supposedly knowledgeable friend. Because he's not that knowledgeable AT ALL.

First and foremost, and 30 gallon tank is WAY big for a ball python, especially a male. They are all but impossible to heat properly and keep humidity correct. It can be done yes, but it takes a great deal of time and effort to do it. It is also super open, and can easily cause a ball to become nervous, flighty, go off feed and become generally miserable. Even if they were fine before.

You MUST have a way to accurately measure and control temps. What you are doing now is just begging for problems ranging from regurgitation from cold to burns from excessive heat.

He wants and needs security. If you are set on the tank, crowd it up with fake plants or big rocks or something to provide cover for him.

Yes, he has been underfed for a long time, and this extreme aggression/aversion to being handled is probably a direct result of that. Now, the key here is not to overfeed him. Because some ball pythons who have been underfed for extended periods can and will stuff themselves to the point of illness. Slow and steady and consistent is the key. Try bumping his feedings up to every 5 days, and keep his prey a bit on the small side for now. If you feed too big too often, it can make things worse instead of better.

Be patient with him. Once a ball reaches this phase, it can take weeks or even months to get them out of it. But the great thing about ball pythons is, they almost never become aggressive permanently. Once you figure out what is causing the aggression, and once you fix the problem, they will almost always go right back to being the sweetheart's they were before. Don't worry too much about handling right now. It's only going to stress you both out. Focus on what he needs, and let the handling slide. Once he's back on track, he'll be just as sweet as can be.

I have had personal experience with several rescue ball pythons that were badly neglected and underfed. ALL of them were spastic, aggressive, strike at anything, run and hide when I got them. After a few months of consistent feedings and a set routine, every single one turned into a dollbaby. But it takes time. Anywhere from 2 months to 8 months, depending on the degree of neglect they had faced and the individual snake.

So while you may be doing a few things less than perfect, mostly thanks to poor information, you can fix all these minor things and get your friend back with some patience and time.

Gale