Hi I just bought a BP and have some worries

[gio4061]

Okay so I bought an Aquarium for him, not the best enclosure but it was the cheapest for the most space. For tonight I currently don't have a heating pad so I'm worried he might be too cold, I've heated up my room and have a bowl of water in there but I don't want the poor guy to be too stressed or uncomfortable, which is what he seems to be. This is my first snake ever and he seems to be restless, checking around for ways to get out and just constantly moving. I currently have a little box for him to hide in lying on its side but it seems to want to climb on the little plastic trees and poke around the cage. Is this healthy behavior or is he hating his enclosure or is he just hungry? I'm not sure what kind of bedding he currently has, my cousin put some in, I'm thinking it might be pine bedding, I'm hoping its not cedar. Either way I plan on switching it out asap. I was also told to not feed him for a week after just moving him in. I keep hearing many different answers for these kinds of questions and honestly I'm just confused and worried. Can anyone help out?

[Mr. Misha]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

My first question is, do you have any heating device for the glass tank? Maybe a heat lamp? You definitely need to get him a heating device ASAP. With a heating pad you'll have to run a thermostat to regulate the temperature. What are you checking your temperature with?

Check out this link on how to properly set up a glass terrarium.
You'll find a lot of useful things here:
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=201740

Also, read through this caresheet for ball pythons: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=127203

Your snake climbing all over the place is normal. He's just getting used to his new environment. Definitely wait a week to feed him just to make sure he settles in.

Post a photo of your terrarium so it will be easier to see what you need. What color is the substrate?

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[gio4061]

I'm not sure how to upload a picture through a post.

The substrate is sort of a creamish color. Thank you for the aquarium set up guide!
That's also one of the reasons Im so worried, right now I don't have a way to really check the temperatures, so I've just been kind've heating my room up and hoping he'll be fine til tomorrow when I can actually get the time to go out and buy all the things he needs.

[Mr. Misha]

Try to keep your room temp up at 78-80 degrees if possible for tonight and definitely get a heat lamp tomorrow.

Here's a thread on how to post photos: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=173889

Or you can download Tapatalk app for your phone and post photos directly from your phone.

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[gio4061]

Yeah I've just had the heater at full blast trying to make sure its hot in here.
I was also reading somewhere that heat lamps are not good for ball pythons and that heat pads are better?
Also how is there a maximum amount of time I can hold him for? I know to put him in his cage when he gets agitated or antsy, but is there a certain amount of time he can be out health wise?
I take him out of his enclosure a lot in my free time. My question is just theoretically could I keep him out of his enclosure all day if he wanted or is there a time when he might get too cold or something of that sort?

[Mr. Misha]

Your photo didn't show up.

Heat lamps are completely fine for ball pythons. They not only provide a hot spot but raise the ambient temperature. With a heat mat, it only heats up the bottom of the tank. So if your house gets cold, your ambient temperature in the tank will drop, which is dangerous for a BP. The cool side of the tank shouldn't drop below 75F. The reason people don't like using heat lamps is because it's harder to keep humidity at proper levels with them.

Since you just got him don't handle him for at least a week. Let him settle in. How would you feel if someone kept picking you up ecery few hours while you're getting used to your new home?

After you successfully feed him (in about a week) wait 48 hours for his food to digest before handling him or he might regurgitate his food. Handle him for about 5-10 minutes a day and then slowly increase the time.

There's absolutely no reason to keep him out for long periods of time.

I'd also suggest getting a infrared temp gauge to measure temperature all over your terrarium. I have a zoomed one myself. Those analog circle gauges are highly inaccurate.
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[Grim8899]

Okay so I bought an Aquarium for him, not the best enclosure

Really? Why is that? I have mine in aquariums for years and always have back in the day to these days and so do a few of my buddy's and there snakes are doing great.

[Grim8899]

I use cigar analog hygrometers and I also use a digital hygrometer and sorry to bust your bubble,the analog is quite accurate. There all I have ever used

[Mr. Misha]

I use cigar analog hygrometers and I also use a digital hygrometer and sorry to bust your bubble,the analog is quite accurate. There all I have ever used

I'm talking about the analog reptile gauges sold at petco and other reptile places which is the most commonly bought thing to measure humidity.

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