Newbie ball owner supplies question

[Eric Alan]

Here we go - seatbelts on, everyone!

1. I live in Florida, and it's quite hot and humid since I live right nearby the beach. On an average day it normally ranges in the 90's on heat and it can be pretty hot in my room on some days, so I don't know if that should play a part in what I set my temperatures to in the rub, so if anyone could direct me there that would be awesome.

You'll need a way to control ambient temp if it gets too warm or too cool (under 75 or over 90). High 70s to low 80s are good if you can keep it in that range.

2. From personal experience I'd like to know of specific brands of Heating pads that work well for a Ball. I've seen lots of recommendations but some have lead me to things like Zoo med.. which have dreadful reviews. And some lead me to others that have iffy reviews.. I've yet to find anything that is actually set in stone good online. Links would be awesome but just a name should be fine.

The brand of heat pad is less important than how you control it (more on that to follow). Zoo Med is one of the ones that many have easy access to and can be used effectively. The bad reviews are probably from people not using them correctly.

3. I'd also like to know what things to gauge the heat and humidity I should be buying. People have said that the cheaper stuff will do the job fine but they aren't as reliable. I've seen people say I need thermostats, digital thermometers, hygrometers and more so some concrete information on the bare bones of what I need, and how I'd need to set it up and put it in my rub is what I need to know! My parents are okay with spending money, but I don't wanna break the bank and come to them telling them I'm going to be spending $500 for all the supplies I need for my snake on top of the snake price and my mom end up changing her mind because it's already on thin ice, so extremely expensive options are really not an option for me and I'd prefer to stick on the cheaper side if possible, but if I absolutely need something expensive to keep my snake in good health please inform me, because if so and my parent's aren't okay with it I'd much rather pass up on this chance than have a poor little snake that doesn't have what it needs in it's new loving home.

The single most important piece of equipment that's critical to invest in (read: spend more here and be more budget minded in other areas) is a thermostat. Not a thermometer that tells you the temperature - a thermostat that controls the temperature of your heat pad. Here is a good quality thermostat that will let you sleep comfortably knowing your BP is well taken care of: http://spyderrobotics.com/products/herpstat1Basic.html. A nice thermometer/hygrometer is something similar to this: http://www.amazon.com/Chaney-Instrum...ywords=acurite. It will give you two temperature readings (one for your hot spot, one for ambient) and also display the humidity.

4. I plan on using 2 of those black plastic hides since they look perfect for a snug fit so he feels secure and not one of those logs or rock hides, and newspaper since it seems like the easiest to clean. So because of this I don't really know what I can do to put in the cage to help with shedding.. or if I even need something for that since only half of people even recommend it in care guides. I've seen some rocky water bowls and I think that might do the job so I'd just like to know what I might need for that or if a rocky water bowl will do the trick.

They will be able to shed just fine without having to consider a rough surface to do so. Mine are in tubs with paper towel style liners for substrate and ceramic crocks for water and shed no problem. As long as your humidity is where it should be, they'll take care of themselves.

5. I don't know if there are any places that carry rats nearby so I think it'd be best to buy mice in bulk, there are plenty of petco's and places of that sort but on their websites they dont seem to supply rodent food, only the snakes.. how do they feed them even?.. lol, anyways was wondering if LLLReptile is a reputable place to buy mice in bulk or if I should look elsewhere, their supply and recommendation of zoo med stuff scared me away a bit since they are so badly reviewed. Also, on the subject of mice in bulk, for a young ball python, 5 gram fuzzy mice should be fine for the first 50 meals correct? I'm fairly certain but just because I'm here asking questions, might as well know for certain from someone of knowledge.

5 gram fuzzy mice aren't even big enough for a first meal in most cases. Most hatchling BPs are large enough to take fuzzy rats in the 10 gram range every 4 days and move up rat sizes pretty quickly from there. Buying in bulk is good, but don't buy a ton of the small sizes since you likely won't be needing them for long. Since you're in Florida, here's a great place to order from: http://www.perfectprey.com/frozen-rats/. A pack of 25 fuzzies and a pack of 25 pups would be a good first order and last you several months.

Sorry for the wall of text!
Thank you to anyone who takes the time to help out this newbie I'd appreciate it soooo much! <3

No need to apologize! We all started somewhere, and I'm glad that you're asking questions before taking a little worm home with you and flying by the seat of your pants.