first snake

[monopod]

hi everybody i just got my first snake today! I do not have a heater yet( my friend who is a member does not think i need for the summer planning to get basking light though)


P.S are't the babbies SO CUTE!!!

[JubJub]

Hi, make sure you read up a lot on here. I have learned tons of great stuff myself, being pretty new. You will have a lot less problems with your snake if you do the right things.

Welcome to the site.

[Cody]

Despite what your friend said, I'd still get a heat source asap. Under tank heaters work well since bp's need belly heat for digestion of food, so just go to your local walmart and pick up a human heating pad. Just as long as it doesn't have an auto shut off. As for basking light, if you really do need/want one, try and be sure it's an infrared or black light, since bp's are nocturnal and need no light source(too much light would stress them out).

Other than that...congrats on your first snake. I know how exciting it is. Btw, do you have any pics of your setup and snakey? We love seeing pics. If not, you can describe us your setup. What size enclosure, what kind of substrate, hides, what you use to read temps and humidity etc. Good luck and welcome.

[elevatethis]

LOL why would your friend say you didn't need a heat source for the summer? Do you not have AC in your place?

You're BP will need a temperature gradient of 78-82 on the cool side and 88-93 on the warm side. So you need a heat source to create that. Which member on here said you wouldn't need a heat source??? Thats wierd cause we're all pretty anal about bp husbandry.

[Royal-y__Great]

um, it was mentioned that you NEED belly heat, i dont agree

ive had my bp for about a year, and ive always used an overhead heating source, and he is healthy, and fine, so i dont belive that they NEED belly heat

[elevatethis]

I'm with you on that one as well. I've always used an overhead heat source. The bark I use warms up to about 80something on the warm side under the lamp, inside the hide. I can't imagine a BP would ever encounter a surface that is 90some degrees in the wild unless its on a basking rock in direct sunlight- a place you would never find a ball python in the wild.

People have had great success with heat pads though, so I believe it is more a personal preference that depends on your setup. Obviously, overhead sources are not practical for a rack system or similar setup.

[mlededee]

i like the heating pad because it is helpful for their digestion. i wouldn't be able to keep the humidity high enough with a lamp either because they tend to dry things out and i use a glass aquarium. i use a thermostat with the heating pad, and it would be annoying to me, and possibly to the snake, to have the lamp clicking on and off all the time. then there is also the fact that i spent $9 on the heating pad as a one time expense instead of having to buy a new lightbulb every time the old one burns out.

[Marla]

um, it was mentioned that you NEED belly heat, i dont agree

ive had my bp for about a year, and ive always used an overhead heating source, and he is healthy, and fine, so i dont belive that they NEED belly heat

They do need belly heat. It doesn't have to be provided through an under-enclosure source, but that is the easiest way to do it. Heat is required for digestion, and it needs to be above a minimum level for them to be able to do the speedy digestion required before the food starts to decompose within their gut (causing gas, bloating, sometimes regurgitation, and sometimes long-term digestive difficulties).

If you've ever sat on a warm rock in the sun, you know that after a short time, the rock surface temp drops to your temperature as you soak up the heat. This is why providing heat from underneath, rather than a radiant source, is the easiest way to provide a constant temp high enough to facilitate digestion.

Can they digest while being heated with a lamp or CHE? Sure, but it may be less efficient (possibly causing decomposition-related problems noted above) or require more frequent moving in order to thermoregulate (possibly leading to regurgitation). I go for the simple way, myself, rather than dealing with those potential problems, but there are others who successfully keep bp's using just heat lamps or CHEs.

[elevatethis]

I guess I just can't get the notion of where a wild bp would be able to find a constant, perfect source of belly heat that is supposedly so necessary for proper digestion.

[mlededee]

i would think the ground in their native habitat would be pretty warm to begin with. and since we have the ability to provide them that constant source of heat and an optimal living environment, why not do it? the bps that are cared for by people that do give them that optimal care are probably way more healthy than those that are living in the wild. nothing wrong with that.