Ball python eats props?

[fourward]

Hello, I have recently bought a ball python, and it is my very first snake. After I were able to constantly keep the cage temp around 88-92 on hot and 78-85 on cold, I started to add some props like fake leaves, branches to climb if it feels like it, and some tubes.
I wanted to add some small glow-in-the-dark rocks, so the cage looks a little interesting...but my friend who previously had a ball python, said that the ball python will eat the rock and die. I know I am a beginner, and snakes can be a bit dumb at times, but I don't think they are that dumb to swallow a small rock.

The rock isn't a pebble, but more like small stone.

[dr del]

Hi,

Normally I wouldn't have said snakes would eat rocks - but if it had fresh mouse blood on it it miggght get confused.

But to be honest I wouldn't use them because they glow.

[Timelugia]

Hello, I have recently bought a ball python, and it is my very first snake. After I were able to constantly keep the cage temp around 88-92 on hot and 78-85 on cold, I started to add some props like fake leaves, branches to climb if it feels like it, and some tubes.
I wanted to add some small glow-in-the-dark rocks, so the cage looks a little interesting...but my friend who previously had a ball python, said that the ball python will eat the rock and die. I know I am a beginner, and snakes can be a bit dumb at times, but I don't think they are that dumb to swallow a small rock.

The rock isn't a pebble, but more like small stone.

You should be fine. I highly doubt the snake will try to eat it. Even with rat blood on it the snake will likely look for a rat rather than trying to eat a rock. The snake should see the rock is cold- and thus not a rat. But you may want to be mindful of what chemicals may be on the rock. If the glow in the dark effect isn't something that can be washed off then I'd guess you'd be fine?

[AbsoluteApril]

I wanted to add some small glow-in-the-dark rocks, so the cage looks a little interesting...but my friend who previously had a ball python, said that the ball python will eat the rock and die.

Your friend was probably thinking of substrate ingestion which is much more likely to happen in lizards and even then isn't that common; this is when the animal is eating and gets substrate in with the food item/s which cause an internal blockage.

The only ingestion issues I've really heard of with snakes is when a wet mouse/rat is on paper or a towel and the snake eats the towel as well.
I don't think you have anything to worry about your snake eating a rock.

I do agree with the other posters that it's probably best to avoid anything that glows.

[fourward]

Thank you everyone.
I have read that dim lights won't bother snakes' night cycle and still allow you to look inside. I want to be able to see what my ball python is doing during night, so I thought glow in the dark rocks would provide a dim glow in the cage, so I can see inside.

The rocks aren't painted, but made out of glow in the dark material like those star stickers for your room.

Is there any specific reason why I shouldn't add the glow in the dark rock? They don't emitt too much light imo, but I want to make sure I don't stress my bp out

[chrid16371]

Best thing to use for night viewing is red or blue led lights since they don't give off a lot of heat and those colors can not be seen by your ball python. Any other color lights would disturb your snake at night. You can get a timer that has a day and night cycle or 2 timers and set one for day hours and one for night hours (I do 12 hour cycles for my reptiles) and put white led or something that isn't bright for day and red or blue for the night. You don't need to have any day cycle if you don't want since they don't require it. I only use lights for mine during the day since the room they are in is very dark and it makes it easier for me to see messes and at night I use no lighting.

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[Coluber42]

Actually, the glow in the dark stuff is probably not so bad since it isn't very bright and gradually fades out all on its own anyway.

They can definitely see blue LED's, for sure. I have blue LED's on my tank with a dimmer switch, and my snake very definitely reacts when I turn them on. I'm not sure about red LED's; I tried waving a red bike tail light around his cage a few times (the room was dark otherwise) while he was active and I felt that it was inconclusive whether he was reacting or not. But he definitely notices the blue. Also, there is some evidence that they can see into the UV range, and blue is at the end of the spectrum closer to UV while red is at the other end. So it's plausible as far as I know that they can see blue light, but not red.

Snakes sometimes swallow bits of stuff that gets in their mouth while their prey is being dragged on the ground, but a rock seems pretty unlikely to be swallowed accidentally. In any case they don't go, "Hmm, what shall I do today? Maybe I'll hide for awhile, then go eat that rock over there."