New owners - Husbandry questions

[Craiga 01453]

I've read numerous posts, but just want some clarification on a few things My husband and I recently bought an albino ball python, unfortunately, the person who sold him to us did not give us all details and it seems a bit more work than we were told, which we absolutely do NOT mind, we just want a happy snake

1) As far as the UTH's, would 1 be okay, or is 2 recommended? Also, how do we keep the heat up on the cooler side of the tank? We have a 20 gallon tank and are having issues heating the cooler side (the temp is hovering around 74-75 which we know is unhealthy). We have the mesh top, but keep the cooler half covered to try keeping the heat in. Our apartment is approx 70 degrees - 66 at night. We have a 100W bulb because the 75W bulb was keeping more at the 70 degree range on the cooler side. The basking side is hovering around 90. Our humidity is fine. I don't want him to get sick from it being too cold

2) For probes for the UTH's - do you stick the probe under the UTH prior to sticking it to the tank? We were sold a UTH, with no mention of needing to continuously measure that heat output (although we should have assumed this, I know), so it is already stuck to the bottom on the basking side.

3) Feed inside or outside the enclosure? I've read it's not recommended to pick up the snake after he's eaten because he can regurgitate & also if he isn't warm enough, he won't eat. We have not fed him yet, so just want an idea of what is usually best because we also don't want to have an issue with him striking every time we put our hand in his cage thinking it's food.

Welcome to the forum and the wonderful world of snake keeping.

1) Yes, one UTH is fine. The UTH is there solely to provide a hot spot and not for ambient temps. Your UTH should be regulated by a thermostat to prevent dangerous heat spikes which can cause serious burns or worse to your snake. Your substrate in top of the UTH should be about 1/4" deep, although your snake will most likely push most of it out of the way anyhow. For this reason, you want to measurethe actual surface temp, not the substraye, using a temp gun. I keep mine at 90 for my BP.

2) the probe should be outside the enclosure sandwiched between the UTH and the glass.

3) feed inside the enclosure. Using a seperate feeding tub is old school and proven counter productive. Moving to a feeding tub a) stresses the snake increasing the risk of the snake refusing to eat, b) increaes the likelihood of the snake regurgitating it's meal when moved back, and c) increases your odds of getting tagged. I've fed in the enclosure for years and none of my snakes have ever struck at me inside their enclosures (well, except for my Kingsnake when he's in shed, but that's a different story altogether). I have also never had impaction issues due to substrate. If you're worried about that, lay a paper plate or something over the substrate prior to feeding.


Using glass works just fine once set up properly, I've been doing it for years. It jyst takes a little more effort, but really only in the winter months.
I wrap the back, sides and top of my enclosures in 1/2" foam board insulation and that helps tremendously with keeping temps and humidity on point. Just cut a circle out for the heat lamp with a little extra room for airflow.
This also helps to offer the snake a sense of security. BPs do best when they feel as safe and secure as possible. The glass sides often make them feel too out in the open and can stress them.


I hope I helped! Good luck and feel free to ask any questions you may have.