First Post, Be Gentle Also First Snake

[Duardo]

Hello everyone!

As the title reads I just recently got a ball python. And I have been browsing the site for a while but I still have some questions, any and all responses are very much appreciated as I love to hear from everyone and learn a thing or two.

Sorry for the long post, ill Bold my main concerns, thank you all.

Well first thing first,Tank size is something that seems to be debated about a lot. My BP is a juvenile, maybe about 1 year old or a little more and I have her in a 40 gal. It was a starter kit (I know, i know those kits arent the best but i got her with the tank for a deal). She has the little log hide and I also bought some wood that she tends to go inside of. I also added a little vine around the hide so it seems more hidden and I added a fake log that she can kind of climb to the top of and be a couple inches off the top of the cage lid.What I was wondering was if this is ok or should I make it feel more crowded so she has more space to hide and explore. This leads me to my next question about a bioactive vivarium...Are they worth it? Is it beneficial?

I've seen a lot of debate on this and I know breeders and such keep them in bins with nothing but a water bowl and paper towels and it works. But I like aesthetic looks as well as functionality. I know with a bioactive vivarium the "clean up crew", consisting of isopods and springtails, would clean the cage and I'd only really have to worry about doing a monthly clean up. But some people say this isn't worth it in the end. So I am torn.
Speaking of keeping a bioactive vivarium I know I should have a mix for the plants to grow in, but I was wondering whats a good mix? I've seen part top soil, part coconut fiber and reptibark and was wondering if thats good? And if so how much of each? And if it isnt good what would be a good substrate? Since I have a starter kit I used the aspen shavings, which is 50/50 I heard. What has me concerned is that I got my BP friday (7/13/18) and I got her from petsmart--now before you get mad at me my petsmart tends to take relatively good care of its pets, so I somewhat trust them even though I saw she had a little bit of a stick shed (she had some skin that hasnt shedded off)--so, she seems to have some rough spots on her that arent smooth, and kind of rough. Now I dont know if this is her scales popping off due to the aspen, or scale rot (but I dont see blisters) but I want to change the substrate but I want to know what would be a good mix?

Apart from this issue,my tank doesn't get warm enough on one side with only the heat pad. The aspen is 2-3 inches thick on the cooler part and 1-2 inches thick on the heat mat, since I was afraid she'd burn herself. Is this too much substrate or what? I have a heat lamp in between the two spots so it keeps it warm in the middle and hotter on the basking area, which reaches a max of 87 F (30.5 C) and the cool side at 75 F (23.8 C). But the thing is I have to have the heat lamp on or else at night with it off the hottest it gets is 80F (26.6C), so I bought a zoomed nightlight red reptile bulb thats 100w but apparently I heard snakes are still bothered by this and its like still light for them. So do I have less substrate or will changing it help insulate heat better? Or what should I do?

Last thing In was confused about, was feeding my snake. I know in petsmart they took her out her enclosure to put her in a separate tank , that was heated, to eat. Ive seen people say that feeding in an enclosure can make snakes more likely (not by a lot) to bite, but some are saying there isnt evidence to prove this. I know when they eat they shouldn't be handled right away or for 48 hours, but since my BP was at petsmart theyd handle her a couple hours after eating and put her back in her enclosure, and she never regurgitated. So I figured she somewhat became accustomed to this, but if it stresses her then I don't want to continue doing it. She doesn't seem to be bothered by being handled either and has opened up really quick since 2 days after I got her she knew it was feeding time and let me pick her up to go to another tank (it was right above her enclosure so she moved less than 2 feet.Should I just feed in enclosure or continue moving her every weekend to a smaller enclosure right above her cage to feed her?

Thanks in advanced for any and all responses and sorry that I seem like I'm clueless.

[Sonny1318]

Welcome and hello. Just a couple of quick points, you could probably do better then a half log hide for starters. Your humidity will have to be on point and that will help with the rough skin feel and retained shed. I can personally vouch that the red light has no negative effects. It also sounds like your heat sources are all unregulated and that’s very dangerous. And yes you are better off feeding in tank, I’ve done both and highly recommend feeding in tank. I’m sure others will chime in and ask how you are measuring your heat and humidity and it’s a really good question. So there’s some starter points, good luck. And if your heat sources are unregulated, I’d advise unplugging them till you can. Good luck, hope I helped start point you in the right direction.

[SMTHook]

Paper towels ars a game changer. Forget about making it look like Africa. You can see and regulate so much easier.

[Snakeydoodles]

Hello! I have no experience with bioactive terrariums, so I can’t give you any advice there, but adding more hides and cover will help her feel more secure & comfortable. Get a thermostat to regulate your heat sources if you haven’t already (Herpstat and Vivarium Electronics are both good options, though pretty pricey). What’s your humidity? I’ve heard that many people use a mix of cypress mulch and eco earth as their substrate with success! It boosts humidity and retains it better than aspen for sure. (I don’t know if this is good for bioactive). If she still has stuck shed maybe give her a bath and try to get it off? -haven’t done this myself-. Keep it shallow so she isn’t actually swimming, as well as warm. Do not peel skin off of it isn’t ready.This is just an idea, I have no experience with doing this so if someone else does please correct me if I’m wrong. To boost humidity you can gently mist her enclosure, but don’t get t too wet as this can cause scale rot and mold the aspen! I would feed her in the enclosure for sure, less stress and less chance of regurgitation!! It won’t make her any more cage aggressive.

If I am incorrect in any of my advice someone with more experience is definitely welcome to correct me. Welcome to the forum and I wish you and your little girl nothing but the best.

[Sirus Uno]

First thing... Give your bp a soak in some warm shallow water for about 20 min. It should help loosen up the now rough dry skin and help it remove the stuck shed. If it doesn't come off it could be a problem.
Next... When you first get a new reptile, it's a good idea to quarantine. Since you don't have any and this is your first one, it still should've been on paper towels for a while to monitor for any mites which would show up on the white quite easily as they are dark tiny spots.
As for the heat mat... It heats up the glass really well which would transfer to the substrate on top of it radiating heat through the surrounding area. Since you don't have a thermostat or a control for that heat, please get yourself a heat gun! Fairly cheap at Walmart or home depot... Like $10 bucks or so. Very handy. Check the temps in the terrarium on different surfaces to make sure your yearling isn't going to burn its belly.
Red lamp... As long as there's a good gradient between the warm side to the cool side and there's at least 2 sizeable hides on each end, it should be fine.
Feeding... They can get used to feeding in a separate tub or tank. Mine are conditioned to it... The moment I put them in the feeding tub, they're ready! Hunting mode! They know food is coming and if they aren't hungry will stay balled up so I put them back and move on. Most people will say you don't have to, isn't really not necessary and there's no proof or data... Whatever. You can condition them to your schedule and your style by repetition over time... With that said, stay consistent! If you feed weekly, make sure its around the same time and same day every week! It will help you as well. They will poo almost the same day every time and it will become a good routine for both you and your ball.
Bioactive... Look up Go Herping bioactive on YouTube. Kid with a little fro... He can explain the whole bio terrarium thing very well. I might do this for one of my older girls when I retire her but for now I have no real knowledge about it compared.
Pay attention to your animal. Learn its body language and mannerisms. Give it some time to adjust and make sure it eats a few times consistently before handling regularly.
CONGRATULATIONS on your new ball python! Post pictures and name soon as I'm sure many of us would like to see the progression!

[Zincubus]

Wow ... quite a lot to take in for a dyslexic / aspie ..

I noticed a few little things ..

First off I'm thinking your layer of substrate maybe far too thick .
In the uk I think it's suggested at 1" , two inch max ..

As for type of substrate .. I love using Orchid bark / Repti-bark .

Looks great , shows off your snake's colours , holds moisture- humidity well.

May I enquire as to what you're using to check the surface temps and humidity?

One similar to these maybe. ?




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[Duardo]

Welcome and hello. Just a couple of quick points, you could probably do better then a half log hide for starters. Your humidity will have to be on point and that will help with the rough skin feel and retained shed. I can personally vouch that the red light has no negative effects. It also sounds like your heat sources are all unregulated and that’s very dangerous. And yes you are better off feeding in tank, I’ve done both and highly recommend feeding in tank. I’m sure others will chime in and ask how you are measuring your heat and humidity and it’s a really good question. So there’s some starter points, good luck. And if your heat sources are unregulated, I’d advise unplugging them till you can. Good luck, hope I helped start point you in the right direction.

Should I get a humid hide then? And I have a thermometer/hydrometer thing from zoomed as well as a digital one that gives me the humidity and temperature. the zoomed one is in the middle/cool side around the top so I can read the ambient temperature and the digital has its probes closer to the bottom/middle of the tank on the hotter side that I regulate and monitor daily. Apart from this I also bought a temperature measuring gun yesterday so thatll help even more. But i do believe my tank is regulated... if i understand that term correctly.

And should I get a humid hide then? also thanks for letting me know about the light now I feel less guilty.

[Duardo]

Paper towels ars a game changer. Forget about making it look like Africa. You can see and regulate so much easier.

LOL yeah no i totally feel you, I should've started off like that just to get my bearings and make it easier on myself but I do like the aesthetic look and don't mind putting in the extra work as I did this with my fish tanks by adding live plants and everything. Its a lot of work but the pay off is pretty nice.

[Duardo]

Hello! I have no experience with bioactive terrariums, so I can’t give you any advice there, but adding more hides and cover will help her feel more secure & comfortable. Get a thermostat to regulate your heat sources if you haven’t already (Herpstat and Vivarium Electronics are both good options, though pretty pricey). What’s your humidity? I’ve heard that many people use a mix of cypress mulch and eco earth as their substrate with success! It boosts humidity and retains it better than aspen for sure. (I don’t know if this is good for bioactive). If she still has stuck shed maybe give her a bath and try to get it off? -haven’t done this myself-. Keep it shallow so she isn’t actually swimming, as well as warm. Do not peel skin off of it isn’t ready.This is just an idea, I have no experience with doing this so if someone else does please correct me if I’m wrong. To boost humidity you can gently mist her enclosure, but don’t get t too wet as this can cause scale rot and mold the aspen! I would feed her in the enclosure for sure, less stress and less chance of regurgitation!! It won’t make her any more cage aggressive.

If I am incorrect in any of my advice someone with more experience is definitely welcome to correct me. Welcome to the forum and I wish you and your little girl nothing but the best.

Ok I'll get more hides, any recommendation. and my humidity ranges from 40%-60% never lower but sometimes a little higher when I accidently over mist. But i do mist the cage daily maybe 2-3 times a day, once in the morning and once at night and in the afternoon. I'm also going to maybe cover half the enclosure with saran wrap to hold in some more humidity. I measure her humidity with both an analog and a digital thermometer/hydrometer.

And I heard about the bath! It was about an inch of water in a tub and I'll do it before the weekend so hopefully that'll help her.

And thank you for the feeding tip! I'll try to feed her in cage this weekend and see how it goes.

[Duardo]

First thing... Give your bp a soak in some warm shallow water for about 20 min. It should help loosen up the now rough dry skin and help it remove the stuck shed. If it doesn't come off it could be a problem.
Next... When you first get a new reptile, it's a good idea to quarantine. Since you don't have any and this is your first one, it still should've been on paper towels for a while to monitor for any mites which would show up on the white quite easily as they are dark tiny spots.
As for the heat mat... It heats up the glass really well which would transfer to the substrate on top of it radiating heat through the surrounding area. Since you don't have a thermostat or a control for that heat, please get yourself a heat gun! Fairly cheap at Walmart or home depot... Like $10 bucks or so. Very handy. Check the temps in the terrarium on different surfaces to make sure your yearling isn't going to burn its belly.
Red lamp... As long as there's a good gradient between the warm side to the cool side and there's at least 2 sizeable hides on each end, it should be fine.
Feeding... They can get used to feeding in a separate tub or tank. Mine are conditioned to it... The moment I put them in the feeding tub, they're ready! Hunting mode! They know food is coming and if they aren't hungry will stay balled up so I put them back and move on. Most people will say you don't have to, isn't really not necessary and there's no proof or data... Whatever. You can condition them to your schedule and your style by repetition over time... With that said, stay consistent! If you feed weekly, make sure its around the same time and same day every week! It will help you as well. They will poo almost the same day every time and it will become a good routine for both you and your ball.
Bioactive... Look up Go Herping bioactive on YouTube. Kid with a little fro... He can explain the whole bio terrarium thing very well. I might do this for one of my older girls when I retire her but for now I have no real knowledge about it compared.
Pay attention to your animal. Learn its body language and mannerisms. Give it some time to adjust and make sure it eats a few times consistently before handling regularly.
CONGRATULATIONS on your new ball python! Post pictures and name soon as I'm sure many of us would like to see the progression!

Thanks for the plentiful advice! I will do the bath before the weekend and hopefully it'll help. I also heard of a product to help shedding, should I try that or should I try to avoid chemicals unless necessary?
Ah ok so qt tanks for reptiles exist as well, I am familiar with this since I have a bunch of fish. But I got her from petsmart and they usually check on the snake and would've informed me about mites, so I was n't too worried especially since she does get taken out to roam anywhere but I was on the look out for these when I learned about them! Thanks for the advice and I will do this next time I get a BP or reptile.
And I just bought a heat gun yesterday! But I also have digital and analog thermometers. Should I buy one of those heat mat controls that you can plug them into and it can control the heat mat temperature? Do you have any suggestions?
Yay red lamps are ok.
And ok I'll try in cage feeding this sunday (her regular eating day) and see how it goes if I dont like the mess I think i'll continue with feeding in a separate tank.
And haha I was binge watching a lot of his videos before I got my snake and didn't finish that one, I'll finish watching it and take notes.
The snake so far has adjusted pretty well, I didnt handle her until I had to feed her and by then it was 2 days later and she was ok with me moving her and picking her up since she was used to it. Didn't handle her for 48 hours after feeding, she was hiding for a while (I assume digesting) and then after I handled her I weighed her (158g). Shes been out and about since, I took her out her enclosure once to inspect her surroundings and She quickly took to roaming around and moving all over the place. So i think so far I can read her mannerisms, well at least so far. I can tell when she gets defensive and I calm her a little before continuing to pick her up.
And thank you! I am excited and willing to learn, I am going to take pictures of her soon enough!