Neglected Ball Python

[KayNikole19]

Hi everyone I'm pretty new to all of this recently (4 days ago) I moved into an apartment and found a aquarium with a snake in it. At first I thought it was dead because it had been atleast 3 weeks since the previous tenants moved away. I turned on the heat lamp and heat pad and it stared to move around. I did my research and it is in fact a ball python pretty young maybe a year old. Well I got her to eat and drink some water and I've been trying to maintain her aquarium to the best of my abilities but I'm wondering what I can do to make her trust me. He has yet to strike at me and allows me to move her water bowl in and out and I've touched her a few times but all she does when I do that is tense up into a ball tighter. I've never owned a pet snake before neither has anyone in my family. I noticed she's shedding a bit right now. What steps should I do to make her trust me and let me handle her cause I'm afraid if I pick her up that's when she will strike me. I want to keep her and give her the best life possible because I can tell the previous owners didn't care much in a small aquarium with no humidity and paper towels as bedding but I'm dying to actually handle her and have her trust me I just don't know what to do. Any help would be appreciated.

[dadofsix]

I don't know if this is the right sub-forum for your questions. If you go into the BP Husbandry sub-forum you will find lots of stickies with valuable information in them. Best of luck with your Royal. Read the stickies you'll be glad you did. And don't be afraid to ask what you may think is a silly question. Everyone in this forum was a beginner once.

Good Luck!!!

[Bogertophis]

Welcome...that poor snake! And great that you're stepping up to take care of her. I'd work on getting her enclosure right (heat & humidity & hides etc)
and don't be in a rush to handle her yet...since they didn't care enough to even find her another home, they probably didn't handle her much either, & it's far
more important that she builds up her health (& immune system) first, before any handling. In addition, shy snakes (like BPs) may refuse food if they are
stressed from handling, so for her sake, feeding is "job #1"....wait until she has taken at least 3 meals at normal intervals (not less than a week apart) before
you try to do any handling, for best results. And by all means, ask questions...we were all "new" to snakes at one time too.

[tttaylorrr]

for now, just leave her be and ONLY check on her to maintain her husbandry (cleaning poop, keeping water topped off).

be sure to try and feed her 5-7 days after you leave her alone for a bit; i recommend a small/medium mouse (a small meal even for a young/neglected ball) bc i dont know her weight (ball python feeding chart attached below).

please keep us posted on her, OP! i hope she pulls through tremendously for you.

[Dianne]

Paper towels are pretty common for new snakes...easy to clean and easy to spot problems like mites, blood in stool/urates, or runny stool. You didn’t mention if there is a thermostat to control the heat sources, but if not, that should be one of your first investments. An inexpensive starter option would be a Jump Start thermostat from Amazon ($35 +/-). There’s a lot of great info on the forum to insulate and boost humidity in tanks. For a young/small snake, the tank should be fine to start with. You can always upgrade as she grows.

Before you do much handling, I’d try to get her to eat at least three meals...general rule of thumb you’ll see most of us recommend. Ball pythons typically do exactly what you describe when nervous, ball up and hide their heads in their coils. Once she’s eating regularly, you can start picking her up. I usually start with once per week, giving at least 2 full days after feeding...or 3 full days if the meal leaves a significant bump. The key is calm, gentle handling. I’ve yet to be bitten by any of my bp’s, but it does happen. You can start out with gloves if that makes you more comfortable. I’m also a big fan of hook training.

Best of luck and please keep us updated.

[Jmarshall]

Yes, can you tell us about the enclosure that you found the snake in? Better yet a picture of the snakes home would go a long way so we can see what kind of set up its in. As was mentioned ask questions along the way and please read all of the stickies located here.

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/foru...2-BP-Husbandry

Reading those alone will go a long way and provide you with a wealth of knowledge on basic care.

[bcr229]

I turned on the heat lamp and heat pad...

And hopefully those are hooked up to a thermostat, otherwise you could easily end up with a burned snake and a big vet bill.

[KayNikole19]

I can't get the picture to load on here but her enclosure as of right now does not include a thermostat I literally just got paid and going to pet smart to buy new items for her cage. My issue is how do i keep the humidity levels right she's in a basic aquarium with the wire top piece and from what I read it's not good for keeping humidity up. Also is there any reccomendations on good bedding material and how can i move her to clean up her aquarium because the previous owners I don't think ever cleaned it at all

[Jakethesnake69]

In a glass aquarium type with a screen lid your going to need to spray every day. Tapatalk is the recommended picture posting method and it’s what I use. You can move your snake to a plastic bin while you clean the cage. Aspen, Eco Earth and Reptile Prime are some substrates, I use Reptile Prime. Not sure about your local pet stores but mine do not have thermostats yet sell everything else. Amazon has a lot of options but require waiting for it.

[JRLongton]

Don't buy the thermostat at the pet store. Really. Last time I was there they were selling JumpStarts for $55 +. And they had those junky Zoo-med things with the dial for over $45. Buy on Amazon. Right now they are $33 with free shipping. Even eBay has more reasonable deals than Petco.

As for that screen, you should cover most of it. I've never used a tank, but I've heard people use everything from aluminum foil to damp towels to insulation board.

Slow down and think things through carefully. It's very easy to blow all kinds of money needlessly on things that aren't going to make a wit of difference, especially at pet stores. As long as the poor creature isn't visibly sick, then anything you do, no matter how small, is gong to be an improvement.

Not to say that improvements don't need to be made! Just sit down, do some research, have a drink, and think it through carefully.