First ball python, now what??

[Jay0884]

Hello, I'm Jay and a first time ball python owner. Actually it was a birthday present for my daughter who wanted one but of course as it goes most time with kids, I'm the one stuck trying to keep optimal conditions for it.

So we purchased from a breeder at a reptile show, we got her on payments until I got everything we needed for her. I picked up an undertank heater mat, inkbird thermostat, 2 thermometers/hydrometers, a plastic tub, feeding tongs, temp gun, f10 for cleaning. Read up on Temps, and humidity, and all I could as quick as I could. Set the tank up as best as I could last week, and we brought her home this past Saturday. Temps n humidity seem good. I read to leave her be for about a week.

But on Monday after 3 days of her just being hidden in her hide. I got worried she hadn't drank any water in 3 days. No pee or poops either. So we pulled the hide off her which probably wasn't the best approach. But I was worried of her dying of dehydration. She didn't ball up but she did stay in her curled position and my daughter picked her up and we set her in her water bowl. I read soaking them for 10 to 15 minutes was okay so I figured that would help if she was dehydrated and also hopefully let her know there was water in the bowl if she got thirsty. I feel she relaxed a bit afterwards as she wasn't curled up as tight as she was before. But my question is what now. Should I be worried about not seeing her drink, pee, or poo for 5 days?

And also I didn't think to weigh her on Saturday when we got her. And I didn't want to pull her out once she was in her tub. But since we did on Monday to soak her I went ahead and weighed her Monday 2 days after we got her and she weighed 75 grams. She just turned 3 months according to the breeder. So I did some research and found she should be in the 120-200 gram. So she's well underweight. Hasn't been fed since 9/18. She was supposed to be fed sunday but we brought her home Saturday and they say to give them a week before you try feeding. Should we wait the week or try feeding now?? Sorry for all the newbie questions but I'm just trying my best to do right by her.

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[Jay0884]

Quick description on pics.top pic is when we soaked her, 2nd pic is the card I got from breeder with date of birth and 6 consecutive feeds, I wrote in weight wad a marker just to keep track, 3rd pic is hot side temp, 4th pic is Arial view of tub, 5 is Arial view of tub without lid, 6th is cold side temp, 7th pic is after 10 to 15 minute soak, 8th pic is showing Temps are about 4 to 5 degrees higher then what the thermostats show, and the last pic is her curled up in the corner when we pulled the humidity box hide off of her. She had been in there since we got her on Saturday. So 3 days curled up in the box. After her shower we did put her closer to the cool hide to make sure she wasn't just staying there for protection. She didn't move until we left the room. Went into her cool hide. The next morning I found her in the hide on the hot side. And to make sure she was actually choosing the humidity box we put that box back in but in the bottom corner and this morning I found her back in the humidity box. So she moves hides at night and prefers the humid box on the hot side for whatever reason

[Bogertophis]

New homes are very scary for snakes- in nature, they learn their way around, so when suddenly everything changes, they've essentially been "abducted by aliens" & they're afraid, freaked out, so you need to wait at least a week to let her settle in.

No handling until after she's fed preferably 3 times easily (at normal weekly intervals with no refusals unless in shed- ie. "in blue"). So don't be plopping her in her water bowl either - leave her alone- she most likely drinks water at night when you aren't looking.

These snakes typically hide by day anyway- best time to offer food (FYI) is evening hours after dark, dim light in room- keep your activity to a minimum when you do offer prey. Many breeders underfeed their hatchlings so they don't grow too fast until in their "new" homes- if you don't stress her now & let her settle in, she'll likely gain weight just fine- so don't worry about that.

You're provided the basics but her home could use a lot more "clutter" to help this snake feel less shy. BPs are ambush predators- they fear predators of their own when out "in the open". She's a pretty one, btw.

In this picture, she's like "What am I doing here???" LOL


Oh, &

[Jay0884]

Thank you for your input. That all makes sense. I guess I just gotta trust the process. And yes I plan on providing more clutter and a better substrate once she is assimilated. For now I'm trying to keep things to a bare minimum to try and spot anything that doesn't look right. Although admittingly if I did see a pee or poop, right now I wouldn't be able to differentiate between a healthy or unhealthy one. 😂 also doing it for the off chance she has mites. Heard they would be easier to spot on paper towels.

[Bogertophis]

That little snake looks LOST in all that space! These snakes need to feel "snug", okay? You're well meaning, clearly, & on the right track but some things you can (should) improve.

Stick with paper towels for substrate for now- & yes, watch for mites- in case- as they can KILL snakes, especially young or underweight ones faster than you'd think- they also share diseases.

Those hides look too big for the snake- make them feel cozier by wadding up some paper towels or clean rags (or clean unmatched socks, lol) to put inside so they feel "snug" to the snake.

Temp. probe wires (-?) don't belong in the enclosure- they'll get pulled out of position & could go way off the temps. you need for health & safety of the snake.

"Clutter" doesn't have to be fake plants (like many prefer to use for appearance- AFTER quarantine for mites). For the time being, if this was my snake- & to make her feel safe & secure, I'd probably remove the water bowl, then crumple some paper towels & put them around on the "floor" between the hides (the way leaves & such would be on the ground), then layer a strip of paper towels over everything (hides & crumpled paper & branch) & then plant the water bowl on top of that layer on the cooler side (to hold the paper down), so your snake can choose what she wants/needs while mostly hiding from your prying eyes. If she feels safe, she's more likely to relax & eat, & after a few meals, she'll be more ready to deal with her new surroundings & meeting you all. A smaller tub would also have been best until this snake grows larger, but it's probably better not to make a whole change right now. Just make this as private as you can.

[Homebody]

Should I be worried about not seeing her drink, pee, or poo for 5 days? Should we wait the week or try feeding now??

No. You shouldn't worry. She's a baby in a new place. Once she settles in and feels safe, you'll see her drink, pee and poo. Yes. You should wait the week. Again, she's probably too unsettled to eat. Let her settle in first.

[Armiyana]

Don't always believe the internet on averages for these guys. At a glance your baby looks perfect and healthy.

I have a little girl I'm fussing with that is currently around 40 grams. She hatched at 26 grams on July 8th. Her biggest sibling is around 180grams. Lol.
I have one male that hit 700 grams before his first birthday as well.

The tub is definitely so big for a tiny little snake. She's adorable and so tiny in there. A smaller home will definitely make her feel more safe. It is hard to regulate a cool and warm spot on a smaller size tub, so at the very least, you want a small hot spot to be correct and at least a few degrees cooler elsewhere. I keep my babies in a rack of tubs so the back will be above a 3 inch wide strip of heat for the belly and the front will be cooler. Typically around 76-78 because the hot spot is small.

They also like to hold poop for a while. Sometimes at this age they will just poop once or twice between sheds and leave you with an unbelievable mess the day of.

One other thing I don't know if the breeder mentioned or if you have looked into it.... Your baby is a beautiful combo of genes. One is the spider gene. This can sometimes make the first couple meals at home a bit frustrating. It's kind of like having a balance issue, and stress can make it worse. So the first month is definitely a challenge in making them comfortable and making sure they eat to make them as comfy as possible. She may wobble her head or miss her strikes at her food. If she's being held and she moves partway off your hand, she might twirl her body a bit because up and down is weird for them. But once she settles in and is comfy, a lot of spider combo ball pythons can be happy and healthy. Mine is one of my best feeders but her first 2 weeks she was a little bit too wobbly to get a meal. Now she barely wobbles at all unless she's very excited about food.

[Albert Clark]

So nice to see you (OP) really prepared with all the husbandry equipment prior to getting the animal. I think you don’t have to worry about the excrement of the baby ball python because mostly all of their nutrition goes towards growth and there is very little that get excreted. I wish we could get clarification from the breeder on the genetics because I see where he crossed out Killer spinner and replaced the genes as Killer Blast on the feeding card. This way we would know if the reptile has the spider gene or not. Will you be able to contact him and get clarification on that? Orange Dream Killer Blast should not have the spider gene but Orange Dream Killer Spinner will have the spider gene.

[Armiyana]

Opps. My bad on that one too!
She's got such a reduced pattern. I would be very surprised if she's missing spider. I should have double checked before posting because I thought it was the opposite crossed out. Hahah.

[Albert Clark]

Opps. My bad on that one too!
She's got such a reduced pattern. I would be very surprised if she's missing spider. I should have double checked before posting because I thought it was the opposite crossed out. Hahah.

There is a ongoing controversy on the hobby terminology and the actual inclusion of specific genes. WOBP description is one thing and is perplexing at times. Because also the contradiction is coming from different places. That’s why I thought it would be good for OP contact the breeder to find out exactly what he bred into her animal.

There is a good YouTube video describing this controversy in detail.

title is. Killer Blast controversy- What is a Killerblast. Hissy Fit Reptiles.