Tank size

[digcolnagos]

OK, I know what everyone says about Sterilites and ten-gallon tanks, but...

I've got my adult ball, which I adopted three weeks ago, in a 20-gallon long. Two identical hides, 90 degrees inside warm one (I'm using a Cobra UTH mat with a Herpstat thermostat), about 80 in the rest of the tank, 50-60 percent humidity. Spends his days inside one hide or the other (he switches freely), but he gets VERY active at night, crawling over the fake tree branch made of rubber and nosing at the screen top and otherwise slithering everywhere. He was in shed when I got him, so I didn't try feeding him at first. Wouldn't take the first two times I tried a F/T mouse, but he did tonight with no trouble (what a relief). When I last tried to feed him a few days ago, though (at night when he was on the prowl) he bit me when I reached in, huge surprise because he's otherwise been the picture of docile. Long story short: I'm wondering if the tank isn't perhaps too small. Just seems he's got cabin fever the way he prowls after dark. Or could it be that going three weeks without food (and he was a regular weekly eater before I got him) just got him feisty? Any guesses welcomed.

[xdeus]

It sounds like he's doing what Balls do. A lot of them tend to roam around a LOT at night. The tank size should be fine for a year or two depending on how fast he grows.

Oh, and it's not too uncommon to get bit at night, especially right after dark. That's typically the time they stick their head out of the hide and wait for a meal to come by.

It sounds like he's in a great setup, though. Looks like you did your homework.

[Liquid Snake 06]

being they are noctornal. once the lights go out, my bp is all over the place. he's always pokin his nose along the sides and top of his 10 gallon. anything thats warm and it wiggles, they'll bite it lol. everything seems to be ok for ya!

[digcolnagos]

Thanks for the input. I have a 55-gallon that I was considering for his home, but thought it would be a, too big for him (he's about three feet long, though I've never measured), and b, too difficult to maintain proper heat and humidity. I figure I'll stay with this setup at least through the winter, then make a decision based on my experiences keeping the temps and humidity where they need to be in the smaller tank. If he wants to roam at night, I want to give him plenty of space and branches and wood stuff to explore--he's the coolest pet ever and deserves it.

Out of curiosity, anyone have any experience in maintaining a 55-gallon? I'm guessing I'd need a bigger UTH mat, maybe two, plus a heat emitter bulb. Summer times here aren't a problem, but it regularly gets below freezing in the winter and we keep the house below 70 degrees (and still get stuck with $150 monthly heating bills).

[hoo-t]

"When I last tried to feed him a few days ago ... he bit me when I reached in"

How exactly did this happen? Were you holding the "prey" in your hand? Had you already presented the "prey" to the snake? Had you handled the mouse in your hand that got bit? He hunts by smell and heat signature. If he already could smell the mouse, and then sensed the heat from your hand, it could very well have been a feeding response.

I generally try not to touch a mouse/rat (or even my dog) when I'm feeding or working with my snakes. I use forceps (hemostats) to pick up and present the prey. Keeps my hands free of rodent scent and well away from a potentially hungry snake. I also keep a bottle of hand sanitizer near my snakes' enclosures. If I do get mouse/rat scent on my hands, I'll use the sanitizer to remove the scent.

Steve

[rabernet]

Out of curiosity, anyone have any experience in maintaining a 55-gallon? I'm guessing I'd need a bigger UTH mat, maybe two, plus a heat emitter bulb. Summer times here aren't a problem, but it regularly gets below freezing in the winter and we keep the house below 70 degrees (and still get stuck with $150 monthly heating bills).

I think with room temps getting that low, a 55 gallon is going to be a big challenge to heat properly. I've only ever used a 20 gallon long, but got so tired of trying to maintain proper temps and humidity in it, that I moved him into a tub set up with the rest of the gang. He was my first ball python and I held out for the longest to keep him in a tank.

He's much happier in the tub set up, and I worry less because everything is much easier to maintain.

[digcolnagos]

Yeah, I figured he likely mistook me for a mouse. I hadn't touched the F/T mouse, but it was sitting alongside the tank when I reached in, and he may have caught a whiff. I'm sure he was hungry--he'd been a regular once-a-week eater, but had gone for more than three weeks, a combination, I suspect, of a shed and stress from moving to new digs (and, likely, being handled too much--I plead guilty). He was obviously hungry last night--went for the F/T straightaway, which he didn't take cleanly. It dropped from tongs to the tub floor, but no matter: He ate it anyway, tail first. The previous owner fed him in a Rubbermaid tub, a practice I've continued, and held the mouse with his hand. I used a pair of kitchen tongs last night (still a bit freaked from the last strike, even though it didn't hurt). I'm pretty good about washing my hands.

I think I can handle heat and humidity on a 20-gallon--if need be, I'll use a space heater near the tank. I'm able to do it with hermit crabs. I got three in December and have kept the heat at 80-plus and the humidity at at least 80 percent (they're tropical creatures). That's in a ten-gallon tank with Saran wrap covering most of the screen top and an UTH.

Thanks again to everyone. This site is the best.