Here is my setup - Tell me what you think

[mooingtricycle]

i keep ALL of my animals at 85-88 hot side 75-78 or so cold side. No problems with this setup at all!

I use racks, and have them heated by back heat with two strips of 11" on my big ones hooked to T-stats, and one strip of 11" on my smaller one ( which is getting extra when i feel like moving it out from the wall before winter)

Never had a problem with this setup, and i do not think ball pythons need 90 degree hotspots. I also feed every other week or so.

Half log is fine, some will tell you they are not, there are always new Fads that go along with keeping reptiles. They pass in time. what people did 20 years ago may not be IN now, but maybe in another 10 it might come back. its just how things go.

So long as the animal feeds for you, and remains healthy and active ( for a ball python, of course) I wouldnt sweat it.

Enjoy your new critter!

[FIREball]

Does it eat every week?

Does it poop regularly?

Does it shed fine?

If you answered yes to all, than you are fine. Dont let "stickys" tell you what to do, there are a lot of diffrent ways to do things. As long they eat, poo, and shed you are fine.

[chuka]

Does it eat every week?

Does it poop regularly?

Does it shed fine?

If you answered yes to all, than you are fine. Dont let "stickys" tell you what to do, there are a lot of diffrent ways to do things. As long they eat, poo, and shed you are fine.

Only had her for a week now but yes, yes and hopefully next time.

Had her two days and fed her even though I was going to hold her back a week [previous owner fed every Sat, 1 Rat Pup live. She appeared to me to be looking for some grub so I got her a pup and she hit it within about 10 seconds of his feet hitting the aspen. Poop was regular, nothing abnormal to report. She had a shed before I got here and had some stuck shed on the later part of her body. I used the method described in another thread and got it all off of her. I think her humidity levels where low as she had a very small plastic dish for h2o that she always knocked over [per previous owner]. I got he a larger bowl and now she drinks from it often, and like I said, she loves to hang out on the limb over the water. Someone mentioned that she might be looking for an escape route, caused by stress as a possiblity, but she has never paid a second mind at the top screen. Usually when on her branch, she spreads our and rests her head on one of the limbs as if she is taking it all in [i may be over romanitizing a little here]. She shows no signs of stress. No aggitation. Always ready to be picked up and handled. She just seems like a happy girl.

I am concerned about the belly temp as it is still hovering around 100 degrees. This is exactly how her cage has been set up from the get go as her previous owner had this cage with her when he first got her almost a year ago. What temp should I shoot for the the substrate surface inside her hide?

[chuka]

-And get a lower climbing structure or turn that one on its side. Though some (I have two) seem to be good climbers and like it...what happens that inevitable time they fall? Make any climbing decor wide and low for their safety.

Is this really a concern. My girl is almost three ft long and the tallest point on the branch is maybe 7-8 inches. I cannot see her causing any real damage falling from that height. Forgive me for being blunt, but isn't this Darwin at work. Heck I have fallen from a few roofs in my day and I am still kickin. ;-)

In all reality though, not sure that I am realy afraid of an injury from her falling. She actually moves around on the branch quite well. Maybe she just has a lot of practice at it as like I have said, she has had the same cage for quite a while now.

[blackcrystal22]

You'd be surprised. Ball pythons are not meant to be arboreal and are not built for it. If something scares them and they ball up while on top of that structure and it causes them to fall, well it's just a non-needed risk.

i keep ALL of my animals at 85-88 hot side 75-78 or so cold side. No problems with this setup at all!

I use racks, and have them heated by back heat with two strips of 11" on my big ones hooked to T-stats, and one strip of 11" on my smaller one ( which is getting extra when i feel like moving it out from the wall before winter)

Never had a problem with this setup, and i do not think ball pythons need 90 degree hotspots. I also feed every other week or so.

Half log is fine, some will tell you they are not, there are always new Fads that go along with keeping reptiles. They pass in time. what people did 20 years ago may not be IN now, but maybe in another 10 it might come back. its just how things go.

So long as the animal feeds for you, and remains healthy and active ( for a ball python, of course) I wouldnt sweat it.

Enjoy your new critter!

I don't understand where your going with this 'fad' thing your talking about. Log hides aren't a good hide for ball pythons because they don't touch them on all sides and are very open and insecure. Ball pythons stress out very easily, and this may cause problems from stress in the future.
Your temperatures are not healthy for your snake. Other snakes, like corns and kings would do fine in that temperature range. Ball pythons are a completely different species and need the higher temperatures to digest their food properly.

Does it eat every week?

Does it poop regularly?

Does it shed fine?

If you answered yes to all, than you are fine. Dont let "stickys" tell you what to do, there are a lot of diffrent ways to do things. As long they eat, poo, and shed you are fine.

As I quote a few other people on this site.
These are all elements of a surviving snake and doesn't take all of the precautions for a snake that you want to thrive in your care.

[chuka]

Ball pythons are a completely different species and need the higher temperatures to digest their food properly.

So what temps would you recomend? Belly surface in hide and basking surface temp? Please advise.

[FloridaHogs]

I must have one of those wierd BP's, because one of mine thinks she is a GTP. She will stay in her tree all day and even eat in it.....she has a hot spot of 90 on the floor on one side, just sometimes she likes her tree.

[chuka]

That is exactly what I see in my girl. She just seems to like to hang out up in the branch from time to time. And if she falls, she falls. I cannot see it causing any real damage as it is not a great height. But I really do not see that happening as she oftern stays on the branch while I add water, spot clean under her hide, etc. I must have found a snake that exactly matches me. A Freak. :-)

Except that mine does not eat from her branch. Cool pic though.

[chuka]

Is this really a concern. My girl is almost three ft long and the tallest point on the branch is maybe 7-8 inches. I cannot see her causing any real damage falling from that height. Forgive me for being blunt, but isn't this Darwin at work. Heck I have fallen from a few roofs in my day and I am still kickin. ;-)

In all reality though, not sure that I am realy afraid of an injury from her falling. She actually moves around on the branch quite well. Maybe she just has a lot of practice at it as like I have said, she has had the same cage for quite a while now.

Edit: I actually just went in a measured and from the tippity top, it is 4.5 inches to the floor. So I am fairly confident she can handle such a spill. Literally into the water bowl as it is benieth the branch.

[Argentra]

Ideal temps to shoot for are 80-83 cool side floor, 89-93 warm side floor, and an ambient of 79-81. Extremes are 78 low, 95 high, and 76 ambient. Anything outside those could cause problems.

As for falls, I've heard too many tales of a BP who was a great climber who grew a bit bigger, fell off a branch, landed on something like a hide or the water dish, and broke its neck or spine and died...or at least was seriously hurt. Naturally, this won't happen all the time, but I for one wouldn't want to risk it. That feeding from the branch shot is cute, tho. The key is to keep an eye on them as they climb around.
My young normal girl was an avid climber when she was little and was really good at it. But then, she just got to a point size wise where she was getting clumsy. That's when I took her climbing structure, which was just like the OPs, out of the tank.