My normal Ball

[Grim91Z]

Got this 0.0.1 ball python back in Feb. Not sure about the age or weight, is ~18 inches or so, so I assume it's 16 months old or so. I have been feeding it adult mice but am going to convert to small rats next feed or two as I hear those pack way more protein...

Month old pic:

His habitat

Mmmm, lunch time

Today

 

[Midnightrdr456]

beautiful ball, gorgeous species, i hope to own one, one day, just no room for another snake right now especially since my boa is only 3' right now and will be about 6 one day.

 

[KennyGee]

Beutiful ball man! u should build a Tall enlousure, they are mostly arboreal

Just build a simple tall box with swing open doors in the front and attacht some pvc piping and he will love it, just a suggestion because they can do good with out it. Very nice ball

Actually u could turn that enclouser into an aboreal, just search google Converting a 20gal into a aboreal cage and u will get a link to detail intructions, yah i know thats not a 20 but it will help even with that size. Trust me do it

 

[Hedorah99]

Beutiful ball man! u should build a Tall enlousure, they are mostly arboreal

Just build a simple tall box with swing open doors in the front and attacht some pvc piping and he will love it, just a suggestion because they can do good with out it. Very nice ball

Actually u could turn that enclouser into an aboreal, just search google Converting a 20gal into a aboreal cage and u will get a link to detail intructions, yah i know thats not a 20 but it will help even with that size. Trust me do it

Ball Pythons are arboreal? :?

 

[Mushroom Spore]

Ball Pythons are arboreal? :?

Not in the slightest. They're burrowers, if anything. I'm not sure what was going on with that post. :?

 

[Hedorah99]

Not in the slightest. They're burrowers, if anything. I'm not sure what was going on with that post. :?

Yea, I was confused.

That is a great set up for a ball python by the way. You seem ot be very concerned about the thermal gradiet which is real good. I would use a substarte that holds a tad more moisture. You can put some branches in there but I have never seen a Ball Python climb much. They tend to be pretty lazy as far as snakes go.

 

[Grim91Z]

Was gonna say, this guy hardly ever uses that fake little tree I put there (if he's feeling adventuras he'll climb over it). He actually dug a burrow under that rock/cave to the left. I just switched the fake log with a real half log for bigger hiding space. I think the water dish is a tad big though.

Yep, quite lazy... until the mouse get's close to his head.

 

[Mushroom Spore]

I think the water dish is a tad big though.

Nah, a big dish is good! Sometimes they like to sit in it, and it can help with shedding. Just make sure the actual water isn't too deep, in case it can't swim very well. It took my boy a while to figure it out during his first real soak, so you never know.

 

[Grim91Z]

I put half a pint everyday, not very deep at all. I think two balls my size could fit in there confortably.

More pics:

Nevermind him not being a climber

 

[Mina]

He is adorable!! I love mine!! He was my first snake, and now we have a baby corn as well. How is he eating for you?

 

[Mushroom Spore]

Nevermind him not being a climber

I think I see why, I can't believe I didn't notice this before. Your themometers are halfway up the side of the tank, and not on the FLOOR to measure the temps where the ball python is. Furthermore, both those thermometers (on both ends! no temp gradient?!) are reading...what, ninety? How hot do you think the floor must be, then? He's trying to get away!

You need one side of the tank to be down around 80, and the other end around 90. Otherwise, that is one overheated snakey.

EDIT: Also, you'll need to raise your humidity when he starts looking like it's almost time for a shed. 50% is just at the lower edge of the okay range otherwise, but you'll want 70+ at least, at shedding time.

 

[Grim91Z]

Good point on the thermos. They're usually 5-10* gradient. He doesn't do that often, though. And this was after having him out for some handling time (30 minutes). Usually he chills under a hide or near the water dish. I'll move those thermos down (your the first one to catch me on that).

Edit: These aren't even accurate meters, supposedly, I'll have to get some better ones.

 

[Arietans]

Very cute

 

[Schlyne]

In general I would avoid the half log hides if I were you.

They're not very easy to clean properly, and they just don't create a tight enough space for ball pythons to feel really comfortable....they feel a lot more secure if they have all sides being "protected".

However, pushing the half log hide so that it is against the tank wall will work.

Ditch the analog stick on dials and get yourself a digital thermoeter with a probe. You can get an accurite from walmart or target for around $10 that will work a lot better than the stick on dials. Most of the accurites also measure humidity.

I would switch the substrate to cocanut fiber, repti-bark, or cypress mulch. It's really hard to keep humidity up in a glass tank to begin with. Unforunately, the lamp will contribute to the problem and suck out a ton of the humidity out of the air. If you can ditch the lamp entirely, you're going to be better off.

There are some other things you can try to keep the humdity up in the tank, like using plastic wrap to seal most of the cover in and using damp towels (but changing the towels fairly often to avoid bacterial build up) on the top.

 

[Grim91Z]

Way ahead of you

BTW, ball-pythons.net is a life saver.

As an update, I bought some other digi thermo cause I couldn't find the acu-rite at the time (but I did afterwards and bought a couple, including one for the RTB). I bought a brick of coconut husk, and also converted the hides to a couple of plastic flower pots, using a soldering iron to cut out entrances about the size of his max girth (maybe larger). I'm also hooked up to a t-stat (not the best, but it will do for now). Temps are fine (except the cool side wants to go up sometimes), and the humidity is just over 60. I swithed the paper with a BLEACH CLEANED smooth rock I found. I also covered 75% of the screen with two layers of foil and some electrical tape (tip I found on b-p.net).

Edit: I also moved the whole thing to a lower table (hot air rises, so lowering it helps keep the cool air down as to not let the tank over heat in this heat wave we're having). And it's on a wider table, just behind my bed.