advice for new ball python

[dracowing14]

So I picked up my second ball python this weekend. It is a male but I'm not 100% sure on the morph. I did notice a few things though that bother me. The first being some of the scales, mostly the ones edging the ventral scales are lifting. From the bottom. Now there no where near falling off but they do tend to hitch on my gloves a bit so I'm not sure if this is normal before a shed. Or caused by stress. He is also very scared of anyone going near him so I'm not sure if he was dropped as a baby. When I brought him home he would strike the side of the cage. Even if you where 5 feet away. So after a night with a blanket over his cage he seems.to have calmed down from striking. I still use gloves just in case but he is starting to come out of his shell Also if anyone can confirm the morph that would be great.

PS: before anyone starts this is not his cage. This is where he stays while I'm cleaning.

[macandchz]

deardracowing14 my suggestion about the scales is to use a shedding aid that has a glycerin base sold at most pet shops every couple weeks even if he isn't due to shed. it makes the snake's skin very soft and shiny and will help when he does shed. when you apply it always go in the direction of head to tail. hope this helps!

[Albert Clark]

I think that is a bumblebee ball python. It looks like he can use a slightly larger hide and tub though. Congrats on picking him up. How are you heating the enclosure? What are your temps and humidity numbers?

[RAD House]

I wouldn't apply anything with out proof that there is a problem. Also the only shedding aide I would use is to increase your humidity in the tank. Raised scales could be nothing at all or it could be a sign of a number of problems. I would watch him and keep him quarantined in a separate room from your other snake for at least a month. If the raised scales start to spred, turn a brown color, or you notice little black or red bugs on him then you may have a problem.
As for the morph it is definitely a spider of some sort and it certainly could be a bumblebee as Albert suggested. What was he sold to you as?

[dracowing14]

so in order. The hide and tub aren't for her. They just happened to be in there the tub she is in is really for my baby Normal ball python. but this one arrived earlier then expected and her setup isn't ready. The temps and humidity numbers are driving me crazy. I tried to run 3" flex watt heat tape but i couldn't get the temps anywhere near 90. the most i could get was 80. now a few reason are obvious these are sold as breeder boxes and they vent lids with a crap ton of vents. i taped off alot of the vents but i still couldn't get the temp anywhere near the 90 mark. So i opted out for zoo med UTH. i run a medium on the large box and a small on the medium box. both are on a rheostat. again i haven't been able to get a thermostat yet. I was using paper towel for substrate. however i found red marks starting on the bumblebee so i replaced the paper towel with coconut husk. now the UTH is sitting about a 1/4 inch below the tank. and it wasn't hot when i put my hand on it. so not sure if these where the start of burns or something else. She was sold to me as a male bumblebee, but after popping her today we found it to be a girl. so this and the super pastel we purchased where both sold as the wrong gender. Next problem is the humidity. the average humidity i can get is between 35 and 45. so again i used coconut husk because the bee is going into shed. so with that and 3 sprays of water i got it shooting up to 84%. so i open the lid more but that lets the heat out. any more ideas. i am planning on building a rack system as they seem easier to maintain.

[Aaron_S]

Lots of great questions here.

1. It's a bumblebee. I don't see any other genetics at play there. Maybe something hidden but who knows at this point. Stick with what you know.

2. I would double check the sex. Many snakes of that size have great control over their vents and will pop as female and not male if done incorrectly. It would be cool if it's female but just be safe.

3. Can we get pics of "raised scales" and "red marks" if they still exist?

4. I second the info not to put anything on your snake. No need.

5. How are you measuring the temperatures? It could be that your instrument is not working correctly and that the heat tape and mat are exceeding the temps you're reading.

6. Coco husk works well. You can dump a full water bowl's worth of water in there for the shed and refill the bowl to help increase humidity for the shed cycle. I do this in my tubs and clean them out afterwards. I use newspaper and paper towel as bedding.

7. Good luck the rest of the way. Enjoy your snakes and hope your issues are resolved!

[dracowing14]

ok so first off i would love to take some shots of the raised scales and red marks but she has gone complete grey eyed on me so i don't want to disturb her if the red marks are still there after the shed i will definitely post pictures. now the next and most important part for me I'm using the vivarium electronics digital thermometer and hygrometer. the probe i settled down sideways about 1/8 into the coco husk over the heat pad. i didn't bury it. The tank is reading 99% humidity now so i removed the water bowl and its not dropping any
i don't know if its because of the moisture in the husk or if its in the air

[dannybgoode]

As well as the thermometer are you using a thermostat to control the temperature? Apologies if you have mentioned this already but I didn't see it.

[dracowing14]

No I don't have a thermostat yet. I am using a rheostat at the moment. I want to get a thermostat this weekend. But as mentioned above I think I'm placing the probes wrong for the thermometer

[Aaron_S]

ok so first off i would love to take some shots of the raised scales and red marks but she has gone complete grey eyed on me so i don't want to disturb her if the red marks are still there after the shed i will definitely post pictures. now the next and most important part for me I'm using the vivarium electronics digital thermometer and hygrometer. the probe i settled down sideways about 1/8 into the coco husk over the heat pad. i didn't bury it. The tank is reading 99% humidity now so i removed the water bowl and its not dropping any
i don't know if its because of the moisture in the husk or if its in the air

Take pics of both raised scale and red marks if they persist after the shed or have gotten worse since. I think they were just a part of the snake getting ready to shed. Ball pythons will usually have a slight discolouration to their belly before they head into the blue phase of a shed cycle.

Put the water bowl back if the snake is in shed. All that humidity will help. It won't hurt the snake to have it so high for the duration of the shed cycle.

[pitontheprowl]

You are measuring your temperature in the wrong spot.
You want to measure UNDER the substrate as you animal can and will burrow.
You are also probably using too much substrate.
Any UTHing is really only for a hot spot and does not do much for ambient temperatures when properly regulated.

[dracowing14]

Can anyone take a few pictures of good thermometer placements so I can get an idea. I need to know for a terrarium and a snake rack later.

[Aaron_S]

I use a temp gun and not a probe for my rack system. I can point and shoot at any spot and it gives me a reading.

The proportional thermostats like herpstats maintain the temps pretty well.

[dannybgoode]

If you look on the general enclosures forum you'll see a write up I did on thermostat placement, thermometer probe placement etc which includes a photo.

That may help you...

[dracowing14]

So her shed is finally over and besides a little stuck shed on the head and tail tip it went perfectly. There are still a few raised scales on her that are definitely more pronounced now. But she seems to be a lot more active. She isn't striking at anything now. The red is all gone in her belly. And she finally went to the bathroom. Now if I can just get her to eat. The previous owner had her on love small rats. But I want her on frozen thawed. I'll see if I can get a picture of the raised scales. I think she is just dehydrated a bit. I she didn't soak all through the shed until I gave her a 45 min bath to fix the stuck shed.