natural set up for balls

[tonyb]

i want to set up a natural looking vivarium for my royal, what would be the best substrate, plants etc to use?????

[marisa]

Well if you mean really natural as in natural to them, you better start creating your termit/burrow in the ground now :D ;)

But if you mean natural as in with live plants and such, pothos are a good plant that can take some "bashing" by the snake and grow under mostly any light.

Otherwise, most plants will be destroyed the first time your snake decides to explore :D

Marisa

[Jeff_Favelle]

Ha ha listen to Marisa. If you want a "natural" setup for a Ball Python, get a load of silty dirt, make a burrow, plant some grasses, and that's it.

[Terra5Designs]

our 5 x 3 x 3 planted vivarium for 1.1 peid balls was easy. you need strong lights, lot's of bright light otherwise the tall grasses won't grow. you need ventilation from one burrow to the next. don't worry about the termite mounds unless you know anything about construction; how to use foam and cement and acid washing and sealing. use a hardpack dirt and drought resistant grass seeds. also paythos sucks. use more of an ivy as that will take better abuse. you can just find some outside plants that are growing well in the hot sun, and dig 'em up. don't worry about bugs as until your tank or cage is set up - you won't be housing your snake in it, thus you have time to get rid of any mites or such. simpel bugs are okay - i don't you want to get too scientific so keeping it simple will work for you.

to make the burrows, if you're interested...email me directly.

[tonyb]

not so sure about that one to be honest. lots of strong bright lights is not an option for a royal i think. i was really just looking for snake safe plants (i.e. non toxic) to add a bit of scenery and give the snake a bit of shelter and security when hes out and about.

[sassysnake]

Just Curious, but the viv that everyone is desacribing as a natural setup for balls sound very, very dry. How do you keep the humidity right in this enviroment? I'm asking because I am going to be redoing my tanks soon (I was thinking soil, wood chips on top, rocks and lost of moisture holding plants) but I would rather go with what is natural for them. Unfortuanatly, one of my balls start to 'whistle' when he breathes if I don't keep the humidity pretty high (by ball standards of course) in his viv. What's the happy medium?

[striko_69]

Well ball pythons live in savannah areas (dead logs here and there, rock piles, tall grass) also in open forests but not of high tree density. So you dont really wanna put too many plants in there. Perhaps a sand blasted log pointing upwards with a bushy kinda plant placed behind it. Just have a look on the net at what plants are found in savannah habitats that cannot be destroyed easily and will be able to be grown in your enclosure.
Good luck there

Alex

[honduranfreekk]

Ball Pythons are from Africa and live in rodent dens and holes.Now this is just my oppinion but they do NOT do very well in LARGE enclosures UNLESS there is LOTS for them to hide in.

I try keeping all mine at 80 to 83 amb and 90 to 93 warm end the hot spot is kept at 93 and the humidity is kept at 60% and I up that a little when I know they are in shed.

I do agrea that planted vivs look great.

Just my 2 cents;)

Kelvin@Brigitte

[striko_69]

I know that when i had my beardies i let them dig and make a burrow every now and then (when i felt a bit curious of their burrow making), and they absolutely loved it. You do however need to take precautions on what substrate to use to avoid collapsed burrows. I used a moist sand/dirt mix which i packed down. It seemed to work okay but im sure it could have been nicer lookin. Im not sure how plants would grow in this though....

[sassysnake]

So you guys are saying that you go with the natural habitat and then just mist down?

[striko_69]

If you have a suitable size water bowl in the enclosure, then it should be fine. Well, thats what i always thought

[striko_69]

Hang on why doesnt someone post some pics of his/her natural vivaria to give us a better idea?

[striko_69]

Instead of providing a humid vivarium overall, rather provide a hide inside the tank which is humid (microclimate). For example a ice cream container with a hole in the top which has sphagnum moss inside which has been misted, that would hold humidity very well.

[babysweet]

I really would like to see a pic of a natural ball vivarium.

Also would love that information on creating burrows...

[striko_69]

Yeah I havent really seen a natural ball set up... I have never read any info on creating burrows. But I'm sure theres a chapter on it in this book...

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1882770331/qid%3D1105330386/sr%3D11-1/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F1/104-3002187-4947933