Please Help First Bp

[probe7899]

Hi every one I am new to this forum and just purchased my first ball python yesterday, this is my second snake my other one is a corn. I have a few questions that I hope you guys can help me with. First how long should i wait before i handle her?, second should i feed her live or frozen mice?, also the place i got her from said she can start out in a ten gallon tank is this true. Shes about 17 inches? Also the place i got her from imported her from africa ( she was farm bread) should i take her to a vet to get her checked for parasites??
Sorry so many questions I just want to make sure am doing everything correct.
Thanks for all your help
Brian

[Kyle Walkinshaw]

Brian, welcome to the forum! =) First off for handling, since you mentioned that your snake is imported it might be a little more tricky to feed, so it's best to keep handling to a minimum for the first few weeks. I would say to start your bp on frozen food but imported ball pythons can be very fussy and will most likely refuse frozen prey. I would start by offering a frozen hopper, If she takes it thats great, if not you should try a small live ratpup (they cannot bite your snake). A 10 gallon is fine for a small bp but I would just go to a 20 gallon in the beginning, it will last you probably almost twice as long. As for the parasites, vets are expensive so your best bet would be to find someone at a petstore near you that knows how to look for mites and I doubt they would charge you anything.

Hope this helps and good luck with your new snake.

Regards, Kyle Walkinshaw~

[BoidKeeper]

Brian,

You may not like this but in my opinion you should have asked these questions before you brought the snake home. Well anyway that being said here are my answers to your questions.

First my policy is to segregate any new animals that I'm not sure about for at least 6 months to protect my collections from any possible transmittable disease or parasites.
When it comes to handling I wait at least 4 meals and one dump, maybe more depending on species before I touch them at all. This is especially true for balls. Don't for get that it is breeding season for balls and this snake may not eat until June no matter what you do. If it does not eat then make sure it is healthy, monitor its weight and wait as long as you can before helping it eat.
I feel that you should always feed F/T when ever possible. However it is not always possible and people with very large collection often do not feed F/T. The number one reason for F/T feeding is convenience. Many breeders with many animals also breed their own rodents so they do not need to order a hundred frozen mice/rats at a time. They always have mice/rats on hand.
A ten-gallon can be used for a while but if you lay it down on its side you can use it twice as long.
And yes any and all imports should be checked and or treated for parasites.
Best wishes and good luck,
Trevor

[Big Mike]

It's unfortunate that you didn't come here for advice before you bought your BP. Buying a WC ball is not only stressfull to the owner (especially an unexperienced one) but keeps the importers in bussiness. With the amount of balls being bread in captivity in North America there should be no reason for a pet BP to be WC.

That being said...you are here now and we will give you all the advice we can to give your snake a good home. Like Trevor said, all imports should be checked & treated for parasites. Mites & ticks you can see and treat but internal paracites are also a good possibility. At the least, get a fecal exam done. That's the best way to check for internal parasites.

Make sure you have a thermometer and check the temps in the tank. Let us know how you have it set up for heat and humidity. Also, it's best not to handle it until it is eating. Ideally you want to get it eating Frozen / Thawed mice or rats but it may not take those so you might have to experiment.

Good Luck and keep us posted.

[royal]

I have not much to add, other then to agree with Mike.... there are allot of cb balls around and any other people reading these forums should look around for the cb first, whether it be through breeders or pet shops that get them from other breeders.
P.S. My ball (if all goes well) will be born on christmas eve from a private breeder from this forum. People from this forum are very smart and readily available to help with any and all questions.

Merry Christmas all, and a special thanks to the people who helped me with my questions

[Pythonian]

ditto! it's worth the money to go get the vet check and KNOW u have a healthy animal rather than cleaning out a dead snakes cage a month later :(

Mike

Merry Christmas everybody!