confused about my ball python

[Mara]

a friend and I recently aquired a ball python and a red tailed boa. Something that I am trying to figure out is why does the ball python have holes right above her mouth? I know that its normal but I dont know what there purpose is.

[Chu'Wuti]

Those are her heat pits--she can sense heat from other animals. BPs are nocturnal, so having heat sensors is very handy for hunting at night when there is little or no visible light. Even if she can't see the prey with her eyes, she can sense it with her heat pits.

Pretty cool, isn't it? ;)

Tell us more about your new BP. How big is she? What are you keeping her in? Do you have a humidity gauge and temperature gauges in several places in the enclosure? What color/pattern is she? Post a pic--we'd love to see her!

We all love to help new people ensure their snakes are well cared for so they can enjoy them for years to come.

[Mara]

Her name is Selene. shes about 4 ft long. i dont know how old she is because we got her from one of our friends uncles. I dont know alot about her, i do know that she wasnt taken care of properly.

She didnt have any heat lamps, she had one heating pad and she only had a very small amount of water so she couldn't soak at all.

I also got a male Red tail boa from him. His name is Octavius. and he is about 8 ft long and he was only in a 30 gallon tank the same size as Selene's tank.

he is now in a 75 gal. and shes in a 40 gal. they are both alot happier with water heat and larger enclosers. The guy i got them from said that the boa was aggresive and i havnt had any problems at all.

I dont have anything to measure humidity in Selenes tank yet but i did make a humidity box out of a plastic folgers can and wet moss. shes about to go into shed so she is very pleased with that.

[Aaron_S]

It's great that you've set them up better in larger enclosures. Although, a single heat pad is enough for a ball python and additional heat lamps are not needed.

[citysnakes]

Although, a single heat pad is enough for a ball python and additional heat lamps are not needed.

...if the ambient temperature naturally meets the low end of their requirements.

just thought i should add.;)

[Chu'Wuti]

if the ambient temperature naturally meets the low end of their requirements.
which depends upon the temperature in the room in which the enclosure is located! ;)

Ah, just teasing, guys! I just couldn't resist! :)

Anyway, Mara, it sounds like you rescued these snakes from a situation that might not have been the best. Now you have to go spend some $$ on hygrometers & thermometers & stuff to ensure their better well-being! That's what you get for being a Good Samaritan. Hope you're having fun! ;)

[Mara]

i was told that the BP needs to have a temp of about 85-90 degrees in her tank. i was also told that she needs to be at about 80-85 right now since shes about to shed. so ive been having some difficulties keep her tank at even 80.

i have 2 theremometor strips. one on either side of the tank. i dont have a hygrometer yet. the BP is actually my friends snake and ive paid for everything that she has at this point and im broke now so ive got to leave that up to her.

my red tail has a hygrometer and theremometer strips as well.

something i cant get right is the humidity in my red tails tank. i heard it needs to be between 60-90 and i cant keep it there. any suggestions or corrections on any thing that i have said thus far? :confused: they would be greatly appreciated.

[Kmef07]

you need to post some pics but i built a wood box over the screen and i use repti- bark and mist it with a chemical sprayer i bought brand new at home depot. it was like 12 bucks and it holds 2 gallons with a long sprayer so i can get the whole tank easily. but make sure it's new you dont want to have any residue of any chemicals!!!!! but if you don't wanna build a wooden box over the screen just try plastic wrap to keep the humidity in. i mist every day and night but i really only have to once a day but i like keeping it high.

[Mara]

ok, i guess i need to pick up a spray bottle of some kind tomorrow when i get his rat. i was told that i can build a humidity box which will stay more humid than the rest of the tank and can double as a hide, so i did that and he broke the top off of it. grrrr...darn snake but i will fix that as soon as possible

[Aaron_S]

For your boa, the 60% range of humidity should be ok as a daily thing and you cam bump it up to the 90% area when it goes into a shed cycle. The humidity box is a good thing to keep.

My suggestion is to not use the thermometer strips as they aren't very good. Digitals work the best with a probe that you can place on the ground where the snake spends all it's time. It's pointless taking a reading anywhere else in the enclosure other than the ground. (unless you're checking for ambient air temperature) The ball python needs a hot spot of 90 - 95 degrees. I like to keep mine in the 92 - 94 range.

[Kmef07]

Hey aaron while on the subject of a humid box my brb really doesn't come out of it's humid hide all day. at night it comes out rarely but if i take it out and hold it for a while and put it back in its tank it stays out for a long time sometimes an hour or two. I think it's because it has either been in shed or just eaten for about a month and a half but does this sound normal? my breeder keeps a log of feeding and sheds for each snake he keeps and gives it to his buyers, and it seems like my snake sheds about once a month since birth. it varies by about ten days either way she is about to shed her eyes turned 4 days ago and now are back to normal. but she just shed on the 28th of january.

she shed early morning (3am) on the 28th then ate about 11pm that night then stayed hidden to digest then came out about 6 days later so she ate again then that night then now she has gone back into shed so she was out like one night on her own. it seems she only comes out when she is hungry but i guess my concern is that it doesn't ever really bask in the warm spot or do anything except for go into it's humid hide. but the humid hide is about 95-100% humid and the rest of the tank is 80%-90%. the heat spot is in the middle of a ceramic heat lamp and it stays around 86f-90f and the sides of the tank are both 80f-84f. i have uth under the side she doesn't really stay on and a big uth that spans about the middle to the mid right of the cage where she seems to be most of the time but she isnt over the uth. it's just weird she only uses one hide but she is healthy and really docile and just really good it seems eating voraciously and everything. she even pokes her head out anytime someone comes in the room...i guess to see what is going on??

sorry for the long explaination i tried to explain what i wanted to say but i think i did a bad job anyways please help.

[citysnakes]

Kmef07, hey i know BRBs need high humidity but 80-100% humidity at ALL times may not be so good for the animal.

[Aaron_S]

Kyle, if I understood what you wrote is that you have a ceramic heat emitter in the middle of the cage, and then you have TWO heat pads underneath the cage? Did I read this wrong?

If that is what you said, then you only really need 1 UTH if it brings up the hot spot to the proper temperatures (the actual numbers I'm not sure of) the cool end shouldn't need any extra heat. With hides they just need to feel secure. Smaller ones are best.

Shedding frequently is ok when snakes are young.

[Kmef07]

ok i was just weired out that it always stays in the same damn spot it's just frustrating. i have a small uth under one side and a bigger one towards the middle i need both of them to even out the heat on both sides and make the ambient air good without getting the hot spot too hot. supposedly with brb's they aren't like balls where one side can be close to room temp. i need to keep the cool side around 80 while it's young and the hot spot between 87-92. also the heat helps with the humidity and that is another reason for the second UTH. besides my house is weird and we keep the air temp around 68 or so during the winter and when no one is in the house it goes down to 65.

[Mara]

yeah i know that they dont work well but im currently unemployed and that is all i can afford. so i have one in the middle of my RTB's tank and 2 (one on either side) of the BP tank, i figured i could get one or two more for the rtb and that can give me a round-about temp for the tank.

[Aaron_S]

Sometimes snakes Kyle just don't want to move about. They aren't very active. Especially the boas and pythons. Colubrids on the other hnd tend to be on the go a lot.

[Kmef07]

oh ok i worry too much i guess i just figured that it would move to cooler and warmer parts of the cage. but i believe you aaron cuz u seem to know what ur talking about lol.

[Chu'Wuti]

2 (one on either side) of the BP tank,

Mara, BPs need an enclosure with cool/warm/hot zones so they can regulate their temperature by moving when they need to do so.

i believe you aaron cuz u seem to know what ur talking about lol.

Yep, Aaron's pretty knowledgeable about BPs, even if I don't always agree with him! ;) Even so, when it comes to BP behavior, he's great!

Don't worry too much, Kyle!

[Faequine]

You cant have a round about temp for any reptile. they are all cold blooded and need to regulate their own temps with the hot and cold side that we are suposed to provide for them. I really think you need to remove some of the heating pads to create a cool side.