enclosure questions

[stephanbakir]

Is he due for another shed or is it just lighting? he looks like hes in blue.

[Dehlida]

Originally Posted by stephanbakir

Is he due for another shed or is it just lighting? he looks like hes in blue.

The color is actually normal looking in person as the photo is. He shed a couple weeks ago while in my care before I Paul got him.

[paulholcomb]

Originally Posted by stephanbakir

Is he due for another shed or is it just lighting? he looks like hes in blue.

this is his normal coloring.....which to me is really cool

[stephanbakir]

It is cool!

[paulholcomb]

Originally Posted by LLinz

Wow that is a nice enclosure!! I want to build something like that, I just gotta find an old dresser made out of wood that's safe... But how the heck do I know what kind of wood its made of!

Oak furniture is perfect. It's usually really heavy though......it has less eyes/swirls and is usually darker in color.

It's pine that is bad for our snakes, but only the fresh cut chips/bark that is covered in the natural oils found in pine. Pine furniture has usually been kiln dried before it's made and the oils have long since dried and don't pose the threat like pine mulch does.

[LLinz]

How do I know if its oak??

[LLinz]

Ooook, hmmm I hope I can find a nice solid oak dresser that is big enough for my crazy-active, branch conquoring royal!!

[paulholcomb]

Oak is a much heavier and a stronger wood. If you find a piece you're interested in, look underneath it and see if you can easily scratch the wood or make a dimple into it. Pine will easily make a dent with a key or coin as it's much softer! Also look for the knots/eyes in the wood.......if it has a lot throughout the board it's a sign that it could be pine. Pine is not usually used in fine furniture because it is not as pretty so your chances of finding something heavy that looks good and smooth is probably oak over pine. Check the top surface as well because pine will be scratched more often than Oak will be!

[paulholcomb]

if you look at the top board on the outside of my enclosure, that is pine..........it's very scratched up, has some big knots that aren't smooth, and is a very light board. It was used in the bunkbed as an extra side board for the top bed. I used it on the top of my enclosure so that my snakes wouldn't have direct exposture to it.

[citysnakes]

Originally Posted by paulholcomb

I got the female 3 weeks ago and then picked up her old tankmate, the male, last week......I rescued them from a local reptile rescue where the previous owner didn't know they needed humidity and hadn't fed the male in over a year.

now that you have rescued these animals you need to house them properly. the enclosure they are in now has a decent floor area for a single adult ball python. the height really doesnt matter much and only makes heating and humidity more complicated. if you can get it to work out thats cool but the enclosure is only good for one animal.

ball pythons are solitary animals and the male most likely hasnt eaten due to inappropriate social housing and other mentioned and non-mentioned husbandry errors on the previous owners part.

correct the husbandry issues and these animals will do great in your care.

good luck.

[paulholcomb]

Originally Posted by citysnakes

now that you have rescued these animals you need to house them properly. the enclosure they are in now has a decent floor area for a single adult ball python. the height really doesnt matter much and only makes heating and humidity more complicated. if you can get it to work out thats cool but the enclosure is only good for one animal.

ball pythons are solitary animals and the male most likely hasnt eaten due to inappropriate social housing and other mentioned and non-mentioned husbandry errors on the previous owners part.

correct the husbandry issues and these animals will do great in your care.

good luck.

Thank you for the advice even though I didn't ask for it. My humidity level is a constant 60% and my temps are 76 on the cool end and 85 on the warm end with a basking spot of 88! Thanks for questioning my husbandry and trying to tell me that I'm doing something wrong. However, I know that I need to house my snakes separately and am currently working on building another enclosure. Thanks again for your concerns...but I think we're doing just fine!

[paulholcomb]

I may not have all the answers about BPs but I have done some extensive research as of late about them and I have read numerous times that wild specimens have been found with numerous snakes in the same burrows. I reallize that they are solitary animals for the most part but they do house together in nature!

I am a new person in this forum and I accept that I will be treated as a new person for some time.......please be careful that you aren't too quick to judge new people as they aren't always ignorant to what they're doing.

I wish to extend my apologies to the original poster in this thread for being caught up in jacking this thread and that it's gotten off topic about me. I'm sorry.....

[citysnakes]

Originally Posted by paulholcomb

I may not have all the answers about BPs but I have done some extensive research as of late about them and I have read numerous times that wild specimens have been found with numerous snakes in the same burrows. I reallize that they are solitary animals for the most part but they do house together in nature!

the wild is one thing, captivity is another. when wild, solitary animals are found together they are more likely competing than searching for companionship. in the wild they can fight or flee, in captivity inappropriate social housing elicits a constant stress response that cannot be escaped from and over time will negatively affect one or both animals.

captive animals are limited to the environment that is provided to them so you may have text book temps and humidity but there is more to consider than just that. a suppressed immune system caused by the constant stress of inappropriate social housing is just as bad as improper temperatures for example, so its definitely something to consider.

by the way, i know you didnt ask but 76F cool end is to cool of an end...

that being said, i never judged you as i never judge anyone. you dont know me, yet i was judged as a judger by you... i simply offered advice to a person who, as was stated by yourself, is a noob.

glad youre doing your research.

keep it up.

[LLinz]

Ok thanks, now I have a good idea of what to look for

[mrherpdotca]

There is a product that the box stores sell called FRP panels. (Fiberglass reinforced plastic) They are used all the time in commercial washrooms and kitchens. They are non porous and very hygenic/east to clean.
I used that product to line the inside of my cages. I used cheap plywood (exterior grade fir) to build the box then lined the inside with FRP.
Ask the lumber guys at home depot and you will see what I mean.

cheers,

Chris