about to be a new owner, couple question a, lil help please

OSMDEATHOWNER · 01-19-12, 01:20 AM

Hey everyone, I'm gonna buy a new bp asap but I wanna make sure I know as much as possible before I do. First I was told a 20 gallon was ok but would have to be changed soon. I wanted best for ma snake so I ended up taking the 20 back to get the 40 breeder. Now I'm told that's too big for a juvenile, can someone tell me Wat I should do or atleast give me ideas in getting the first tank for this little guys new home. I got Cyprus mulch, two hides, two thermometer and that hygrometer , uth, light, spray bottle and a water bowl. Wat else am I missing. Also have a basking spot on top of one hide and a no light heat emitting bulb incase the nights get dark. Please tell me any and everything possible for the best tank and decor nd needs

Also I'm new, jus wanna thanx in advance
Best site I found so far

infernalis · 01-19-12, 04:42 AM

sSnakeSs.com - Rules

ZARADOZIA · 01-19-12, 05:01 AM

Terranaut · 01-19-12, 05:33 AM

Welcome. We just got our first ball at Christmas. We have other snakes but this was our first ball. We set him up in our 3 chamber pvc viv. Got the environment perfect and he is awsome. They are very timid as babies. Scare easily with just shadows. Very jumpy. But we haven't had any problems at all. Keep his conditions perfect and feed appropriate sized prey. Makes eveything else easier. Then they eat and will explore instead of just hide all the time. We handle ours everyday for 10-15 min. We start out just sitting on an open palm and wait until he starts to look around a bit before we "play" and "handle" him and he seems to be relaxing a bit more eveyday.
Good luck. Enjoy your snake.... Once you get it

Norm66 · 01-19-12, 06:12 AM

Welcome!

If there was one thing I could recommend it would be to find something besides an aquarium to house your bp in. Oh, it's possible to do but it requires a lot of work to keep temps and humidity up properly. I used aluminum foil over most of my aquariums and a towel over that to keep heat and humidity in but still had serious problems keeping humidity up. Using heat lamps makes humidity a tough thing to maintain and it is very important for proper sheds and general health.

Rubbermade or Sterilite tubs with holes drilled in them for ventilation are great for housing BPs and have the advantage of being much lighter and much cheaper than aquariums.

The other thing I would recommend is a thermostat. For a time I was using a UTH on the bottom of an aquarium without a thermostat and it actually got hot enough to crack the glass. The tank didn't break but it definitely did crack. If it's hot enough to crack the tempered glass at the bottom of an aquarium it can't be good for your snake.

Cheers.

Lankyrob · 01-19-12, 07:34 AM

I put my juvenile straight into a 4ft by 2ft by 2ft viv with no issues at all, what i have done is cover about 90% of the floor space with hiding spaces so that he can move around the viv totally invisibly and thermoregulate AND feel safe at the same time.

Hot end needs to be 91f and cool end no lower than 75f, humidity wise i spray mine up to about 75-80% and over 24hours it drops to around 55% - when he is in shed i up the top and bottom end by 5-10% and get perfect sheds everytime.

You DEFINITELY want any heat source thermostatted - that way if ambient temps change it will automatically keep the enclosure at the right temperatures.

Any questions (no matter how silly you think they might be) just throw them up - lots of knowledgable BP owners on here will help you out

alessia55 · 01-19-12, 07:46 AM

Welcome to the forum! Is getting the BP your first snake ever? It's very exciting!

I think your questions will be answered the many threads Zara linked to. Also you can go to the ball python part of the forum and find lots more there. How young is the BP you're getting? I think a 20gal is definitely large enough for a baby ball python, but eventually you will have to move up. If you go for a 40 gal right off the bat, then just put lots of hides and cover big open spaces with stuff so s/he feels more safe. Good luck! And please post photos once you get him/her!

Gungirl · 01-19-12, 08:20 AM

Hello and welcome to the forum. Take your time and read through all the above information and feel free to ask any questions you can not find the answers to.

Kayla90 · 01-19-12, 09:49 AM

Welcome to the forum

Zara pretty much covered it all.. Good luck on finding what you need.
If you have any further questions just let us know

OSMDEATHOWNER · 01-20-12, 05:58 PM

Thanks every one, I don't know how old the one I'm getting is yet but I wit let you all know. And I will put up pics really soon when I get him. I've been reading on them for Weeks and this is the best site I found

SpOoKy · 01-20-12, 06:00 PM

Hello and welcome.

marvelfreak · 01-20-12, 06:40 PM

Hello and welcome to our zoo.

Trent · 01-20-12, 06:41 PM

Hello!!!!!

ZARADOZIA · 01-21-12, 04:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OSMDEATHOWNER

Thanks every one, I don't know how old the one I'm getting is yet but I wit let you all know. And I will put up pics really soon when I get him. I've been reading on them for Weeks and this is the best site I found

That's because our reptiles are our passion, our children, and often the highlight of our days.

I joined the forum for the same reason as You, this is the greatest group of experienced and educated people I have found and once I came here, I stopped looking!

Swany · 01-21-12, 08:33 AM

Hi and welcome to the madhouse. Your spot on about this site. I'm a new owner too, and the people here have been superb with all the advice they've give me.