Fresh and hopeful!

CJNetrider · 02-01-12, 06:45 AM

Hey all! new to the forums and proud owner of a 16 week old Ball Python. This is my first ever snake and i'm looking forward to sharing a long, healthy and friendly relationship with for as long as he doesn't decide to make a quick snack out of me. That is if it really turns out to be a he as the previous owner didn't have a clue herself.

I've a quick couple of questions if anyone could shed some info please..
Firstly his set-up. I have him housed in a plastic tank that they bought when purchasing him. It came with a cave hide, heat mat, habistat, water dish and some bedding. I tried not to bother him thinking not to stress him out for as long as possible, but thought it a good idea just to let him have a sniff about and he seemed fine. Then came the surprise.. I set him back down and was lowering the hide over him and wammo! he arched back and struck at it like lightening! I haven't bothered him since and have been surfing for answers as to why this could have happened. I came up with two things which i'm hoping can be confirmed here or more advice offered. The temp settings on the habistat were set to 80f but komodo dial reads as 65f. Thinking this was low I handled him again and he felt cold! I've now set this to 85f, is this right? Secondly he has been fed 1 pinkie every 7 days to the hour and he is at least 13-14" long. I have been told that he should be on a full mouse by now?? I'm guessing the strike is a combination of stress at being moved, me lowering the hide on him from above, possibility of him about to shed, and maybe more.

Any and all advice very much appreciated as I really want to care for him in the best way possible!

Cheers all, Cj

infernalis · 02-01-12, 09:01 AM

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alessia55 · 02-01-12, 09:19 AM

Welcome to the forum, CJ!

Why your baby struck at the hide: You were lowering it over him... Imagine being small like him, and having a big dark thing being lowered over your. It's scary! I'd recommend putting the hide back inside BEFORE you put your snake in. Then put the snake in near the entrance of the hide and let him slither into it himself.

By the sounds of it, you only have one hide in there. He needs at least TWO. He needs one at the hot end of his enclosure, and one on the cool end. Snakes thermo-regulate themselves, and he'll want to feel safe doing so. Having a hide on each end will help him do that.
Another thing that adds to it is... he's in a new environment. New scents, new sights, new everything. He needs time to settle in and get used to his new home.

Feeding: you should be feeding him a rat that is 1.5 to 2 times the size of the largest part of his body. You'd be surprised how much they can eat! For a baby ball python that you say is about 16 weeks old, a pinkie is WAY too small. Look at his girth, then find something that is 1.5-2 times the size of it. Are you feeding live or frozen/thawed?

Trent · 02-01-12, 09:20 AM

Hi and welcome!!

Norm66 · 02-01-12, 09:21 AM

Welcome!

First it's vital to have an accurate measure of the temps inside the snake's home. Best bet is an infrared temp gun but you can also get digital thermometers that have a probe you can place to get temps on both sides of the cage.

Second it's not a good idea to lower a hide down on your snake. Put the hide in first then the snake and let him/her decide to go into it or not.

Third, check out the stickied threads in the Ball Python forum here to get a good idea what's going on then post more questions as they arise. Someone will be along to help better soon I'm sure.

shaunyboy · 02-01-12, 09:24 AM

hello and welcome

we have plenty helpfull ball python owners on here,i'm sure you'll enjoy the forum

cheers shaun

Lankyrob · 02-01-12, 12:05 PM

Hot end temp should be 91f cool end about 75f, hides at both end and a waterbowl that he can fully get into is ideal.

What size is the snake and the tank?

Oh, and welcome to the forum!!! Whereabouts in the UK are you?

marvelfreak · 02-01-12, 12:38 PM

Hello and welcome to our zoo.

KORBIN5895 · 02-01-12, 12:44 PM

Welcome. It's a jungle in here!

Swany · 02-01-12, 01:10 PM

Hi and welcome to the madhouse ;-)

CJNetrider · 02-01-12, 01:48 PM

Hi again,

Firstly, a big thanks to everyone for the welcome, replies and advice!!

Alessia and Norm, I completely understand what you've said and thought shortly after that lowering the hide probably scared the pants out of him.. I've since put hide back first and lowered him alongside. I also purchased another hide though it seems that the cave type doesn't allow him much room to manoeuvre. The enclosure is 17" x 10" and even though Petwise said it should suffice until he is around 11 months i'm already having my doubts :/ I would post some pics but don't think I have permissions as yet.

Now i'm home i'll be checking out the various stickies as there's a few more things i'd like to know such as shedding.. The previous keeper said she was told that he could be
close and looking at his skin it seems dry compared to the babies I was looking at, also his eyes look like they have a greyish matter forming, though the left eye much stronger than the right (fingers crossed its not heading for a poor shed)!!

Many thanks again!! i'm sure i'll be around fairly often with more questions and help where and whenever I can.

P.S i'm in Wales Rob, South to be exact.

Cj

KORBIN5895 · 02-01-12, 01:53 PM

The eyes clouding up is totally normal. As far as the container size goes I will let someone else field that one. Most snakes prefer a nice snug hide. My four foot BP used to get under this one hide and lift it off the ground but she loved it.

shaunyboy · 02-01-12, 02:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CJNetrider

Hi again,

Firstly, a big thanks to everyone for the welcome, replies and advice!!

Alessia and Norm, I completely understand what you've said and thought shortly after that lowering the hide probably scared the pants out of him.. I've since put hide back first and lowered him alongside. I also purchased another hide though it seems that the cave type doesn't allow him much room to manoeuvre. The enclosure is 17" x 10" and even though Petwise said it should suffice until he is around 11 months i'm already having my doubts :/ I would post some pics but don't think I have permissions as yet.

Now i'm home i'll be checking out the various stickies as there's a few more things i'd like to know such as shedding.. The previous keeper said she was told that he could be
close and looking at his skin it seems dry compared to the babies I was looking at, also his eyes look like they have a greyish matter forming, though the left eye much stronger than the right (fingers crossed its not heading for a poor shed)!!

Many thanks again!! i'm sure i'll be around fairly often with more questions and help where and whenever I can.

P.S i'm in Wales Rob, South to be exact.

Cj

re hides
imo,snakes like snug fitting hides mate,it makes them feel more secure if they can touch all the sides at the same time

re shedding
the eyes will cloud up over the next few days,then they will CLEAR up and look normal again

5 to 10 days after the eyes clear up, you will have a fresh shed

during the shed proccess they tend to show little activity and usually pick a hide for the duration of the shedding proccess

i'll let a ball owner reply regards the size of enclosure as its only carpet pythons i keep and they are very different in nature compaired to ball pythons.

carpets like a lot of space to roam around in,not all snakes feel secure with a lot of space

cheers shaun

alessia55 · 02-01-12, 02:11 PM

A 17"x10" should be OK for a 4 month old ball python.... The younger of my two ball pythons is about 5 months old and I have him in a 20"x12" which is only slightly larger than yours. You can move him into a larger enclosure, but just make sure there's not a lot of empty space. Having wide open spaces can make your baby feel nervous and exposed.

I'm glad you got him a second cave

He's probably going to be really happy with it. Don't worry about the cage being a bit tight. My 5 month old ball python, as I mentioned above, has two hides and water dish in his enclosure, and not much else fits there. They don't need elaborate enclosures or lots of open space.

You should be able to post photos of him and his enclosure as of now... It's easiest if you use photobucket or a similar photo uploading site to post photos straight into your posts. Or you can attach them. Mess around with the features and you'll figure it out.

Enjoy reading the stickies in the ball python section, hopefully a lot of it will answer your questions. But feel free to ask more on here! We're here to help you

SnakeyJay · 02-01-12, 02:55 PM

Welcome...