Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just purchased my first ball python, right now its a 0-0-1, meaning I dont even know what the sex is yet, once I have him or her sexed by a vet. I would like to purchase another BP of the opposit sex. Question is Would I have to get a second tank to have them breed in 2 or 3 years? Or would they breed if they were in the same tank?

Thanx

Love this forum! better then any book out there!

Its best to keep them separate whether you are going to breed them or not. They are solitary animals, and do best on their own. I've also heard many people say that they won't breed if they live together. That one I don't know from experience, but there is TONS of experience on here, and thats where I heard it!
Hope this helps.
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James.....
"I never fail. I don't believe in it. I just succeed at finding what doesn't work."

It would be best to keep them seperated. It would be possible to keep them together and have them bred in a few years,but they would be less stressed if they had seperate enclosures which could help with thier feeding responses. Also when it comes to breeding time don't forget the old saying "absence makes the heart grow fonder".
Chris

I hate when people on here preach like they know everything, or follow along like lemmings parroting whatever todays concensus is with regard to topics like this. Also, I am a big proponent of people doing what is best for them and their own situations, and I do think you can effectively keep 2 Ball Pythons together successfully(seperate is better however IMHO).

I really have to ask you, and I am not being a smarty either, but if you do not have the means for whatever reason(cash, space, etc..) to keep two snakes now, how are you planning on breeding them and someday possibly having another 4 or 6 or 10 baby snakes in addition to the ones you have now?

Although you can house two balls together - if you don't have the experience I wouldn't recommend it. On top of that the male will mature quicker than the female and may try to breed her before her time which could lead to stress and accidents. I've also heard tell that people who have kept breeding pairs together year round have a harder time getting them to breed and reproduce than those that only introduce them during the breeding season - old married couple syndrome I guess.

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Tosha
JET Pythons

I agree. Its the same way with Corn Snakes. if apart they breed faster when put together than if they lived together. Lets not forget if one snakes gets sick its fairly hard to tell witch one it is if they live together.
Foot Hill Reptiles

In my opinion, responsible snake keepers don’t house two snakes together. Why?… Because housing two snakes together has risk’s to the animals. These risks include (but aren’t limited to): cannibalism, spreading diseases, pre-mature breeding, and undue stress leading to poor feeding response, poor breeding, and illnesses. I’m sure they’re more that I missed.

The fact is… even if you consider these risks to be minimal or think you know what you’re doing; it’s still a risk that you are taking with your animal’s health and life. If, you house them separately, those risks are eliminated.

Because of this simple fact, most snake keepers don’t house snakes together and responsible breeders don’t recommend housing snakes together. Dave Barker, in an email on this subject, eloquently put it this way:

“keeping snakes successfully is a matter of probabilities, by which I mean identifying hazards and risks and understanding the likelihood of the occurrences. Successful snake keeping is a matter of avoiding those problems that can be avoided. There is a statistical possibility that when any two snakes are kept together, one could kill the other. No matter how infinitesimally small the probability of occurrence is, when snakes are kept separately, there is a 0% chance of that particular risk.”

I’ve seen people on this form advocate that it is ok to house two snakes together. Now I’m not saying these people are wrong. But many advocate for it (on this form and others) without informing people of the risks and what to watch out for. That’s irresponsible. If you are going to house them together, you need to know the risks and how to correctly identify the indicators of problems. For example… in the absence of breeding, when one snake is always lying on top of the other snake… its not love, it’s a display of dominance. When one snake seems more active than the other… he might just be looking for a way to escape and get out of the other snakes territory.

Now with that said… these are your animals. The risks and consequences are yours. CAN you house them together? YES. Should you house them together? In my opinion… no. Whatever you choose to do, be a responsible custodian of your animal’s health and well-being.

Good Luck,

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Larry Walker

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