Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I figured I would try the BP again,,better set up this time(tub)
The ball I picked up seemed like a good purchase.Ate 1 rat, a week later, ate another,,3 days later regurged for god knows what reason.Hasn't taken food since(almost 3 weeks),,hanging out in the water again,even though he shed a week ago.
Had a small loose stool today.
What a pain in the $%#%# !!!,,NEVER had any problems with all my other snakes.I never should have got this snake,,fooled me twice..shame on ME.

Poor snake...
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Scott Hager
Red Barn Reptiles

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Cheers,
Jessica Gibbs
Ball Pythons; Corn Snakes; Green Tree Python; Jungle Carpet Python; Bci; Bcl; Bco
3.0 Crazy Dogs and 2.0 cats
Some Tropical Fish
...........and growing!

Sooooo, no idea whats going on with this snake ??,,why soo dificult

If you can post some of what your husbandry has been, temps, humidity, how long you had him before feeding him, his weight and what size prey item you are using, live/ frozen/thawed, does he have a hide...., it would be easier to help you with what might be happening.
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Cheers,
Jessica Gibbs
Ball Pythons; Corn Snakes; Green Tree Python; Jungle Carpet Python; Bci; Bcl; Bco
3.0 Crazy Dogs and 2.0 cats
Some Tropical Fish
...........and growing!

OK Jessica,,this his set up; i HAVE HIM SET UP IN A 6 QT. sterilite tub,,aspen bedding,water bowl big enough for him to soak in,which is BIG because he is a tad over 4'.Because of the water bowl, he has only a hide on the warm end.The warm end belly temp is in the 86-89 range.The cool end is in the 80-84 range.These should be good.He came fom the basic tank with news paper and heat lamp set up.
The humidity runs a bit high,say 65-70, but I am going to drill more holes to keep it down a little.
When I bought him from the guy he said he was due for a meal, so I gave him a day then offered a small rat,which he snatched up quick,,and the rest of the story is in my first post.
That last bm he had, has me worried a little.
Not sure what I could be doing wrong, OR if I got a snake with issues in the first place ??

i think you have a typo in your post you!! said you have a 4 foot snake in a 6QT tub on heat? a 4 foot snake should be in a minimum of a 28 qt tub bigger would be preffered. and with a 6 qt tub their shouldnt be heat as its to small and can overheat quickly. for the snakes sake i hope you that was a typo and not your actual setup
adam jeffery
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" a.k.a. farfrumugen "
When I die, I want to go peacefully like my Grandfather did, in his sleep -- not screaming, like the passengers in his car.

Sorry, yes that was a typo,,66 qt.

Temp too low IMO

balls need a hot point of around 92F and a cool point at 82-84.
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love this world, don't hate it.

Was 6qt a typo? 6qt tubs are usually only used to hatchlings. I would move him to a 28 or 41 qt if he is 4ft in length.

Also, even if the ball is due for a meal, I always give new arrivals a minimum of 2 weeks to become acclimated before I attempt a feeding. Stress can be a major cause of regurgitation.

It sounds like your hot spot is good, but a little bigger range of temp would help thermoregulation. In a larger tub you should be able to get him around 78 or 79 degrees on the cool side.

Smaller bowl- balls don't normally soak in the wild. And if he is soaking, treat him for mites if you see black specks in the bottom of his bowl or on him (it will look like someone shook pepper in the bowl). I always pre treat my aspen bedding with Provent-A-Mite for new arrivals just in case. ALSO, if he has mites and therefore soaked, that lowers their body temps and may have contibuted to the regurg.

I would give him 2-3 weeks off of feeding- which won't do a 4 ft ball any harm; they can go months without food. His stomach needs to repair and rest after a regurge. After a few weeks, feed him a smaller meal than normal for a few feedings, 10-14 days apart. If he holds those down go back to normal.

I have about 36 balls- I have found that mites can be fairly common on new arrivals (I say that with reservations because most good breeders are very fastideous about their collections and I don't get balls with mites from those breeders). Pre treat for them. I have never had a ball regurgitate. With a good acclimation time and proper ambient temps it shouldn't happen.

Let us know how it goes. Best wishes.
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Cheers,
Jessica Gibbs
Ball Pythons; Corn Snakes; Green Tree Python; Jungle Carpet Python; Bci; Bcl; Bco
3.0 Crazy Dogs and 2.0 cats
Some Tropical Fish
...........and growing!

I wouldn't think that keeping Royal Pythons would be brain surgery. So what do you think you are doing wrong?
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1.0 Albino American alligator, "Smoke"
1.1 American alligator,"Al Bite Ya & Molly"
1.1 Purple Albino Reticulated Pythons, "Gumbo & Abita"
0.1 Eastern Gaboon Viper, "Gabbie" Recently passed away at 24 years old

Not sure what other snakes you keep and you've given no indication as to your set up, when you got the snake, when fed the snake, size of snake and meals, etc. that might help us help you figure out what went wrong - regurge is never good in a ball. Could very well be that you bought a sick snake or aren't keeping it properly. But it's not rocket science to easily maintain these snakes.
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Tosha
JET Pythons
The Blog
nihil facimus sed id bene facimus

If you have had similar problems like this before with a Ball Python, the cause might be environmental.

Did you thoroughly clean and sanitize the tank and accessories before adding this snake to it?

Do you use any harsh chemicals for cleaning inside, outside, or around the tank or its accessories?

Do you provide tap water, filtered water, or bottled water for the snake?

Have you been using a wood, paper, or fabric substrate for the snake? When has it last been cleaned?

Exactly what are your temperatures? Hot spot? Cool zone? Ambient versus substrate temps? Water placement?

Do you wash your hands thoroughly between handling pets of same or different species? Some parasites can move between species.

Any (decent, quality) pictures you could provide of your set-up and the snake would be helpful.
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Lincoln, NE
0.1 Pastel, 1.0 Pastel het Pied, 0.1 Pied, 0.1 Cinn, 1.0 Black Pewter, 1.0 Woma (hidden gene?), 0.1 Yellowbelly
2.0 Normals, 1.0 Thayeri, 0.1 Thayeri X Alterna, 0.1 crazy cat, 1.0 husband

ball pythons recently shed in the water bowel could mean mites. look for little black specs in the bottom of the bowel and elsewhere.

in water bowel / regurge / lose stool - it is sick, you have the wrong husbandy, the wrong temps, you have mites, any combo of these things.

I agree and I think this was brought up awhile back. Mites are usually present when Ball Pythons soak... I think he should get some PAM and treat. PAM is good as preventative measure, so it wouldnt hurt. Ball Pythons Unwarrented Soaking = Mites...IMHO..

just thought i would spell it out for any new readers, dont want them coating their snakes in cooking spray do we?
adam jeffery
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" a.k.a. farfrumugen "
When I die, I want to go peacefully like my Grandfather did, in his sleep -- not screaming, like the passengers in his car.

Tasty mitey snakes?
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Lincoln, NE
0.1 Pastel, 1.0 Pastel het Pied, 0.1 Pied, 0.1 Cinn, 1.0 Black Pewter, 1.0 Woma (hidden gene?), 0.1 Yellowbelly
2.0 Normals, 1.0 Thayeri, 0.1 Thayeri X Alterna, 0.1 crazy cat, 1.0 husband

From what I read in your post, sounds like it could be too hot for your snake. Thats might be why it stays in the water. Go to NERD's website and follow the care sheet to the letter. And above all, stop handling your snake (if you are). You may be causing the stress.
If you are doing everything right, I would question the source where you purchased the snake. It might have been unhealthy from the get go. Just because it ate a meal or two and looked good, doesn't mean that it was healthy when you got it.
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1.0 Albino American alligator, "Smoke"
1.1 American alligator,"Al Bite Ya & Molly"
1.1 Purple Albino Reticulated Pythons, "Gumbo & Abita"
0.1 Eastern Gaboon Viper, "Gabbie" Recently passed away at 24 years old

I would raise the temps on the hot side to 95 plus degrees, but still leave a nice gradient with hides on both hot & cold ends. I would not feed for awhile, and when I did it would be a very small item like a rat hopper or pup. Nothing larger and not again until the snake fully digested & passed this meal. I do not know what your financial situation is, but I would either take the snake to a good herp vet or at least take the runny stool (or next) and get a fecal test done which is only like $20-$30. I would also (only speaking for me here) treat with Flagyl (metronidazole) at 100mg per KG twice over 10 day period before I offered food again. Best of luck.