Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Over the last few weeks I've read a million posts on this site and done a ton of research on bp's. This would be my first ball and I was thinking of gettin it at the next reptile show near my area(Chicago). One thing I wanted to ask was...when you feed your ball, are you supposed to take it out of the cage first and put it in a big rubbermaid container and give it the mouse/rat in there?? I read that if you feed it in its cage it might mistake your hand for food everytime you try and touch it, and I dont want that. Thanks for your replies!

Thats pretty much it. Take you ball out and place him in another container. Use hemostats or plae your rodent in the container. Close the lid and monitor your ball until he eats it. I usually give my ball about an hour after he has consumed his meal before I place him back in his home.

Hi! Glad to hear you are considering a BP. They are awesome snakes, and Expos can be a good place to find a first snake.
As far as feeding in or out of the cage, it's debated (hotly), and my opinion is: Whatever you and your snake feel most comfortable with. I feed all mine in seperate containers. They know when they go in their "box" that food is on the way. They have never struck at me when I reach in to their cage, and they rarely refuse a meal. When they have finished, I pick them up and return them to their cage. No regurgitation from "over handling", even when I keep them out for some holding time after they eat. Maybe I have really easy snakes? Who knows! Try what you think is right, and if it works for you, then it's good.
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1.1 Ball Python 0.0.1 corn snake 1.0 Bearded Dragon
0.0.2 fish 1.2 cats 3.1 kids 1.0 husband and now...
0.0.1 Pink Zebra Beauty Tarantula

I am not a ball python expert or anything, but I can tell you what my experience has been. I have two Balls, one of which is a quite nasty and nippy subadult female. (this is NOT normal! Please don't be turned off by BPs, they're not nasty normally.) I have found that whether I feed her in her cage or not, she is still nippy and suspicious when I go in to pick her up. I don't really know why she's like this, but my adult male BP has never struck at me. I do not remove him form the cage to feed. He seems to know the difference between me and the rats I give him. So I would say that it isn't necessary to use a seperte container, unless you had some kind of elaborate setup where the substrate could somehow become lodged in the snake's mouth and get swallowed.
I would definately make sure the BP you're getting has an easygoing temperament. I started out with a nippy gal, and it would have been much easier if I'd gotten my nice male first. But I would never get rid of her based on temperament; she's got character!One strong recommendation; when removing a BP from its cage for cleaning or handling, never grab for the head or neck! Pick it up from the part that's not visible to it, and you should never get bitten, even accidentally.
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*~Ginevive~*

I started out with a nippy gal, and it would have been much easier if I'd gotten my nice male first. But I would never get rid of her based on temperament; she's got character!

....If I remember correctly didn't you save that one from a bad pet store situation? She's still a lil bit snappy?

-Jeremy

this guy's always active and exploring each time i pick him up ! has never struck at me. i agree with the previous post, pick him up from the back (make sure you support his mid section too). they're realling awesome pets to have ... when ur picking one out, handle him first and make sure he's alert, active and exploring. u don't want a timid snake, that's just my opinion.

good luck

Thanks for all the replies! I will let everyone know how he/she is when I get it, and I will post a pic

i thought the same as you, i got my BP and now i wish i wouldve gotten something a bit bigger, if you want a small snake, i would recommend a hog island boa, theyre 4-6feet and much cooler looking in my opinion (i like boas) even though theyre more expensive its worth it. or you could get a jungle carpet python, CBI/CBB something like that is cool too if you want a 6-10foot snake.

also try s s n a k e s s .com thats a great site too, not sure if kingsnake will like me saything that but whatever, there are less people on there that dont know what they're talking about, and theres tons of experts who will reply to you guaranteed if you post there too