Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was looking into getting a baby ball and i was wondering what a good tank size would be. Would a 20 gallon long tank be a good tank to start with? And is $49.00 a good price for a baby ball?

Everything I've read/heard says that that a 20 long is fine for a young adult but a full grown adult can do well with 36in (30 gallon and up). So I personally say why not start with what the snake will live in forever. Depending on the age of your BP this might be a bit too big for a starter home, but you could fix that by either providing plenty of hides on both sides of the enclosure (the hides MUST be the right size to make your BP feel secure. when inside it should be able to ball up and feel all sides) or create a temp home (until bigger) in a rubbermaid, shoebox, etc.

As a warning, tanks are usually not well known for maintaining the right temps and humidity levels. This can, however, be remedied. But just a warning that it can take a bit of trial and error to figure out what fix will work best in your situation. I have my BP in a 50 gallon breeder tank with a sliding screen lid. There are a number of ways to get the humidity and temps to stay right in a tank, but what works for one person may not work for you. So just be sure you give yourself plenty of time to work this out before buying your snake - which you should actually do no matter what set up you have.

I personally think $49 is a good buy. Just ask a lot of questions about the snake before buying it: what and how often its feed, wild caught or captive bred, etc. I believe feeding pre-killed or frozen thawed is best. That said I would make sure the snake you are buying is not eating live and have them show you it will eat pre-killed or frozen thawed. Might save you the headache of trying to switch over yourself.

I am still a bit new at this, and most of what I have said is from what I've learned or been told asking questions myself (and a bit of experience). So hopefully some 'veterans' will chime in also.

I have my Ball in a 30gl tank which I purchased for $47 brand new. My ball was selected from nearly 30 Captive Bred Balls and is a beautiful specimen for $39.

I would like to think the increase from a 20gl to a 30gl is not a significant investment (Maybe $15-20 for the increase in tank size), and will last you the snake's life. It's basically a one-time investment!

DO YOUR RESEARCH BEFORE YOU BUY... IT'S VERY IMPORTANT!

The tank has been very hard to maintain temps with and after 3 months of learning, and a bout with a respiratory infection (100% recovery) here's my advice:

1.) Purchase an undertank heater... I went without it for a long time and only used a ceramic heat emitter for night and a heat lamp for day time. The UTH provides warmth from the bottom up and considering that the Ball will spend most of its time on the ground, it is the most efficient way to keep them warm.

2.) I use a piece of cardboard to cover 2/3 of the screen lid to allow for higher temps and a more constant humidity.

I am more than willing to answer any other questions you may have about Balls. They are extremely easy to care for once you have the right setup.

Good luck.
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-Iman

1.1 Balls
0.1 Boa (BCI)
0.0 Experience
100.0 % LOVE

Hope it helps...

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