Reptile & Amphibian Forums

We already are the proud and pleased owners of a snow corn snake and a grey banded king snake.... we're thinking of getting an adult ball python from a coworker of my hubby's.... any advice for a relative new snake owner about this beautiful snake?

Thanks!

I have a psudeo care sheet I've put together if you're interested. It's a collection of tips I've found on this and various forums. Just email me:
tigergenesis@comcast.net

Ball Pythons are great! They can be a bit frustrating (getting to F/T and going off fed), but well worth it. You just have to be sure to do plenty of research and have everything right before bringing them home. Also, be sure to buy captive bred and watch them eat first and you will save yourself a lot of headaches.
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Hi.

I have a corn, a greyband and a ball, (as well as a bunch of lizards), so we're pretty much in the same boat.

Things you should know right away:

1) Husbandry is easier then with a colubrid, since BP's don't pee and poop as often.

2) BP's (especially adults) will stop feeding for months on end in the colder months. So, if you were to get that BP now, its likely he would eat predictably until November, and then stop until March ... its very frustrating when you are used to extremely predictable feeders like a corn. However, once you resign yourself to the fact that sometimes they just don't eat and there's nothing to worry about, it becomes less frustrating.

3) BP's are, on the whole, less active then colubrids. And, when they are active, they don't move nearly as quickly.

4) BP's are shyer then colubrids.

Now here's just an opinion:

Don't get an adult. I say this for no real reason, other than I find that people develop a far stronger affection for animals they raise from babies then when they acquire an acclimated adult.

For example, the first time I handled by baby BP, she was my first snake and I was extremely nervous (that I would drop her, scare her etc). She sat in a ball in my hand and never even budged. I put her back 10 mins later and we were both freaking out. Worst handling session ever!

Now, more than 2 years later, she's a huge, mellow snake. Very handleable and getting moreso each day. The experience of slowly getting used to her and having her get used to me has been very enjoyable.

Plus, I watched her grow from 100 grams to nearly 1800 .. do you know how cool it is to watch something grow 18 times in size??? And she's not even fully grown so I sill have 2 more years or so of watching her increase in length, girth and weight.

Regards,
Joel
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