Reptile & Amphibian Forums

PLEASE HELP ME,

I have a newbie friend who has "invested" in a small group of ball pythons valued around $10,000.

Each ball python has it's own 55 gallon aquarium with room humidifier, lamps, heat pads, hide logs....the works. He has been telling me for a few months now that his snakes are difficult feeders and won't breed.

I keep saying "They are stressed out!".

He keeps responding "They like it, only one stays under the log and never comes out!".

My response, "GET A RACK SYSTEM! they will feed and breed!".

Any coments or suggestions greatly appreciated.

I do hate to say it but a lot of snakes feel secure in smaller cages. Wild ones are wild ones and that's that. This is captivity and everything is different! A rack system would do a few things for your friend. One save TONS of space! Two help the snakes get settled in and begin feeding like no tomorrow. The breeding problem could be due to the size of the tank they are in. The smaller the enclosure the easier it is to keep the temps at what you want them to be at. So cooling could be a problem. Anyways this is how I see it. Good luck.
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John Light
Pristine Pythons
ristinePythons@Hotmail.com" target="_blank">Contact Me

look if it were me,now this is me, i would tell him that you just spent 10 grand on some kik @$$ bp's and obviously what he is doing is not working for him or them and he needs to broaden his horizons,swallow his pride and build a rack system. I have a rack. also tell him if they dont eat they will die and if they die they wont breed if they dont breed hes out 10 grand unless hes just in it for some kik @$$ bp's
but like i said thats me

all the big, big breeders use racks - saves on space,energy, and supplies. it does not help in feeding to have a tank that is too big. that is why some people use the ' bag ' trick to help feed ball that is not doing well - gets food and snake closer together. i have several big tanks with nice snakes - just for ' art ' they are beautiful - would not think about breeding these. then have many rack systems for my breeding balls and they do great in regards to feeding and mating. racks are the way to go for breeding. tanks for ' show and tell '. both are fine.

I don't see how a rack system would make any difference. Since your friend is trying to breed these ball pythons, I am assuming they are at least a year old and pretty much full grown. If I recall correctly balls can be 5-6 feet long. I don't see how a 55 gal tank (I know a 50gal long is 4'x2'x2') would be to large. More hides, artifical plants etc, could make a difference. Covering the sides and back of each tank with opaque construction paper would help cut out the 'outside' world.

Since the guy already has the tanks and setup, it would be just as stressful on the snakes to move them into completely new cages.

It being fall, most ball pythons don't eat anyway as they go into their 'cooling' phase or hibernation.

""Covering the sides and back of each tank with opaque construction paper would help cut out the 'outside' world.""

...which would prove the issue,that they are not social creatures and they need their privacy.
That is...once they started eating again.
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2.15 Ball Pythons
0.1 Gray six toed cat

Smiles!
Rich Macias BLOODLINES

Print your friend out this article for a pro-rack argument.
My Rack Paper