Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I waited around for my baby ball python to get delivered yesterday, but UPS delivered it to my neighbor's house by mistake. Since they were not home, the delivery person just threw the box over their fence. Of course my neighbors didn't see the packgage until this morning. So the little guy spent all day at around 65* and all night at around 50-55*. He appears fine now (he's moving around and flicking his tongue), but I was wondering (1) what's the probability of him surviving this and (2) if you guys had any recommendations for getting him acclimated quickly after this ordeal. Thanks for your help!

(Btw, the snake is absolutely beautiful, thanks to Ben and Stacey at Ben Siegel's. I hope he makes it not only for money reasons but mainly because he's such a cool little guy.)

Bruce

most likely. Just get him in a cage under normal conditions of temperature. The fact that he's active and moving about is good. I would just watch him closely for signs of a respiratory infection. Balls seem to tolerate breif periods of cold very well. It's much safer to have 1 night of 55 degrees that one hour of 110.....

First, the snake. How cold did he get? Is he active? Get him in a warm, safe enclosure and warm him up. Pay attention to him over the next couple of days.

Next, a package should never be shipped with a live animal without requiring a signature. You got lucky this time but the results could have been disastrous.
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Jay A. Martin
Jay Martin Reptiles

Thanks for the replies. The snake was fairly active when I opened the bag. He uncurled and started moving towards the opening, flicking his tongue the entire time. He was pretty cold since temps stayed around 65* all day yesterday and dropped to the low 50s* at night. I looked at him for a brief moment (like 20 seconds) and put him in a hide box within a Rubbermaid shoe box which is on top of a heating pad. The temp within the hide box is around 90-93* right now to get him warmed up. (I should drop this temp down a tad later, correct?). My hunch is that he'll do fine, although there's a real possibility of him making it through Ben Siegel's 7 day waiting period and then developing an RI or something.

As for UPS, this was unacceptable. Delivery instructions required that they get an adult signature, which you'd think would compel the driver to double check the address if no one was home. Also, I have a brand new home, so it's not as if my address is illegible or anything. Ay yai yai.

Thanks again for the responses!
Bruce

tougher than most people here think they are, just make sure he/she has the appropriate heat & it will be fine.
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Chad Bachman