Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello everyone! About two weeks ago I got my first ball python! He's still young and a very wonderful, docile animal!! He just LOVES to be on me. If I open his cage, he likes to crawl out, and onto my arm. He's very sweet.

I have some questions as to if i am providing proper housing/heat/humidtiy for him. Humidity is a main concern for me because his previous owner had him in a very dry and not humid cage. This caused about every shed with her, to be a retained shed. And that is not healthy, he still has retained shed and eyecaps, and has had for about 4 weeks, he started 2 before I got him.

Currently he is in a 30 gallon tank, with a lid almost impossible to get off. He's very well secured. Heating wise, he has an adjustable heating pad located under his cage. The heat is not too hot, and is set cooler during night time. During the day he has a zoo med repti sun 2.0 light, which I believe does not give off heat, but gives off the light similar to the sun, that stimulates well being, and makes sure he digests his food, rather than it rotting in him. For bedding he has Eco Earth, its made of coconut or something like that, and is in a brick untill you soak it, and dry it. It's very nice, its like a dirt sort of, local pet store said its highly reccomended for ball pythons. And in his cage he has a nice water bowl filled with fresh water daily. He has a large peice of bark thats a bit rough and has some vegetation on it, good for rubbing against. He has a nice rugged rock in there, also good for rubbing against, and laying on. He has some fake plants for decoration and recreation of wildlife. He has a wooden hidebox, purchased from a pet store. Its nice, dark, and not so big, so he can feel safe and secure. And he has a large branch which he often likes to wrap around.

To me it sounds like everything is great for him, but I was wondering your opinions, I want to make sure hes in a great environment and home. I do, however, have a question regarding bedding. As I'm sure this bedding is wonderful, it is also said oto be good for humidity. He shed ALOT of his retained skin once I switched from newspaper, to this bedding. Should I spray it with water daily to add moisture? Thanks for all your guys' help!

-Michael

i'd soak him over night in about 1 or 2 of water then try and help him shed the rest of the way.

after you've solved that issue just use a spray bottle and mist him heavy before he sheds next time
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billy jean king
BugBusters

soaking in water works but you still must add something in the water for them to rub on. The problem with this is that ball pythons don't usually spend alot of time in water and sometimes perch on top of the whatever you put in with them. What I do is wet a pillow case and place the snake inside it. Place the pillow case back in the cage for a few hours then check on the snake. 9 out of 10 times that is all the time that is needed to remove eye caps or stuck pieces of shed. Just make sure that the pillow case isn't one of those very expensive ones that has a very tight weave so that there is enough air flow for the snake. Give it a try and let us know how your new guy is doing. Josh Hutto......JKReptiles

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2.3 het pied (RDR, alan bosch x 2, BHB x 2)
1.1 het albino (ben siegel, gulf coast)
1.2 het citrus ghost(gulf coast line)
1.0 citrus ghost (gulf coast line)
0.1 graz pastel female
1.6 05 normal bp's
0.6 04 normal bp's
2.5 adult normal bp's (some need breeding to see if norm)
4 various corns
0.1 brazilian rainbow boa (alan bosch)
1.0 american pit bull terrior
1.1 taco dogs (ankle biters)
1.0 grey cat
1.1 bearded dragons

a BAD dog is MADE not bred, support the American Pit Bull Terrior as the greatest breed of dogs on Earth!!!!!

I'd just soak his bedding down pretty good once a week in general, and then keep it damp during his shed cycle. He'll get sorted out!

Christy

Michael,

I appreciate your post because I'm in much the same situation. I've just purchased a young ball python and am trying to be sure that I'll keep her healthy and happy. I have a Fluker hygrometer in the cage, and the humidity tends to stay around 30 to 40 percent. When I mist the cage, the humidity will jump into the 80% range for a while, but the humidity eventually returns to about 40%. I have a Fluker extra-large water bowl over part of the heating pad, and I'd hoped that it would evaporate enough water to keep the humidity higher. I also have a Fluker large bowl at the other end of the cage. I'm attaching a picture of the setup to this post.

I've only had her since Saturday, so I don't know whether she'll have problems shedding. I've thought about getting a small water bowl and putting it under a larger hide box to give her a "sauna" area for when she sheds.

I'd like to hear others' thoughts.

Thanks,

Bill