Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hi all, im writing because ive read so many times that ball pythons need humidity..like 60%...ok and now i read melissa kaplan's page and she says no humidity, just a water bowl for the bp to soak in..i think she is a reputable source, but it is conflicting..any advice is great because im getting my 4 females in on tuesday and i am setting up their enclosures tomorrow..thanks..
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0.1 normal redtail boa
1.0 true redtail boa
1.1 100% het for albino redtails
1 miami red phase cornsnake
1 baby sulcata tortoise
1 snow corn
soon to be 0.4 ball pythons.

It's my understanding that BP's in the wild live in underground burrows that are relatively high humidity. I kept a couple BP's in a pretty arid cage for several years, with a incandescent bulb and on aspen bedding, both of which suck any moisture out of the air. I did have a lot of problem sheds (millions of pieces). Recently I switched from aspen bedding to cypress mulch and I mist more often and it solved the problem sheds, they now shed in one piece. If you are going to keep them in an arid enviroment, just make sure you mist them daily when you see them going into a shed cycle. By the way, 60% sounds kind of high to me.

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1.1 Jungle Carpet Python
1.1 Ball Python
1.1 Corn Snake
0.1 Gray band Kingsnake
0.1 Desert Kingsnake
0.1 Pueblan Milksnake
1.0 Bullsnake
1.0 Rhodesian Ridgeback (Hondo)
0.1 Spouse (WC)
0.0.8 hatchling ball pythons

60% is kind of high for a Ball Python, they normally only need around 50%, BUT during a shed you will want to raise it to about 70-80%.

Good advice on using cypress as it's excellent at holding humidity without being wet (wet is bad). A good tip to help you raise the humidity without having to mist is to place the water dish over the hot side of the enclosure when your snake is in shed & on the cool side when not...

Hope this helps,
Deb @ NorthernRegius.com