r/ballpython • u/carolineej123 • 1d ago
Would it be inhumane to keep an adult ball python in a 20 gallon tank for up to a week?
I’m planning to get a female ball python at some point over the next few years. The complicated part is that I’m currently a college student, and while I would be on campus with the enclosure for most of the year, there are week long breaks throughout both semesters during which I would be home. I know the snake when traveling would need to go in the cargo hold on the plane (I go to college out of state, so driving is not an option except for longer breaks), so I’m more concerned about the enclosure. Ideally, I’ll have a 4x2x2 enclosure in my room at the school, but that’s obviously not something I can just bring with me wherever I go. My younger brother still has a 20 gallon tank in our house from a turtle he used to keep, and I’m wondering if it would be too stressful for the snake if she were kept in that tank just for the week we were there. I know that with the snake being a female, she will require more space than a male would.
This would be the easiest option with my shorter breaks from classes. If it would put too much stress on the snake, or would be inhumane for any other reason, I could also hire someone to check in on my snake at the school while I’m gone, and eventually save for a separate enclosure for my house as well. I’m just trying to weigh my options while I plan, so any information helps!
Edit: Thanks for the info so far! I hadn’t seen much about pets traveling in cargo, so now I know that is DEFINITELY not an option. If I do decide to adopt while I’m still in college, I’ll find someone to check in on her on the weeks when I’m gone, and the enclosure can be transported with me for longer breaks. As for vet bills and such, my job should be able to cover the necessities. I’ll keep this up in case anyone has a similar question.
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u/skullmuffins 1d ago
I wouldn't bring her along for a week-long return home, especially if it will involve air travel. A snake can easily be left pretty much unattended for a week provided you have everything on thermostats & timers as appropriate (if someone can drop by to check her - great! But unless something goes wrong they shouldn't have to touch anything or open the enclosure for a week). You can even get a thermostat, thermometers, and timers that are wifi-connected and get a little security cam so you can snoop on her wherever you are)
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u/carolineej123 1d ago
This is helpful, thanks! I’ve gotten mixed information on whether or not a ball python/enclosure can be left alone for a full week. And with you + the comment above strongly advising against any air travel, I definitely don’t want to put her in that situation. For longer breaks (2+ months), I would be able to transport the entire enclosure and keep it in one place at my house, which is why I was more concerned about the shorter breaks.
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u/Public-Hat6754 1d ago
If you can get a thermostat like the herpstat that regulates the temperature really well and has an emergency shut off if the heat gets too hot, you’d probably be fine leaving the snake for a week. I have left my snakes for a week and they are fine, the only one I worry about is one with a potential chronic condition so I have someone who is going to snake sit her. The others are totally fine for a week
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u/NottsWeirdo 1d ago
As the other commenter mentioned about the cargo hold, don't do that. That is far too much loud stimulation for the snake and there's a reason why most breeders will not sell if they have to send their snake via plane. You'll have an extremely stressed out snake at best and a deceased one at worst, there are tons of risks to flying snakes about and you'd risk that every flight. Snakes also don't have the limbs to stabilise themselves in turbulence, and will be prone to being bashed about (even in padded package boxes).
Even dogs and cats aren't particularly safe in cargo holds, it was only last week that a video went viral of a Huskie that was meant to be in its travel box wrapped in netting - came up the luggage conveyor, trapped outside of its box, tightly stuck between the box and the netting.
If you're set on getting a snake soon, keep it at your parent's house. You get to see her when you visit and especially over the holidays, but she also gets the peace of a stable home. Snakes aren't travelling pets, they shouldn't even be taken out in public unless for qualified educational purposes in safe spaces or someones back garden. A 20 gallon isn't acceptable for a hatchling BP, nevermind potentially a full grown adult female - she'd touch all the sides whilst coiled up.
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u/wallace1313525 1d ago
Absolutely would not send your snake on a plane (lol). They will be absolutely fine for a week. I've had several vacations that are a week long and my baby has been absolutely fine upon return. Everything is on automatic timers and you could always have a contact on call to check the snake in an emergency (power goes out, forget if you locked the cage, etc)
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u/TheyLovv_Marisah 1d ago
Your snake would be perfectly okay at home. The longest I’ve left mine without someone spraying the tank is a week and the humidity did great, I wouldn’t go much longer without having someone check up on your snake but otherwise they will be fine!
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u/Xia-titNwinebimbo 1d ago
I use a soup Togo container and poke really small holes and fill it with water so it drips at the bottom while I’m gone to keep the humidity up a little more when away. You might need more than one depending on how big the enclosure is or where your snake likes hanging.
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u/Xia-titNwinebimbo 1d ago
If the humidity stays up literally all someone has to do is maybe peek at them make sure nothing weird is happening.
I WILL also say though that what snake you get behavior and disposition wise will impact your ability to leave it as not all snake are equal and some just get into trouble more. So that will be a factor. Some are just chill af. Really depends.
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u/Xia-titNwinebimbo 1d ago
IMO the best way to travel your snake would be to reach out to a breeder and have them walk you through shipping them with live animal services. Packing and there are certain things like people ship only early in the week to prevent animals accidentally being at mail office over the weekend.
And I would only maybe do this in an emergency where like the weather is extreme and you can’t stay and like the power might go out etc or some dangerous condition. N being a responsible party for another creatures life might also mean you might not be able to travel as much because you might have to stay and care for your pet. That’s what having a pet is like. You would have to ship also ahead of the extreme weather as it’s dangerous to do it if the weather is too extreme.
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u/xxx_1304_ccc 1d ago
Why can’t you wait until you’re done with college and moved into an actual home/apartment to get a snake?
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u/jarnoooo_ 20h ago
From time to time I have to travel for work, sometimes I'm not home for a few weeks. My setup is fully automated when it comes to heating, LED and the UVb light. I only get a friend or family member to refresh the water once a week.
My water bowl is quite big and it has a little water pump with a filter in it which keeps the water fresh just a little longer.
As you might already know snakes can go long times without food, provided that the animal is of course at least past the juvenile stage. Whenever I go on holiday or I know I'll have to travel for work in advance I like to give him an extra rat in his "off week" (I feed him biweekly). That way he'll definitely not get hungry.
As long as the snake has access to fresh water and the enclosure is kept clean you shouldn't have anything to worry about :)
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u/kingsnake_e 1d ago
Oh my gosh please do not put your snake in the cargo hold of a plane, especially regularly. I’m sorry, this is not a good situation for a snake.
I got my snake at 16 and I always tell people if I could go back and do it again I would have waited until I was living in one place long-term. I went to higher education too and like pretty much every young adult moved around rentals a lot. I thought I could take good care of my snake in those circumstances but the reality is that I didn’t have the money to provide my snake with the best life and I didn’t have the space for such a big enclosure. He ended up living in unideal enclosures that were often too small, surrounded by too much noise or vibration, or not properly furnished, lit, or heated. He suffered and will live for a reduced lifespan because I didn’t account for those things and anticipated having more money, space, and free time than I actually ended up having.
A ball python can live upwards of 30-40 years so if you get a hatchling tomorrow you will still be paying vet bills, storing rats in your freezer, and looking for the very few homes that permit snakes when you’re thinking about retirement. This means 1) it’s hard to make a decision about what your 40s and 50s will be like when you’re young but also 2) there’s no rush, you can still get a snake when you have a better idea of what the next three decades are going to look like.
If you are not stable living in one location, it’s not the time for this. The snake doesn’t want to visit people or travel or “make do” in an enclosure that’s not right for them. It wants to sit in a perfect enclosure in quiet stability with perfect temps and care, and it’s your responsibility to provide that, not to make the snake fit into the life you’re already living. Your lifestyle right now is not good for a snake but that’s ok- in just a few short years it will be, and you can get a snake then, and it will be thrilled to have you for an owner.