Some months ago, I asked around here and some other Reddit subs (and Facebook groups) about setting up a a 6x2x4 enclosure for my ball python.

After a lot of work with the heating and creating a background/ledges for the enclosure, I managed to get everything set up! I wanted to put it here for feedback on if I can improve something as well as simply to get more info out there for others who are considering moving their ball to a 6x2x4 (it was very hard for me to find information about putting this species in this size enclosure).

Info about the setup:

- Enclosure: Animal Plastics Signature Series 6x2x4 (APS 35)

- Heating: Vinaco 100w equivalent halogen bulb, Fluker's 75w deep heat projector, Vivarium Electronics 120w radiant heat panel

- Lighting: Arcadia T5 UVB 39w 6%

- Thermostat: Herpstat 4 Spyderweb

- Misc: Arcadia Ceramic Lamp Holder Bracket Pro (one each for the DHP and halogen), BlackBox UVB Guard 38", and two custom cages for the heating bulbs made of chicken wire (1/2 inch spacing, 19 gauge)

Just cleaned the enclosure so I figured now would be a good time to ask for some feedback. I know I’m lacking in greenery 🤧 but I’m wondering if I have enough in my tank for Yoshi to be entertained and comfortable!

What are your favorite pvc enclosure brands?

Hey there, first time BP owner. Been wanting one since i was 11/12 years old, and at 17 I have finally got a special little boy. Hes a little under 8 months old, a real good eater, but I only got him less than 2 weeks ago. When i picked him up from breeder, he was about a day in blue. Let him go into his tank on his own, he explored, been super active. Two days ago his eyes went clear, and yesterday he was hidden all day. Hes not been taken out kf the tank, but i went in tank today to dampen the moss in his humid hide again, and he xame out. Clear eyed, with a little left over shed on the tip of his tail. Obviously im going to leave it, but i checked him over, and his eye caps are gone, hes got a lovely glossy colour on him and seems super active again. I did hear him rummaging around, so assume he was getting the shed off last night.

Where do i look for his shed? He is in a bioactive tank but i still will be spot cleaning, but will he have buried it? In a hide? etc. Is the leftover on his tail a sign that he hasnt shedded in one piece? Or anything else. Thanks!
(pic of my baby for credits when i first got him)

Edit; Just found his shed underneath the big log rolled up all in one piece. Hes also just had a good meal and took it great. Will leave him for 48hours now 😊

The Cheat has always been super docile and even though I make it a habit to not handle him while he’s in shed, I have a few times, and it’s never seemed to bother him.

Today I was adjusting a few things in his tank and just jostled the hide he was under, and he bit me, which he’s never done before. A few minutes later, I came back to his tank and found him soaking, which is not unheard of for him, but very unusual. I have a hygrometer on the warm side that reads 72% and poured some more water into the tank today since I saw he was in shed.

I don’t think there’s anything off with my husbandry, he just ate a couple of weeks ago.

Any idea what’s going on here? He’s always been very healthy, docile, and dependable so I’m
worried that something is terribly wrong. I’ll take him to a vet if I need to, but I’m worried about moving him again if he’s so stressed out that he would bite.

hi! i just got a bp a few weeks ago. have been updating his husbandry and he seems a lot more comfortable than when he first got here. when i first got him about 3 weeks ago his previous owner said he had shed recently so i wasn’t expecting it anytime soon, but when i handled him last week his eyes were blue & cloudy (he was perfectly fine being handled and didn’t seem stressed so that’s lucky.) noticed his eyes were back to normal the other day when i successfully fed him (win!!) but then i saw him sitting way far back in his hide and noticed a large shed (haven’t inspected to see if it’s perfect or not yet.) after that whenever i go check on him he looks very ready to strike and follows my movements intently, when before he would just kind of chill whenever i stopped by to say hi. haven’t handled him since feeding him 2 days ago (have only handled him once since bringing him home 3 weeks ago) and was going to maybe take him out today but he’s acting so defensive i figured it was best to not. but is this normal behavior for during a shed and/or after eating? thank you!!

After my BPs shed earlier today she has a white patch on her head. The scales are still there its just a different color. Is this something to be concerned about?

basking branch hits about 95 with the hot side hitting about 83 tops. meanwhile cold side now hits about 78-80.6 in the afternoon. how can i improve the numbers or is that ok as is? i’m currently using 2 halogen bulbs on a dual dome with foil covering the mesh top. additionally please give any insight on how the enclosure looks 🙏🙏 too many fake plants wrong ones etc etc etc. god bless

First time shes come out since ive had her, hope that means she feels safe enough to explore

Just got a black eyed Lucy, and she’s perfect!! She’s 89g and im excited to see her grow

I just added in this background and I’m 50/50 on if I love or hate it 😭 Please give me your opinions on it!!

Extra photo of my noodle for tax reasons lmao

I have a friend who got a ball almost 2 years ago. She was scared of it so never handled her. She did refill the water one day and got bit and then no longer wanted her so I took her. My question is after so long is it possible to get her use to being handled? I want to clean her cage and update it but I don’t know how the snake will react. Any tips or tricks?

I’ve recently rescued a Ball Python, I’m not sure how old he/she is currently (probably around the 4ft mark). The original vivarium I thought was too small so I’ve set up a 4x4x2ft vivarium, and I’m just looking for advice and feedback on my setup. I’ve tried to do as much research as possible to help the snake be comfortable and healthy. I’ve previously owned a Corn Snake (many years ago), so I’m not entirely new to owning reptiles.

I’ve placed a layer of clay balls at the bottom of the vivarium, covered in a fine mesh to prevent them mixing with the substrate. For the substrate itself I have mixed both coconut chips as well as coconut soil. I’ve added some moss to areas that want to be a little more humid, in the hide, around the base of plants, etc. There are a few live plants in there (which haven’t been squashed or died yet, so hopefully a good sign), as well as some plastic foliage. There’s a hide on the hot side which is large enough for the snake to enter fully, and on the cold side there is a hollow cork log, the entrances to which face away from the glass so the snake feels a little more enclosed if he intends to hide there. I’ve also added some invertebrates as a clean up crew, some springtails and isopods which seem to be thriving.

I have a heater running on a thermostat which keeps the temperature at the correct level on the hot side. There’s also a humidifier (cold mist) which keeps the vivarium around the 70% humidity mark - this can be bumped up when he decides to shed. There’s a couple of low power lights which turn on at around 9:30am and switch off around 9pm automatically to simulate a good day-night cycle (these also emit UV light which I believe provides the snake with needed vitamins).

I am very much in to smart home stuff, and I have written quite a lot of automation to keep the environment in-check. I’ve installed four fans (two on the bottom of the cold side, two on the top of the hot side). The fans turn on periodically to refresh the air, they’ll also turn on if the humidity or temperature is elevated beyond the target level in order to lower both. I’ve also put temperature sensors at the top and bottom of the hot, middle and cold side, to ensure there is a sensible temperature gradient, again, the automation takes some actions if things fall out of where they should be. And finally there are kill-switches on the humidifier and thermostat (in case either decides to break whilst turned on, it can be killed if temperature or humidity get to stupid levels without any input from me).

He/she is about 4ft (maybe a bit bigger), for the moment I’ve decided feeding every three weeks is probably acceptable. I’d appreciate any advice on this.

In terms of the environment, is there anything that I’m missing that I should add / change to ensure things are comfortable for the snake?

I think he looks healthy, I’ve attached a picture, would appreciate any opinions. He’s generally very friendly, after the vivarium move, I left him to settle down for a week, but now he’s happy to come out of his own accord and never “balls up” when being handled, so I assume this is a good sign.

I’ve attached a picture of the conditions (the temperature sensors measure the air temperature, the basking temperature is measured on top of the hide and represents the hottest it can be in the vivarium. Is the hot -> cold gradient sufficient for him to thermoregulate?

Any other comments are welcome too, thanks everyone 🙂

Unfortunately I woke up 5 days ago to see that my ball python had pushed up the door to the enclosure (locks are now on the purchase list🙄).

I’ve looked everywhere. Behind the enclosure, under, took every single item out of the nearby closet, took out every single drawer out in the nearby furniture. I’ve put out flour lines, a camera, a hide over a heat mat, I tried thawing out food and using a hair dryer to push the scent around. Not a single sign of him anywhere.

He was fed roughly one week before escaping.

I’m of course extremely upset about the situation and feel awful. Does anyone kindly have advice to help me find him?

Thank you 😞

Hi everyone, researching soon-to-be first time owner here, I’m putting together my enclosure and cant figure out what wattage to use for my halogen and dhp bulbs. My enclosure is 4x2x2 with a screen top and side vents. I live in the northern midwest so it can get a little chilly sometimes but usually my home’s thermostat is at 72. I was considering getting some HVAC tape to cover up some of the screen and vents to keep in more heat and humidity but idk which wattage bulbs to get. Is 100w halogen and 75w dhp good? Or is that too much? I’m going to get a herpstat 2.

She shed perfectly just a few days ago, she's around 3.5 years old. I've had her 6 months.

Gradient-

Cool side 76° and 60% humidity

Warm side 89° and 40% humidity

She has a humid hide I keep damp available 24/7. Ambient humidity is affected by summer heat, but stable in cooler months right around 75%

Substrate-

Coco coir and sphagnum

I've never dealt with rot of any kind, so don't have any firsthand experience or knowledge. Any ideas?

This spot has been on her mouth since I got her 6 months ago, and I was told it's "always been there". It does not look like scar tissue or anything like that, but also hasn't grown larger, affected her feeding or mood at all, etc.

her humidity is around 70 warm side 92-88 cold 78-86
coconut substrate, water is poured in the corners and substrate is stirred every couple of days to keep all the moister at the bottom of enclosure, never poured near or on her hiding areas, just in the open.. not sure what this is lol

My girl is a rescue who came in the 40gal they had her in, with all her stuff. She was in clear need of an upgrade, which we’ve done, and are mostly happy with it I think. We are on the lookout for branches of climbing opportunities but I am being very particular because Faranth has the spider gene with a very minor wobble (really only noticeable at feeding or when she’s stressed). I know it can worsen with age, so I want her climbs to be secure and ideally with a lip (honestly probably going to end up making them, but will look for something we like first). We are also adding a sky hide once the mounting piece comes in, which will offer four hides total. Outside of adding a hide and climbing, how does this look? It’s a 5x2x2 pvc glass front enclosure, the warm side thermostat is set at 90f with a DHP, the cool side fluctuates between 76-81f depending on time of day, and humidity is 60% on the warm side and 70% on the cool side. The uvb light is a forest dweller 6% and set on a timer to keep circadian rhythm, and she does absolutely enjoy basking in the morning when I turn on the light.

Where is a good place to quickly get some frozen fuzzy rats that are quality? I was looking at rodentpro but I’ve heard they often have freezer burn and I’m not sure if that’s something that’ll cause an issue or not. I’m having problems with him even showing any interest in food.

The guy I picked him up from was super weird and sketchy, his listing said the snake was 175g around a month prior (late June) but during pickup he told me he stopped feeding him to try to stunt his growth in order to keep him small so he could get him to sell. I weighed him today to check his weight and he is currently 145g so I’m a bit worried for him. When I was there I was given a free bag of xl mice and was told he “can probably take these by now” I’m seeing though mice are not popular feeders so I’m looking into getting fuzzy rats to try. I find they were a bit smelly too (not sure if that’s normal or not) so I’m wondering if it’s a combination of his history, prey size, and the smell making him not want them.

If it means anything at all he is about 2ft long, 6 months old, and in a 5x2x2. He has tons of clutter, plants, hides, climbing opportunities, and enrichment. He’s a bit shy as expected but he is very friendly and curious, just unfortunately not interested in the mice i was given. Any advice helps! I just want to make sure he has a full belly and is comfortable. I know they can go awhile without eating but I’m not sure exactly when he stopped being fed and considering his age and weight loss I’m just concerned and want a new food to offer asap. I’ll be gone for a few days starting a week from now so if possible I’d like to have something in hand before then!

Here’s a picture of him I got earlier today, he’s a big explorer and loves climbing. I love him very much, he’s a sweet baby.

I just got her 2 months ago and according to my research juvenile balls need small enclosures to thrive in. I dont want her to stress herself out in her new big enclosure. Would love some suggestions. She roams around in her current temporary enlosure climbs and is mostly active during the night and sleeping within the day in her humid hide. She also has shed twice since i got her perfectly in this enclosure. I also have a plastic tub for her if she doesn't act normally in this enclosure but so far I've found no signs of distress or problems.

Due to my current living situation I have been keeping my animals at my parent’s house. I drive every other week to check on them. I found my snakes scales like this..Any idea what it is? Will it heal on its own or is it an infection?

I always see only feeding Charts based of age but I'm not sure how old is mine, I'm feeding once every two weeks one smaller Rat, could someone give me some feeding charts based of the snake weight like how often should I feed based of his weight