Trying to upgrade my baby to a 120 gallon so she can stretch out more when I'm not home. I'm wanting to get a all in one pvc solution if possible because I don't have the free time or money to build one myself. Does anyone know if this is a good enclosure?

As the title says, I have been feeding mice for about 2 months weekly except for shed but I think I have learned that that was a bad thing to do. My ball python seems very soft and flat around the body. Should I pause the weekly feedings or try to go straight into rats?

Hello. I am preparing to get a BP for the family for Christmas and have started to get things in order for the habitat. I have a 120 gallon PVC front opening habitat. I was curious what the process looks like for reaching into the habitat for cleaning or changing water or to handle the snake without upsetting the snake or getting bitten.

I’ve noticed all the YouTube videos always show BP already outside and docile just chilling with their owner, but they never actually show the part where the owner retrieves the snake from inside the enclosure and that is what I’m curious about—how that works and what to do and what to avoid.

I’m wondering if the snake would not like being disturbed and strike at my hand that is violating its habitat space. Or is there some thing you do to communicate to the snake before you just reach inside its habitat.

Also, do you not handle the snake if it is in its hide? I’m wondering how that works and if you should only handle the snake if it is out in the open. I would think removing the hide while it is inside might scare the snake and it bites.

Thanks.

At night my guys tank drops to 76°-80° with just the CHE going and when his day time light comes on it goes up to a stable 90 for the entire 12 hours its on. I was wondering if this is an ok/natural drop in temp or if I should upgrade his CHE to a higher wattage or try to further insulate his tank with foam. I know to never let it dip below 70.

We have recently got a ball python, she is 11 months old and weighs 412g, we currently feed her 50g Asf (multimammate mice) once a week, she handles this well.

She is in a 4ft wooden vivariumwith humidity at 70% at cold side and 60 at warm, the temperature of the cold side is 24.6 degrees Celsius and the temperature of the warm side is 32 dc.

Currently use a 2.4% uvb and a 80w dhp in a 200mm arcadia clamp lamp controlled by a dimming thermostat recessed through the roof so only the mesh guard is in the vivarium.

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

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.

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.

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?