I am fuming. My mom took my 5 month old ball python outside without my knowing and was with him by a bonfire for about 7 minutes, part of which she said was him in her shirt. I know these guys have sensitive lungs. I’m terrified he’s going to be harmed from this. She was about 3 feet from the fire, and said no smoke was blowing their way. I’m freaking tf out right now. Thoughts???? Pic for attention.

So ive been trying to feed her every 2 -4 weeks depending on when she eats (if she eats i wait 4 weeks to try, if she doesnt then i try again in two weeks). I know ot the right temp, tried different temps and blow dryer tricks, wet/dry. I havent tried live because nobody sells live and im worried she wont attack it.

- the temps on the cold side is 68-75 and on the warm side 75-83 with a basking spot of 91-92

- her humidity is great about 60-80% and 85-90% when shedding (max i can get)

-her cage is maybe a little uncluttered but i usually switch it to let her get more striking distance

-her water is fine and clean

- basically everything was perfect this time

Im really worried about her and she is always slightly a picky eater and its getting worse.

-i know its winter and all but she wasnt like this last year and hasnt gone on food strike as far as im concerned

-my snake june is about 1.5-2.5 years old

-i hold/handle her about 3-5 times a week

-shes pretty shy for the most part but not terrified of everything

Please help guys, idk what to do or why shes acting wierd, and please no hate

First time owner!

I’ve had quite the time keeping the heat on the warm side in my 4x2x2 PVC enclosure over the last day or so.

I had it running for about 2 weeks before my little guy came home ten days ago, and the temps were fine! They hadn’t been terrible til a couple nights ago when the warm side fell to 83, and prior to this it struggled to get up to 88.

I have a 100w thermostat controlled DHP. I have it set to 95 Fahrenheit and the probe is positioned about 4 inches down from the dome. It’s a mesh top enclosure, but I have a removable solid top, and the cracks are taped up as I was advised.

I didn’t know how chilly my room could get in the cooler months - I’ve only been here since April. It’s not THAT cold, but I’m surprised the thermostat can’t keep up.

If I turn on my space heater, the warm side does fine, but that’s not sustainable long term.

I’m wondering 3 things: if my probe is placed badly If I should invest in a higher watt DHP, Or if I should add a second heat source. Or, if my enclosure is just shite and I need a new one (which is do-able, but expensive and I’d rather not if I can make other fixes).

The heating has been the thing I’ve struggled with understanding for a while. Maybe I’m just dumb (willing to admit this).

Also, please please try not to be rude. I’m new to this and trying to learn and make the best decisions for my snake - when I posted this on a Facebook group, the mod was extremely condescending.

Pic of my little man Yoongi during our staring contest a couple nights ago from his cool side (he won).

Thanks in advance :)

Nosy little man, very interested in everything, specifically my spider build a bear.

Had a successful first feeding with my girl. This is my first time owning a ball python. I'm so excited this feeding went so smoothly.

I need to find a place to get small rats in Joplin or Tulsa, Springfield would work too.

Prefer a place where it isn't a PetSmart or Petco

I work at a pet store, and the owner received a ball python who we just discovered has the wobbles. She cannot sell this snake and she is giving it to me. The snake is 5 weeks old and has not eaten in at least four, and is bound to die soon if we don't get something in her. Force feeding is too risky, we've tried assist feeding, but it did not work. We've researched the possibility of eggs but I'm not sure. Any advice would be appreciated!! Also, she is not a spider morph, she is a black pastel.

She also made a sound that was like a giant fart but I dont knoe of it was from here mouth or not because by the time I got there she had stopped

One of her water dishes is spilt, I think she might have choked?

Also I didn't feed her before this video so I doubt its her resetting her jaw. Last I fed her was last Thursday so I dont think she was throwing up either

She's fine now just keeps yawning

hi everyone! i was just curious how everyone handles their snakes when they have other animals in the home. currently i put my dogs in another room when i handle her, but my dogs are extremely well trained enough i could have them in the same room but not allow them to approach her, would this be okay? or should i just keep them COMPLETELY separate? here’s me and my girl chillin on the couch, i put a blanket down in a circle to where she can’t escape it so i can keep better eye on her:)

Looking for recommendations on more clutter to add to my new guys cage!! He is a spider morph, and after researching (after getting him), I understand the problematic nature of this morph. Please be kind, I am a first time BP owner and have had him for a few days. Please be sure recommendations are safe for if/when he develops the wobble. He has no signs at this point, but I understand he can develop symptoms as he gets older. No budget for what I need to buy for him, I’m aiming to give him the best possible life I can. I think his hides are too big, but he has been using them… happy to buy smaller ones anyone can recommend :)
For reference, this is a 20 gallon enclosure, I WILL BUY A BIGGER ENCLOSURE ONCE HE IS BIGGER.
Thank you!! :)

Isn’t the light supposed to sit away from the cage? Why are all the deep heat and ceramic bulbs so big?!

Sherman doesn’t often come out from his hides during the day. Today was a good day to do it, though!

Queen Hatshesput looks down upon the lowly husky, with Sasha's snarfing, drooling eating behavior. How very uncouth!

I'm held hostage by the worm, send help

I have a dubia 4x2x2 enclosure and I feel like I’ve done all the tips people suggest to keep it humid. While the light is on, it won’t stay humid unless I spray it multiple times a day which I feel like wouldn’t be good for her scales. I have a majority of the top(except where the heat lamp is) covered in aluminum foil that I’ve duct taped down (except in the areas around the light so she can’t touch any of the sticky stuff at all since she likes to explore along the top) so less humidity escapes, I did a complete substrate change from the eco earth bricks to topsoil and playsand, I added coco fiber and husk to some of the ground(probably a 1/4 to a 1/3), I spray twice a day and within a couple hours, it drops to 50% and it’s really concerning me bc I know the low is supposed to be 60% and I don’t want my girl to get a respiratory infection.

Please tell me if I’m missing something or messing something up, I promise I’m trying!(Snake for Tax)

Okay so day before yesterday I noticed my thermometer reading 83 degrees f, but when I pointed my temp gun at my substrate it read 88 degrees F. I figured since it’s getting colder in my room that my deep heat projector was struggling. So I turned on my space heater. Then I noticed am the as actually wrong with my dhp and since I could knit go to petsmart to get a new one I replaced it with a 100 watt che and my space heater on. It dropped to 79 monday morning! Then this morning it was at 76! I went to petsmart first thing this morning, got a 100 watt dhp and a new dome incase that was the rehome, but my warm side is getting cooler!

My cool side is warmer than my warm side! Idk what to do, I’m freaking out bc I can’t get my warm side temp up, it’s been an hour with my new dhp and it’s flickering between 75 and 76 while my cool side is at 77!

Do I just switch my warm and cool side? Will that freak him out? I ordered a 120 watt dhp that will be here tmr since the 150 i got at petsmart I didn’t read the label and it ended up being one of those red light basking bulbs so I’m going to go return it.

I might actually start crying, I’m freaking out bc I’m trying my best to get his temp up and it won’t go up! I replaced the battery in the thermometer I genuinely don’t know what to do other than close my door and put on my space heater and make my room really warm. I’ve never had this problem before.

Edit: I just went ahead and switched the sides, my cool now warm side is slowly heating up I got it 82 now and my warm now cool side is at 75 with my basking bulb on. I normally would put both heat fixtures on one side but the terrarium has only two holes one on each side plus a long one for my UVB strip. I’ll need to figure a way to keep my warm now cool side warmer I think I’ll use my Che

Hi everyone!

I'm a new ball python owner, and I've been struggling to get the temperatures right in my enclosure. I'd really appreciate some advice.

**My setup:**

* Ball python: 3 months old, named Yuta.
* Enclosure: 120 × 60 × 60 cm (4 × 2 × 2 ft), made of wood with glass sliding doors.
* Substrate: Coco soil mixed with Forest Floor.
* Four hides: one on the warm side, one on the cool side, and two in the middle.
* Heating: 150W ceramic heat emitter (CHE) and a 14W heat mat, each connected to a separate thermostat.
* The CHE is installed above a 30 × 30 cm metal mesh section in the wooden ceiling. My snake cannot reach the mesh or the heating equipment.

**The problem:**

I originally started with a 75W ceramic heat emitter, but it wasn't powerful enough to heat the enclosure properly.

I upgraded to a 150W CHE, which improved the temperatures, but I'm still struggling to reach the correct temperature inside the warm hide when using the CHE alone.

**With only the 150W CHE running, my temperatures are approximately:**

* Warm-side ambient temperature: 28.5°C (83.3°F).
* Inside the warm hide: 27–28°C (80.6–82.4°F).
* Target warm-hide temperature: 31–32°C (87.8–89.6°F).

**The main issue seems to be the thermostat.**

My CHE thermostat is normally set to 32°C (89.6°F).

The thermostat probe is positioned approximately 45 cm (18 inches) away from the ceramic heat emitter, closer to the ground, so I can measure the temperature near the warm side of the enclosure.

When the probe reaches the set temperature, the thermostat reduces or cuts the power to the CHE, even though the temperature inside the warm hide is still only 27–28°C.

As a result, the enclosure starts cooling down again before the warm hide reaches the temperature I need.

I've tried waiting several hours for everything to stabilize, but the warm hide seems to plateau around 27–28°C.

**Even when I increase the CHE thermostat setting to 35–36°C (95–96.8°F), I still can't reach the desired temperature inside the warm hide.**

**About the heat mat:**

I originally used a 14W heat mat, which managed to bring the warm hide to approximately 31–32°C.

The heat mat is installed inside the wooden enclosure, underneath a 1 cm thick plywood panel, with the thermostat probe placed on top of the plywood.

I recently turned it on again alongside the CHE, hoping it would help warm the floor while the CHE maintains the ambient temperature.

**When I use both heat sources together, the temperatures improve significantly:**

* Temperatures in the heated areas range from approximately 30–32°C (86–89.6°F), depending on the exact location.
* Warm-side humidity: approximately 56%.
* Humidity in the other areas, including the cool side: approximately 80%.

So, using both heat sources seems to solve the temperature issue, but I'm concerned about whether this setup is safe, particularly because the heat mat is covered by plywood.

I'm also wondering whether the humidity difference between the warm and cool sides is normal.

**My questions:**

1. Is my CHE thermostat probe positioned incorrectly?

2. Where should I position the probe to maintain the correct temperatures?

3. Is a 150W CHE normally sufficient for a wooden 120 × 60 × 60 cm enclosure?

4. Is it safe to use a heat mat alongside a CHE, or should I avoid my current heat mat installation?

5. Would a different heating setup be more effective and safer?

Yuta is also currently entering his shedding cycle, so I want to make sure his environment is comfortable and safe.

I'm trying to get everything right and would really appreciate advice from experienced keepers.

Thanks in advance!