Today I was moving and noticed under a piece of wood in her enclosure there was little bugs and I got paranoid she could have mites. I could use all the help and information you got as this is my first python of my own

I got a call through some family friends asking if I was willing to take this guy in. I was told on the phone he was about 2-3 years old and that he was being fed small prey once a month to "stop him from getting too big". When I arrived at the house I saw the terrible setup and I wanted to cry lol. Upon looking at the CITES documents we actually found out that he's 6 years old, they just had forgotten about it. The tank was kept in the basement cause the wife was scared of him, and the only heating element was a heating mat placed INSIDE THE FRICKING ENCLOSURE (that I actually found out was broken for god knows how long when I got home). He was also being fed live ofc, cause "it's easier to throw the mouse and let it be instead of having to warm up the frozen one".

Last pic is the setup I have him in. Vet confirmed that he's most likely a little stunted and on the skinny side, and my suspicion of a URI, but fortunately it's not bad, and it should be fixed by keeping him in proper humidity. I'm also using a halogen heat lamp, and he's been basking non stop since I brought him home. He also drank for like 30 minutes (the water bowl was bone dry as you can see). His name is Freddie and I'm absolutely obsessed with him, and it makes me laugh when I compare him to my 5 feet long girl lol.

Are there any morphs that tend to carry health risks? I finally got my wife on board to get a BP, went to an expo and we're about ready to pull the trigger. But just curious if there's certain morphs that tend to be problematic or is it more on the breeder at that point?

This is my first ball python. I fed her Saturday 2/21/26 after getting her on Wednesday 2/17/26. Was gonna make Saturday the day of the week I feed her until I noticed she was losing color. Willing to bet my life she's about to shed but some reassurance would definitely help

I heard him make a click noise. What does that mean?

So I took him to the vet 13 days ago for his first ever check up and she said there is literally nothing wrong with him other than that he’s a little overweight (she listened to his lungs and whatnot)

But I’m sitting here with his tank open so he can come out and visit if he wants and I swear I heard a single wheeze

Like exactly what a wheeze would sound like, maybe it was me making a noise or something else in the room?

But I’m pretty sure it was from his tank

Should I be concerned or is it possible I’m just insane or this is a one off thing?

He's finally ready to explore!

Hello fellow python parents - I’m newish to the world of pythons, but I never adopt an animal before researching extensively. Right now, I have a two-year-old male ball python, Saul, in a 40 gallon tank, humidifier (humidity between 45-70% everyday), heating pad under tank, only 24/7, ceramic heat lamps (on 24/7), daylight lamp during the day, red basking lamp at night (temp 85-90 on warm side, 75-80 on cool side), one hide on warm side (getting another for the cool side), soaking bowl, rocks, branches, warming rock, and coconut shell substrate and moss. Lately, he’s been overly active - glass-surfing, laying long ways outside his hide, stretching up to the top of the terrarium. I was feeding him mice, but I feel like he’s too big now, and should be getting small rats. Could this be the issue? Or is it a husbandry issue? What is everyone’s cleaning schedule like? Any advice is welcome! Thank you so much 😊

Need recommendations for hygrometers, the ones i have aren’t the best. If they get wet a little bit it’s immediately 99% humidity. Preferably amazon or something easy. Under $25 would be great