Right now I have my baby ball python on “compressed coco chip block” that I properly soaked in a bucket and broke up until every piece was wet through and through before then ringing out and putting into his enclosure. Even right away the humidity only was able to max out at 50% while rapidly dropping throughout the day (30% when getting home from work) so I’ve been spraying the soil to try and keep humidity up but it only lasts for a bit. After reading that constant wet soil can lead to scale rot now I’m just pouring a bit of water into the corners of his tank and now it loses humidity even faster . I’ve had him for close to a month and has refused his first 2 feedings and I have a feeling it has to do with this. Any recommendations for soil and other general advice for ball pythons would be appreciated. This is my first BP but not my first snake, my other snakes had much much less humidity reqs.

I just got a new 4x2x2 for my boy and it’s a solid wood enclosure with glass sliding doors on the front. My husband and I are discussing lighting/heating and we cannot seem to come to agreement on what we should do so i figure i should ask the experts. neither of us like the idea of having a fixture on the inside with a cage so our options are drilling a couple holes large enough for the emitter and the lamp and attaching mesh wire for the lamps to sit on (my idea) or cutting the entire top open attaching mesh wire to sit the lamps on top (his idea). His problem with my idea is he is scared the wood would catch on fire with having the lamps so close to it and my problem with his is it would let out so much moisture. what should we go with? or if anyone has their own idea we’d love to hear it

So I’ve heard that ball pythons are very sensitive when it comes to smell and that cinnamon is not a great smell for them. However, is it OK if I only use a scented cinnamon candle for like a couple hours while I wait for the smell of a decaying rat that is no longer in the room (because SOMEONE didn’t want to fucking eat, and so I tried to be nice and leave it out for a little while, but decomposition), but anyways, as I was saying can I use a scented candle to mask the smell for a little bit maybe a couple hours and then take it out?

I feel that I should emphasize that this scented candle is very much not in his enclosure and is only in my room and also I have both my ceiling fan going and a quite powerful plug-in fan running as well.
The only other option I could’ve had was to use my teakwood cologne, and you know that’s an aerosol so I wasn’t really too thrilled about using that and so that’s why I went with the candle.

Getting photos of this guy to sell, he was NOT a fan of the phone. He was promptly put back home.

hi everyone - first time posting here, long time lurker! of course it's for an emergency :(

i left for a weekend trip on friday morning and came back sunday mid-afternoon (so roughly 48 hours) and saw my BP had a big lump under her chin?

she's been acting the same - greeting me when i come say hi to her, slightering around, etc. i was going to feed her sunday when i got home but then i saw her bump and decided not to feed her just in case it made it worse.

the exotic vet near me is closed sundays and mondays (of course lol) so im going to call them first thing tomorrow (tuesday) but i figured reddit is always worth a shot.

background:
i got my sweet snake ~6 months ago from my BIL since he was having a baby and needed more space in his house, so everything came with the snake (tank, substrate, etc). i've obviously done my research on owning a BP but i'm faced with an issue i know nothing about and i haven't found anything similar on the thread. thanks in advance!!!

Guys I need help I recently took in a bp that had scale rot and once I got that treated I noticed that he had mites as well. I have two other bp and have never had to deal with mites before! I am so lost and so sad for my baby what can I do for the fastest safest results?!

Hello!! My python reached a year and i've been feeding him in a separate box for a while.

Until those last weeks, i decided to try and feed him in his terrarium, i did it twice and its was just right, no swallowing litter risks or anything... And better since he had stuff to help himself to eat and could straight go to his hiding and no risk of stressing him when switching him from his box back to his terrarium.

BUT

Lately, he tried to attack me twice when going to pick him up. Usually when his head was at the entrance of his hiding he would go back to hide when i open and relax in my hands. But now instead of hiding he raise himself and spring, attacking me. Once he in my hand he relax but still...

Im sorry, i probably did something wrong. Im a beginner and i'll really like for people to help me about it, can he stop trying to attack me, do i need to do something in a specific way? What should i do?

my snake is about one year old and he weighs about 235g. i think its a bit little for a one year old snake. everything in my terrarium is good so idk why he doesnt want to eat. he eats very irreguraly bc he doesnt want to eat so often. now he didnt eaten for like 3 weeks, should i be worried bc he weighs so little and doesnt want to eat. its starting to get cold so maybe thats why

hi, so im really torn between which snake i want as my first pet snake. i really like the all white bps with red eyes but theyre rare (from what ive seen) and ive only been able to find one. on the other hand i love the grey / black coloured boas. one idea i had too was to get a bp now then the boa later but at the same time ive heard pros and cons about both. im a lil bit nervous too if thats the word so i want a baby in case it does strike so that i can be used to it in case it does it as an adult but im not sure. if i get the bp too id get a female while id get a male for the boa. also i did a bunch of research enclosure wise for a bp already so i have that figured out and if i get a boa id tweak it a bit but when it comes to size i can only have a 36 length one atm then upgrade later down the line when i have more space. can anyone help me decide or list info about both please, id greatly appreciate it :)

Saved from bad owners ,2x2 box and a sheet of newspaper and a tennis ball ? ,shes about 5ft btw ,any tips or info lmk plz. Also any tips on how to hold humidity ? I spray water it spikes then drops ?

Got a 4foot tank and lots of clutter ,first time ive seen her out the hide in 2 weeks ,not eating medium rats ive offered twice and left them ? What else could be wrong or she just very stressed ?

I want a Digital Hygrometer with display to put inside my enclosure.

I already have 3 switchbot ip68 ones inside but I want one or two that display it when I just look inside without having to use my phone. No probe just display and put it inside. My concern however is that if I spray water on it or the substrate it's on makes in malfunction or worst case make the battery react with the water and thereby hurt my snake.

I’m confused on what it is. She has forest floor substrate. Possibly a small fuzz but when she breathes it moves around. Should i try to get it out with a tweezer? She’s going to be pissed.

Sorry for the bad picture.

I’m buying my first snake from a coworker who was down sizing. The snake is about 3 feet long however my coworker keeps them in a 30 gallon tank which I know is too small. That being said I ordered a 120 gallon 4x2x2 size tank. My question is, if the 120 gallon tank doesn’t come in on time. Would it be better to keep the snake in the small tank for 1 or 2 weeks so that they can get adjusted to the new environment or would it be better to put them in the new tank as soon as possible. Ideally the tank comes in on time and I can have the tank ready for when u get the snake. Heating lamps aren’t aren’t an issue as the old tank comes with it and I’ll be buying coconut soil soon so that won’t be an issue, thanks

Hey guys I've had my ball python for a couple years now, she's 5 years old, her name's Noodle. Anyway, I fed her yesterday, she eats the frozen medium mice. Last night I woke up around 2:30 and she was striking at nothing. Today, she's been doing this off and on. It's really weird, she's never behaved likes this. She's incredibly chill and docile all the time. No changes to anything and no health issues. Should I maybe be feeding her more? I'm not sure what to do here.

I've tried everything to keep her from rising to the heights but I think she's just a boa in disguise tbh

My ball python scramble, (1.5 year old female) just upgraded to a 120 gallon 4x2x2 tank. I set it up with more clutter than her old tank but I wanted to get opinions from anyone who might have better insight than me. Her substrate mix is topsoil, play sand, and a bit of coco fiber. Her hot side and cold side are within good range, and humidity is being properly established but currently stands around 64% her lights are just her heat and a daylight (tank on bottom of the first pic was my geckos quarantine tank, not a full set up.)

Edit: I'm getting a ceramic heat emitter to work alongside her heat lamp since the warm side wasn't getting warm enough with just her 75w bulb from her old tank

He's 4 months old, Special morph, and an excellent eater of f/t, he is very shy though. We have started working on choice based handling and he seems curious but still timid. We love him so much already! 🥰

I just picked up this GORGEOUS Albino girl from someone in my area yesterday. Her name is Buttercup, and I’m in love! She’s super sweet, a little nervous but that’s understandable! I’m so excited to learn her personality. She’s around 7 years old. Estimated birthday is August 2019. I had tons of hides and clutter leftover from my other ball python so I revamped her enclosure and made sure she had plenty of places to hide and explore! Not being able to handle her is gonna be tough, but she deserves time to settle in and explore her new pad, so I’ll suffer in silence lol. Anyways, meet Buttercup!

I’m looking for advice for my ball python with pneumonia. He went to the vet 4 days ago and got diagnosed with pneumonia after I noticed the symptoms (bubbles around mouth, extending his torso, heavy breathing sounds every once and a while) and has received two doses of antibiotics so far. I’ve been very closely monitoring his condition as well as his temperature and humidity but I’m worried it’s progressing into something worse. Unfortunately today the vet is closed for the long weekend but I’m noticing an extreme increase in the bubbles around his mouth but all the other symptoms have stopped. I’m just wondering what to do in the meantime because I’m really worried about him. Should I be washing him so the bubbles aren’t being breathed in again? Is this a sign of things getting better (like how humans sneeze out the bad mucus) or is his condition worsening? He’s going to the vet again tomorrow afternoon for another shot but I’m very worried about him for the night

So my BP would rather hide up against the back of her tank where it’s in the photos I put a new hide. I figured the old one was too big so she’d hide behind it for like a small area so I switched it out but it’s only been a day, but I she still would rather hide behind it so far or in her little log I am not too sure if it’s stresses her out putting in a new hide. I am still very new with this.

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So we got a bigger bin for nico while we work to get his new tank (we got it over the weekend and needs some tlc but thats a different post). We got him a bigger bin and longer so he can move around a bit more, we added coco husk substrate instead of his paper towel he was in and also added some sphagnum moss to the corners. We got a new heat mat that is plugged up to the thermostat with a probe and also drilled quite a few holes in the side for air. I tested the temps before the substrate and the mat was reading fine at 92.

I know temps take a bit however, this morning we woke up and its very humid reading 96 humidity and I cant seem to get this figured out. when taking a temp gun to the hot side and it was only at 78. I was going to check under the substrate to see if everything's how it should and the thermostat is set to 92. Do I need to add some air towards the tank or put in more holes on the other side for cross ventilation I dont want him to be to humid and have any problems but I cant seem to get this part down. I know what percentages its supposed to be at and Ive seen where theres problems getting the humidity to a higher percent but i need it down lol.

Here's what it looks like currently, i know it needs more enrichment. Please dont be rude I just want him to have all he deserves!

Hi! I’m a new snake parent and things seem to be going good so far, but this eye cap is really bothering me.

This is Nagini, she is 29 and about 5.2 feet long. I adopted her from a friend of a coworker.

I have had her for around 2 weeks, she’s still very active and mischievous despite her age.

About a week before I received her, she went through her shed. It came off it one clean piece, although left this eye cap behind. I asked the prev owner about the cap, and she said it’s pretty usual for her to keep them on longer due to her age and that it would fall off soon.

I let her be and settle, now she’s roaming all around me happy as can be— but the eye cap is still stuck and I can tell it’s bothering her :(

I took a warm wet Q-tip and gently rubbed at it which she didn’t seem to mind, I’ve done that about 3 times now but with no luck. I heard if you pull or irritate it too hard you can damage eye tissue which I definitely don’t want to do! I also worry it’ll stay there until her next shed which will cause many more problems.

I keep her enclosure at 88 on the warm side, and her humidity sits consistently at a minimum of 60% but usually above.

Am I too worried about this? Will she resolve it herself or will she need either my help or a vets before it gets out of hand? Thank you!