Ball Python Care

Quick Reference:

• Aquarium/Cage Size: 10gal – 20L
• Food: Mice or Rats
• Temperatures: 78-82*F Ambient, 88-90*F Basking
• Humidity: ~50-60%
• Average Size: 3-5 feet
• Activity: Terrestrial, Nocturnal
• Lifespan: 20 years +

Housing

How you decide to house your new snake will depend on a few things. Do you want a visually appealing display that will require more maintenance or just the basics? Either way, the basics are the most necessary component in any setup you choose.

The size of your enclosure is directly dependent on the size of your snake. Rule of thumb is that your snake should be able to stretch out completely while touching only 2 sides of the enclosure. If it is touching the 3^rd side it is probably time to get a bigger cage. For the sake of your Ball Python, a 10gal aquarium can house a hatchling up to about 1 year of age while a 20L will house “most” juveniles and adults.

Bigger is not always better! Ball Pythons spend most of their days crammed into rodent boroughs or cracks in rocks and tree stumps. Being able to hide in a cramped area helps them feel secure. Most have found that putting a Ball Python in a larger cage can stress them out and will stop eating. If you prefer to start out in a larger cage, be sure to provide ample décor and multiple hiding spaces for health and security.

For ease of cleaning and space considerations, most breeders of snakes will use Rubbermaid or Sterilite type tubs for housing. In general we use 3 typical sizes; 6qt shoe box, 28-32qt sweater box and 42-74qt under bed box. Hatchlings will be kept in the shoe boxes for 6-10 months then transferred to the sweater boxes. The 42qt tubs are mostly used for large females and breeding. These tubs are kept in a “Rack” system. Similar to shelving, a rack system allows us to stack multiple tubs vertically while using a heat cable or heat tape to provide a basking area.

Décor

The 2 most essential items you will need inside your cage are hiding places and a water bowl. As stated above, Ball Pythons are mainly terrestrial animals. This means that they will spend most of their lives on or under the ground. With that in mind, most décor like trees and branches for climbing may be used but are not necessary for your animal’s health.

Hiding places can be made out of many different items like cork bark, ceramic pots or even milk cartons. The best thing for your snakes hiding place is that it is sized so the snake can feel all edges of the hide when coiled. Again bigger is not better. If the hide is too large the snake may not feel secure and can get stressed. A stressed snake does not eat and can become ill very easy.

Above I stated “hides” and “hiding places”. These are plural for a reason. We recommend at least 2 hiding places for your snake; one on the basking side of the cage and one on the opposite or cooler end. More on this later.

Lighting

For most snakes, lighting is not needed. Snakes are mostly nocturnal animals and do there hunting and basking in early evening and night hours. If you choose to light your terrarium we recommend you only use low wattage bulbs and only during the daylight hours.

Important: Use of black light or other colored bulbs at night for viewing or heating is “NOT” recommended. Due to recent studies, reptiles can see many spectrums of light that we cannot. Using these lights at night will disrupt your animals sleep cycle and can cause stress, non-eating and other health issues.

Heating

Reptiles are cold-blooded. This means that they cannot create their own body heat, thus we must provide a heat source for proper digestion and health. When providing a heat source for your snake we recommend using an Under the Tank Heater (UTH) in combination with a thermostat. The UTH should cover about ¼ of one side of the cage. This will provide a basking area and allow your snake to move on and off of the basking area as needed. The basking area should be kept about 88-90*F by using a thermostat or dimmer type switch. If you use a dimmer switch you will have to keep a constant watch as the basking temps will change as your house/room temps change. The use of this basking area should keep the rest of the cage at about 80*F. Recommended ambient temps are 78-82*F. If ambient temps get too low you may need to use another heating device to compensate.

Recommended Heating Devices:

• UTH
• Ceramic Heat Emitter
• Radiant Heat Panel
• Heat Tape

Not Advised Heating Devices:

• Heat Rock
• Heat Lamp (any color)
• Heating Pad

Bedding/Substrate

The bedding I prefer the most is “pure” cypress mulch. This is not to be confused with the cypress blend found at most home improvement and garden centers. Cypress blends are mostly mixed with cedar to keep the bugs out but cedar can be harmful to your reptile. I prefer cypress because it naturally holds moisture and reduces possible mold issues. Other commonly used beddings are newspaper and aspen. Most breeders would “not” recommend using pine or any products with cedar for the health of your animal.

Humidity

The recommended range of humidity for ball pythons is 50-60%. This is not always the easiest to maintain. Best bet is to generously mist your snake’s cage and substrate every other day. If you are using an overhead heating device, the air may dry out faster and more frequent misting may be needed. If your cage remains damp or does not dry overnight you may be misting too much.

Feeding

A snake’s diet consists of rodents, mainly mice and rats. Be sure to ask your breeder what your animal is currently eating and how often. An appropriate sized meal for a snake will be the same or slightly larger than the girth of the snake. This will leave a slight lump in the stomach of the snake. A good schedule for your snake is one appropriate sized meal every 7-10 days.

If your snake does not wish to eat during your regular feeding schedule, do not panic! Do not try to force it to eat! Simply skip that feeding and try again next week. Snakes will often stop feeding for various reasons. If your snake refuses a meal, ask yourself the following questions and you will most likely fix any possible issues:

• Are my ambient/basking temps to high/low?
• Is my humidity too low/high?
• Am I confusing the day/night cycle?(using a heating lamp)
• Is my snake shedding/in shed?
• Is my snake’s water bowl empty?
• Does my snake look sick? Loss of weight? Mucous / bubbling from mouth?
• Is my snake gravid or in breeding mode?

If your answer to any of the above is yes, fix the situation and try feeding again the following week. If your answer to all of the above is NO, then the snake just does not feel like eating and you should try again the following week. Snakes are very efficient with their food and are able to go weeks and sometimes months without eating. The only time you should panic or seek professional help is if you answered YES to the question of; does my snake look sick?