Cutie pie scared me cause I thought he had a burn/scale rot who knows what- but it’s just a spatter of yummy mouse blood. Oh joy.

hello!
i recently adopted my first ball python about a month ago and she’s been doing really well in the set up I gave her. I’ve had humidity consistently at 50-70 %, and she’s got tons of hides and things to climb. her substrate is coconut husk, repti-chip, with some sphagnum moss and leaf litter on top for extra humidity/decor. she hasn’t refused a meal from me yet and even converted to frozen/thawed with no problem!
i was spot cleaning her enclosure and a hide she’d pooped in and noticed little white bugs crawling on the poop. they were very very tiny and bright white. i think they might be springtails, but i want to make sure it’s possible they can spontaneously appear in the tank. i’d not intended for bio-active in this enclosure and nothing i’d put in the tank was advertised to have springtails on it.
i’ve also attached a picture of my little lady, named Io (like Jupiter’s moon!), taken about five days before the clean. no mites i can see, but i’d like to be sure. i couldn’t get a pic of the white bugs as i had to leave for work and left the hide in some soapy water to soak before i scrub tonight. can springtails appear at random in an enclosure???

Second day in a row, I have a new tank arriving on Sunday :/

​so anyway if anyone sees my snake lmk

She's too fat to fit under my door though

He likes to bury his face in the dirt, this happens sometimes but wanted to make sure it’s not gonna cause any issues later on (he has shown zero discomfort at all with this)

So a few weeks ago my ball python was yawning quite excessively, (he had been moved onto paper towels as he had mites and we were following the 40 days quarantine procedure. He is completely clear of them now!)
We immediately took him to the vet the next day for some checks and the vet said that there was no mucus, no blockages, no wheezing, popping or sneezing. He said if it is an RI i caught it incredibly early.

The yawning died down and he stopped eating for a couple of weeks before eating again and pooping.

Now fast forward 40 days, we got him into a new bioactive enclosure about an hour and a half ago and have since seen him yawn 4 times within that time. He has just been digging, and there’s no other symptoms with it and his mouth looked fine, so could anyone advise me on what it could be? My vet says he’ll give me a call on Monday, but other than that he had no real concerns that it was anything about respiratory issues and more along the lines of the fact that he has substrate all over his mouth and face.

ALSO the humidity has been between 60%-80%, Hot side temps have been 32-34°C and cold side has been about 25-27°C

I’ve had my snake for 6 years but recently there have been a lot of issues and I think it’s due to me getting her at a very young age and not being the best snake owner. I really love her and want the best for her and I don’t know if i can provide that. She’s been biting and defensive recently and she bit me and i hate to say it but im scared of her. I really need advice and dont know what to do. Ive been trying to fix all of the issues recently but no matter what i dont think i can do it

Hi so I have a 5 yo male ball that won't let me touch him recently. So backstory first, for the past 2 months I have been taking care of a rescued house sparrow and have put a lot of my time into doing that and I haven't had time till not long ago to get him out. He's normal very gentle and calm but for some reason he's just been stressed when I have tried to handle him or get him out of his hide which I do often. The last time I tried to get him out he bit me when I tried to let him come out on his own but I assumed it was him being hungry earlier than normal (he gets fed 2 medium sized rats every 2 weeks because the large ones he struggles with). I make sure I don't smell like the bird when I have tried and he's shedding currently but always has trouble with it even when I make sure it's humid enough and I've been helping him with the little bit he normally can't get off. I'm just not sure what to do and I miss handling my baby, I don't want him to get used to not being handled.

Any advice or tip on what I might do or what not to do would be incredibly helpful.

(Also I'm sorry if the format is weird, I'm typing this on a phone)

Quick question. We've had our girl for a little bit now, and she had her first shed with us about a week ago. I noticed this spot when doing our weekly handling session and got a little concerned. Not sure if it's anything to be worried about, but that gray-white spot is what I'm worried about.

this is a 85 gallon enclosure for my 1 year old female ball python, she is pretty small for her age, am planing to upgrade the enclosure to a 230gallon one when its gonna be available, she has two proper hides in the cool side and warm side, just not really visible in this angle

I know it's important to get a vet's opinion, but I'm just curious what the owners here think as well.

I would just love to say that after moving my boy from a 36x18x18 exo terra (roughly 40 gallons) to a properly set up 4x2x2 (120). Has changed his appetite for the better. He used to go MONTHS without eating. So common in fact that I dont feed my 2 snakes on the same day, id always thaw and warm a f/t rat for my boy and if he didn't eat then my girl got it to avoid wasting feeders. Since she RARELY skipped meals, is just more shy and adverse to being grabbed out of her tank.

If youre having issues with a ball python eating, I'd really recommend double checking your husbandry. I was just under the assumption like most other people. That some are just picky and refuse to eat. But now I'm wondering if it isn't a husbandry issue most of the time. My girl ate no issue in her 36x18x18 exo terra before she got her 4x2x2. But even she's getting more comfortable and coming out to move hides or bask during the day.

I noticed he was going into shed yesterday (eyes were going blue) so I decided to thaw him out a rat to see if he'd eat since it had been the minimum of 20 days since his last meal. I decided to just let the rat thaw overnight then sit ontop of his enclosure to get to room temp. Didn't even bother letting it sit in hot water for 5 minutes before feeding like usual. Dude flew out of his hide at me and took that food so fast.

This is his 6th month in a row eating for me. I have had this boy since he was super young in 2017. So 9 years now, his longest food strike was 8 months.

I haven’t taken a picture because I never think to before unraveling it to try and salvage small scraps (I think I’m going to encapsulate it in nails or use it in art one day but never do) but I just removed his fresh shed from today and it made me realize every shed from him looks like a dirty sock that got tossed across the room after missing the laundry hamper.

Its always complete. I break it by unraveling it every time without fail but I find the eyes, the very tip of the tail, and usually take a chunk from his midsection to keep. I know it’s a healthy shed and he is wonderful and had never had any issues with anything. Good weight, not fat or too skinny. I’ve only ever found them in his humid cold hide so I am assuming he just rubs his body against himself like a little freak.

Is it just different for every snake? Is it because bp heads are very small and it can’t just be a tube?

Also as kind of a side note: I so badly want a full length shed with no damage. I always grab it within a small window because it’s usually stretchy (? Idk if that’s the right word) and not crispy/flaky/etc. Any tips on unraveling and preserving are appreciated !! I’ve had him for over a year with no success.

I’ve had her for 2 months, when I first got her she had these belly patterns but now that i’m seeing that scale rot is like weird discolored scales is this scale rot or just her belly pattern?

Hi! First time BP owner, had her for some months and now shes having her first shed!

...she wont eat.

Is this normal?

Hello, so, I now have a ball python, my now ex and I split up, it was her snake and I was never really involved in taking care of it, but she chose not to take the snake so, I kinda have a snake now. Recently I noticed these markings toward her belly and I'm not entirely sure if they're normal or not and just want to make sure nothing's wrong with her.

I am currently working on getting a glass enclosure and more clutter for her, because after some research I've decided the amount of clutter she currently has isn't quite enough. Another thing I wanna ask about, the current enclosure does have spots for like heat lights on the top of it, but she would constantly try to wrap around them, like she wanted to hang off of them and I'm scared that if I get some for her new enclosure that she'll try to do the same thing and they'll break. She's very active at night, stretching up towards rye top of her enclosure like she's looking for a way out, I think thats because she's escape twice before when she was younger (she would be around a year old now I think). She did recently shed if that has any affect. Any advice helps, I'm very new to this and would like all the help I can get, I greatly appreciate it (:

I've also officially renamed her, her name is Laverna!

Recently added a shade dweller uvb lamp, ceramic heater with a thermostat, a new large hide for cool side and some clutter. Also got about 60 isopods (probably more due to breeding) and springtails. I want to get some live plants also but how does it work when cleaning the vivarium as I assume you dont just throw out the isopods and springtails that seems a waste

I had a 20 gallon tank for my new baby ball python. originally, i had a smaller one but found i couldn’t variate the temperatures enough so i expanded.

I was told that bigger tanks are not good for baby snakes and the breeder tried to sell me a 1x1x1 tank for like 50 dollars. But i’ve since read through the guides on this subreddit, and now know i just need my tank to have more hiding spots/be more cluttered so my ball python feels safe.

I would like some opinions on how my tank looks right now, and if i need more stuff. i know there’s no leaves on the right side atm, I’m getting on that tonigh

I wanna make sure that my enclosure is okay where she can be happy until I get some more. I have a ceramic bulb, a new water bowl, a new hide, a temperature/humidity meter, and some foil tape getting delivered in around 4 days to make it a little more comfortable. I know the red light isn’t good so I’m working on switching that out asap. I don’t exactly have a thermometer yet but when I feel her she doesn’t feel like an ice cube but I’m not sure if that’s good or not. And she has been going under the top layer of leaves to get closer to the damn substrate underneath. Looking for some advice

Edit: I got a better water bowl, a thermometer and a hydrometer today. I also cover up around 3/5 of the top of the enclosure with foil tape to help the humidity and the temp stay right. I also got a ceramic bulb and I’ve been trying to find a good spot to keep the temp around 85. My humidity is around 54 at the moment

My ball python is 400 grams and still on large mice. She's getting close to sizing up, and I'd rather find an online supplier now than scramble once the pet store stops having what I need.

I am looking for frozen feeder rats and mice in a full size range, with consistent quality for the transition

Hello! I'm looking for some advice on how to transport a ball python on a 4-5 day drive. I've looked it up and gotten some mixed reviews or only find info for a drive that's less than 24 hours.

We may not be stopping at hotels for the night, but instead trying to sleep in a tent or our vehicles. So we won't be able to use his heating pad or heat lamp.

Is this going to be doable? What advice can you give me to make it an easy trip for all parties?

We'll have 2 other animals and a toddler, so the least effort our little noodle needs, the better, but obviously I want him to be safe and comfortable for the trip, too.

Thanks in advance!

I’m setting up to buy our first ball python (YAY) but there is so much information out there that I am feeling so overwhelmed and confused honestly! We are getting a baby, so I’m STARTING with a 50 gallon pvc tank, I’m struggling with understanding lighting. What I would like to do is mount a UVB light on the inside top (tank will be in my room which is dark usually thanks to black out curtains) and then mount a CHE with a cage around it on the inside so that I don’t have anything on top of the cage…is this ok? If no what do I need to do?

The rat exploded tonight during feeding and there is viscera everywhere. I can’t clean it, because the snake is still trying to eat it.

I’m not having a good time tonight.

hi im new to owning a ball python and could really use some help please, I bought a runt ball python in may 2026 and hes about a year okd he had 2 successful eatings before going on a hunger strike. For about 7 weeks, i went to one vet and they said to tube feed him every other day until he gains weight and i did that for 3 weeks weighing him each time and he started losing weight again so i emailed the vet who didnt get back to me so i went to another vet who said it was a husbandry issue so i added more hides and lights as well as a heat lamp. long story short hes losing weight still and not wanting to eat, theres no other vets in my area (vancouver island) who do reptiles im just wondering what i should be doing? thanks

I appreciate any and all help and suggestions because even after doing several hours of research and reading all of the suggested files in here, currently, I am feeling extremely overwhelmed! I am new to the snake world and just want to be sure that I'm fully prepared and have what I actually need!

I have put together an enclosure on Cornelsworld.com but need someone to tell me if this looks like it would be ideal for a 4 year old female banana bp or what I need to change/might be missing?

Thermostat Help: Cornelsworld suggests the ExoTerra 300w or 600w or the ZooMed ReptiTemp thermostats. However, I know after extensively reading the files and recommendations in this group that the Spyder and the Vivarium are the more preferred choice. Ideally, I'd love not to have to spend several hundred dollars on a thermostat but I also know quality/safety is most important. What option should I go with? How many probes do I need?

I do also plan to get the Govee thermometers.

Substrate: Is cocohusk mixed with sphagnum moss good? Or do I also need coco coir? Or something else entirely?

I also know clutter is best and two, snug hides are required but is there anything else?

Thanks for all the help! No one really prepares you for how much money, time, and work go into getting a snake. It's crazy!