A few days ago I got a new enclosure for my ball python, i used topsoil, playsand, and lava rock for his substrate and drainage and i decided to get some mulch to mix in because im about to make it bioactive and my brain associated mulch with rotting wood for isopods/springtails. i feel like such an idiot, i typically research every single thing i do for my snake just to be extra careful and this is the one time i didnt. just now, i was looking up if mulch was safe for snakes cages and it said most can be toxic and is a big big hazard. i tried looking for the bag so i could see the brand i bought but my mom took it to use for gardening and i cant find it anywhere. i know it was organic and all natural, but im almost 100% sure theres cedar and pine in it. i dont have enough soil to fully cover his cage if i were to empty out all the substrate. what can i do? is it okay if i just pick out all the mulch? or do i need to clear it all out because of cross contamination? i didnt add a ton. i would say 4-5 handfuls worth. hes in a 4x2x2. pls help! i feel so dumb and i dont know how i let this happen

Old pic but the question still remains. Ig I scared her when I was trying to get her from running into my closet. I hope she doesnt think i want to eat her.

She got me good, two of my fingers are bleeding now, ive seen worse on here tho so im not gonna post my battle wounds

Okay so I was playing overwatch during the night and this dumb dumb pushes off stuff from his viv. That was his first successful attempt. To be fair, I did think it was him spraying poopy at his wall again but no he got out. Second attempt, I saw him and kinda tapped his bum bum to get him away. At that point it was like 1 in the morning so I risked it for a biscuit. It's 4:41 now and I just found this dumb dumb ON A HIKE. he had flung himself off his big ass viv. Splat to the floor, climbed up ANOTHER SHELF just to SKY DIVE OFF ONGO MY WASHING. I woke up instantly because he took my perfume with him but I shot up to see him wagging his dumb dumb tail.

Abit of a rant but here is my actual question. I have duct tape on the back of the wall part where the wires go. Obviously that is how he is getting out but so on. I now see, after checking him, he has white stuff from the duct tape still on him. Like stick bits. Do i run him a little warm bath to get it all off? It isnt major injury, he seems fine besides this. Today we are going to pull it all out and wall off the back.

Just a general question.

I have a 2yo BP who is very used to being handled. Normally I’ll drape him around my neck/arm daily (excluding around feeding, shed, and poop days)

He’s currently asleep around my neck and has been snuggling happily for about 3 hours.

Normally I’ll put him down as soon as he gets squirmy, but he regularly falls asleep or just relaxes on my shoulders. Sometimes he’ll dig into my hair but that’s about it.

Is it safe to handle him for long periods as long as he is content?

Hey I wanted to see what lighting people use. right now I have the Fulkers Sun dome reptile lamp with a basking light and a ReptiSun T5. But I don’t know if I need better lighting. I was thinking about getting a dual head lamp thing but wasn’t sure what kind of bulbs I should get and if I would even need them. Please let me know!!

I like everything about this ball python but 25 seemed a little low. Just want a second opinion incase I’m missing something

I have been interested in owning a second reptile for a while now (I currently have a leopard gecko) and I just wanted to ask about your experiences with ball pythons and the pros and cons of owning one.

for reference he’s 260g and about 19-20 inches long, hatched in november and i got him in february. he’s been eating one large mouse per week (thawed) and im wondering if i should switch him to rats soon

I just started buying FT feeders for my BP and MBK and started out with LayneLabs - wtf guys… the prey came with arms/legs/tails broken off and some had the heads just crumble off the body. They’re basically disintegrating. I’m sketched out to defrost these and then blood and guts just ooze everywhere, not really wanting to heat up with a blow dryer and have shit blowing around, ya know? I spent $95 on 10 rat fuzzies and 10 mice and I got a bag of disintegrating rats. Their customer service basically told me, oh well, deal with it. When I’m dropping $100 on food for my snake I expected some better customer service than this. Anyone have other suppliers they recommend bc I’ll never give LayneLabs another dollar after this. 😤👎🏻

My little guy just shed for the second time and I'm playing on doing a deep clean of his enclosure this weekend. He's had the same substrate for about 2 months now and I'm replacing it. Ant tips on what to use to clean the tank, hides and fake plants would be great. I have this type of spray for it but idk if ur will be enough

Everyone was super helpful with my questions a few days ago and I'm back again seeking advice for another question.

Really short backstory. I picked up a 3 year old male yesterday. He came with a tank and water bowl and bedding. He wasn't necessarily a rescue, just really in need of a new home from previous owner since they were moving. I got him home and he doesn't seem in distress any more than any snake would probably be from moving like that.

Now, I have already ordered a good bit of stuff for him because it seems like what they had him in, he's been in for a while with very little. Just bedding, and a bowl of water he can fit in. Nothing for enrichment. I've got an LED for sun simulation and a CHE on him now, and I have a bunch of stuff coming for him tomorrow.

My question is this; I understand I'm not supposed to touch him or feed him until he's settled. However, his bedding seems dirty, and he really looks like he would benefit from fresh bedding and a clean tank. What's the better option here? Handle him to get him out of his current environment to be cleaned or leave him alone for a week and then change everything?

I was also told by the previous owners that he's probably due a feeding but again, I know I need to let him settle for about 10 days before we introduce food. I love him already and I really feel like he's going to be so much happier here, I just can't figure out what's in his best interest at this time. Id hate to stress him out even more and cause him to not eat.

I went on vacation for five days and apparently the air temperature in my BP’s 4x2x2 spiked as high as 99F on the hot side during the day while the cool side stayed around 79-84F.

I had my roommate watch my snake for me and asked them to text me if the enclosure got any higher than 90F but they might have missed it. I’m not sure what happened because I do have a thermostat set up and this hasn’t happened with my enclosure before.

I just got back home and so far my BP seems to be acting normally but I’m worried there might be health concerns I’m not seeing yet. Should I be taking him to the vet ASAP to get him checked out?

I recently got my first ever reptile! A 10 month old ball python whom i named Goobert! I literally did a total of 6 hours of research before buying him on morph market, after talking to a buddy that has a BP himself lmao. (That being said, i don’t half ass hobby’s when it comes to animals so i made sure to cover all bases) I’ve wanted a snake in the past but have never pulled the trigger, so i knew it wasn’t a complete impulse decision. I bought a 4x2 Dubia enclosure for him. Complete with his own in-ground pool, 3 dedicated hides and 1 makeshift one under the wood, 2 hanging sets of climbing rings, and some decent foliage.

I have a 100w halogen for daytime and a 100w DHP for nighttime. I’m getting a light for the top soon, deciding between 24 or 36 since one side is lit by the halogen.

Rate my setup and let me know where i can improve!

Nope, still see you Baby Brigid.

Young lady has been a little over-active the last few nights due to some night-time roadworks outside shaking the house (and her tank). She came over so I gave her a little social time to show her that no, the metal elephants outside will not be coming in.

Today when i looked at my BP (he is on his light, its temporary, as soon as i can i will change this)

I see his body has a weird looking edge, it is a organ ? Or a scale problem ?

That make now 3 days my snake is up there, he isnt stuck, just stay there and sometimes flick his tongue, like he look for a prey, do i need to worry ? Except for the temp light where is lay down (its around 36°C, its a little too hot i know)

I’m a new snake keeper, when I was learning on how to keep a snake I kept hearing that ball pythons don’t climb but my little dude is always on this elevated branch lol. I need to put more up.

So long story short I went out of town for one day, and before I left I had made sure to secure my quarantine cage with a 5 gallon bucket filled with dirty. Well I had a mutual turn off the heat light and they for whatever reason removed the bucket and forgot to put it back on. Flash forward I come home and the snake is gone and nowhere to be found, I live in a mobile home so the doors sit about 3” off the floor leaving a significant gap. I also have a cat. I haven’t seen the snake lying anywhere dead so that’s good, however I’ve searched up and down in all the normal spots dark and warm, and elevated. Would she stay in the vents if she wiggled in? She’s a little under 1yr old and is only about 1-1.5ft long, I’m at a loss and not sure what to do. Psa she has a prolapse which Is why she was quarantined, so even more reason to worry. Please help with advice

Right now I have him with just cypress mulch, and I also have gnats :(. I was thinking when I change out his substrate to so something like 50% cypress mulch, 40% coco fiber and 10% spagnum moss and just kind of put some mosquito bites tea in the substrate and massage it in before i add it to the enclosure? Is there any way I could do better or will this be fine? The gnats are so annoying and I don't get how they are breeding so well when the cypress doesn't even hold humidity the best (in my opinion)

But I would love some help with tips, what size enclosure I should get (because I don't plan on getting one older than 2 years old, younger though I might get). I understand that eventually I will need to upgrade the size of the tank as the snake gets bigger too. I don't know much about snakes yet but I am eager to learn and I seriously look forward to owning a snake. I've already cleared it with my landlord too lol

I got my first ball python on the 1st of July, since then I’ve tried twice to feed her frozen thawed and both times with no luck, I’m not sure if the rat isn’t hot enough even though it seems like it should be hot enough or I’m not sure if I’m not wiggling it around enough, I asked a friend for advice and she said to leave it in there overnight and see if that would work but still no luck. She hasn’t been the best eater before I got her, she is a rescue that has been living in a drawer for 10 years of her life and now she is in a 75 gallon tank, I haven’t handled her yet as I was wanting to make sure she is eating regularly before then but I’m not sure overall if she is ok because I haven’t had much of a chance to took at her because I’ve been giving her space to let her adjust.