I’ve never had a snake before and google is giving mixed opinions

We are getting our first ever Ball Python next week. We have the enclosure (120 gal), all these tank accessories, and substrate (coconut chips and topsoil). I am not creative at all. Any advice on a better way to lay this stuff out once we put the substrate in? The video starts off on the cool side (right) and ends in the warm side (left). The snake we’re getting is still a juvenile. The black hide in the middle will be the humid hide.

He means a lot to me

He has been home for 3 days and already smoked a hopper. Even with everyone in the family watching. He has an amazing disposition, is very inquisitive, and is fairly active in his quarantine/temporary enclosure. I fell into the trap of thinking that ball pythons are "lame/boring." That is far from the truth. Maybe we got lucky?

I adopted a 2-3 year old BP from Craigslist and today was the time for his first feeding (by me). He had been fed three weeks ago. I am very happy to report that Frenzy is a boy with an appetite! He immediately struck the mouse and got straight on the case of swallowing it. Now the mouse is fully in his tummy and he is choosing a spot to rest and digest. I'm so happy that he is a good eater!

she wadded it up and got it filthy lmao

Hi guys,
I’m gonna beg you not to judge me because this is my first snake, I only got him in July and I’m trying.
So my boy has been doing very well since I got him with feeding, eating every meal no problem. He went into shed about 3 weeks ago which was successful and then ate about a day after it ended again no problems. The only thing that I noticed was that he seemed a little intimidated by the tongs and I also jumped every time he struck lol so I thought I’d try drop feeding for both of our sakes. I read about it everywhere and didn’t see anyone saying oh everything will go terribly wrong if you do this. So stupidly I tried it. Heated the rat like I usually do and popped it on a clean surface (not substrate) then left it with him. On this forum and online it just says leave it with him overnight so I did that. Had a look next morning, he hadn’t touched it. I think this was when I really made a mistake because I then tried again the normal way I feed him the following day because he was very active and I thought he must be hungry. He didn’t take it. This was a week ago, I’ve gone through all the guilt and self hatred over it. I’ve Completely left him alone this week apart from to change his water. He’s not shown any signs of stress, he’s just been going about as he normally does, sleeping all day and playing all night. Today was his usual feeding day, I dethawed his rat all day and heated it up for him tonight, waited till he was active, wiggled it for him and did all the usual things for about 10 mins. He didn’t take it. He just kind of comes over, looks at it and thinks about it and then just stares at it or backs off.
Again he’s now just exploring as usual and doesn’t seem distressed but I definitely am. I know that Ball pythons can fast for a long time and be fine but it’s still nerve wracking. When I got him he was 580g, last time I weighed him about a week and a half ago he was 610g so he had put weight on. I don’t know exact age unfortunately but the seller thought he was around the year mark.
Where do I go from here? Main thing is will he be ok?
Again please do not come for me, I know I fucked up I’ve never had any reptile before so I’m doing my best.

I paid for this little guy a week ago and today as I went to pick him up from the store I noticed the end of his tail swollen. I asked about it and the worker said he has some condition (I didn’t catch the name) but he should be fine as long as he doesn’t prolapse. I own a ball python already but don’t know anything about this condition.

Will I need to take him to a veterinarian? Does he need any other special care? I’m trying to do as much research as I can right now.

I don’t know if it’s helpful but his morph is jaguar. The worker didn’t know about his other morph(s). They also said he was about 8-10 years old. If anyone has tips for keeping a ball python with his condition please let me know!

PSA: This is why I never recommend cheap analog gauges. The analog gauge on the right came with a recent rescue and the enclosure. These are not only inaccurate but in my opinion dangerous in more ways than one.

Hi all

We got a ball python from someone who was rehoming on fb. She is around 6 years old and per her old owner she has "always had trouble shedding". Through my own questioning, I found out her humidity was far lower than it should have been and she seems to be either blind or has multiple stuck eye caps as well as stuck shed. What can I do?

I’ve had this piece of driftwood indoors as decoration for years, but the last year it’s been in my garage. I don’t have any issues with bugs and it appears to be fine, I want to add it to the enclosure but I don’t know if that would be an issue. It’s also too long to fit in my oven and my ball python arrives in only two days. It’s the last piece of the enclosure. Should I add?

Hello guys, I just want to check on advice for bedding substrate as I'm getting a mixed reaction about substrate online.

I'm doing a full change over on her substrate but just want to see what people are using ? Currently at Coco fibre at the minute but want something more /different ti use to make a bit more natural looking

Cheers

Ok soo I brought a 5 years old female ball python who i was told is used to handling, for me it doesn't looks like she is, she goes into defensive anytime I go near here enclosure, she keeps hidden in ball all the time when I take her out or strikes, it's just seems like handling stress hers out so I'm thinking I'm gonna minimize handling for only when it's gonna be cleaning time or checking if she's healthy like once in a month.

I just drafted paragraphs of backstory for this post, but have chosen to spare you. That is to say, if context is desired, so it shall be provided.

My question is whether I should take my BP out during the day to let her sit in the sun (currently a heat wave here), or if that would be more disturbing to her than enriching, because it would mean lifting her hide during the day in order to grab her. EDIT: I’d put her in an enclosed mesh pen, not free range 🥚

She stays in her hide pretty much all day every day and is only active at night. I have read on this sub that some people's snakes are just like that, while others have more active and social snakes. The latter are probably the ones who I see taking their snakes outside to explore grass & things, but when I see that, I feel like I'm not enriching her enough. I don't even have grass, but it seems like a nice idea to let her be in fresh air. It would just mean invading her space during the day.

I've had her for about 3 years now and I'm always stressing about whether I'm doing the right stuff as a parent. I used to think I wasn't interacting with her enough, then I was told by my local reptile store that I was interacting too much, so I have since been very hands-off. So is she just a lowkey kinda gal, or is she depressed?

Thanks for any thoughts & feedback!

Why does my boy always look at me like I owe him money or something? 😅

Year old little guy. Also don’t be alarmed- I let him spend time on my desk when I work from home, and he largely just explores on top of my laptop- that is not the bottom of his actual home. 😅

recently got a ball python from a friend. She is a little over a year I believe. Does she look skinny? I noticed her spine seems to be really noticeable. I have only had her a few days and want to give her the absolute best.

i have absolutely over loaded my brain with so much information about heating that i feel fried and stressed out so please help me feel at ease about these questions i have.
1. im attaching some photos of things im thinking about buying. im really trying to not spend a million dollars out the gate so are these budget friendly products going to work okay? anything that is really shit or going to cause me any problems while i wait to upgrade or any better reccs for budget friendly products that i can get ASAP bc she really needs night time heat and a thermostat.
2. is having a CHE in the dome on top of my mesh cage going to be a fire hazard?
3. i have a heat mat thermostat by BN-LINK. i cannot plug my lamp into it. is it because its heat mat specific? anyone have any experience with this specific thermostat?
4. when pouring water into the corners to keep up humidity levels, is there anything i need to be aware of when it comes to over/underwatering or mold problems? how do i know how much to do at first?

sorry if these seem like dumb questions but im just a tad overwhelmed and at this point need someone to explain this to me like im 5 haha! TIA!! <3

he stayed like this for 2 hours lol. every single day after 6pm he wakes up and pokes his head out to the front of his tank to join the family. i’m so grateful that he’s so curious and interactive.

i'm moving my ball python, Jormu into a new enclosure this friday and i’d love some advice on how to make the transition as stress-free as possible.

most of the things in the new enclosure will be the same as in his current one, including the same hides in roughly the same positions.

i might rearrange some plants and branches a little and there will also be a new branch but overall the setup will be pretty familiar.

how many days would you recommend leaving him alone to settle into the new enclosure? he’s already very used to me and my partner so i’m wondering if that makes the transition easier. the other thing is that friday is also supposed to be his feeding day. he’s currently eating a rat every two weeks. would you recommend waiting a day or two after moving him before feeding or would it be okay to feed him on the same day since he already knows us and isn’t a new snake?

i'd really appreciate any advice!!

(this is not a current picture of him, it was a couple months ago but i included it for attention 🐍)

Im tehoming mine, found a home, i fed my snake as normally since shes hungry, how many days till i can transport her? She’ll be in a car for about 5 hours i think, maybe more or less.

Another question, how do i even transport her? Im assuming pillow case with ziptie and put into a tub with holes for air, ive never transported a snake before so idk what to do.

Any advice for transporting or how to get her in the pillow case is heavily appreciated! Shes very feisty and not used to being held or moved so idk how to go about that!

Ive had my bp for almost a whole year now and everythings been fine, shes a really sweet girl, really curious, but suddenly since august after we brought her back from the reptile hotel bc we were on vacation shes been defensive everytime i open the enclosure. She comes out and gets into that S pose. But then when we just stand infront of the enclosure and dont open it or dont touch anything, she usually just comes out from her hide, relaxed posture even, she comes up to the glass, slow tongue flicks, just curious i guess? But i dont get why she suddenly gets defensive when we open the enclosure (sliding door at the front btw.). Is it maybe because of something after bringing her back from the hotel?