Sunday, November 16, 2008

Ball Python FAQ

If you have any Ball Python questions, feel free to post or contact me to have them answer and added to the Ball Python FAQ list.

List of
Ball Python Frequently Asked Questions.

Why does my Ball Python refuse to eat?

What sex is my Ball Python?

My Ball Python keeps leaving some pieces of skin/eye caps when he sheds, is this normal ball python shedding?

Why does my Ball Python keep opening its' mouth a lot after meals? Is he still hungry?

What do the following mean? (WC,CB,CH LTC and 1.0.0)

How big will my Ball Python get?

What kind of bulb for heating my Ball Python's enclosure should be used?

How should I check if I have the right temperatures in different areas of the enclosure?

Will my Ball Python bite me? What should I do if my Ball Python bites me?

How many Ball Pythons can I keep together?

Is it normal for my Ball Python to stay under the heat lamp all day?

Where can I buy ball python books?



Answers

Why does my Ball Python refuse to eat?


There could be numerous reasons why your Ball Python is refusing to eat. Please read this Ball Python Pet Care guide to see if you meet the living conditions a Ball Python needs to remain stress free. If you have the temperature and humidity all correct, and you gave your Ball Python a one week acclimation period, then chances are your Ball Python is wild caught and very stressed out right now. Please read "Tips on how to get my Ball python to eat". Don't panic as this is normal behavior for a Ball Python in the wild, they can go months without food and still be fine, as long as there is water. If worse comes to worst and you have to force feed, please take your Ball Python to a reptile vet near your area to avoid further stressing your Ball python.





What sex is my Ball Python?

You will have to take your Ball Python to the vet to have it probed. Male Ball Pythons have longer anal spurs than females. Probing doesn't cost a lot, so do not attempt to probe your Ball Python yourself. If you know any experienced snake keepers, ask them to either probe or pop it for you.

Check out my post titled "Where is my ball python's ass?", it has a video showing how to determine ball python sex. Click here for the Ball Python video.





My Ball Python keeps leaving some pieces of skin/eye caps when he sheds, is this normal ball python shedding?

If your Ball Python keeps having bad sheds, that means your humidity is too low. I would not recommend removing the eye caps yourself, it may not look pretty having a Ball Python that hasn't fully shed it's skin/eye caps, but it really isn't a big deal since Ball Pythons rely more on smell and have bad eye sight anyway. Increase the humidity inside your Ball Python's enclosure and give him or her more warm baths. Your Ball Python's next shed will remove the eye caps for you, instead of trying to use cotton swabs or even your fingers, which could possibly stress your Ball Python even more.





Why does my Ball Python keep opening its' mouth a lot after meals? Is he still hungry?

NO! Do not overfeed your Ball Python. Ball Pythons open their mouth or "yawn" to realign their jaws. Sometimes Ball Pythons just yawn because they want to, which looks really cute, and you should have your camera ready :)





What do the following mean? WC,CB,CH LTC and 1.0.0

WC means Wild Caught Ball Pythons, try not to buy one of these, as they are usually in very poor living condition because of all the stress they went through and possible parasites that they come with.

CB can mean Captive Bred or Captive Born Ball Pythons. These are the best Ball Pythons you can get, well established, regularly feeding Ball Pythons.

CH means Captive Hatched Ball Pythons, which are most likely the ones being sold at pet shops. Can be decent, but it depends on what pet shop you buy from.

LTC means Long Term Captive, self explanatory, quality of the Ball Python depends on where/who kept him or her. Sometimes can be decent, sometimes as bad as WC.

Male = 1.0
Female = 0.1
Unknown sex = 0.0.1

So if I say I have 2.4.1, that means I have 2 male ball pythons, 4 female ball pythons, and 1 unknown.

If I say I have 50.200.0, it means someone should save me because I'm addicted to Ball Pythons. ( They really are addicting, I'm not even kidding )



How big will my Ball Python get?

Average size of a Ball Python is 3-4 feet, five being rare.





What kind of bulb for heating my Ball Python's enclosure should be used?

It's very difficult to give you an exact bulb to use, because we all come from different countries and have different climates, temperature inside our homes, living conditions etc. It is best that you yourself test this.





How should I check if I have the right temperatures in different areas of the enclosure?

Temperature guns or digital thermometers that have various probes that can be placed at specific spots are best for monitoring the temperature inside your Ball Python's enclosure. Avoid stick on thermometers as these are not accurate.





Will my Ball Python bite me? What should I do if my Ball Python bites me?

Ball pythons are generally docile snakes, although Ball pythons are not known for their aggressiveness, all snakes do bite. Nothing to be afraid of, Ball Pythons will rarely bite when they feel they are in danger (they would rather ball up, hence the name Ball Python). A feeding response may also trigger a bite. If you spend enough time to learn to read your Ball Pythons behavior or body language, bites will be very very rare. It's the anticipation that you will get bit that is frustrating, you may even want to get bit on purpse (like me the first couple of years).

Ball Pythons RARELY bite, I have had ball pythons for 6 and a half years, and have only been bitten thrice. Take into account that I have five Ball Pythons. Only one of the two Ball pythons that bit me has really bitten me, the other one I tricked into biting me. I did that to get over the "OMG I'M GOING TO GET BIT BY MY BALL PYTHON". I did that by handling a rat with my hand before feeding my Ball Python, then waving it infront of it's hide. I counted 6 seconds then BAM. It bit, held on for a few seconds, then quickly released in time with me jerking my hand away. It was fast and it bled, but it didn't hurt. I was more surprised than hurt. It did bleed alot, and I would compare it to having a shot from a doctor, but faster.

What I learned is, never pull away from your Ball python when they bite, they will let go on their own when they realize you aren't prey and are too big for them to eat. If you do pull away, get ready for lots of blood lol. After being bit, just wash/soap/disinfect like any other wound.





How many Ball Pythons can I keep together?

None. One Ball Python per enclosure, unless you are planning to breed them. If you keep your ball pythons together, they will get stressed, they might become aggressive towards each other.






Is it normal for my Ball Python to stay under the heat lamp all day?

If you provided two hides in your Ball Python Cage, and your ball python always just stays in the hot side, your temperatures might be too low. If your temps are all fine, and your ball python is eating properly, then you shouldn't worry too much.

Is he outside the hides and is directly under your heating lamp? Then maybe your temperatures are all wrong and you need a higher wattage bulb.



Where can I buy ball python books?

Check out this post about Ball Python books with links on Ball Python Care books, Ball Python breeding books, and ball python morph books.





Click here for the Ball Python Pet Care guide
Click here for a brief overview on Ball Python History

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