• Hello!

    Either you have not registered on this site yet, or you are registered but have not logged in. In either case, you will not be able to use the full functionality of this site until you have registered, and then logged in after your registration has been approved.

    Registration is FREE, so please register so you can participate instead of remaining a lurker....

    Please be certain that the location field is correctly filled out when you register. All registrations that appear to be bogus will be rejected. Which means that if your location field does NOT match the actual location of your registration IP address, then your registration will be rejected.

    Sorry about the strictness of this requirement, but it is necessary to block spammers and scammers at the door as much as possible.

Ball Python after cornsnake

A

ara35

New member
When thinking of what to do with the cage that my cornsnake out grew, we decided to try a ball python.

The tank already has a heating pad, locking screen top, waterbowl and a hide.

I understand the ball pythons are more docile, pickier eaters and get a bit thicker.

Can anyone give me some additional information about differences between the two snakes? More on the lines of how to care for them rather than personality/characteristics because I am sure I will learn with time. Thank you!
 
Not sure how they can get more docile than a cornsnake....slower I would say...definitely pain in the butts about feeding...prepare for aggravation....make sure you get from someone who feeds f/t and can show feed/shed records that show the animal has taken f/t consistently. They are a lot thicker....
 
Higher heat requirement and more specific humidity requirements. Will grow much bigger (wider) so will need to eat rats which are more expensive. Won't be as squirmy compared to a corn snake. Prone to go on hunger strikes or refuse anything but live prey.

I think those are the main differences. I used to not want to go through the bother of it but I've also been planning on adding one to my collection soon.
 
Had one that would only eat a certain color rat for a while, she came from a bad home and was covered in rat bite scars. She was precious to me though, a gentle soul who seemed to understand that I took her from that nasty place. When they handed her over she was balled and reeked of snake poop. In my arms she opened up, they said she's never done that before. She was difficult to get on prekilled, was at least 2 or 3 years old but still growing when I got her. My point, even though they can be fickle pains in the butt, even ones from bad situations can be turned around so don't get put off by it. She only ever balled up again when I was letting her roam in the yard and I startled her by accident. lol Oh, she did hiss at me once when I was spot cleaning and my hair (ridiculously long at the time) dangled down and brushed her. She was in a big Jewelry case turned viv on the floor.
 
appreciate the replies

thats a touching story weda. glad she opened up instead of staying protective and hesistant. definitely convinces me that we can handle a ball python.

they all go along with what i was thinking. especially picky eating. we are very good with the cornsnake and can definitely take on the "challenge" at times. we are thinking of getting the snake at an expo coming to our area soon. is this a good idea? are other morphs worth the extra price? the black is cool but the regular green and brown is classic.
 
Teatime said:
Higher heat requirement and more specific humidity requirements. Will grow much bigger (wider) so will need to eat rats which are more expensive. Won't be as squirmy compared to a corn snake. Prone to go on hunger strikes or refuse anything but live prey.

I think those are the main differences. I used to not want to go through the bother of it but I've also been planning on adding one to my collection soon.
Click to expand...

Just my 2¢ here, I wouldn't say they're "prone" to go on hunger strikes. In my experience, they hunger strikes are VERY predictable. If one isn't familiar with what often causes them, then it can be alarming.

All of mine refuse to eat while in blue. Males don't feed, or feed very sporadically, during peak breeding season. Not eating for most of Jan/Feb is not uncommon. Females don't eat towards the end of egg gestation. Other than that, mine eat like clockwork.

Also, once started on f/t, I've never had one not take f/t. Not all of them will ever take f/t, but once they do, they do very well on them. I'd say about 80% of mine took f/t w/o incident. Of my keepers, only 1 is not a f/t snake.

So to the OP, I agree with others advice. Try to get one that is well established and on f/t. Many breeders don't bother with f/t, so you may have to do some looking.

They have different requirements than corns, mainly temps and humidity. But they are not hard snakes to care for. Just make sure to get a healthy specimen that is well established. I would go for a yearling if possible.
 
So there is a reptile expo in town this weekend and as long as i can get the tank set up by friday night, i'm going to pick up a baby ball python.

I think i have everything narrowed down and considering i've had a cornsnake going strong for 3 years, i should be good.

i have a ten gallon locking tank with an under tank heater already attached. i will be getting two more hides, a waterbowl and some cypress bedding. the tank will be about 90 on the warm and 70-80 on the cool side. from what ive read, a basking lamp does not seem necessary. ambient temperature can get down to 65-70 degrees at night, but with the warm side, i think it will be fine. i have not seen any issues with the cornsnake thus far. humidity in the room is 70%+ so i should be fine there as well.

and i will be sure to ask about frozen thawed feeding
 
If the ambient temperature is dipping down to 65-70 at night, you will want to get a red bulb or a black light bulb to keep that heat up and steady.

Ambient temperature is much much more important for ball pythons than it is for corn snakes.

The target temperatures are as follows:

80F ambient temps, upper 70’s on the cool side.
90F basking temps, upper 80’s on the warm side.
75F or below is unhealthy. Night drops in temps are not necessary and can be very unhealthy.
 
I've worked with balls before, and had numerous problems with hunger strikes, and them just being a general pain in the butt.

HOWEVER. I recently did start getting back into BPs. Before I even got one, I gave Autumn's care sheet (the one already posted in this thread) a very thorough read through. Now, I've only had them a couple of months, but I've followed her instructions to a T. In that time, I've managed to get ALL of my balls feeding regularly on f/t. That's even with the three 2013 babies! I have NEVER had as much success with bps as I have after following that care sheet (and of course bugging her for advice every now and then). Listen to Autumn. She's the ball whisperer.
 
I will look into a red heating lamp. can anyone reply with a link to an acceptable heating lamp and thermostat? i will put the lamp on a timer and the undertank heater on the thermostat. I am trying to set this up tonight, let it run all day tomorrow and check temp and humidity, adn then get the snake saturday. i will continue to follow autumns guide as much as possible.
 
We got the ball python yesterday. He's a month old, been on live and fed three times. going to attempt to switch him next time, but we'll wait till next weekend at the earliest. its hard to leave him alone but i know its for the best. havent held him since transferring him to his enclosure. he wont sit still and hasnt really gone in either hide. is this normal? i imagine hes just exploring but i want to make sure hes comfortable. the temperature is around 80-85 and humidity around 70-80. im guessing he'll figure it out and get comfortable. heres some pictures







 
Very neat setups :). About the only thing I'd changed (and I just learned this) is switch the aspen for shredded cypress or coconut husk. Also they do well with hides that they can squeeze into; it makes them feel more secure to feel the hide around them, vs one thats "roomy".

They can be work, but they are great snakes :*)
 
sorry i should have clarified that the enclosure on the right is my cornsnakes. thats why i use aspen for him
 
so its been 3 weeks with the new baby ball python. i have a bit of a dilemma. the temps, humidity are good and he's converted to frozen/thaw with no issues. the problem is that he goes into his "s" shape and has already struck at me once. now i know hes a baby and i can take the bite no problem. but the dilemma is do i handle him more often to try and "break" him a little bit and get used to being handled, or considering he's only 6 weeks old, do i just let him get used to the new habitat and leave him undisturbed. i dont want to stress him out but i also want him to get used to handling. is it early enough to just let him do his own thing until he calms down with age and comfort? im not talking waiting years, just waiting until he doesnt react as soon as i approach the cage. yes, he does have two hides, a tree with cover in the middle, a vine on either side and construction paper on the back. he's about as covered as he can possibly be and again, the temp and humidity are dead on.
 
Let him do his thing. Eating is the number one priority. Overhandling at this age can be very detrimental long term. You want him to stay on food and establish steady growth.

You can seriously over stress a baby with too much handling. He will come around. Just establish a routine, keep him regularly fed and move around his enclosure with confidence.

Do you have the sides of the tank covered at all? He's honestly probably seriously freaked out in a wide open enclosure. They can be conditioned to live in all glass tanks, but it's really not ideal for babies to be fully exposed.

Look down toward the bottom of my care guide: A Ball Python How-to, and Troubleshooting Guide. there is a section with instruction on how to over the sides of the tank. I'd wager his personality will change a fair bit if you make him feel more protected.

Even with plants and hides, wide open glass tank are terrifically scary places for baby ball pythons. If you build up the snake's confidence, by closing off some of the sides and making it more cave like, you will have a much much happier snake in the long run.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top