My first ball python (DUW)

[reptile65]

I adopted my first ball python a few weeks ago. He was not in the greatest of shape when I got him, so I've been trying to get him back to health. He seems to be doing great so far! He's a great eater and has a very curious personality.

Here are some pictures from the day I got him:
http://i1027.photobucket.com/albums/y337/reptile65/Ball%20python/DSC04272.jpg
http://i1027.photobucket.com/albums/y337/reptile65/Ball%20python/DSC04271.jpg

And here are some pics from a couple days ago (sorry about the cell phone pics):

http://i1027.photobucket.com/albums/y337/reptile65/Ball%20python/10.jpg
http://i1027.photobucket.com/albums/y337/reptile65/Ball%20python/9.jpg
http://i1027.photobucket.com/albums/y337/reptile65/Ball%20python/5.jpg
http://i1027.photobucket.com/albums/y337/reptile65/Ball%20python/2.jpg
http://i1027.photobucket.com/albums/y337/reptile65/Ball%20python/1.jpg

[stephanbakir]

Nice, grats on the new acquisition, ball pythons are great.

[Nektu]

Very nice indeed. How long is he and how much does he weigh?

[reptile65]

Very nice indeed. How long is he and how much does he weigh?

He's around 3 feet long and 555 grams. He's definitely a little thin, but I know he'll fatten up soon. His previous owner was feeding him an adult mouse every 2 weeks. I'm now feeding him a small rat every week.

[TeaNinja]

he looks much better without that nasty stuck shed, good job.

[Nektu]

He's around 3 feet long and 555 grams. He's definitely a little thin, but I know he'll fatten up soon. His previous owner was feeding him an adult mouse every 2 weeks. I'm now feeding him a small rat every week.

That should work nicely. If he seems to still be hungry afterwards, feed him 2 every week. That should help get his weight up to where it should be.

[Marica]

Awe, poor guy :( He's looking much better :) Hope he continues to do well in your care.

[stephanbakir]

Shouldn't be too tough to get his weight up if he's a good eater, just make sure to set a goal weight for him and slow down once he reaches it so he doesn't become a fattie XD

[Lankyrob]

Looking so much better now, my opinion would be to keep with one prey item a week, if he has been malnourished then fattening him up slowly is probably less strain on him than rapid weight gain, remember that to fatten up and grow he will need to shed more often so i would keep it slow.

[reptile65]

Looking so much better now, my opinion would be to keep with one prey item a week, if he has been malnourished then fattening him up slowly is probably less strain on him than rapid weight gain, remember that to fatten up and grow he will need to shed more often so i would keep it slow.

Yep, that's exactly what I'm planning on. I know it's not a good thing to try to fatten them up too quickly.

[stephanbakir]

I'll be interested to find out how his next shed will be, the last one was pretty gnarly.

[Nektu]

You didn't get him off of Craigslist did you? It looks like one a guy was giving away free with about 5 other ball pythons.

[stephanbakir]

guy on kijiji is trying to get rid of a retic in ottawa lol, they aren't even legal there.

[reptile65]

You didn't get him off of Craigslist did you? It looks like one a guy was giving away free with about 5 other ball pythons.


No, I actually got him from a fellow student who couldn't keep him anymore.

[reptile65]

I'll be interested to find out how his next shed will be, the last one was pretty gnarly.

I've been keeping him at the proper humidity level so I'm thinking his next shed will be much better.

[stephanbakir]

We can all hope :)

[Nektu]

No, I actually got him from a fellow student who couldn't keep him anymore.

That's good. Because I talked to him and he insisted that I keep them all separate.

[reptile65]

That's good. Because I talked to him and he insisted that I keep them all separate.

In my opinion, they should be kept separate, so I don't see the problem with this?

[Lankyrob]

Pretty much all reptiles shuld be kept separately for their own health and well being.

[Nektu]

I keep males with males and the one female I have is by herself. The boys do just fine and curl up together for warmth. I leave the female separate because I don't want her bred before she is of weight. I keep my oldest boy alone because he is so big he may suffocate the other 2.

[Lankyrob]

I keep males with males and the one female I have is by herself. The boys do just fine and curl up together for warmth. I leave the female separate because I don't want her bred before she is of weight. I keep my oldest boy alone because he is so big he may suffocate the other 2.

If you go to their enclosure and find a regurge or nasty poop how do you know which snake it came from? If one of them gets ill tephen you are going to end up treating two snakes instead of one. Nearly all snakes are solitary creatures that come together to mate but apart from that wont co habit with another in the wild.

[Nektu]

You make a good point. But it comes down to space. I don't have the space to do a shelf system. I prefer large tanks to give them room to move around and stretch. This is just what I prefer. I will however separate them for feeding.