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Member
Join Date: Mar-2010
Location: Paulding, Ohio
Posts: 573
Country: 
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Re: hello
Balls make great pets, I love mine. But they're really, really lazy. Mine only comes out when he's hungry, and then just hangs upside down from his branch until I feed him.
In addition to being very very lazy, balls also tend to be finicky eaters. It's important to make sure you find out from the breeder or pet store what they've been feeding on (rats or mice, frozen/thawed, freshly killed, or live).
As for what you need.
There are many caging options. You can keep your ball in a rubbermaid or sterilite tub (with air holes), an aquarium/terrarium, or a specialty reptile cage (like a boaphile cage or a Vision cage).
Specialty cages are the best, in my opinion. They're made with reptiles in mind, so they're easy to keep heat and humidity up in, and they tend to be secure. They are also very very expensive, however. Expect to spend $200 or more. I would recommend a minimum of a 3'x1'x1' for a yearling, a hatchling can be (and should be) started in something smaller.
Aquariums/terrariums work well, but keeping humidity up can be a problem, especially during the winter. If you get one of these, you'll need a screen lid, either a sliding one with latches, or you can buy latches separately. I would recommend a minimum of a 20g long aquarium for a yearling. A hatchling can be started in a 10 gallon, but will grow out of it. Expect to pay $50-100 for an aquarium with lid.
Tubs are the cheapest. You can get a good tub with a latching lid for about $20. Five minutes with a drill, or a soldering iron for air holes, and you're set. Tubs are the easiest to keep humidity up in, because they have solid tops. The problem with tubs is they're not as attractive. If you're looking for a display snake, you might want to go with something more attractive. Tubs also limit your heating options, as heat lamps will melt (or worse) the plastic.
Your snake will need heat. The python should be offered a temperature gradient. One side should be warm, with a basking area, and the other should be cooler. The warm side should be in the mid to high 80's, and the cool side in the high 70's to low 80's. The temperature can safely drop to about 75 degrees at night.
Heat options: Temperature must be monitored, either through the use of a thermostat (recommended!) or through the use of multiple thermometers.
Heat Bulbs - These are cheap, but they use a ton of power. They also put out light, so they cannot be used 24/7.
Infrared heat bulbs - Slightly more expensive, also use a ton of power. They can be used at night, but aren't very attractive.
Ceramic heat emitter - It's a bulb without the bulb. Fairly expensive, but they don't waste any energy emitting light. If you need a lot of heat (for example, you live in a cold climate, or the snake will be in a room you don't intend to heat), I would recommend these.
With any of these three types of bulbs, you need a high quality ceramic socket with a reflecting dome. You can get these online for anywhere from $8 to $30, slightly more in pet shops. If the light will be inside the enclosure, you must have a a wire guard to prevent the snake from making contact with the bulbs themselves, as they get very very hot.
Other options -
Heat Tape - This is the kind of stuff that gets put on pipes to keep them from freezing. This can be a very easy and cheap option if you've got the technical know how to set it up. If you use heat tape, you'll need to use it with a rheostat to control the temperature.
Heat Cable - Like heat tape, but without the work. Heat cable is basically the guts of an electric blanket. It gets warm, but not hot, so you don't really have to worry about cooking your snake. Heat cable is available in pet stores, and online. It comes in lengths from about 13' to over 50'. To use it, tape the cable to the bottom of the enclosure in a back and forth pattern using electrical tape. Heat cable is very low wattage compared to heat lamps. I highly recommend this if you plan on keeping your snake in a room that will always be warm. If you intend to use a tub, I highly recommend using heat cable. It is safe to tape to the inside bottom of the tub, and won't get hot enough to damage your snake, or your tub.
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Hides - Your snake needs at least two of these. They should be just big enough that your snake can get completely inside them. The tighter the fit, the happier your snake will be. You can use anything for this, pet stores sell fake rock caves, cork bark, half logs, and other things, but they'll just as happily use an empty butter dish. You need at least two hides, one on the warm side, and one on the cool side.
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Substrate -- This is what lines the bottom of your cage. You can use just about anything for this. Some people use commercial beddings (like ecoearth), others use newspaper. I personally use astroturf on my ball. If you use wood chips, do NOT use pine, or cedar. Cypress and aspen are safe, pine and cedar are not.
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Water - Your snake should have a water dish large enough for it to soak in. This water should be changed several times per week. Do not use distilled water, but filtered water is recommended.
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Food - Start your snake on whatever the previous owner was feeding him. This will be least stressful for the snake. Ideally, you will want to get your snake onto rats, because rats are available in larger sizes, and are healthier. Balls are imprint feeders, however, and the longer it eats mice, the more it will only want to eat mice.
As for taking care of your little bugger.
Have your enclosure set up before you get your snake. Find out where you want to keep him, set the enclosure up there, and get it up to appropriate temperatures. Once you get your little guy home. Pop open the bag, or box and gently introduce him to his new home. Once he's in his enclosure....
DO NOT DISTURB! Let him settle in for two weeks before you touch him, feed him, *anything*. I know you'll want to see him eat, and you'll think he must be hungry, but ball pythons can go for extended periods without food (the record is 22 months!). After those two weeks if he doesn't appear to be going into shed (dull colors, bluish tint to the eyes), you can offer a rodent. For best results, give him darkness and quiet with his rodent. Once the snake is eating regularly, you can begin handling him and taming him down. Move your hands slowly, and try not to come down on him from above. These snakes are preyed upon from above, reaching in and grabbing them is very traumatic.
Most of all, be patient! Taming snakes won't happen over night, don't rush things. These snakes live in excess of thirty years.
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Hello and welcome! Carpet python also make a great first snake. About the same size as a ball. Maybe a little longer, but slimmer. No more nipper than a baby ball imo. They are alot more active than balls. IMO just a much more rewarding pet than a ball. Don't get me wrong balls are nice snakes, but why settle for a nice when you could have a total sweet snake. Carpet are addictive. Just ask anyone into snake an i bet 90% of them want or have a carpet. They are one of the easiest snakes to take care of. Then there's rainbow boas they require a little more work, but well worth it. They get just a tad bigger (than a ball) and do require more humidity. But really beautiful and active snakes. Mine will always pop his head out when i walk in the room. Just like all three of my carpets. Size wise carpets top out about 7 to 8 feet with males being smaller, but useally under 7 feet. Some kinds are smaller. Diamonds and Coastal get around 10 feet. For Rainbows it's about the same they're a little thicker body. 
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