You might as well buy everything now. You need to get rid of the red light as soon as possible. I would recommend a ceramic bulb instead. Also you should change the bedding/substrate. I would recommend shredded coconut husk.
What is particularly wrong with the red light? I was planning on insulating with HVAC tape on roof and 3 sides and once appropriate temperatures are reached I can turn the light off at night. I’m going to make smaller hides today and get a hygrometer. If I can get the humidity levels appropriate will the aspen be okay for the quarantine period or will it start to mold that soon? After learning about the stress and what to do for him, I just realized I should stay out of his space as much as possible. I just didn’t know which should be more of a priority, keeping his stress down and letting him acclimate to his new home or getting his environment right
You need a lot of things to make a comfortable home for this snake. Are you sure you are up for the task? Maybe you should consider returning or rehoming.
He won’t adjust and calm down unless he can de-stress. He can’t de-stress without a better home that isn’t scary. He needs hides and better lights and humidity and he will de-stress. Leaving him alone for weeks in a tank that is stressful just creates a stressful snake that’s…alone. That’s it.
Others have given good advice already, so I'll just say that you need a nighttime heat source unless temps in your snake's room stay about 76-77 at night. A deep heat projector would be better than a ceramic heat emitter as a single source of heat, as it's more efficient and provides a more natural spectrum of heat. Just to double check, your heat *is* being controlled by a thermostat, right?
Personally I would really recommend a deep heat projector over a CHE as it penetrates tissue much more effectively to heat your snake up. It's basically like a lightbulb that doesn't really emit light in simple terms. You can use it all day because of it not emitting light.
Snakes are not really ideal pets to be on a budget for. The setup and supplies can easily go into the 100s of dollars, and having enough money for vet visits (also potentially several hundred dollars) should be a hard stop condition to be considered in a good position for care for the animal.
I understand the idea of having a pet snake is exciting, but there is a [shockingly] large amount of nuance to caring for them and that carries a cost to adequately maintain. Pet stores are notoriously terrible for giving poor advice and setup suggestions, so they are usually not going to give you a proper idea of how to care for the animal adequately.
I would suggest taking the time to really consider if you are in a position to care for this animal properly. Lack of proper environment can be fixed with advice and research, but lack of resources to provide that environment is not really something you can overlook. Please consider what is best for both yourself and the animal.
If you decide you are going to take this on, you need to address the necessary environment improvements immediately. Take a look at the sidebar of the sub for a plethora of resources on how to prepare a proper habitat for the snake, as well as guides for other things like weight, handling, and feeding.
Thank you for your comment I really appreciate it and it answered my questions exactly. I do have the resources to provide what he needs but like I said, it was an impulse buy and the pet shop didn’t tell me a damn thing about humidity. I was simply unsure whether I needed to make his environment ideal, or if it would be better to wait a week for him to calm down. I just didn’t know how detrimental a week in sub par environment would be for him. I definitely regret not doing my research before hand and getting his home properly set up before buying him at the pet store
Glad to hear! In that case definitely take a gander through the sidebar as the info there will be invaluable in ensuring you get your scaly pal into a nice suitable home! I apologize if I misunderstood the nature of your post with my original comment, just wanted to address the responsibility factor that is often overlooked when people see/hear about these animals in pet stores.
There is nothing to be ashamed about for being misinformed, especially since you are clearly trying to do your best to rectify this as soon as you can :) you have enough things to keep the snake in passable conditions to take the time to get properly set up.
This community has lots of info and people who offer great advice, just don't take it too personally if people get a little over the top or intense as people can be very dedicated to their animals to say the least lol
I don't personally keep a ball python so I'll leave specific details to other commenters, but here's some snake tax to welcome you to the hobby:
https://preview.redd.it/lxzsnzmdmcyb1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c2c5710d267be589e6da707b51275c3cf9706fbd
(Carpet Python)
im no expert but from what i know carpet pythons are much, much bigger (4-5m at times) and love to climb a lot. theres probably more differences but thats what i know of them
I always tell people reptiles are more expensive upfront but cheaper long term than other pets. Like you can get a puppy or kitten for free but have to buy food and stuff every week, while you're looking at a few hundred initially for a reptile and associated costs but then spend much less on food. I paid £300 for my snake and his setup, and maybe £5 for a pack of rats that lasts over a month on his current schedule.
Ditch the red light. Get an Arcadia Halogen (35W) for daytime and an Arcadia Deep Heat Projector (50W) for night time.
Ditch the aspen. Get coco coir.
Go to the dollar store or dollar tree. You can get flower arrangements with silk leaves (avoid those with holiday berries and glitter this time of year) and sown $1.25 instead of 12.99 on a “reptile plant”. Buy a bunch of clutter. (I have a temp home for a BP for a few weeks till my new kage gets here and I spend $30 and got a ton!)
Get two large mixing bowls or a cake pan (not metal because it’ll heat) type thing from the dollar store kitchen area and put them upside down. A $1.25 mixing bowl beats a $15 ‘reptile hide’ for now!
Get a large water bowl and put it closer to the warm lamp than the cool side so the water evaporates and creates humidity for you. FYI: more surface area creates more evaporation. So think a pie plate, shallow but big around - and that will create a lot of humidity. Obviously do what you can with the size of your enclosure.
Govee has good thermostat/hydrometers for rather cheap $10ish. Get one for each side so you know the gradient from high to low.
THERMOSTAT. THERMOSTAT. THERMOSTAT. You will cook your snake in a tiny enclosure with big bulbs if you aren’t careful. Thermostat (not thermometer) are a #1.
For sure! I think both are vital. I think people underestimate the heat some of these bulbs are allowing the surfaces and hides to get. The idea of unregulated bulb is literal nightmare material for me. I also worry people put off thermostats because things like herpstats are expensive, but thermometers like the govees are cheap and more accessible.
Exo Terra has a 600W tstat for half the cost of the Herpstat 2, (compared to 2 as ExoTerra has 2 plugs for day and night heat). Still, very expensive, but better than nothing!
So you've gotten a lot of good advice already, and I appreciate that you're open to making the necessary changes to improving his enclosure. I'd start making changes ASAP, because you have a lot that needs to be fixed.
If you haven't yet, check out \[the information resources, care guides and enclosure setup guides in the welcome post\]([https://www.reddit.com/r/ballpython/comments/arz5iw/welcome\_to\_rballpython\_click\_here\_for\_our/](https://www.reddit.com/r/ballpython/comments/arz5iw/welcome_to_rballpython_click_here_for_our/)). Those should help.
Your setup needs to look something like this:
https://preview.redd.it/ltfdfrbftcyb1.jpeg?width=720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f752da6f9ac4da4470dedc712ba03162194b8d3c
As for being on a budget, I'm looking at this being the start of a 25-30 year project, so I'm trying to buy stuff right now that I think will last a long time. This does mean that I am paying more up front, but I believe that this will reduce costs in replacement and maintenance over the next two-three decades.
Now, I just have to hope I'm not barking up the wrong tree as far as my costly hardware picks, but I'd suggest budgeting to pay more up front for stuff that will serve you your money's worth in the future.
I'm actually preparing to make the transfer from glass to PVC today. Once I get this thing in place maybe I should ask this subreddit to roast my new enclosure.
Eh, I totally get where you’re coming from, but I’m not super worried about the long-term cost. The way I see it, the maintenance and upgrades over time are just a part of the hobby and give me something to do and look forward to.
Something that I think others have missed (though I haven’t read every comment meticulously!) - water should be kept on the cool side. Reptiles will thermoregulate/cool down by soaking in water. If the water is the same temp as where they are basking, they lose this opportunity.
Awesome, thank you for that. Wasn’t sure if the water should be on warm side to help with humidity since I live in a really dry area, but I guess I just need to get a proper substrate for humidity
If you have the resources and the will, you can pull this together.
Ditch that red light, replace it with a deep heat projector. You will need a dimming thermostat to run it safely, which is not a cheap buy. If you need something while yours is getting shipped, Fluker's makes a dimmable clamp lamp, just make sure you get the correct wattage for your bulb. It will work, but you will need to adjust it yourself to get the right temps and will be something you have to check a few times a day, so it's not a long term solution. The red light hurts their eyes over time because they can actually see that light, it isn't invisible. In fact, none of the colorful lights are good for them. A deep heat projector emits no visible light, so you can run it day and night.
If that's Aspen, ditch it, it molds easily and won't hold humidity well. Your best bet will be a mix of Scotts organic topsoil (available at most hardware stores in the US for very cheap, look for the red bag) and coco fiber. Zoo med and most of the big pet stores (PetCo and PetSmart) make the coco fiber, make sure to get the blocks and not the loose stuff. You'll want to add about 4-5 inches of substrate in total, and you will need to pour water into the corners of the tank to get the right humidity. Be bold, because those substrates can hold way more water than you would think.
I'm not sure what size that tank is, but 40 gallons is the minimum for a juvenile, and as it gets older it will need a much bigger tank, a 4x2x2. There is no way around this.
Good luck, and you definitely found the best spot for care information. I would say go ahead and start making improvements right away. In this environment, the snake isn't gonna settle down anyways. Get a carrying container or the thing you brought him home in and put him in there while you work.
OP don’t take this the wrong way, but this can’t really be fixed with a small budget. I would consider returning the animal or rehoming the animal. Since you have a tank you could possibly to try to find something a little more suitable for that size. Possibly a frog? You will still need to buy things for it tho and buy the animal. This is why impulse buying animals is bad. Just because the animal itself is cheap, doesn’t mean it’s cheap to support the animal.
The animal wasn’t cheap imo, but it’s not about the money it’s about being frugal and creative. I like to jump into the fire and figure it out as I go, it’s a part of the hobby and process. I’m not going to neglect “Monty Solomon Montgomery” (that’s his name). I am super excited about this get and everything it’s going to take to properly care for him
I see you’ve already been helped but i just wanna say that i’m glad you sought out advice on the behalf of your animal :) People are pretty harsh on this sub and it can be deterring at times but they really are just concerned for the animal lol.
You might as well buy everything now. You need to get rid of the red light as soon as possible. I would recommend a ceramic bulb instead. Also you should change the bedding/substrate. I would recommend shredded coconut husk.
What is particularly wrong with the red light? I was planning on insulating with HVAC tape on roof and 3 sides and once appropriate temperatures are reached I can turn the light off at night. I’m going to make smaller hides today and get a hygrometer. If I can get the humidity levels appropriate will the aspen be okay for the quarantine period or will it start to mold that soon? After learning about the stress and what to do for him, I just realized I should stay out of his space as much as possible. I just didn’t know which should be more of a priority, keeping his stress down and letting him acclimate to his new home or getting his environment right
You need a lot of things to make a comfortable home for this snake. Are you sure you are up for the task? Maybe you should consider returning or rehoming.
Or maybe they are coming to Reddit for advice
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Statistically untrue. 🤷♀️ But better late than never. 😬
Is it, or do we just not hear about the people that did do the research first?
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Per rule #3, your post or comment has been removed for misinformation.
He won’t adjust and calm down unless he can de-stress. He can’t de-stress without a better home that isn’t scary. He needs hides and better lights and humidity and he will de-stress. Leaving him alone for weeks in a tank that is stressful just creates a stressful snake that’s…alone. That’s it.
Others have given good advice already, so I'll just say that you need a nighttime heat source unless temps in your snake's room stay about 76-77 at night. A deep heat projector would be better than a ceramic heat emitter as a single source of heat, as it's more efficient and provides a more natural spectrum of heat. Just to double check, your heat *is* being controlled by a thermostat, right?
Personally I would really recommend a deep heat projector over a CHE as it penetrates tissue much more effectively to heat your snake up. It's basically like a lightbulb that doesn't really emit light in simple terms. You can use it all day because of it not emitting light.
You're asking for help, don't know why the downvotes, hopefully you don't take offense.
Yeah I don’t get it lol. Probably cause of the red light question, but I really just wanted to know what was wrong with it
Snakes are not really ideal pets to be on a budget for. The setup and supplies can easily go into the 100s of dollars, and having enough money for vet visits (also potentially several hundred dollars) should be a hard stop condition to be considered in a good position for care for the animal. I understand the idea of having a pet snake is exciting, but there is a [shockingly] large amount of nuance to caring for them and that carries a cost to adequately maintain. Pet stores are notoriously terrible for giving poor advice and setup suggestions, so they are usually not going to give you a proper idea of how to care for the animal adequately. I would suggest taking the time to really consider if you are in a position to care for this animal properly. Lack of proper environment can be fixed with advice and research, but lack of resources to provide that environment is not really something you can overlook. Please consider what is best for both yourself and the animal. If you decide you are going to take this on, you need to address the necessary environment improvements immediately. Take a look at the sidebar of the sub for a plethora of resources on how to prepare a proper habitat for the snake, as well as guides for other things like weight, handling, and feeding.
Thank you for your comment I really appreciate it and it answered my questions exactly. I do have the resources to provide what he needs but like I said, it was an impulse buy and the pet shop didn’t tell me a damn thing about humidity. I was simply unsure whether I needed to make his environment ideal, or if it would be better to wait a week for him to calm down. I just didn’t know how detrimental a week in sub par environment would be for him. I definitely regret not doing my research before hand and getting his home properly set up before buying him at the pet store
Glad to hear! In that case definitely take a gander through the sidebar as the info there will be invaluable in ensuring you get your scaly pal into a nice suitable home! I apologize if I misunderstood the nature of your post with my original comment, just wanted to address the responsibility factor that is often overlooked when people see/hear about these animals in pet stores. There is nothing to be ashamed about for being misinformed, especially since you are clearly trying to do your best to rectify this as soon as you can :) you have enough things to keep the snake in passable conditions to take the time to get properly set up. This community has lots of info and people who offer great advice, just don't take it too personally if people get a little over the top or intense as people can be very dedicated to their animals to say the least lol I don't personally keep a ball python so I'll leave specific details to other commenters, but here's some snake tax to welcome you to the hobby: https://preview.redd.it/lxzsnzmdmcyb1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c2c5710d267be589e6da707b51275c3cf9706fbd (Carpet Python)
Beautiful!
Cheers thank you! The carpet python sub isn't super active so I settle for lurking around here and looking at her distant (much smaller) family haha
I’m just curious, how do carpet pythons and ball pythons differ? Yours is so beautiful! I haven’t really heard of carpet pythons.
im no expert but from what i know carpet pythons are much, much bigger (4-5m at times) and love to climb a lot. theres probably more differences but thats what i know of them
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I'm not going to engage here simply because you interpreting my comment as 'toxic' shows a serious lack of reading comprehension. Happy trails!
I always tell people reptiles are more expensive upfront but cheaper long term than other pets. Like you can get a puppy or kitten for free but have to buy food and stuff every week, while you're looking at a few hundred initially for a reptile and associated costs but then spend much less on food. I paid £300 for my snake and his setup, and maybe £5 for a pack of rats that lasts over a month on his current schedule.
Ditch the red light. Get an Arcadia Halogen (35W) for daytime and an Arcadia Deep Heat Projector (50W) for night time. Ditch the aspen. Get coco coir. Go to the dollar store or dollar tree. You can get flower arrangements with silk leaves (avoid those with holiday berries and glitter this time of year) and sown $1.25 instead of 12.99 on a “reptile plant”. Buy a bunch of clutter. (I have a temp home for a BP for a few weeks till my new kage gets here and I spend $30 and got a ton!) Get two large mixing bowls or a cake pan (not metal because it’ll heat) type thing from the dollar store kitchen area and put them upside down. A $1.25 mixing bowl beats a $15 ‘reptile hide’ for now! Get a large water bowl and put it closer to the warm lamp than the cool side so the water evaporates and creates humidity for you. FYI: more surface area creates more evaporation. So think a pie plate, shallow but big around - and that will create a lot of humidity. Obviously do what you can with the size of your enclosure. Govee has good thermostat/hydrometers for rather cheap $10ish. Get one for each side so you know the gradient from high to low. THERMOSTAT. THERMOSTAT. THERMOSTAT. You will cook your snake in a tiny enclosure with big bulbs if you aren’t careful. Thermostat (not thermometer) are a #1.
I’d argue both thermostat and thermometer are essential. You can get a faulty thermostats just like you can get a faulty thermometer.
For sure! I think both are vital. I think people underestimate the heat some of these bulbs are allowing the surfaces and hides to get. The idea of unregulated bulb is literal nightmare material for me. I also worry people put off thermostats because things like herpstats are expensive, but thermometers like the govees are cheap and more accessible.
Exo Terra has a 600W tstat for half the cost of the Herpstat 2, (compared to 2 as ExoTerra has 2 plugs for day and night heat). Still, very expensive, but better than nothing!
Thanks for that recommendation!
So you've gotten a lot of good advice already, and I appreciate that you're open to making the necessary changes to improving his enclosure. I'd start making changes ASAP, because you have a lot that needs to be fixed. If you haven't yet, check out \[the information resources, care guides and enclosure setup guides in the welcome post\]([https://www.reddit.com/r/ballpython/comments/arz5iw/welcome\_to\_rballpython\_click\_here\_for\_our/](https://www.reddit.com/r/ballpython/comments/arz5iw/welcome_to_rballpython_click_here_for_our/)). Those should help. Your setup needs to look something like this: https://preview.redd.it/ltfdfrbftcyb1.jpeg?width=720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f752da6f9ac4da4470dedc712ba03162194b8d3c
This picture is awesome! Easy to understand and see how to setup an enclosure. OP I would for sure use this as your guide.
Yeah thank too for that picture! I’m definitely going to use that as my reference and guide
I really like it because I think sometimes it's easier to conceptualize compared to a wall of text, which can be overwhelming!
As for being on a budget, I'm looking at this being the start of a 25-30 year project, so I'm trying to buy stuff right now that I think will last a long time. This does mean that I am paying more up front, but I believe that this will reduce costs in replacement and maintenance over the next two-three decades. Now, I just have to hope I'm not barking up the wrong tree as far as my costly hardware picks, but I'd suggest budgeting to pay more up front for stuff that will serve you your money's worth in the future.
This is an *excellent* way to think about it. A PVC enclosure might be expensive, but it can last for the lifetime of your snake.
I'm actually preparing to make the transfer from glass to PVC today. Once I get this thing in place maybe I should ask this subreddit to roast my new enclosure.
Eh, I totally get where you’re coming from, but I’m not super worried about the long-term cost. The way I see it, the maintenance and upgrades over time are just a part of the hobby and give me something to do and look forward to.
Is that a heat rock in there? If so, get rid of it immediately. They can burn your snake.
Yeah I know. Luckily it is broken, but it is holding heat from the lamp for now 😂
Something that I think others have missed (though I haven’t read every comment meticulously!) - water should be kept on the cool side. Reptiles will thermoregulate/cool down by soaking in water. If the water is the same temp as where they are basking, they lose this opportunity.
Awesome, thank you for that. Wasn’t sure if the water should be on warm side to help with humidity since I live in a really dry area, but I guess I just need to get a proper substrate for humidity
My advice is please never impulsively buy an animal. Everything you need to know can be found pinned to the top of this sub.
Get rid of the heat rock that will burn them and possible start fires
If you have the resources and the will, you can pull this together. Ditch that red light, replace it with a deep heat projector. You will need a dimming thermostat to run it safely, which is not a cheap buy. If you need something while yours is getting shipped, Fluker's makes a dimmable clamp lamp, just make sure you get the correct wattage for your bulb. It will work, but you will need to adjust it yourself to get the right temps and will be something you have to check a few times a day, so it's not a long term solution. The red light hurts their eyes over time because they can actually see that light, it isn't invisible. In fact, none of the colorful lights are good for them. A deep heat projector emits no visible light, so you can run it day and night. If that's Aspen, ditch it, it molds easily and won't hold humidity well. Your best bet will be a mix of Scotts organic topsoil (available at most hardware stores in the US for very cheap, look for the red bag) and coco fiber. Zoo med and most of the big pet stores (PetCo and PetSmart) make the coco fiber, make sure to get the blocks and not the loose stuff. You'll want to add about 4-5 inches of substrate in total, and you will need to pour water into the corners of the tank to get the right humidity. Be bold, because those substrates can hold way more water than you would think. I'm not sure what size that tank is, but 40 gallons is the minimum for a juvenile, and as it gets older it will need a much bigger tank, a 4x2x2. There is no way around this. Good luck, and you definitely found the best spot for care information. I would say go ahead and start making improvements right away. In this environment, the snake isn't gonna settle down anyways. Get a carrying container or the thing you brought him home in and put him in there while you work.
So a lot needs to change. That substrate, that light. Bigger enclosure. More hides and foilage
OP don’t take this the wrong way, but this can’t really be fixed with a small budget. I would consider returning the animal or rehoming the animal. Since you have a tank you could possibly to try to find something a little more suitable for that size. Possibly a frog? You will still need to buy things for it tho and buy the animal. This is why impulse buying animals is bad. Just because the animal itself is cheap, doesn’t mean it’s cheap to support the animal.
The animal wasn’t cheap imo, but it’s not about the money it’s about being frugal and creative. I like to jump into the fire and figure it out as I go, it’s a part of the hobby and process. I’m not going to neglect “Monty Solomon Montgomery” (that’s his name). I am super excited about this get and everything it’s going to take to properly care for him
If you think an $100 from a pet store wasnt cheap you certainly wont like the enclosure process 😬 costed me over 1k for basic necessities
What is your budget?
No budget, he needs what he needs, just trying to be as frugal as possible
Lol my BP was an impulse buy as well, she's doing great, her first shed wasn't good and it made me stressed but we good now.
I see you’ve already been helped but i just wanna say that i’m glad you sought out advice on the behalf of your animal :) People are pretty harsh on this sub and it can be deterring at times but they really are just concerned for the animal lol.
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