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Q: Ball shedding, feeding, and humidity question
Posted By:

KayDee

In Relation To:

Flick

Um hello,

Last week I tried feeding Flick my ball python and things did not go well. I'm not sure if she is just being picky or if I am doing something wrong. She struck at the mouse a few times but did not hold on to it any of the times and after a while I gave up and decided to wait until her next feeding time. That was today *looks at clock and see its after 1am* I mean yesterday. She seemed somewhat interested and got real close to the mouse but didn't strike or anything, she mostly just curled away from it after a short inspection. I do f/t fuzzies.
With the last feeding it might have been my fault, I think I was holding the mouse too tightly in the tongs that I have (just some regular kitchen tongs that were never getting used...) so I'm going to get the 'feeder tongs' from petco later and try those. I've read around that balls sometimes just don't eat so I'm trying not to stress about it as this makes the second feeding that she hasn't had anything. 
This time I think she was just fussy because she is shedding, it is not coming off in one piece but in small patches, There is still some on her tail currently that needs to come off.

I've been monitoring the humidity in the tank and trying to maintain it but it's not easy going. It is a 20long tank with a mesh top. I mist it daily, keep the water bowl filled and have a majority of the top covered with foil but the humidity usually falls to about 30%. Sometimes I get it as high as 60% but it never stays up for very long. I also noticed today that her skin seems to be wrinkling and I'm not sure if it is from dehydration or just from the fact that she is shedding.
The week before last the temperature in the tank dropped to about 65 degrees because I was not home and my roommate does not run the heater because he likes it cold and the apartment was at 60 when I arrived back at around 6am. Since then I have a little mini heater to keep my room at a minimum of 75 and with the use of 75watt bulbs the cool side of the tank ranges anywhere from 74 to 79 degrees now. I have attached an image that shows the current tank set up minus the foil.

Just getting a little flustered because I want the best for my ball but I feel there is something I am not doing or something else I could be doing to maintain humidity and get feedings to go smoothly. Going to try a warm bath maybe to see if that helps with the shedding and/or hydration, although she isn't very keen on being handled yet I'm hoping she will like the bath.
And no I don't know the sex yet, I just feel most comfortable saying 'she' so I am just assuming right now.

Please help, I am starting to worry. First snake I have ever owned and I haven't had her for long. There is no tracking for her since I just joined today but plan on using the tracking because it seems like a handy feature.

Thank you for your time,
KayDee 


Attached Photos:


Points: 100
Topics: Feeding , Caging , Heating
Tags: Ballpython, Feedingproblems, Humidity, Shedding
Species: Pythons > Pythons > Python regius
Administrative: Show/Hide

Accepted Answer 2/10/2011 10:36:40 AM

Sylvias

ok, for the humidity. the ambient humidity does not need to be high. instead try giving it a humid hide with moist moss or paper towels inside it.

it is tooo cold for that snake  might be why it's not feeding. ambient temps should be mid 80's cool side mid to high 70s. and a hot spot of 90-belly heat.

soaking will help with this shed but if you can keep a nice humid hide they will usually use that and regulate things themselves.... 

 
Assisted Answer 2/10/2011 2:59:28 PM

Skalonji

+1 to Silvia.

The heat tape on the belly is very important. you can also, intead of foil, use a humid towell ton the sreen top so it can keep moist inside, and screen the temp and hummidity until you get to the desired point. Try not to leave the old shed for to long, give him/her a bath and  help to take it out. Screen top  tanks are very hard to  regulate.   i bought  a fish tank light top and put it on top, it help me a lot, and it kept it very nice and warm.

 

 
Assisted Answer 2/10/2011 6:30:55 PM

shellboa

+1 Sylvia. Also, feeding tongs are great because you can use them to do the "mousie dance". If that doesn't work, they also come in handy for removing corpses before they become icky. A humid hide and a bump in temps should solve the feeding issue and a nice long soak should help the shed issue. 

A lot of what you read about the "ideal" conditions for keeping some species are just that, ideal. Impossible to mimic outside of nature but ideal anyway. Sounds to me like you are doing all the right stuff and just need to tweak a few details.

 
Assisted Answer 2/11/2011 12:00:57 AM

Miss Andrea

I wouldn't worry if it's only the second feeding she refused. I think you might need some more hides and/or plants in there so she feels more secure. To increase humidity, I make sure my bedding is moist. Not just the top layer. When I clean my tubs, I dump the water right onto my cypress mulch. This keeps it from drying out. I'll also poor water on the cypress in between cleanings because my house has baseboard heat and it drys the air like none other. 

I also agree with the belly heat at 90ish degrees. They like it warm!! I wouldn't worry too much about the shed unless 2 or more bad shed build up. Usually if you can get the humidity up, you can get full sheds.

And I also want to point out how vauge 'misting' can be. I know what I thought misting was until I saw people with arboreals mist. There is quite a range. I've noticed a big differnce in spray bottle misting vs pump bottle misting vs misting systems. Those go from light to heavy mistings. Misting systems can be set to go for over a minute each time. Not that you're doing it wrong, just wanted to point it out.

 
Assisted Answer 2/11/2011 10:42:33 AM

HurricaneJen

Feed it an appropriate sized prey item.  Try an adult mouse, not a fuzzy.  You want the prey item to be at least as big around as the snake, and even hatchling ball pythons are much bigger than fuzzies.  Snakes are very vulnerable when they eat, using their only method of defense (their mouths) to do the eating.  So, when they do decide to eat, it's gotta be something big enough to be worth the time to be vulnerable.  For a ball python, that's a mouse or rat that seems aaaalmost too big for them to eat. 

+1 for all the comments to provide belly heat, the snake also sounds like she might be a little chilly.

 
Author Comment 2/11/2011 6:45:06 PM

KayDee

Thank you everyone for the quick and helpful responses. I am going to attempt to change a few things around in the tank and see if I can't better maintain humidity and temperatures. What I am going to do:

Going to get a UTH.
Going to get a second digital thermometer for the warm side of the tank.
Going to get a humidifier for my room, it is arizona after all and is kind of dry here and the humidifier would not only benefit the snake but me as well.
Get some things to sort of 'clutter' the tank a little like fake foliage.
Going to look into feeding bigger prey. I had been using fuzzies because it was suggested not only by the pet store but also by another forum that I am on that fuzzies were fine after a size comparison picture was posted.

I do appreciate the advice I have been given and hope I have interpereted the information correctly and that the steps I am taking are appropriate.

~KayDee

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