In the wild:
Ball Pythons are snakes originating from Africa.
Mainly West and middle Africa.
The habitat consists out of grasslands,sub savannas and open forests.
However they are more and more found within or around farmlands and plantations.
The availability of food (rodents) and the shrinking down of their natural habitat could explain this phenomenon.
During the day they spend most of their time in Holes or burrows in the ground.
But they will venture out during the morning and evening.
Care requirements:
- Enclosure:
There are two widely used methods of keeping ball-pythons.
A terrarium (wooden or glass enclosure) or in a rack system.
Both have their benefits and downsides.
So its up to you what is best for your situation.
In general, if you are breeding and keeping a big number of snakes, a racks might be more practical for you.
But if you are keeping a pet definitely go for a terrarium - it will make your experience more enjoyable.
In the end there is not really a wrong or right if you go with one or another if you do it right.
You should aim for a terrarium of at least 150cm x 50cm x 50cm (lxwxh) or bigger for 1 adult.
The rack should also be adequate in space.
Reach out to your producer or seller on what sizes of tubs they have in stock and what they recommend.
But keep in mind the health of the animal.
No matter what enclosure type you choose its very important for your snakes to feel secure and have the feeling they can hide away whenever they want.
These animals spend most of their time hiding during the day in the wild.
So if they feel too much exposed they might stress out.
(and which can lead to food refusal and other problems)
This can be done with hides or fake plants.
(Real plants are sometimes possible but its definitely a challenge on its own when it is done with heavy bodied snakes)
Definitely give different options if possible.
In a rack depending on your tub type this might be less of a issue.
however even in racks some snakes might need an extra hiding place.
As a substrate we use coconut-husk.
Its easy to use and is beneficial for the humidity.
We also use paper-towel, this for freshly hatched babies, quarantined animals and other specific situations.
Please don't forget to provide a water dish or another suitable drinking option.
If possible it's even better if the whole snake fits in it.
They will use it to soak in it once in a while.
(Constant soaking might be a sign something is wrong so keep an eye out for that)
Do not ever cohabit these snakes with their own kind or other species.
Its better to give each snakes their own place.
This is better and easier for you and better for the snakes.
The only time we have more then one snake together is when we pair up a male and a female for breeding.
- Temperature and humidity
When it comes to temperature you need a hotspot of around 30 degrees (Celsius) and a cooler area that not gets below 20 degrees (Celsius).
This can be done with a heat-lamp or a heath-mat.
Always use a good thermostat to prevent cooking your animals or worse and when using a lamp also get some protection around the lamp or use the lamp outside of the enclosure.
Snakes can coil around a heat-lamp and burn themselves.
Usually lamps are more used for terrariums and a heat-mat for racks.
Some people use the mats for terrariums too but make sure there some airflow to prevent the glass breaking.
When using a wooden enclosure this might not be a practical heat source.
lets talk about humidity,
It can go from 50% up to 70% humidity.
It's preferable that you create a side that's a bit more humid and a side that's less humid.
You could also work with a humid hide and a dry hide.
There are different options to play with so try to see what works best for your specific animal.
The best way to see if humidity is right is looking at how your snake sheds.
If they shed in one or two big pieces without anything stuck shed. That's a indication of a good humidity range of your enclosure.
However too much moist can lead to several types of infections on the skin.
So try to find a balance.
Wet = not ok , dry = not ok, lightly moist with a dryer side = good!
Food:
We feed our Ball-pythons once a week.
These snakes are notorious for refusing food once in a while.
They can skip a few meals without a problem.
Just keep an eye out for their general health.
Most of the time stress or something with the husbandry is the cause of this.
But not always...
What causes this might take some time to figure out in some cases.
For example our Adult Pastel female will refuse anything that's not white.
She will only eat if the rat we offer is white colored. What a picky eater!
(took a bit of time and frustration to figure this one out)
So no panic if your new snake does not directly want to eat.
Sometimes they need to get used to the new environment first.
We always wait one or two weeks before offering the first meal to a new snake.
What do they eat ?
The best food in our opinion are mice and rats.
That's what works best for us.
Some people give other things as quails or African soft-fur rats.
But when it comes to availability and food response, we do good with just mice and rats.
To know the size of prey you should look at the widest part of your snake.
That's is the average size of the prey you should offer.
Sometimes your snake might be intimidated by a prey so when it refuses out of fear try something a bit smaller.
Frozen or alive ?
In our experience defrosted prey is hard to do feed successfully to this species.
Not impossible but you might need some patience and a pinch of good luck.
Any other questions ?:
If you have any more questions about this care-sheet or anything else you could not find here.
Feel free to contact us.
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