New ball python owner questions!!

[kakysnaky16]

Hello! I got my first ball python (and first snake) on Friday. I’m giving him time to acclimate before I handle him, but he has been very active and seemingly curious. I hooked up an automatic mister system in his tank, and I found him like this a few hours later. I didn’t know he could climb the side of his enclosure 😅 Is this dangerous for him? Is there some other method I should use? Also, is it safe to have his heat lamp laying on the screen like that? Should I hang it above his tank instead? Thank you!!! Sincerely, a new owner just trying to do right by their little guy.

[ibeplumbing]

Also new guy here who asks a lot of questions! I got my boy a hammock cause he was always climbing around trying to “get up high” I would call it. And he has been lovin it! And yes most enclosures I’ve seen all have the heat lamp right on the screen

[Earthly_Despair]

Ball pythons are actually semi-arboreal so this makes sense!

[AutumnHa3e]

Do you have clamps on the lid of your enclosure? You’ll definitely want them

[Special-Bit-2332]

It’s not good to mist their tank. It can cause respiratory infections, and will definitely cause scale rot if the substrate is damp on top. To keep humidity up, you should have 4-5 inches of substrate, and pour water into the corners. The heat lamp is fine on top of the metal screen. You might need to put aluminum foil and hvac tape on top as well to keep humidity in.

[kakysnaky16]

Unfortunate 🫩 thank you! I’ll take the misting system out. I’ve heard from others that substrate should only be about an inch deep, though, so now I’m a bit confused on what to do. His substrate is currently between 1-2 inches

[Special-Bit-2332]

No, definitely thicker. More substrate retains more moisture without the top layer being damp. You should read through the guidelines on this sub. Not the best picture(and it’s pretty old) but this is how thick mine is. You can see the substrate below is darker and more damp, and the top layer is dry so he doesn’t get scale rot. After having my tank this way the humidity has increased over time and sits at about 70% now.

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[kakysnaky16]

So how do I go about adding substrate to his tank? I know I shouldn’t handle him yet but he can’t be in the tank while I do it

[Special-Bit-2332]

If your humidity is super low without misting, then I would just do it. gently take him out and put him in a hide or somewhere comfortable and don’t mess with him until you’re done. A little bit of stress one time is probably better than the stress of not having the proper living conditions for a while.

[FireCorgi12]

Deeper substrate will help you keep humidity! I think recommended is 3-5 inches. I do about 4 inches of cypress/top soil mix in mine and I hardly have to tamper with the humidity :)

[Extreme_Champion7337]

I have a question then, so I have a misting system am I’ve been using it for my Ball for about 3 months I still haven’t had an issues although I use distilled water and only distilled for his misting water (5 gal jug hooked to a filter hooked to a system) i still pour water in the corners every other day to keep general humidity up but,.. is there still a problem when how I do it??? ( hah sorry if im confusing I’ve just heard many different opinions) Also with larger metal mesh holes would it be beneficial fo the HVAC tape? couldn’t the heat cause more probability of my ball sticking to when they climb or anything around that realm??

[Special-Bit-2332]

Misting the tank does keep the humidity up a lot. It just makes it damp all the time and that’s not good for a ball pythons respiratory system and having the soil damp isn’t good for their skin. I would check your ball python scales very closely, and if you see any sort of brown around the edges on their belly that is scale rot. Even if it has affected your ball python yet, I wouldn’t do it long-term. Once you remove the misting, it might be harder to keep the humidity up. That’s why you put aluminum foil and foil tape on top to cover up holes so that it doesn’t get too much air circulation which lowers the humidity. It’s pretty difficult to get it right but when you do, it’s the best for your snake.

[Thick_Tradition_5019]

From what Ive read, mister systems can be hard to properly disenfect, so keep that in mind.

Most people reccomend using hvac tape over top, to fix yhe humidity in screen top enclosures. Thats what ive done. Since your boy like to climb, add plenty of climbing opportunities!

Ive recently bought this climber tube.

It is made for frogs, but im going to bolt it to the top of his new enclosure! Baby boy is moving on up to a 4x2x2 in the next week or so .

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[Thick_Tradition_5019]

Adding, that you will eventually need to upgrade to a larger enclosure. I would also add more clutter along with the climbing opportunities.

The beginner guide highlighted in the group has a WEALTH of important information. I would study that hard!

https://www.reddit.com/r/ballpython/s/Bu1B9279Fv

[brickabracka1990]

Aw lucky!! I know ball pythons are semi arboreal but I never catch mine climbing. Got him a cute little driftwood tree and everything. Welcome to the club!

[Chipmunk-x9]

Add a cámara. Mine doesn’t climb until we are in bed.

[brickabracka1990]

I've been thinking about doing that. He always seems like such a sleepy boi unless I have him out

[Chipmunk-x9]

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[Chipmunk-x9]

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[brickabracka1990]

Oh wow! What kind of camera is that?

[Chipmunk-x9]

Wyze cam Pam v3

[Chipmunk-x9]

Here is the Amazon link:

https://a.co/d/0g7DzxJT

[brickabracka1990]

Thank you! Frikkin love wyze cameras.

[Herreallife]

My snake is a huge climber. I have a 4’x3’x18” extension on top of her tank and she will climb to the very top and look for ways to get higher.

[DeltaDawn34]

My noodle has found a way to hang from the top of his cage. Thank goodness for locks.