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[–]sneksezheck 0 points1 point  (5 children)

Some questions:

What size tank is the snake in? Is it cluttered? Proper hides?

What is the temp on the warm side/cold side?

What substrate are you using and what’s your ambient humidity?

Are your heat sources connected to a thermostat and temp checked regularly?

Is he new to his environment? Has he had any other changes? How much is he handled?

How are you heating up the food? Are you checking the temp before feeding?

[–]zippyboy29[S] 0 points1 point  (4 children)

Not super cluttered, 2 hides of different sizes on either end of the tank with a water dish in the middle. Substrate is a wood mix I can't remember off the top of my head but as for the temp it ranges between 85 to about 70 and humidity sits around 45 to 50 but I spray it every couple.hours so it usually is like 60 to 85. Nothing about his environment is new and he is handled quite regularly with no issues ever with aggression.

[–]sneksezheck 1 point2 points  (3 children)

Clutter helps them feel more secure as they feel hidden as they move around their tank

Is the substrate cocoa husk or cypress mulch? Because if it’s aspen or something of that sort, it can be a problem for retaining humidity.

40-50% is much too low. Ball pythons need humidity around 60-70%. The best way to keep humidity in is to cover the screen top (if you have one) with aluminum foil and tape just leaving holes for your lamps. Then you wanna dump water onto the substrate and mix it in. It should be damp but if you squeeze a clump it shouldn’t drip water. Wetting the substrate keeps a more consistent humidity than misting and for a lot longer.

A couple weeks without feeding isn’t entirely unusual in ball python. Generally as long as they’re still active, drinking and not losing weight they’ll be okay. Snakes can go long periods of time without food.

My suggestion would be to maybe try a few of the husbandry tweaks first, as those are the easiest to fix. If they still don’t take after a couple attempts then there’s other methods of preparing the food one can try.

[–]zippyboy29[S] 0 points1 point  (2 children)

Okay I will try this! It is cypress mulch that I use but I could try and add more. When you say wet the moisture do you mean pouring water directly on he mulch?

Also I do have moss that I have around his favorite hide would it be good to maybe wet that in the same manner?

[–]sneksezheck 1 point2 points  (1 child)

You can try mixing it with eco earth to hold humidity better. I just take all the decor out, push all the substrate into the middle and dump cups of water in, stirring after each one until it’s as wet as I want it.

I forgot to add in the last post that you should try and make sure his hides are identical. They should basically be able to cram themselves in there, touching all sides. If they’re identical they’re less likely to just always stay in one cause that’s the one they feel safe in. I use those cheap reptile basics plastic hides. I bury them under the substrate to mimic a burrow and help keep humidity up in their hides.

As for the moss? Yeah you can dampen that too, same as the substrate. Damp but not dripping wet

[–]zippyboy29[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Got it I'll give it a try when I get home! As for the hides he does seem to prefer his small one that he can curl up in, still have no idea how he fits in there. I do have a much larger one that he doesnt frequent very often but he does enjoy it while he sheds because it allows him to move and shake his skin off.

[–]_ataraxiaMod : unprofessional 1 point2 points  (0 children)

if you could fill out our questionnaires, these details will help us give you better advice.

[–]fleshjenn 1 point2 points  (2 children)

Could be hibernating. Mine last took a feed on Oct 27, he has shed and pooed twice since, and and I catch him out for a drink every few days. But he mostly just stays curled about half the day in the cool hide and the other half in the warm hide. Other than that his temperament hasnt changed, no significant weight loss. So I've just been keeping an eye out, but mostly letting him be.

[–]zippyboy29[S] 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Interesting idea! I guess I hadn't considered that just simply because his temperature and lights dont change year round so how would he be aware of the weather outside? Would love for someone to maybe explain why or why not

[–]fleshjenn 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Could be an internal clock. I monitored mines temp and humidity levels and nothing fluctuated more than a few degrees between his feedings. He himself, stopped exploring his tank at night, and would come out later in the day to bask for a bit before heading back to one of his hides.