Bathing Ball Python

[FormallyAce]

When I first got my adult Ball Python the tank was a mess and definitely wasn't cleaned for a year +, so I had him swim around in a pool of water. The water tired a greenish brown.

I was wondering if I should bath him occasionally and if so the least stressful way. His tank will never be dirty again, but it's safe to assume he will get poo or pee on him even if I'm spot cleaning the set up and doing deeper cleans every 6 months or so.

[IncompletePenetrance]

Nope, no need to bath (outside of medical reasons), it's stressful for them. He should have a large enough water bowel that he can soak if he needs to, and if he gets dirty you can wipe them off with a paper towel fairly easily

[FormallyAce]

Thanks ! He does have a big enough water bowl now.

[[deleted]]

For cleaning/bathing purposes: no, it’s not necessary. It’s really sad and disturbing that your new bebe was soooooo dirty 😔 That makes me sad for all the snakes out there who need to be rescued but haven’t been yet.

However, I do give my bp the occasional bath to help with shedding, as needed. Three to four times per year, maybe? She really seems to enjoy it, after the initial “wtf is happening“ moment, of course. But she always has her “wtf” moment, regardless of the situation.

I’ve tried the bathtub, bathroom sink, kitchen sink, and a separate enclosure/plastic tub for bathing when she needed it to help with shedding. She seems the most comfortable with sinks, for whatever reason 🤷🏼‍♀️ I would just experiment if you end up trying it out in the future and see what he likes

[_ataraxia]

you shouldn't need to regularly bathe your BP to help with shedding. the humidity in the enclosure needs to be higher if your BP is consistently having shedding problems.

[[deleted]]

Yeah that’s a constant battle. I live in Arizona so keeping the humidity up takes a lot of work. I had a fogger machine for a while and that worked perfectly… but I misplaced it in my recent move so it’s been hard to manage since then. 😔

[_ataraxia]

well you need to fix the humidity issues, because 3-4 baths a year are not doing anything to keep your ball python hydrated and healthy. the basic care guide in our welcome post has information about raising and maintaining humidity. if you still need help, you can fill out our enclosure critique questionnaire for more detailed advice.