Common Name: Ball python or Royal python
Scientific Name: Python regius
Native Habitat: Western and Central Africa
Lifespan: With proper care, they can live between 20-40 years old.
Size: They will grow from 3-6ft. Females are much larger in girth than males.
Expert Level: Great for beginners of all ages.
Temperament: Baby Ball pythons are normally very shy and as they get older Ball pythons will become more engaging and curious.
Enclosure: There are a few different ways to keep a Ball python. If you are looking to become a breeder, look into purchasing a rack system. Rack systems are the best way to keep medium to large collections of Ball pythons where you can connect Flexwatt or THG heat tape to share heat. In our opinion, keeping ball pythons in glass aquariums of any kind is not sufficient as they are very poorly ventilated and do not hold proper humidity and must be completely sterilized and cleaned much more frequently to avoid Respiratory Infections, though some will argue otherwise this is our personal observation and opinion on the matter. If you are just keeping one or a few ball pythons a rack system probably isn’t in your budget but alternatively a 32 quart sterilite tub with latches is perfectly sufficient and in our opinion the next best housing option to a rack system to house a adult ball python, you will want to drill 1/8th inch holes or bigger on the sides of the tub and the lid to supply proper ventilation for your Ball python. Be sure if you drill larger holes that the snake’s snout cannot fit into the hole your holes should be big enough for airflow but not large enough the snake can hurt itself or escape.
Another good housing option is a front opening PVC enclosure.
Housing Multiple Ball Pythons: Please do not cohabit your Ball pythons. Yes, some people do successfully cohabit their snakes, but it is not a good ideal at all. Your Ball pythons can become stressed out or injured. The risks of cohabitation greatly outweigh the pros. The only time you should have two snakes together is during breeding.
Heating And Lighting: UVB light is not required. The best, easiest, and most efficient way to keep a single Ball python is with a under tank heating source such as thg heat tape, accompanied by a digital thermostat. This can be easily purchased online from hydroponics retailers for about $10-15. For larger groups in a rack system, Flexwatt or THG heat tape is also the best choice. You can find this either online (Pangea.com is a great place for this) or at a hardware store. DO NOT use heat rocks in your Ball python’s enclosure as your python could get burned. We also advise against the use of heat mats due to them having a tendency to short out with prolonged use which can cause illness or injury to your snake. Also NEVER put heat mats or heat tape inside the enclosure, this may also result in burns. The proper way to set up heat tape is to plug your heat tape into the thermostat, take your heat tape and use a heat resistant tape such as foil tape or T-Rex tape to secure the mat to the bottom of the enclosure with the thermostat probe in between the bottom of the enclosure and the heat tape. The thermostat probe should ALWAYS make direct contact with the heating source never place the probe inside the tank this will also result in burns. You will also want to periodically check the temperature inside the enclose with a digital infrared heat gun to be sure your heating equipment is working correctly and set to maintain the correct temperature for your ball python. An infrared heat gun may be purchased at a hardware store or online at places such as Amazon.com.
Your ball python should be provided with a hot side of 88⁰F-96⁰F and a cool side of 78⁰F-80⁰F. The temperature on either side of the enclosure should NEVER drop below 75⁰F.
Water Dish: Water is very important for your Ball python and should always be in their enclosure . If you do not know if your tap water is safe, we would suggest using bottle water like spring water. Your water dish should be large enough to sustain proper humidity and for your snake to soak in if it so pleases.
Substrate: There are many substrate options for ball pythons, the most often used are newspaper, paper towels, white or brown butcher/wrapping paper, as well as cage carpet, astro turf, slate, etc. When using cage carpet, or astro turf you will want to spot clean the tank daily with a full change occurring as needed. If using newspaper, butcher/wrapping paper, or paper towels the entire substrate should be changed each time the animal defecates. Please NEVER use pine shavings, sand, or cedar of any kind as substrate, these can not only leech toxins that could make your ball python sick or result in death, but they also are extra huge risk for impaction which can also be deadly to your ball python. Loose particle substrates such as coco fiber, dirt, etc. are best to be avoided as well due to impaction risk factors.
Feeding: A baby Ball python will start off on rat pinkies once a week. Once they have started feeding regularly, we begin to switch them over to frozen/thawed if they were not acceptant of them from the beginning. A adult ball python should be fed on a schedule of every 2-3 weeks and monitoring weight with a scale is always recommended. Please remember that feeding live prey can potentially lead to injury and we always recommend a pre killed or F/T food item over a live item, live should only be a last resort for picky eaters. The size of the prey item should be the same size as the largest part of their body. To prepare a frozen rodent, either thawed out overnight on your counter or place in luke warm water to defrost. DO NOT MICROWAVE YOUR RODENTS. DO NOT MOVE your ball python to feed it, moving ball pythons during or after feeding can result in regurgitation of food and possible injury to the snake as well as induce stress. Always feed in the snakes enclosure where it feels safe and comfortable, the only exception to this is when a ball python refuses food long enough to have a substantial noticeable amount of weight loss and even then all other methods of enticing your ball python should be tried before resorting to feeding your ball python in a septate container. Once your Ball python has eaten DO NOT hold them for 48 hours.
Feeding Issues: Ball pythons are known for being picky feeders, so do not immediately feel like you are doing something wrong if your Ball python does not wish to eat. If you have a newborn Ball python that has never taken a meal, they may refuse to take food for a few weeks as they are still full from the egg. After that, if your newborn is still refusing to eat, you may need to assist feed. If you have never assist fed before, please do this with a professional. NEVER FORCE FEED YOUR BALL PYTHON AND NEVER ASSIST FEED WITHOUT GUIDENCE FROM A PROFESSIONAL.
If you have a Ball python refusing to eat from a breeder or store that has said that they have already taken a few meals, your Ball python may need some time to acclimate to their new environment. Also, double check to make sure that your temperatures and humidity are correct. Here are a few other tips: try switching between live or frozen rodents, slightly warm a thawed rodent a little more in warm water, switching between rats and mice, try a smaller rodent, try feeding in the evening or right before bed and as a last resort you may try feeding in a separate smaller feeding box but this should only be done after all other methods have been tried multiple times and noticeable extreme weight loss is present. Keep in mind that if your Ball python is refusing to eat, please keep your offerings between 1-2 weeks apart to keep your Ball python's feeding response strong.
We have heard of some keepers offering a different color mouse, scenting the mouse and braining a frozen/thawed mouse. I haven’t heard about a ton of keepers having luck with those methods, but it is always worth a try.
Regurgitation: Ball pythons are extremely sensitive to regurgitation. If for whatever reason your Ball python regurgitates, make sure to wait about 1.5 weeks before feeding again and give smaller meals for about a month before offering a regular meal. If your Ball python regurgitates a second time, please visit a vet.
Respiratory Infections (R.Is): If your Ball python has signs of Respiratory infection, please visit a vet to diagnose your snake and receive antibiotics to treat the infection. The sooner that you go to the vet the faster the healing time will be. Also, make the following adjustments to their enclosure, keep the hot side at 92°F and the humidity around 90%. A hot and humid environment will help the healing process. For minor RI, there is some success with using F10 veterinary disinfectant to nebulize your snakes with. I would only suggest doing this along with having a vet check out your python. If your Ball python has a bad respiratory infection, ask your vet if they feel that they need to be off food for a period of time.
Mite Prevention: Anytime you bring a reptile in your home or collection, make sure that you quarantine them away from other reptiles. There is a product called Prevent-A-Mite that you can spray into their enclosure which will really do a great job.
Mite Symptoms: If your Ball python is hanging out in their water dish a lot and you see black specks floating around in the water, you may have a snake with mites. Also, you can double check their scales to see if there are any raised scales with mites hiding.
Mite Treatment: If you find that your Ball python has mites, make sure to bathe your Ball python in warm water about an inch deep. While your Ball python is bathing, completely disinfect their enclosure. In my opinion, I would get a separate like Rubbermaid/Sterlite tub or terrarium and spray down with Prevent-A-Mite. Let the enclosure completely air dry and use paper towel as a substrate with nothing else in the enclosure. You will need to continue to bath your Ball python, disinfecting your enclosure and use Prevent-A-Mite for about a month or so.
Humidity: Ball pythons on average need to have about 60% humidity in their enclosure. Babies sometimes need a little bit higher. My personal tip is that if your Ball python has problems shedding you may need to raise your humidity slightly. Just a few ways to add increase humidity: dampen bedding with a spray bottle, larger water dish, place a humidifier in the same room, place a waterfall feature in the enclosure and adding live plants. Keep in mind if you live in an area that gets cold and dry in the winter, it might be next to impossible to keep the humidity high. Try your best to keep it as close to 60% as possible and refer to the shedding section if you need tips about stuck shed.
Hygrometer: I am always surprised how many keepers opt out of purchasing this very important tool for keeping most reptiles. A hygrometer is a very inexpensive piece of equipment that allows you to measure the humidity in your reptile's enclosure. These are readily available online and in pet stores
Shedding: Ball pythons will shed their skin multiple times thru their life. The younger the Ball Python is the more often they will shed. When your Ball python is ready to shed, their scales will look dull and their eyes will start to look blue which is called Pre-ecdysis aka bluing. Sometimes during this period, your Ball python may refuse to eat which is perfectly normal, I personally wait until after they shed for this reason to avoid wasting a food item. To help your Ball python have a full shed, you can slightly raise the humidity in the enclosure by misting 1-2 times a day. When your Ball python sheds their skin that is called Ecdysis. You will see your Ball python start to rub their little faces on decor, the terrarium, rocks or even you if you are holding them, but I recommend not handling unless you have to during this time as shedding is stressful for the animal and handling only adds more stress. If the humidity is correct and your python has no shedding issues you should have a beautiful complete shed that is one solid piece.
Shedding Issues: If your Ball python has stuck shed, first make sure that your humidity is high enough in their enclosure. There are a few ways to help with stuck shed such as using a Rubbermaid or Sterilite tub with holes to soak the snake in. The first way is to soak your Ball python in about an inch of (just warmer than room temperature) water for 30 minutes to 1 hour. The second way you can help is by dampening a paper towel with warm water, twisting out the excess water and placing in a tub. Then, let your Ball python cruise around for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Once your Ball python has either soaked or cruised around the paper towel, put on a rubber fingertip (you can get these at any store with a office supply section) to gently remove the stuck shed. If you notice that you are unable to remove an eye cap or a piece of shed that looks restricting, please go to a local breeder or vet to have it professionally removed.
Scale Rot: If you notice that your Ball python has a rash or blisters this could be scale rot. Scale rot is typically due to the humidity being way too high. First, place your Ball python into a completely dry environment and we would suggest using paper towel as a substrate as you can change it frequently to keep the enclosure dry. Wait a day or two before placing a water dish back into their enclosure. Once you place a water dish back into the enclosure, if you notice that the water dish has spilled onto the paper towel please change it. Make sure to clean up immediately if your snake has urinated or defecated. Finally, visit the vet in order to start a course of antibiotics to help heal your snake or get instructions on other treatments for your snake.
Care sheet provided by Fantastic Beast’s Exotic Rescue.
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