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 #2092177


Cannibalcorpse
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 50 gallon breeder = stress?

hello, people say that you shouldnt have a baby ball python in a tank bigger than a 20 long, but i have mine in a 50 gallon breeder, and have had him in it for about 5 months, and he shows no signs of stress?? he eats with out any problems, once every week, and with 1 fuzzy mouse, and he spends most of his time out of his hides, from what i can see, he seems to just explore the tank, i have ALOT of branches, vines, and greenery, and a jungle type background covering sides and back, maybe he isnt stressed because all the cage decor? thoughts anyone?
11/05/09  01:29am

 #2092179


Flameethrower
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   Message To: Cannibalcorpse   In reference to Message Id: 2092177


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

50 Gallon is too big. Ball pythons spend 80% of their life hiding. And from your description he is stressed form the always moving around the tank.

Also fuzzies are way too small for a ball python. As day one from the egg they can take hoppers which is larger than fuzzies
11/05/09  01:45am

 #2092180


Cannibalcorpse
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   Message To: Flameethrower   In reference to Message Id: 2092179


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

how does moving around the tank mean he’s stressed? if he were stressed wouldnt there be more signs? like not eating, bad sheds? something other than moving around the tank, which looks like hes just having fun...?
11/05/09  01:53am

 #2092266


Steven11788
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   Message To: Cannibalcorpse   In reference to Message Id: 2092180


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

i’ve alway been told a hiding bp is a happy one. mine is very well planted and he might come out ince during the day to switch hides ,then he roams at night. he loves roaming on me and couch, but in his cage he loves his hide.. imo 55 is way tooooooo big. but you’ve been told that already, anyway enjoy your snake
11/05/09  10:36am

 #2092315


Tamara21
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   Message To: Steven11788   In reference to Message Id: 2092266


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

and ive been told the opposite... my uncle’s snake is very active and shes 2 years old. it depends on the snake... all snakes are not alike... as long as its eating responding when u are handling it and having nice sheds i think it would be okay... well according to my uncle.



11/05/09  02:46pm

 #2092378


Anouk
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   Message To: Tamara21   In reference to Message Id: 2092315


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

I would say to feed your snake larger prey. He may be out "hunting" for food rather than exploring. If he is eating appropriate prey and still exploring, I’d say he likes his cage. People who have had snakes for a lot longer than me have given me advice. Most of it is great, but some I just choose to do what seems right for me and my snake. For example, when Anouk was a hatchling I was all but told my snake would die from stress because I handled him every day. He did not seem stressed, he seemed to enjoy it, so I continued to do it and am glad now because he is a very social and layed back snake.

In the wild your snake would not have an enclosure, so I don’t think a small enclosure is needed for a happy, healthy snake. I think a 55 gal with lots of vines and hides is fine as long as your snake is fine. If he wasn’t, I’d say try something smaller. I think it depends on the snake. Some young BP’s may like close quarters, where as others would explore the whole house if you let them!
11/05/09  06:06pm

 #2092390


Anouk
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   Message To: Anouk   In reference to Message Id: 2092378


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

Forgot to mention temps. Are your temps within range to ensure he is not roaming to try and find a comfortable spot? Does he have two or three hides in addition to the vines and stuff? Is his water easily accessible? What are the dimensions on the breeder tank? If most of it is height space, the bottom floor space probably isn’t nearly as big as "55 gal" sounds compared to "20 gal".

Every ball python is different, but I do have to say that when mine is in his cage he is usually hiding. He enjoys roaming out of his cage, though. At one time I had planned to make him a huge, lavish enclosure, but that would likely be a waste of time and money! I would feel bad about him being in a cage if he wasn’t spending hours each day out of it. When he wants out, he taps his nose against the glass or pokes around the screen top. I can tell if he is just exploring because then he climbs on the hides and vines, burrows in the substrate, or lays half in/half out of his hides. If he is hungry, he is more slithery when he is out (less inclined to curl up and relax with me). He will also stay with his head poked out of his hide, neck curled back slightly, and his head up off the substrate.

I will quit babbling now and end with saying that you know your snake better than anyone and probably already know what you are going to do or not do.
11/05/09  06:33pm

 #2092572


Cannibalcorpse
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   Message To: Anouk   In reference to Message Id: 2092390


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

temps are perfect, 88-92 hot side, 78-84 cool side, theres a waterfall, and pond, that is big enough to soak in even when he gets full grown, 4 hides, as well as underground tunnels, made by cutting and putting together pvc piping, he hangs around in those alot, going in and out of them, and i have them covered with eco earth, and peices of slate rock, so the seem like natural tunnels, as for food, im gonna start feeding him hoppers, or maybe rat pups, or what ever rat size is the same as hoppers.



11/06/09  09:07am

 #2092615


Isabela
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   Message To: Cannibalcorpse   In reference to Message Id: 2092572


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

Given proper security spots a 50gallong could work.

Feed prey items that equal to the thickest part of your snake. By now, that’s probably a bit bigger than hoppers.



11/06/09  12:13pm

 #2092716


Constrictor
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   Message To: Isabela   In reference to Message Id: 2092615


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

A cage being too big is complete bs. As long as you have a good amount of hides any size cage will work. In the wild they are not confined to an area the size of a 30 gallon so niether should they in captivity. I dont know who started the idea about the cage size.
11/06/09  05:06pm

 #2092721


Isabela
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   Message To: Constrictor   In reference to Message Id: 2092716


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

Quote:

I dont know who started the idea about the cage size.


It becomes a problem when a new owner puts a baby BP in a 50 gallon tank with no hides, cover, etc. Breeders have also found that trouble eaters are more likely to feed in super tight enclosures. So that may be where it came from, in part.



11/06/09  05:22pm

 #2093251


Cannibalcorpse
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   Message To: Isabela   In reference to Message Id: 2092721


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

i can still feed him the fuzzies if i give him 2 at once right? cuz i did that today, right as the usual single fuzzy was almost all the way down, i put another one to his mouth, and he kept swallowing, so im guessing it is ok to do that, because i still have lik 12 more fuzzies in my freezer, and it would suck if i couldnt feed the rest of them to my snake.
11/08/09  03:15am

 #2093252


Anouk
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   Message To: Cannibalcorpse   In reference to Message Id: 2093251


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

That is fine to do. I did that with Anouk with mice to get him to eat rats (which he will no longer eat!).
Do you have pics of your enclosure? It sounds awesome!
11/08/09  03:24am

 #2093295


Snakesgalore
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   Message To: Anouk   In reference to Message Id: 2093252


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

as long as he dosnt bring them up this will be fine or you can always get another snake lol



11/08/09  09:43am

 #2093403


Marg
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   Message To: Cannibalcorpse   In reference to Message Id: 2093251


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

The smaller enclosures are to provide security...

If you ahve enough hides and cover (vines, etc), and can maintain
the temps/humidy (how are you reading these measurements?),
then a larger enclusure is fine... not recommended tho.

Just make sure when you do Monthly Cleaning...
you clean it thoroughly... hard to drag a 55 gal tank to the tub,
I know, I had one.

As for prey size... as stated... prey should be slightly smaller
than the girth of the snake (widest part of the body).

The "fuzzies" you have left... feed 3 per feeding...
but... make sure the previous prey item has gane all the way down
before offering another... they can choke... and if they do, they will regurge..
and we don’t want that :o)

I feed 2 jumbo mice per feeding, to each of mine...
I Always wait 5 - 10 minutes between prey items.

Got any pics?
snake and enclosure?
we Love pics

Marg
11/08/09  03:45pm

 #2093922


Cannibalcorpse
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   Message To: Marg   In reference to Message Id: 2093403


 50 gallon breeder = stress?

well my sister stole my camera, so ill gets some pics when i get it back :D, but as for feeding 3 fuzzies at once, im sorry, i dont feel comfortable doing that, it just seems like too much, 2 seems like too much lol, but 3, i dont wanna stretch him out that much
11/10/09  02:30am


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