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cage questions and more from a new ball owner

akaangela

akaangela

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I am getting my first Balls on tuesday. I am getting one male and one femal from different breeders. The femal is 296g and the male is 140g my first question is can I keep them in the same cage? I am getting a 55gallon tank, so if I can not keep them together I can put a devider in the tank (If I have to divided it I was thinking of putting the heating pad in the middle so I would only have to have one of those). second question is their water dish. Should I have a large dish with just a bit of water in it (I don't want them to drown)? Both are 04 and CB. So they wont be ready to breed for at least another year. I am breeding my own mice (for my corn snakes) should I start breeding Rats as well for the balls? How many rats can a 2 y.o ball eat in a month? Is misting the cage good enough to keep the humidity up? Thanks for your help.
I was going to post photos but they don't want to seem to load (when I hit the photo button it pops me up to the top of the screan :( )
 
You can keep them together but feed separately.
I feed mine 1 medium rat a week which is 4 a month.
It depends on the individual snake how many to feed but don't over do it. Fat snakes are lazy breeders in my opinion.

Good Luck
 
Also, you failed to mention overweight/obese snakes have less of a chance of living to an older age. Not only does it take away from breeding, which shouldn't be the first consideration, it isn't healthy for the snake in general.
 
Joel, snakes are not social creatures. They should not be kept together!
 
Justcage I never implied they were social and hang out. Read my post again. I said they could be housed together as was his question.


Also sand and sun i hear you but his question wasn't about obesity it mentioned breeding. I respond to questions in the post not one that weren't asked.
Thanx,
Joel
 
Housing them together is a bad idea. You cannot tell which snake is doing what. Also the chance the disease transmission is doubled. It will also make the snake more prone to go off feed because of being nervous and stressed...
 
If he plans to keep these as pets all that you stated goes out the window.
If he plans to start a breeding program then of course he should house them separately.
You stated your opinion I stated mine. He will get other opinions and do what he thinks is best for him.
Take care justcages
 
Are you saying Joel, if he kept them strictly as pets then there isn't a single chance of going off feed due to stress?
It doesn't matter if they are pets or breeders, everything Matt said has relevance and should be taken seriously.
 
Sir you really need to know what your talking about before givingadvice to someone that is asking for help. When it comes to the care of an animal guessing is not an option. Do your research, read some books and get some experience under your belt before you provide information that is incorrect!
 
thank you

I think I will just put the devidor in and go from there. I know it will be a bit more dificult in getting the temps just right but I would rather be safe than sorry. They are after all just a tiny boy/girl and I don't want any problems so the tank should be fine for a while. That gives them both 24"x13"x20" the same size as my 20 gallon long (and Iwas told that could house a small adult). At what weight would you consider this size of tank too small?
 
I would go more on length... When they hit 2 maybe 2.5 foot I would get some bigger caging.. My adult males are in 24" x 17 rubbermaid tubs.....
 
Balls together

Angela,

I have been into animals all of my life. I am currently a pre-vet student, with hopes to become a good herp vet. I have been into reptiles for a long time, but only got into snakes about two years ago. I purchased a nice male Ball. I, as well, housed him in a 55 gallon tank. Shortly there after someone called me to come and take a Ball out of their home before another family member was going to kill it. Needless to say, I obtained another Ball, another male at that. I told you that for this reason. I believe all animals are social in their own right. You just have to be patient enough, and absolutely respect the animal. Since, Monty recieved his new cage mate he has been more social with me, and more active in his cage.

I did, however, make sure that each snake had their own hide box or two. Also, they each have their own water bowl, and they are fed separately. But, Angela, if you want to be able to absolutely trust your snake. The snake needs to be fed in a separate enclosure. This can be a sweater box, a sterilite tub, anything simple. But it must be secure. This is something mentioned in just about every book or magazine, and it is absolutely true in my experiences. Oh. and their hide boxes, they are always in the same one. My two boys never leave each other.


I hope this helps, and sorry for the length. Email me if you ever have any other questions.

[email protected]

-Anthony
 
Do you mean length? Or width? My 55 gallon tank 4 feet long, and 12 inches wide. You mentioned 24 X 17 correct?

Hey. I do have some questions on rack systems. Could you help, or should I do a new post on racks.

Anthony
 
"Sir you really need to know what your talking about before givingadvice to someone that is asking for help. When it comes to the care of an animal guessing is not an option. Do your research, read some books and get some experience under your belt before you provide information that is incorrect!"

Actually you should know what your talking about. It's funny how you turn a simple question into a battle. Where do you see me saying I guess it's ok?'

Reading books is not the best place to get info and I would think someone like yourself knows that.. I learn from experience.

I don't know about you but I have been caring fo reptiles for over 20 years so answering someones question is within my ability. So once again if you care to, show me where I gave incorrect info?
 
Anthony I would probably put it in another therad as it will get more direct exposure....Joel Dont have the time or really care to point anything out to you my man....You do it your way and Ill do it the right way.lol
 
Not to step on anyone's toes... but I've heard that yes, it's much better to keep animals in separate cages to monitor shedding, defecation, lower stress etc. However, if there are plenty of temp gradient areas - ie more than one cool spot and more than one warm spot, and an adequate number of hides (at least 2 for each snake), as long as the cage has enough room for all of this (we're talking a mighty big cage when they're adults), and IF you aren't all that concerned about monitoring their poop AND you feed them separately, snakes can be housed together if they're nearly the same size. If you want to do such a "community" cage, of course there are risks but that doesn't mean it's "just plain wrong". Just my opinion.
 
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