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worried about little ball

akaangela

akaangela

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I got my first balls on Tue the 25th. I got a little male 140g and a female 292 g. I put them in different cages to let them get used to their new homes. The little male took a while to uncurl, he looked around for about 5 min yawned and went into his hide and I have not seen him sence. He looked a bit thin to me and I am worried sick about him. I don't want to bother him but should I take him out of his hide and check on him or just leave him alone (I know I know it has only been a day).

The female on the other hand went right into her hide and came out a few hours later (about 9) and has been in and out of her hide just looking around and seems very alert. Her toung is flickering and she seems happy enough. She is much bigger than the male. Could that have made the difference in how they handled the trip here? The cages are 92.5 at the hot spot and 75 on the cold side. Is she just friendly? She seems to like the cold side as that is where she was when I got home. I guess I am just worried about the little boy. Do you think he will be ok?
 
I'm still new to balls, but I know snakes can get VERY stressed out in a new home if they're bothered too much. I would say don't even go near the tank for a couple days, until they've had time to adjust (except of course to check the water and whatnot).

A stressed snake won't eat, and balls of all snakes are prone to this sort of thing... Give it time and don't worry about it. Hiding is very normal. Just make sure it's got lots of places to hide...

PS. I got mine on monday night! *high five* to new bp owners! lol
 
Spirit is right, give both of them a little time to adjust. If they seem to be acting odd after a few days just post back here and I'm sure we will beable to help you.
 
He was out :)

This morning when I got up he was out of his hide and looking around. He went back in when he saw me but at least I know he is alive and moving. I am going to just let him settle, but I sure do feel much better. Thank you for your help.

I am thinking about breeding rats for my balls and corn. Can balls be healthy on mice or are rats that much better? I already breed mice for my corn
 
lol! He's fine. Just a little scared of the new tank is all. :)

Rats have a little higher nutrition, but also higher in fats. Fine for balls, not so good for corns (though some people feed them rats). Some people also get away with mice to balls, but one large mouse isn't enough for a full grown ball so that's another reason why to feed rats. Just my opinion though.
 
ball issues

dont sweat the male, it takes them a while to adjust, but to be honest my male adjusted same day and held him that day, my female, it just like a little girl shes either wants to hang out or has a pissy attitude, so i then leave her alone. so balls are beautiful but easily stressed , so have fun good luck and just let them set the pace. hold for 10 min then put back to twice a day till it hangs out more often... to be honest my balls are in hide most of the day, their health, fine, eating , and growing fast.
best of luck :beer:
 
Its normal for a bp to do that. They will most likely explore every night unless they just ate. Mine does anyways..... What they are doing is normal for a bp. Hide during the day come out at night. You probably are sleeping when they come out and they go back in when you get up. These are just my experiences.


CK
 
thin ball boy

I moved my balls hide today while checking his water. He is SO thin. He looks like an upside down v :(. He has eaten onec on thursday (it was only a small mouse). I can see his skin folded as well. He would not eat the mouse I put in his tank so I put a hopper mouse (all I have is mice at the moment) and he ate that and started roaming, so I put the mouse back in and he ate that. My question is I don't want to over feed him but he is SO thin. How much can I feed him without hurting him? I just got some breeder rats so I should have babie rats in about 4 weeks. His temp is 96 on the floor of the hot side (right above the heat tape) and 76 on the cold side and his huidity is 52%. He has a large hide and a small hide (he likes the small hide better I don't know why). Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
 
He likes the small hide better because it's a tighter fit. Balls like to have places where they can just squeeze into.

If he ate 2 separate prey items on Thursday, I would wait 5-7 days before offering more food. If you feed too frequently you risk a rergurge, and you don't want to start down that road. Just make sure he has sufficient water.
 
Thursday and sunday? Just a suggestion, but I'd wait at LEAST 5 days between feedings... 5 for a hatchling, 7 for a yearling, 10 for an adult... but that ALL depends on the snake, it's size, and the size of the meals.
 
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