Which Is beter For my ball python A Reptile Enclosure or a 45 gallon tank?

Question

this is when he becomes full grown... at the petstore the guy i was taking to said to either get a 45 gallon whenhe s an adult or go on "graigslist.com" ( kind of like internet clissifieds) and purchase a used reptile enclosure. which is better??

Answer 1

ok don't listen to reptile king here yes it is better to build your own but an aquarium is just fine and a 45gal will work just fine just provide enough hides one on the hott one on the cooler end i own 4 bp's n they are all kept in aquariums i do have future plans for a custom enclosure for each but to say it is a bad idea to use an aquarium is rediculous my bp's love attention and do not hide all the time they are very active most of the problems people have is because of wrong temps and humidity no because they are over exposed

Answer 2

Ball pythons require both high humidity and high temperatures.  I suggest the use of a 40-45 gallon tank for either a male or female.  Anything smaller and you will have to let it out every day or two to roam around as it will not have enough room in it's enclosure to do so.

You will want to attach a "rainforest" heat pad... that is one that generally runs around 8 watts.  It should be about the size of 1/4-1/3 the size of your tank so I suggest either a medium or large sized heat pad (exoterra products are VERY reliable).  Additionally you'll want a heat lamp.  A UV lamp is not required as ball pythons are not dinural creatures.  The use of a red or blue (infared or night lamp respectively) is best, and for an enclosure of 40gallons I would go with either a 60 watt bulb if you have a straight electrical source heat lamp, or should it have adjustible settings go with a 100 watt.  Sure you have two thermometers in the enclosure (one at either end) and a hygrometer in the center of the tank.  I also suggest the use of a cocoa fibre medium or "bed-a-beast".  It's essentially cocoa husk that's been mulched and turned into a bedding.  It holds humidity very well and is fully digestible should you snake accidently ingest some of the bedding.  The hot side of the tank should be in the 88-90 degree F range and the colder end around 75-80.  You want your ball to be able to choose the necessary temperature it's looking for at different points in the day.  The reason I say use a heat pad is that the heat underneath the tank will aid in the digestion of it's meals.  The tank and substrate in between the heat pad and the snake will prevent against any skin burns... I do however tell everyone NOT to ever use a heat rock as it will cause burns to the skin.

The reason I say go for the aquarium is because it allows for retention of both heat and humidity.  You can also set it up to be quite decorative with fake plants, pieces of wood and lots of other items you may choose.  One thing I did not mention is that just about EVERY reptile out there requires a hide in it's tank... so make sure that you have one for your ball.

Best of luck to you!

Answer 3

If it's a male BP then a 20 gallon long (20L) is a good size for most adults. A female would more likely need a 40 or 45 gallon breeder.

As far as which is better... In my opinion neither. Better would be to make your own out of a plastic tub. BUT having said that a tank (20L) from Craig's List would work just fine. Unless female in which case go for the 40L

Answer 4

definitely go for a proper reptile vivarium ie wood with glass sliding doors.If reptiles were meant to be kept in glass tanks then they'd have fins and gills.Glass tanks are too open for a ball python.They are very shy snakes and dont like high exposure like glass tanks give.They prefer a dark secure viv where they are not as exposed and will feel alot safer.Royal pythons are called ball pythons because thats what they do when they feel stress or insecure,they curl up into a ball.Many people think its fun to watch them do this but in reality your scaring it which isn't that funny unless your into snake cruelty.

Keeping royals in glass tanks is a bad idea.Then you get people coming on forums like this winging because there royal isn't eating or stays hid all day and only comes out at night.they do it for a reason.Put yourself in their place.If your a shy and timid snake where would you like to live,in a completley see-through glass tank designed for fish or a nice dark secure wood viv!!

Answer 5

i agree with sanitysnitemare.  i have BP's and they love attention.  i had them in a glass aquarium and they did just fine...they finally go too big for the aquarium that they were in and i got a great deal on a vision cage so taht is what they are in now...just for the record i think vision cages suck.  just make sure if you get an aquarium you can find a screen top that will fit it...screen tops are better for snake keeping than glass tops creates airflow.  the people at the pet store are there to make a buck so they will try to sell you expensive stuff.