Herp people: Is my ball python happy?
First of all, it's great you're asking for advice. It's always wonderful to see people who genuinely want to care for their animals properly. Ball pythons are my thing, I keep and breed them so I'll try helping you as best as I can. First off, the issues shedding is likely because of the lamp. Ball pythons do much better using a UTH regulated by a thermostat. (For a UTH you MUST MUST MUST have a thermostat. Without it they can get upwards of 120 and will burn your snake. A lot of snakes have had severe burns because of an unregulated UTH. Hydrofarm is a cheap but decent brand, you can buy it on Amazon) Lamps suck up the humidity, and they need humidity to shed properly. Tanks are also tricky to maintain humidity, but not too hard, it just takes a bit of trial and error. I would ditch that tall tank completely, they are not snakes who enjoy climbing at all. In the wild they live 100% on the ground, in burrows. They're not arboreal at all. They also need a hot side and a cool side, a tall tank doesn't give them the temperature gradient they need. The ambient temperature in their tank should never fall below 75 degrees. The ambient should be around 78-80. They need a hot side around 88-95. The general rule for ball pythons is a hiding ball python is a happy ball python. If they are moving around, slithering around the tank, there is probably something they're not happy about. The only time I'd say to not worry at all about them moving a lot is if it's the day before feeding day or something. Movement is stress, but that is also a very easy fix. It can be fixed by offering more hides and a smaller/more cluttered enclosure.Like I said above, they live in burrows. That means they like small, tight, and dark spaces. For BP enclosures, bigger is not better. Bigger enclosures stress them out. The corn's tank looks good for the BP for probably her entire life. I don't see any hides in there, so you should add at least 2. They need one on the hot side and one on the cool side. In short, ditch the tall tank for the BP. I'd recommend getting a UTH and not the lamp. Give her a minimum of 2 hides. During shedding humidity should be around 80%, ditching the lamp will probably fix the shedding issue, giving her a soak would probably help too. Bigger is not better in terms of enclosure size. A 41qt is the biggest I'd ever put a BP in, even big females
Teens who go to college, what's your dorm room like? Do you get along with your roommate?
I'm pretty sure I answered this already, but if not, I'll go again =] Can you describe what your dorm room looks like? It's a rectangle. One side is pretty much all window. The opposite side is a wardrobe and door. On either side is just plain wall. I have photos and stuff and a drawing board on one side. The other side have a cupboard. Is it a private school or public? I guess public, but we don't have public and private universities here. How big is it? About 20,000 students Do you get to pick the dorm you live in? Nope, but I'm an RA (residential assistant). How did you decorate it? Photos and little things that I've collected. Do you like your roommate? I don't have room mates, but I have flatmates. They change this year and in the past they've been all good. Do you like living in a dorm? Yup, but I've almost had enough. Will you share pics of your room? I don't have any photos sorry. Do you know of any sites to buy dorm stuff cheap? I don't know sorry! EDIT- Same as Jak Boy, I'm from New Zealand too. EDIT- Haha oh! That's fine, I'm glad you liked it! I wish I'd taken photos of the other rooms I've been in. Just cover your walls in photos and posters (use blutac or tape) so you can't see the prison like walls. I feel so sorry for you having to share your room, you're probably paying heaps too! ...
My 4 yr old Son wants a Hermit Crab-please advise?
Hello, My four yr son wants a hermit crab and we will probably get it for him. It seems harmless enough. What in the world does a hermit crab eat. How often do you feed them? Any other serious things I should know? Do they poop and pee (yes I am a retard ok...when it comes to hermit crabs) Thx, James
How can I clean this utterly filthy apartment? (Cat feces/urine, bugs, mold, etc)?
I have a cleaning business and from the sounds of the level of filth, I don't think 1 day is enough time to do this job. Two days maybe, if you don't run out screaming before that. (kidding) Anyway, get alot of trash bags. I would too the entire litter box if the box itself is trashed. New boxes can be bought for under $10. each. Worth not having to clean them. Then the clothing...can you toss that too? Probably should be. If not, toss it all in the wash and run it thru at least 2 cycles. Throw everything else that is contaminated away. This place needs a fresh start. As for carpets, you will obviously have to steam clean the place but that usually is not enough to clean urine and poo soaked carpet. Most times the carpet and padding needs to be replaced. If you think that's the case, contact your friend before wasting time steam-cleaning. Before you do anything, take pics of the place before you begin showing each room, the stove. Take some detailed pics. Then of course, take pics of the place when you are done. The reason, in case you have any trouble with getting paid what this job is worth, you will have some evidence as to the level of filth. Wear good quality gloves, you might also need a couple of dust masks to avoid the odors, germs, etc. A couple of buckets. Lots of hot water. A couple of spray bottles of clorox spray cleaner. Laundry detergent, something strong. Good luck w/this.