How long does it take for a royal python to grow? Caring for a royal python. The activity of the royal python is manifested at night and in the evening, since it is during this period that he hunts lizards, small mammals and birds.

Ball-shaped, or royal pythons are very popular among those who want to get a snake at home. Like all snakes, ball pythons require careful care. Pythons of this species live up to thirty years, and for their health they require very specific living conditions. With the right care ball python will live a long life and bring you much joy.

Steps

General rules

Be mindful of their sizes. All snakes, including ball pythons, grow throughout their lives. Ball pythons grow to large sizes and need the right conditions. You should take this into account before you start a ball python at home.

• Ball pythons grow up to about one and a half meters in length.
• It is necessary to provide enough space for an adult python.
• A snake of this size should be fed with large rodents.

1. Get ready for long-term care of your pet. Caring for any pet requires a lot of effort and time. Throughout the life of a ball python, the animal must be fed, cleaned and monitored for its health. Before you get a ball python, consider whether you are ready to properly care for him.

   • Individual ball pythons lived up to 40 years.
   • As a rule, ball pythons live 20-30 years.

2. Choose a ball python. If you think you can provide proper care for your pet, it's time to find him. Luckily, ball pythons are very popular as pets and can be found in many pet stores. Start choosing your python after you are ready to care for it.

   • Ball pythons can be purchased from reptile breeders.
   • Try visiting the reptile exhibit, where you can also find ball pythons.
   • Before buying a ball python, make sure it is capable of eating and well-fed.

3. Know how often to handle a ball python. IN wild nature snakes are not trained to be handled. Therefore, you should know when you can take your pet and hold him in your arms, and when this can cause him stress. To determine if a ball python is ready to communicate with you, pay attention to the following:

   • Give your pet at least one meal in their new home before picking them up.
   • Young snakes should be picked up no more than once a week.
   • Adult snakes can be picked up about once a week.
   • Don't touch a ball python after eating. Wait about two days after your pet has eaten to feel comfortable.

4. Be careful. If you are considering getting a ball python, you will need to take good care of its health. To do this, you need to monitor the behavior of the snake and its actions in order to notice in time warning signs. Look out for the following common signs of illness:

   • IN normal condition ball python curls up. If the snake lies straight or raises its head, this may indicate an illness.
   • If a ball python spends a lot of time in the water, it may be sick or not feeling well.
   • In case of respiratory problems, the snake may wheeze, or mucus may be discharged from its nose.
   • Loose or bloody stools indicate digestive problems. If the snake does not defecate for more than ten days, it may be constipated.
   • Refusal to eat may indicate an infection.

5. Don't forget to clean up leftover food. If the snake has not eaten something, it should be removed from the terrarium. Do not leave live or dead prey in the terrarium, as this may harm your pet's health. To keep your ball python comfortable, always remove leftover food.

Over the past few years, royal pythons have become very popular. True, this is not surprising. With its beautiful coloration, size and character, this species has become one of the most frequently found in domestic collections, and tens of thousands of these animals are exported from Africa every year. These snakes can forgive some content mistakes and are quite suitable for beginner hobbyists.

In the terrarium, these animals need the same things as in nature. However, it is impossible to reproduce all the conditions of the changing environment in which a wild animal is found in nature. Therefore, when keeping in captivity, we focus our efforts on those conditions and requirements that are absolutely necessary for the life and health of the pet.

If we take into account huge range habitats of pythons as a genus, then the same requirements for terrarium living conditions cause slight surprise. Some pythons are terrestrial, others are arboreal; some come from humid areas, others from dry areas. However, most of them feel great in a terrarium under the same conditions. In fairness, the same can be said about most tropical boas.

Thus, providing the basic needs of a royal python is not difficult, but requires several pieces of equipment.

in the terrarium

First and most important element necessary equipment- this is the terrarium itself. Its main function is to safely restrain the snake. Remember that snakes kept in a terrarium have a lot of free time, and if there is the slightest opportunity to escape, sooner or later they will use it.

My own first terrariums were a variety of cracked aquariums with glass topped down with a brick or book. Today, however, it is possible to buy a huge number of beautiful ready-made terrariums. And it's also not difficult to build a terrarium for a royal python with your own hands or convert a suitable household container into a terrarium.

Wood, plastic and glass - all these materials are great for making a terrarium. Currently, I enjoy using plastic terrariums with sliding windows on the front wall. These terrariums have a waterproof coating on the inside, which makes them easy to clean and disinfect. All edges and corners are rounded, so there are no gaps or corners that are difficult to clean. The terrariums themselves are light and have good review. And the best part is, you don't have to make them yourself!

Royal pythons are terrestrial animals that rarely climb branches. The area of ​​the terrarium, on the basis of this, is a much more important indicator than the height.
A baby python will be comfortable in a small container the size of a shoe box. An adult python can live its entire life in an 80 x 45 cm terrarium. These are the minimum dimensions required. Larger terrariums are welcome, but too big sizes can cause feeding difficulties; sometimes it is problematic for a snake to find food in large quantities. In addition, on large areas it is more difficult to maintain the necessary microclimate.

Although the main purpose of the terrarium is to keep the snake from escaping, it must also create special conditions necessary for the comfortable life of its inhabitant. Proper temperature and humidity levels are vital for reptiles.

The king python comes from drier areas than most of its Python brethren. However, it is important to keep the air humidity at a sufficient high level. In nature, royal pythons spend most of their time in burrows where the air is humid. Wild snakes are not exposed to dry hot air, as it seems at first glance on their natural environment a habitat. In captivity, given the choice, they will also choose a wetter location.
Royal pythons, like tropical animals, need more high temperatures ah, than those that are common in our apartments. Because of this, terrariums with animals must be additionally heated. The ideal air temperature in the terrarium is 26-27C.

There are several ways to heat a terrarium. I use heating cords or heating mats. It is also possible to use incandescent lamps or ceramic heaters for this purpose. It is believed that snakes are color blind and cannot see the light of a red light bulb. I myself think that snakes see red, but at least they are not constantly exposed to white light, as is the case with the round-the-clock use of an ordinary incandescent lamp in as a heater. Heating mats and ceramic heaters emit no visible light and convert electricity into heat more efficiently.

At first glance, it may seem that you need to warm up the entire terrarium, but this is not so. In the wild, snakes have the ability to choose the temperature that is optimal for them in this moment time. We can provide temperature control for the snake by placing the heating element in only one corner of the terrarium.

The temperature will be high near the heat source, and will decrease as you move away from it. And the snake will be able to choose the temperature it needs at the moment. A temperature gradient of 26-32C is ideal for royal pythons. The temperature of the heat source itself may be higher, but this is not a problem as long as the specified warm and cold corner temperatures are observed.

When night descends on the earth, under natural conditions, the air temperature always drops. Therefore, a slight drop in temperature at night in a terrarium is quite possible, and even desirable during the breeding season.
If you use a heating element located under the bottom of the terrarium (cords, mats), then its area should not exceed 1/4-1/3 of the bottom surface. If you notice that the snake spends most of its time in one corner, then it is likely that the temperature regime needs to be adjusted.

The temperature in the cage with the royal python can be controlled using a thermostat, dimmer or by simply selecting the right heater according to the size of the terrarium.

The thermometer in a terrarium is very important in monitoring temperature regime. I get a lot of calls from beginner breeders who have problems with animals who don't even know what the temperature is in their snake's terrarium.

Sticker thermometers, which are sold everywhere, are not very suitable for measuring the air temperature in a terrarium: they, in fact, show the temperature of the wall to which they are glued, and this is not the same thing.

Thermometers should be placed where the snake spends most of its time. For a royal python, this is the floor level. Temperatures elsewhere are less significant. If you are not using a thermostat, keep in mind that fluctuations in indoor temperature will cause the temperature inside the terrarium to change.

The amount of heat that a heating element must produce to provide desired temperature in a terrarium depends on several variables. First of all - on the size of the terrarium and its design, as well as its location and the size of the ventilation and any other openings. Obviously, larger terrariums require a more powerful heater, and terrariums made of wood retain heat better than plastic or glass ones.

The terrarium must be provided with ventilation holes, but it should not be forgotten that heat and humidity are easier to maintain at the proper level if the size of the ventilation is reduced. The location of the ventilation holes also plays an important role.

Because warm air rises, the ventilation holes located in the upper part of the terrarium will lead to unnecessary heat loss. In this case, the heating element will work more intensively to heat the terrarium, and this, in turn, will lead to a decrease in air humidity. Ideally, small ventilation holes are best located at the ends of the terrarium.

The snake must always have access to clean water. Heavy ceramic bowls are well suited, which will be difficult for a python to turn over. If the bowl is large, then the evaporation of water in it will help maintain required level humidity. For maximum evaporation of water, it is better to place the bowl in a warm corner.

However, it must not be forgotten that in warm water Bacteria multiply quickly, so you need to regularly change the water and wash the bowl.
There are several terrarium substrates that are great for terrariums with royal pythons. I myself use newspaper because it is a cheap adsorbent, relatively sterile and readily available.
Some ground wood substrates (mulches and chips) have a more balanced combination of utility and aesthetics than newspapers. Aspen and pine based substrates can be used, but cedar must be avoided. Often used in rodent substrates, cedar wood chips can be toxic to some reptiles.

"Artificial turf" mats and similar products can also be used as underlays in a terrarium. They are easy to clean and sterilize, as well as cut to size.
Living plants in a terrarium are very beautiful, but they are difficult to grow and also make cleaning difficult.

Pet selection.

Ideally, a royal python should be captive bred. I'm not saying this because I breed them myself - it really is the best option. Buying a captive bred animal will not cause damage natural population. Captive-born snakes do not have the acclimatization problems that wild-caught snakes suffer from.

Royal python babies are some of the most widely available reptiles in the trade today, and most are farm bred. In late May-April, kites hatch from eggs laid by pregnant females caught in the wild in Ghana, Togo and Benin. These kites are exported in large quantities. Despite the fact that they are conceived in nature, they are born, in fact, in captivity. Most of them are exported within days of hatching. If properly cared for, they make excellent pets. A beginner who buys the first snake will most likely get just one.

When choosing a royal python, pay attention to the fact that the baby has good weight and muscle tone. Should not appear dehydrated or have remnants of a previous shedding. If possible, get confirmation that the snake is self-feeding.

Royal pythons are highly undervalued in the reptile market, and as a result, don't always get the care and attention they deserve. If it is not possible to take a snake that has been well cared for, one should try to take a recently brought one.

Dinner time

Adult royal pythons caught in the wild tend to have a hard time acclimatizing in captivity. They often refuse food for long periods.
Royal pythons are long-lived. The record for living in captivity for them is 50 years. Therefore, some of the adult animals caught in the wild may well be very old. And getting used to new conditions can be very long and difficult for such animals. Using the imagination, it is not difficult to imagine the shock of a wild snake that finds itself in an aquarium in a bedroom in Cincinnati.

Almost every one of these stubborn snakes starts eating sooner or later. There are a few things you can do to help your snake acclimate. First, make sure the temperature and humidity in the terrarium is within the optimal range. In addition, it is necessary to provide the snake with a place in which it can hide. Remember that in nature these snakes live in burrows, so the ideal hiding place should have a small opening, be dark and allow the snake to feel securely hidden. This simple condition will minimize stress in their lives. The shelter should be tight enough that the snake can feel the walls when inside.

It must be understood that in the wild, snakes can rarely be found on the open surface, when they are easily accessible to predators. And according to the serpent's understanding, you are a predator! Do not touch the snake until it begins to feed regularly on its own. Attempts to tame will only exacerbate stress and prolong the period of adaptation.

If the snake refuses to eat mice, try offering rats. If the rat doesn't work, try giving the gerbil, a food that many stubborn starving people are tempted to eat. Remember that although the snake feeds on rodents in nature, our rats and mice are of a completely different species and may seem completely unfamiliar to it.

Baby royal pythons may start feeding on juvenile mice. Newly hatched kites are small, and many beginning kite breeders feel that a smaller meal would be more appropriate. While some pythons will eat mouse pebbles, a larger, more active mouse will more quickly induce a feeding behavior in a snake that has never eaten before.

Growing pythons can be given larger mice, two mice, small rats, and eventually adult rats. I have one large royal python that occasionally gets calves.
Never leave a live food rodent unattended in a terrarium. If the snake refuses to eat it, he can seriously bite her.

Feed your snake once a week or so. I keep a record of snake activity, noting the dates of feeding, molting and rutting. Such recordings can be used to better understand the behavior of the snake depending on the time of year.

Some king pythons, especially if they are not bred animals, will fast from time to time, even if they were fed regularly before that. This is usually not a cause for concern. Just make sure conditions are optimal and continue to offer food weekly. And don't lose patience. Most of the pythons will start eating again after a while.

Basic about breeding

Most captive-bred king pythons breed willingly. Sexual behavior can be stimulated by lowering nighttime temperatures to 21C in autumn. After such a temperature decrease, partners often begin to show interest in each other.

Mating takes place over several weeks. Females develop follicles, ovulate and lay eggs over the next three or four months. Clutch sizes vary from three to twelve eggs, usually seven. The eggs can be incubated by the female herself, but an incubator can be used for this purpose. At a temperature of 32C, serpents hatch from eggs after 55 days.

The coloring and pattern of wild-caught royal pythons is almost identical, although there are exceptions. Some of these exceptions turned out to be hereditary. Currently, these unusual color traits are genetically fixed and available for purchase. Many of the morphs are scarce and have a high price. Most morphs are derived from one, sometimes two wild-caught, unusually colored snakes.

Since royal pythons have few offspring and breed only once a year, it takes a long time to breed and make a new morph available. Some interesting morphs can be found for sale, and new ones, though not often, still continue to appear.

The royal python has become one of the most popular reptiles kept as pets due to its visual appeal, availability and low price. They have a calm disposition, are unpretentious and live well in captivity. In fact, I have kept royal pythons for about 30 years and they are still one of my favorite snakes.

Not all people love crawling creatures, especially snakes. However, among such creatures there are representatives of exotic pets, and lovers of such may be interested in the royal python. This species is very popular with snakes. IN natural conditions western part of Africa and this species of snake lives. These snakes are very fond of being located in savannahs or in open forests close to water, it is in it that they escape from hot conditions, but they spend most of the time in their burrows.

The activity of the royal python is manifested at night and in the evening, since it is during this period that he hunts lizards, small mammals and birds.

If royal pythons are kept in captivity, then in good conditions they won't be picky.

These pets can bite, but this happens very rarely, only in emergency cases, otherwise they usually take the form of a ball, so sometimes such a python is called a “ball python”. Pythons live, so to speak, in freedom for about 10 years, but at home they can live up to 30 years.

Sexual maturity occurs at three or five years of age. As a result, the list of advantages of the royal python includes such as peacefulness and non-aggression, unpretentiousness in content, beautiful coloring, most small size from other representatives of pythons.

However, there is a drawback: the python lives at night, and during the day it lives in shelters.

The royal python has a rather muscular body, the diameter of which is from ten to fifteen centimeters.

There is a large triangular spot on the head, as well as lateral oculotemporal stripes, which are interconnected by a yellow stripe.

In color, they are more than black, yellow and beige colors, these are the colors that prevail. It is for its unusual coloring that this python is called royal.

It is impossible not to mention such a python weapon as a tongue. And this weapon of the python is long and branched. The body size of females and males is different. Females are longer than males, the former are up to 1.8 meters long, and the latter up to one meter.

Royal pythons grow quite quickly, in the first three years they grow thirty centimeters each year.

It is not difficult to take care of such a very peculiar pet. The terrarium must be chosen for them either plastic or glass.

Before growing up, you can keep a python in a terrarium, the volume of which is 35 liters, but then the place for their residence should be increased so that the size of the dwelling is at least twice the length of the pythons.

However, do not forget about such a part of the terrarium as the lid, otherwise the python will be happy to walk around the house, but there must be ventilation in the lid. As bedding in the terrarium, you can use an artificial substrate, as well as paper towels, but not sawdust.

Do not forget to arrange secluded places for the python in which, as in the wild, he will hide. The temperature should be between 25 and 29 degrees during the day, and between 20 and 23 at night. It is important to use additional lighting, in which the lamps will be at the top of the terrarium.

Name: royal python, ball python.

The habitat of the royal python is from western to central Africa(north of the equator). Pythons are found in open forests and shrouds, near water, where the snakes cool off in the heat. The royal python spends most of the day in burrows. It is a crepuscular animal that is most active at dawn and dusk. In nature, royal pythons prey on lizards, small snakes, amphibians, birds and small mammals.

On the head of the python there is a large dark triangular spot on top, on the side there are lateral oculotemporal stripes, between which lies a yellow stripe.
Both females and males have "anal spurs" which resemble small claws on either side of the anus. Like other snakes, king pythons have a very sensitive forked tongue which they use as a sensory organ.

Female royal pythons are larger than males and reach a length of up to 1.8 m, although snakes 1.2 m in size are most common. The royal python has a very muscular body, 10-15 cm in diameter, males are thinner and their heads are smaller, than in females. Male royal pythons have larger "anal spurs" than females. Young pythons grow 30 cm each year (during the first three years). Sexual maturity occurs at the age of 3-5 years.

In the wild, pythons live up to 10 years, in captivity 20-30 years.

Royal pythons rarely bite, if something threatens them, they twist into a tight ball, hiding their head inside. It is because of this feature that the python got its name "ball python" (ball python). They can be kept with other snakes as these pythons are docile and easy to keep.

When choosing a terrarium for a royal python, you need to remember that they grow big size, so the terrarium should be spacious enough, preferably horizontal. Young pythons can be kept in 17-35 liter terrariums, after they grow to 90 cm, they are moved to a terrarium with a glass or acrylic front wall. The perimeter of the terrarium should be at least twice as long as the snake.

The terrarium must be closed with a lid on top, as the snake can escape. The lid is preferably mesh to ensure good ventilation. Use cypress mulch, paper towels, newspapers, or Astroturf artificial substrate as bedding. You should always have clean bedding in stock. Do not use sawdust as bedding.

Create many hiding places in the terrarium where the snake will hide, for example, put flower pots without land, cardboard boxes. Place several strong branches. All items in the terrarium must be sharp corners. Most daylight hours the royal python will hide in hiding places.

The temperature of keeping the royal python should be around 25-29.4°C during the day, with a heating zone (in this zone the temperature should reach 32°C) and 20-24°C at night. Additional heating can be provided by placing a heating pad under half of the bottom of the terrarium, or a ceramic heater on top of the terrarium. During the day, the terrarium is lit with 75-watt (or less) light bulbs placed at the top of the terrarium.

Do not use hot stones to heat the terrarium!

Measure the temperature in several parts of the terrarium day and night using a thermometer. Don't forget to measure the temperature under the bulb and near the bottom of the terrarium.

To maintain the proper temperature, it is better to use thermostats for this purpose. The terrarium should be placed away from the heating system, radiators, etc. objects that can be additional sources of high temperatures.

Full spectrum fluorescent lamps are used for daytime lighting.

For the royal python, you must always maintain a certain length of daylight hours: 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness. In summer, daylight hours can be increased by 2 hours, and reduced by 2 hours in winter.

In the terrarium, you need to create a spacious pond in which the python will swim. The pond must be stable so that the python cannot overturn it. The water temperature should be 22-26°C. The water is changed every day. Spraying water from a spray bottle is not recommended, as royal pythons need low humidity, as when high humidity pythons get sick quickly.

Royal pythons are carnivores, in captivity young pythons eat small mice, adult snakes eat mice, rats, hamsters, chickens or quails. Food must be mortified and frozen. Before feeding, food is thawed. Avoid feeding live food, as it can cause serious injury to snakes, and rodents can also be infected with various diseases.

The frequency of feeding a python depends on its age, temperature of keeping, size of prey and activity of the snake. Young snakes eat 1-2 times a week, adults can eat once every 1-2 weeks. In winter, if the temperature is low, the snake eats even less or refuses to eat at all for several weeks. Pregnant females do not feed until they lay eggs. Moulting snakes don't eat at all. Royal pythons are prone to obesity. They feed pythons in the evening or at dusk.

If the python does not eat for more than 1-4 months, carefully monitor its weight. If the king python has lost too much weight, you have to force-feed him, or try to put the snake in a small space and put a live mouse (not dairy, but already a little independent, which cannot harm the snake) in the same place. The mouse will run over the snake and annoy it. In most cases, reptiles eat the food offered. If the python refuses to eat further, check his mouth, he may have stomatitis. This is an oviparous species. Clutch 2-9 eggs. Terms of "incubation" 66-75 days.

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