Hi. I have a question regarding clutter. I’m a new ball python owner. I’ve had him about 6 weeks, and I want to give him a good home, of course. I’ve tried to provide enrichment in the form of hides, plants, and driftwood. My question is this. Should I leave a bare spot under his heat projector for basking, or would it be ok if I put some driftwood in that spot as well? Here’s a couple of pics. Please let me know your thoughts on his enclosure. Have an awesome day.
2 Likes
I’m not a BP owner, so I’d wait for someone else to chip in, but in my opinion, some decor in the basking zone will encourage him to feel safe there, allow him to choose different heights/areas to bask at, and overall give him more thermoregulation choices - as long as the decor can withstand the basking spot temps and direct heat safely, of course!
3 Likes
I don’t see the pictures. Ball pythons generally hide during the day and explore after dark. Generally. I would not worry about extra foliage/cover but I would provide a cozy hide there for your BP to soak in the warmth.
2 Likes
I appreciate your input. Not sure why the pic didn’t show up. I have four hides in the enclosure. There’s a warm hide in the corner on the hot side, cool hide, and two half logs in the middle.
2 Likes
I’d say its fine to have clutter and hides as long as you know those spots are still reaching an appropriate temperature (86°F).
As @caron said they mostly just hide during the day so its good that your BP has spots near the warmth to hide. They might also hide on the cooler end and there’s nothing wrong with that as long as your cool side doesn’t get below 72°F.
Very cute BP btw 
3 Likes
That setup looks great! And so does your noodle! 
1 Like
Thank you. He was 6 months old when I got him 6 weeks ago. Doesn’t miss a meal. Still waiting for his first shed with me. I want to put a realistic background in his enclosure the next time I change substrate and clean his house. I just didn’t know if there was such a thing as too much clutter. I have some really cool pieces of spiderwood, driftwood, and hide logs.
1 Like
No I don’t believe there is too much clutter, especially for a ball python. The only drawback is that the more the “stuff”, the more to clean.
1 Like