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Housing a Ball python: 120 × 60 × 45 cm, 31-33°C basking

Ball python : A terrarium of roughly 120 x 60 cm for an adult, a 31-33 °C warm spot, a cool zone around 26 °C and moisture-retaining substrate (coco, cypress). At least two opaque hides, one per thermal zone.

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In short: 100 to 150 cm as an adult, 20 to 30 years of lifespan, suited to well-informed beginners. Placid, it curls into a ball rather than biting and tolerates short, regular handling well. Its multi-week feeding refusals, usually harmless, unsettle beginners: patience, not force-feeding, resolves most cases.

120 × 60 × 45 cm and a strict thermal gradient

For an adult Ball python: 120 × 60 × 45 cm minimum, with a basking spot at 31-33°C and a cool zone at 26-28°C. That gradient is not comfort: it is how a reptile regulates temperature, by moving. No cool zone means overheating; no hot spot means no digestion.

Heating, UVB, humidity: the technical trio

Heating ALWAYS runs through a thermostat — the least negotiable equipment in herpetoculture — with thermometers at both ends. On light: no mandatory UVB for this species, though a weak tube remains a plus according to recent references. Humidity held at 50 to 60% — excess humidity harms as much as a deficit in a dry biotope, checked with a hygrometer, not by feel.

Substrate and layout

A dry, diggable substrate (packed soil mix, never calcium sand), two hides minimum — one warm, one cool — and a structured background for security. Place the enclosure somewhere calm: the species sleeps by day and hates vibrations.

Frequently asked questions

What enclosure size for a Ball python?

120 × 60 × 45 cm minimum for an adult — sized for the adult from day one; a juvenile does fine in it with extra hides.

What temperatures for a Ball python?

Basking spot at 31-33°C, cool zone at 26-28°C, all on a thermostat with a natural night-time drop. Humidity sits at 50 to 60%.

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