This Royal (or Ball) Python care sheet should be used for guidance only. If you have decided to keep a reptile as a pet please gather as much information as possible from other reliable sources about the species you intend to keep.
Royal Python
aka. Ball Python
Python regius
DESCRIPTION
The Royal or 'Ball' Python (named for its habit of curling up in to a tight ball when threatened) is a very stocky snake from West Africa where it feeds on small mammals and birds. It is one of the smaller pythons, growing to a maximum of 6 feet.(4 feet is more common). This species has a very gentle disposition.
The Royal Python is an egg laying species that lays 6 to 10 eggs on average.
Royal Pythons should live 20 - 30 years in optimum conditions of captive care.
HOUSING
An enclosure measuring 36”x15”x18” is suitable for housing an average sized single adult Royal Python. Your pets enclosure or vivarium can be a wooden vivarium with sliding glass doors, a glass aquarium with a well ventilated and secure lid or it can be as simple as a strong plastic storage box with plenty of ventilation holes drilled in the sides and a well fitting secure, lockable lid. Whichever housing type you choose for your Royal Python you must ensure it is secure and escape proof.
Young Royal Pythons can be kept in an enclosure measuring 24”x12”x12” until they exceed about 3 feet in length. This will help them feel more safe and secure as they grow.
Humidity should be kept at approximately 60% in your Ball Pythons vivarium. The humidity can be raised slightly when your snake is due to shed its skin.
A layer of substrate should line the floor of your Royal Pythons enclosure. A layer of newspaper is a suitable substrate and is cheap and easily replaced. Other suitable more natural looking substrates include aspen bedding and astro turf. The important thing is that whatever substrate you choose, it should be dry, absorbent and safe for the snake. (Avoid cedar).
1 or 2 hiding spots (preferably 2 if room permits) should be provided in your Royal Pythons enclosure. These hides can be bought or home-made (from margarine tubs, cereal boxes, cork bark, plastic piping etc.) and should be just large enough for your snake to squeeze in to.
A sturdy water bowl should be available in the coolest part of the enclosure, and should be just large enough for your Royal Python to bathe in.
Your Royal Pythons vivarium can be decorated with a few plastic plants and climbing branches to make the vivarium more attractive and to give your snake areas to climb and explore.
HEATING, LIGHTING AND TEMPERATURE
Royal Pythons should be kept at daytime temperatures varying from 32 to 34 degrees centigrade at one end of the enclosure and 25 to 27 degrees centigrade at the other. Temperature can be allowed to drop 4 or 5 degrees at night.
A thermal gradient for your snake can be achieved by placing a heat mat under only half of the enclosure, leaving the other half cool. Heating must be controlled by a thermostat to maintain the correct temperatures for your Royal Python. Always follow any instructions that come with your heating equipment as these sometimes vary from one manufacturer to another.
If you find that extra heat is necessary for your Royal Python, a low wattage bulb fitted to the ceiling of the enclosure can be used to increase the ambient temperature. Bulbs over 15 watts must be covered with a bulb guard to protect your Royal from getting burned.
Alternative
forms of heating include ceramic heaters and red spotlight bulbs,
either of which can be left on 24 hrs a day but must be connected to a
dimmer thermostat to make sure required temperatures are maintained. 60w
bulbs (covered by a bulb guard) should be adequate for a 36" vivarium.
Obviously bulbs are unsuitable for storage box style enclosures.
It
is essential that thermometers are placed in the warm and cooler sides
of your Royal Python's vivarium to enable close monitoring of
temperatures.
Lighting is not essential for Royal Pythons but can be used to display your snake or provide extra heat. All lighting should be turned off at night. An inexpensive timer can be used to do the job for you. These can be purchased from the majority of hardware stores.
FEEDING
Royal Pythons are known to be quite reluctant feeders when compared to other comonly kept pet snakes and are best left in privacy to eat. It can sometimes help to warm their food on a heat mat before offering to your snake.
Avoid buying a wild caught Royal as these are notoriously difficult to get feeding.
Royal Pythons should be fed roughly every 10-14 days or after defecation. 1 or 2 food items the same diameter as the snake at mid body can be offered with forceps or simply left on the floor in the warm end of the vivarium.
Food
items can include appropriately sized rats, mice, gerbils or chicks.
Gerbils and chicks are particularly useful to persuade a stubborn feeder
to eat, if left in a warm dark part of your snakes vivarium overnight.
Mice,
rats and chicks can be bought frozen from pet shops that deal in
reptiles and can be thawed out when required. Chicks are only o.k. as an
occasional food and should not constitute the entire diet because they
are not as nutritionally complete as mice or rats. Chicks are however
high in protein and inexpensive and your snake will enjoy a bit of
variation..
It is best not to handle your Royal Python for at least 24 hours after feeding.
HANDLING
SEX
To be sure of the sex of your Royal Python it will need to be 'popped' at a young age or 'probed' when it is older. If you are not familiar with these methods of sexing you should take your snake to a vet to be sexed rather than attempting it yourself. It may be worth asking your vet if you could do it yourself under his/her guidance so that you are familiar with the technique and can do it yourself in the future.
There are minor visible differences between male and female Royal Pythons. Males tend to have larger spurs (remnants of the hind legs of their lizard ancestors) at the base of their tail and are generally smaller than females.
GENERAL MAINTENANCE
Your Royal Pythons enclosure should be spot checked for faeces on a daily basis and cleaned out completely with a reptile-safe disinfectant at least monthly. All cage furniture should also be disinfected and the substrate should be changed.
Your python should be given fresh water at least twice weekly.
Cleanliness and hygiene is an essential part of snake care.
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