# water python enclosure



## skunk (Aug 31, 2005)

hey all, can anyone give me some ideas as to how to set up a water python enclosure ? i want it to be as natural as posible. 

i was thiking breeders choice as a substrate, (not THAT natural looking but beats newspaper lol) & i was guna buy one of those water bowl things that animal attraction sells. (the sandstone kind or sumtihng like that, not a plastic tub from kmart)

the enclosure is a 4x2x2. & since theyr not big tree climbers, i wont have lotsa branches in the enclosure ?

any suggestions & pictures of your water python settups would be great!

thanks heaps


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## SNKMST (Aug 31, 2005)

I always try to have somthing in the enclosure so he/she can get off the ground, a nice large/deep water bowl, for a natural substrait maybe herp safe wood chips, hanging fake greenery always looks great.


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## Sdaji (Aug 31, 2005)

> i want it to be as natural as posible.



Well, you'll need some ticks, leeches, intestinal worms and a large crocodile which has a chance of catching your snake. Set it up so that there will be occasional life threatening extremes in various conditions. Long periods of insufficent food will also help to add the true to nature lifestyle typical of most of their range. When you do feed, make sure you use life food, not only parasite carrying, but also something which will fight back and occasionally leave deep wounds.

(Just mucking around, not having a go at you  )

I keep mine in conditions which are very much unnatural, my philosophy when it comes to reptile keeping is not to mimmic nature but to provide conditions better than they'd naturally get. Mine are larger, will produce more babies and I am convinced are happier than their wild counterparts.

If you want them to be happy, give them a large water container in summer and otherwise keep them like a carpet python. They're very adaptable and tolerant, in my experience they've been about as bulletproof as pythons get. Mine are brilliant feeders and breed readily. Three of mine have never bitten anyone, one was a little snappy as a hatchling but grew out of it and has been a complete sweetheart since she was about 4 months old. I recommend feeding them heaps, you can comfortably get them to 6' before they are 12 months old.

Great choice on getting a water python by the way. They are my favourite python species, I'm sure you'll love them


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## Wrasse (Sep 1, 2005)

I keep one of mine in an aquarium. It is 4x2x2, with a hinged wire mesh lid, heat lamp, computer fan and flouro on top. 
It's the inside that is different. She has about 20 centimtres of water in the bottom of the aquarium, complete with fish, driftwood and cracked terracotta pot. It is filtered via an external Eheim Pro II canister filter and has a heater in the water, keeping it at 28c. 
In the tank I also have a timber shelving unit with hides on it, on 'stilts' giving her two levels out of the water to enable her to choose her height and hide as she pleases.

Jade spends probably about 70% of her time completely submerged in the water, all bar her nose, which she just sticks above the water level to allow breathing. On a cold night, she can sometimes be found in the highest hide, right under the heat lamp.

She is guaranteed to spend 4 days straight, minimum, in the water after a feed.

My other Waters I keep like carpets. Cage, heating, hide box, water bowl. They don't know any different and none seem to be happier or more stressed than another.


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## rascal779 (Sep 10, 2005)

I totally agree with Wrasse.

My Waters are kept like Carpets and are quite happy, yet I have seen enclosures like Wrasse describes and they absolutly love their habitat!
You may need to experiment and see what works for your python.


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## MrBredli (Sep 10, 2005)

I would love to see a pic of that setup Wrasse...


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## Wrasse (Sep 10, 2005)

.
Here is Jades first tank, it is a 2 x 1 which is now being used for the frog. Filtration in this tank was via an internal eheim ball filter unit which fed the outlet water up the back of the rock face you see on the right, it then fell over the front of the rock wall as a waterfall. The lid on this tank wasn't hinged and was a bit of an inconvenience:









And the one she is in now. This was taken the day I moved her in and I have changed it somewhat. The plants are now gone as they were rotting up the water, in place of the plant I now have a large terracotta pot, with holes in the top and sides, upside down, for her to hide in while in the water. I have added driftwood and underwater lighting to highlight areas. I have added more hides to the shelving system on both levels also. Plus she has more fish company to keep the water clean and visually interesting. Bristle nose catfish, plecos and algae eaters share the tank along with her original goldfish, Happy and Joy (you can see Happy in the top pic too if you look). 

The canister filter inlet is not visible as I have drilled the bottom of the tank and fixed it in with mesh over it (in the pic the goldfish are immediately above the filter hole). The outlet comes in via a hole drilled in the top timber and down the back right of the tank to a spray bar hidden by the plants. I will get more pics in the morning if you want so the filtration system, which sits under the tank, and the lighting in the water, can be seen.


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## Wrasse (Sep 10, 2005)

Oh, just an add on note: I discovered very quickly with the arafura's, that gravel rots the tank as it holds fecal matter and detrius which can be difficult to clean.

With Jades big tank, I applied a thin layer of silicone to the entire inner base and then sprinkled fine gravel over it. I patted the gravel down into the silicone, let it dry and then vacumned the excess out. I was left with a fine layer of gravel stuck to the bottom. This looks better than a bare glass bottom, but doesn't trap muck and rubbish in. The only cleaning I need to do is the odd water change now and again, during which I flush the sides down and scrub the timber shelving and a filter flush roughly monthly.


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