RCReptiles.com

[Graham412]

ok, curiosity just struck me and i was wondering if my ball python could get sick from drinking old water from its water bowl. i only clean out the water once a week. is this a mistake? also, the water never becomes moldy or anything. it just gets a little dull looking becuase of dirt and wood chips getting in it

[JDS3]

I don't know about it getting sick but I would say if it is getting dirty with woodchips and dirt then it should probably be changed. I change both of my snake's water every other day pretty much, its not that much of a hassle and it takes all of 1 minute. The more you change it the better. you never know what could be getting in there just because it looks clean doesn't mean it is.

[Matt]

The water could possibly become diseased, or your ball might choose to go to the bathroom in it and then they dont have any water. i change mine once a day.

[magana559]

I Change It 3 Times A Week (monday Wednesday Friday) Or When Ever Needed.

[dragon2285]

once a week, but it never gets dirty...maybe your bp swallow some dirt or something by accident?

[hhmoore]

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a free-living bacteria that occurs in both soil and water. It grows/reproduces quickly in standing water, and will continue to live in substrate when it is splashed/spilled. It is naturally an aerobic organism, but can exist anaerobically. It is also resistant to many common disinfectants, antiseptics, and antibiotics. Its affinity for water & moist environments, as well as its ability to flourish under varied conditions, help make it a very common opportunistic pathogen.
It readily colonizes the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and urinary tracts, as well areas of skin/tissue damage. If the colonization progresses, or the host's immune response is diminished, it can become a dangerous (and easily transmitted) infection.

I was going to just say that, yes, leaving the water for a week can make your snake sick - but I figured somebody would ask why/how. Before anybody panics, this is a common organism, and cultures from water dishes or substrate, and swabs of our pet's mucosa will often show its presence. The danger comes when it "takes hold"; is transmitted to, and colonizes, an area it shouldn't be; or the host's immune response is decreased (as with some other illness/injury). The best ways to reduce the risk are to keep the enclosure clean, wash the water bowl regularly (as opposed to just dumping & refilling), perform routine disinfection as appropriate, and keep the snake healthy.
I generally do waterbowls every 3-5 days...and, with the bigger bowls, usually only use enough water to last about that long (so if, for some reason, I cannot tend to them, they run dry)
*edit* I don't mean to give the impression that cleaning water bowls every 3-5 days will prevent Pseudomonas growth. I don't have (or I've forgotten) any data regarding how quickly that can happen. The safest bet is to clean them daily - but aside from the time factor, here's my take on it. It isn't as if they wouldn't drink out of a puddle a few days after a storm, and Pseudomonas can be found in natural water supplies anyway. There are some that theorize that by sterilizing every aspect of a captive animal's environment, you actually weaken the animal - - their immune system doesn't have to deal with things it would encounter normally; so when it is challenged, the response is insufficient (slow or weak) and the animal gets sick. That doesn't mean that you don't have to worry about keeping things clean, lol, just that you don't have to kill every darn thing every darn time....and remember, if you kill something that is supposed to be there, it leaves space for something else to take over.

[MikeandSlick]

I agree with that fact that babying your python weakens them. I don't have evidence from my own bp experience, I just think it's the way immune systems are. Like muscles, the immune system needs "exercise" to stay healthy and prepared. It's why we get vaccines, so the immune system recognises the illness before you get a full dose from the guy on the bus. The possibility of organisms in the water shouldn't be cause for alarm. For the record I clean my water bowl every 3-4 days with a wash cloth and antibacterial handsoap.

[Temery]

I change the water every day to every other day. I look at it and if I would drink it then it's ok, if I wouldn't drink it then it gets changed. I wash the bowl with soap and water every Sat. (same for my cup in the bathroom that I brush my teeth with every morning) Pretend it's your water source and do what you would want done for yourself if you were in a cage with no other choice....

would you want dusty dank water or clean pretty water?

[deborahbroadus]

I clean the bowls and change the water once a week, (same time I clean their tubs). If for some reason that I can't clean that week, I clean the next week and their water gets changed unless I know that their water is low..then I simply refill the bowl.

[PyMama]

Ditto like Deb.....change once or twice and refill as needed!