1st jcp a few ?

[speedy3]

I picked up my 1st jcp on sunday at the white plains show from mike at scatter shot pythons. He is an '10 (sorry pics coming soon) he feeds on rat pinkys.The last time he ate was last wed the breeder says to wait to feed him till the weekend, I've read to feed every 5-7 days but I want to let him settle in to his new diggs 10gal 79 ambent temp 88 hot spot with hides water dish and some stuff to climb on. So how long should I wait to start handling him, I thought a few days after he eats? I hope he eats, thats what I did with my bp also can some of you guys,or gals tell me how much your adult male jcp weigh I know there all different but I just want an idea.Thanks for your help and any tips you can give would be great.

[redstormlax12]

Congrats on the addition!

Morelia are amazing. I love every species from that Genus. As a matter of fact, I love all the herps of OZ. Haha. I have a pair of JCP's from Headhunter reptiles. Id say feed your hatching every 4-5 days. Keep them on rats! Switching from mice to rats is nearly impossible and feeding 8 mice per feeding gets really old really fast. Haha.

As far as handling I would give him 5-7 days to settle in, then feed, then handle 2 or 3 days later. The handling should be pretty short. Hatchlings can be pretty nippy, but I havent had that problem at all. Your setup sounds good, but they will outgrow that tank quick. JCP's love to roam at night, so I have my hatchlings in their adult enclosure, a 4x2.

[mainbutter]

These guys do well on a fairly large variety of temp, humidity, and feeding strategies, so you may find conflicting information. My first suggestion is read as much as you can on these guys, and where you find people saying different things, just take their information at face value: it works for them.

Your temps sound good, that's what my '10 carpets have for their temps pretty much spot on. I wouldn't go any warmer than that, they don't need it quite as warm as some other pythons and can even do well on a low/mid 70s ambient and a mid-80s hot spot.

When I first got my yearling coastal carpet python, I was feeding every 5-8 days. Kitty put on some serious size during that year, going from 100-200 or so grams (I can't remember size for sure) to being over 6 foot and 5 lbs at 2 years old this past June. Over time I have slowed feeding to every 14 days. Kitty is even bigger now, tail tip at just around 7 foot and another pound or two heavier.

My '10 DJJ sib intergrades are going to be fed with a lighter hand. So far I've been feeding an average of about every 10 days. Slender carpet pythons will more readily breed once they are mature, and while they may not get as many eggs in a successful clutch, the likelihood of a successful clutch is very good if you don't feed as heavily.

As far as handling goes, if the snake is feeding (especially feeding HARD, pounding the feeder as soon as it sees it) it is probably feeling fairly stress-free. With any snake, give it at least 48 hours to begin the digestion process before any handling.

Many young carpet pythons will be snappy and can be difficult for some keepers to handle (or even want to handle, lol). So far I've been lucky with my snakes, I haven't been bitten by a carpet python yet. I've had my '10 girl snap at the hemostats I use as a small hook to get her out of the cage, but once she's out she handles just fine.

When I first started handling my pair of '10s, I wore gloves. I like to do this simply because they have huge heat pits lining their lips, and they act much happier without a godzilla-sized heat signature grabbing towards their face. A snake hook or similar makeshift tool can be a godsend getting a snappy carpet python out of their cage. For a more acclimated carpet python, all I do is pet them on the side of their body with a snake hook to let them know it isn't feeding time. The last thing you want is them seeing a big warm hand and strike/coil, thinking it's a rat. A 5lb carpet python is WAY stronger than you could imagine until you try to de-coil them from the skeleton of a futon. I don't want to have the experience of de-coiling one from my arm while its teeth are digging in.

Lastly, be careful handling small carpet pythons. Hatchlings are pretty frail looking and feeling snakes, it wouldn't take much to hurt one. I don't even really 'handle' them as much as let them crawl on top of my palms and fingers. I keep handling sessions short for young snakes, usually no longer than 5 or 10 minutes at a time, and often it's the GF holding them while I do some cage maintenance for a minute or two.

[gman8585]

My baby jungle is snappy. I try to handle him with care,he seems to wrap his tail around my fingers and has a fixation on biting any thing that moves. I love him for what he is,which is rather angry with hands any where near him. But I know that as long as I regularly handle him and give him some age, he will most likely calm down .

[vangarret2000]

I picked up my 1st jcp on sunday at the white plains show from mike at scatter shot pythons. He is an '10 (sorry pics coming soon) he feeds on rat pinkys.The last time he ate was last wed the breeder says to wait to feed him till the weekend, I've read to feed every 5-7 days but I want to let him settle in to his new diggs 10gal 79 ambent temp 88 hot spot with hides water dish and some stuff to climb on. So how long should I wait to start handling him, I thought a few days after he eats? I hope he eats, thats what I did with my bp also can some of you guys,or gals tell me how much your adult male jcp weigh I know there all different but I just want an idea.Thanks for your help and any tips you can give would be great.

Seeing as how you wrote this a little while ago I aaumse you have already started handling. When you first aquire a new snake you should wait a week to let it settle in before handling. You set-up seems about right. I just keep my jcps hot spot at 85. Did you guy end up eatting? I aasume he probably did, because carpets generally are great eatters. Because of this they can also grow pretty good so it wouldn't be too long before it outgrows the 10g. I would just feed it, a proper sized meal, every 7 days if it was my snake.

My JCP I got right now is full grown at 5 3/4 feet. I don't know his exact weight though. I took him as a rescue and he was a little thin from being underfed but once I got him I gave him a proper feeding schedule and he put on some good weight and is a nice healthy size now.

Carpets are great snakes. Some of my personal favs. WHen they are young they can be quite nippy but with regular handling they usually grow out of it.

Good luck with yours.