Are there certain Morph's that are harder to handle?

[redcharger]

I was told that Enchi and Mojave are apt to harder to handle than other Morph's, is there any truth to that? If Yes are there any others that this might be true? I am going to purchase another Ball and I was wondering if there is any truth to this.

[JodanOrNoDan]

All of my enchis and mojaves are puppy dog tame. In my collection I have a couple high strung pastels. My killer bee lives up to her morph name. I honestly do not believe there are any morphs that across the board are more difficult than others, since I also have a couple super mellow pastels. Even the babies from my higher strung animals are mellow. I believe this has a lot to do with how the breeder interacts with the babies. I have yet to be bitten by any of the babies I have produced.

Just an observation... in my collection, the animals that would be considered large for ball pythons are just about bomb proof. I have a couple very large females that I have raised that my kids could drag around the house by their tails and they would not care. One happens to be an enchi and another a mojave.

[decensored]

I was told that Enchi and Mojave are apt to harder to handle than other Morph's, is there any truth to that? If Yes are there any others that this might be true? I am going to purchase another Ball and I was wondering if there is any truth to this.

I've never heard of polymorphism having anything to do with temperament. However the spider gene has a tendency to cause the animal to have neurological issues which CAN make them more difficult to care for depending on the severity of the condition. I have a spider that has very little wobble, and a bumblebee that can't keep himself upright to save his life.

But in terms of specific morphs being more likely to be vicious or difficult to handle, I'm my experience, it's bologna.

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[decensored]

In my*

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[redcharger]

All of my enchis and mojaves are puppy dog tame. In my collection I have a couple high strung pastels. My killer bee lives up to her morph name. I honestly do not believe there are any morphs that across the board are more difficult than others, since I also have a couple super mellow pastels. Even the babies from my higher strung animals are mellow. I believe this has a lot to do with how the breeder interacts with the babies. I have yet to be bitten by any of the babies I have produced.

Just an observation... in my collection, the animals that would be considered large for ball pythons are just about bomb proof. I have a couple very large females that I have raised that my kids could drag around the house by their tails and they would not care. One happens to be an enchi and another a mojave.

How do you interact with your babies to have not be bitten? That is really awesome!

[JodanOrNoDan]

How do you interact with your babies to have not be bitten? That is really awesome!

I do a few things that go against common thought.

I handle eggs at least once a week and then daily as they get close to piping. I believe that this has the effect of getting my scent on the eggs.

Once they pip I begin to touch them even before they are out of the egg.

After they are out of the egg they are isolated from each other and are handled daily for the first week. After that I back off to probably bi-weekly.

Keep in mind these handling sessions are very brief. Just enough to remind the snake I am not a threat and I am not food.

After the babies have a couple meals in them most are sold. Ones that I am keeping and my adults are handled at least twice weekly.

It may sound like a lot of work but it is really not. Once babies are eating I allow others in the house to handle them. My entire family is involved in the keeping so the upkeep is spread between 3 adults and 2 children.

[Trisnake]

I do a few things that go against common thought.

I handle eggs at least once a week and then daily as they get close to piping. I believe that this has the effect of getting my scent on the eggs.

Once they pip I begin to touch them even before they are out of the egg.

After they are out of the egg they are isolated from each other and are handled daily for the first week. After that I back off to probably bi-weekly.

Keep in mind these handling sessions are very brief. Just enough to remind the snake I am not a threat and I am not food.

After the babies have a couple meals in them most are sold. Ones that I am keeping and my adults are handled at least twice weekly.

It may sound like a lot of work but it is really not. Once babies are eating I allow others in the house to handle them. My entire family is involved in the keeping so the upkeep is spread between 3 adults and 2 children.

Curious how you handle the eggs-- do you just touch them while in the egg tub? Or do you actually pick the egg up and hold it? Very interesting stuff.

[JodanOrNoDan]

Curious how you handle the eggs-- do you just touch them while in the egg tub? Or do you actually pick the egg up and hold it? Very interesting stuff.

Honestly I think I sound a little cookoo, but it works for me.

As to the how with the eggs...

Like everyone else I mark the tops of my eggs after taking the female off. If I have managed to get to the eggs soon enough they are usually not stuck together real tight so I carefully separate them then place them in an egg tub as close to the original arrangement as possible. Because I do this I can pick up individual eggs. Generally all I do when I handle the eggs is take them out individually, candle them and check firmness. As the babies mature and the eggs become more pliable I will squeeze them lightly and will often get a reaction from the baby. This amounts to maybe ten seconds per egg. Any eggs that I was unable to separate originally get separated closer to hatching when the eggs soften and the binding loosens.

I do all this craziness with the eggs because it is what I did with my very first clutch. I was super paranoid that the babies were dead in the egg so I was always checking them daily. Rationally I believe everything I do before the animals pip amounts to nothing other than me getting my scent all over the eggs. But if its not broke, don't fix it......