Help with problem Ball Python

[skybronco]

Hey all, need some help with my Ball Python named Bitey. Bought her at a local pet store, dont know the full details on how they got her, but she was someone else's ball python before and was between 1 and 2 years old. They told us that they had tried to feed her frozen mice but she would not take them, and finally had to resort to live. The first couple times i had let her out she was very skiddish, and unlike any other ball python i had encountered. Movement would sometimes cause her to strike out at whatever was moving. I started out feeding her in a seperate cage so she wouldnt get used to me opening the cage and associating that with feeding time. At first this wasnt difficult as when i first would open the cage she was usually balled up, easy to pick her up. After a few feedings, when i was transfering her to the other cage, she unballed and bit me on the thumb. It startled me and my reaction was to toss her to the floor. This was the day she got her name. I got her in the cage and fed her, and put her back in her cage. She started to get more difficult to get into the secondary cage, and it has gotten to the point where it is impossible. When i open the cage now she immediatley coils and starts striking at the air out of her house (half hollow log). I was at first feeding her once every two weeks, I read somewhere that was a good amount and would keep her from getting extremely large. I decided with her temperment possibly she was just really hungry and needed more food. I feed her an adult mouse once a week and her temperment hasnt changed. She is always striking and I cant get near her. Im sure this is partially my fault as when she first struck me it scarred me and i wanted less contact with her. I would like to reabilitate her and get her used to human contact, but am unsure of what else to do. My wife thinks she is blind and thats why she is striking all the time at random things, but I dont think so, the eyes look good to me. Any help on what I can do to turn this snake around would be greatly appreciated, I just dont know what to do anymore. I am currently just throwing a mouse in her cage once a week and replenishing her water. Thats about all she will let me do. Thanks again, sorry this thread is so long.

[wolfy-hound]

First, please post your set up. You mentioned "her hide half log", which seems to mean she has one hide, which is a half log.
Those are not secure for ball pythons, they need a hide to "hide in". This means it completely encloses her, like a upturned bowl with a small doorway. She needs two of those, one on the warm end, one on the cool end.
ALso, I'm not sure how large she is, but at 2 years old she shoudl be eating small to medium rats once a week, rather than a mouse once every two weeks. Underfeeding a snake will not "keep it smaller", but only make it hungry and malnourished.
There's debate about feeding in seperate enclosures, but I'll say I do not do it. Moving the snake about tends to stress it, and since yours seems to be stressed, perhaps it's an issue as well.
Is the cage in a high traffic area? With only a partial hide spot, she is probably stressed and afraid, which leads to defensive biting.

Please post the set up, so we can see what else might help her settle down.

[Jenn]

Many snake keepers would kill for a snake like that. I could be off-base here but I think your girl is hungry. A mouse a week for a three year old BP is about a third of what she should be eating. Unless she is very very small for her age she should be eating two or three large mice a week, or a good sized rat.

Try a larger meal next time then let her settle for a day or two and try to pick her up before she gets hungry again. I'll bet you have a much nicer experience.

[brett1489]

when you get bit do you put her right back in her cage? cuz if you do that reinforces her bad behavior

[stratus_020202]

i agree with Theresa. Get rid of the half logs and get two big bowls and just cut a little doorway into it. I would also get some gloves. That will re-enforce your confidence, and if you feel safer then so will she. and brett makes a good point to. I would put some gloves on, and take her out. Keep her out for 10-15 min. and just pet her. Did you give her a week to get used to her cage? They need some time to figure out where everything is in order to safely settle down. You could try a snake hook too, and just lay her in your hand, rather than reaching down and grabbing her. Hope this helps, and tell us a little more about her husbandry.

[Jombolo]

I'm in agreement also with Brett. Besides, the bites really dont hurt, more of a startle factor than anything else. Make sure you are not coming directly at his/her face with your hand, come from the back with your hand if possible or underneath the head, but not directly at. I've found that to be helpful with my BP that came from another household that didn't take care of them. And like someone else said, no fast movements. A slow hand makes a happy snake...or something like that.

Be patient and continue to try and handle her...NOT attempting will only make things worse....I had a gopher snake that never lost his temperament and it was partially my fault because I rarely handled him due to this fact (I was 12).

[wolfy-hound]

*slaps forehead* I thought about gloves, but forgot while typing. Gloves or a snake hook to help get her out would help your confindance level, so that YOU are more relaxed.
But first, you need to make her unstressed.

[skybronco]

Hello all, thanks again for all the replies. The aquarium i have her in is a 36"L 18"W 16"H. I only have three things inside the tank, The upturned log that she spends most of her time during the day in, a twisty piece of wood for her to rap around and shed off of (what i thought, although she rarely touches it) and a water bowl, id say about 14" wide. The bedding is some type of cedar like chip, i dont remember exactly but they said it was good for ball pythons and to bake it to kill any parasites. Her heat lamp is a 100W ceramic bulb. The tank is in a low traffic area of the house about 5 feet off the floor. So not going by age because she may be small for her age(and i keep saying she but i really dont know for sure) how do you know how big of a mouse to give her? I would say her body is about 2" at her thickest, her head i would guestimate at about 1 and 1/2". Should i stick with the size ive been giving her and just give multiples until she seems satisfied? I will deffinately get some better hides for her. Thanks again everyone for your help.
*edit*
Also for those of you that feed your snake in its normal cage, what do you use for bedding? The issues i have had so far in doing this is the chips seem to get in the way. One time she somehow got one of the chips stuck on a tooth after she ate the mouse, and i had to put some gloves on and let her bite at me to get it off.

[DutchHerp]

You have to measure the temperatures to know what temperatures your BP is at.

And cedar is a no go! It's toxic to herps and can have negative effects on your snake.

Please read the caresheet on this page... thrice.

[Kaorte]

Pine and cedar substrates are TOXIC to ball pythons. Get the snake on paper towels or aspen. I feed in the normal enclosure and I use aspen as substrate. A little bit of ingested aspen won't hurt them. They can digest bones after all.

I would also provide her with two tight fitting "rock cave" type hides. Those are much better at providing security for your snake then the half log "hides".

As for food size, I feed 10-15% of the BP's body weight. I would recommend getting a food scale and weighing your snake and the food items. Try offering the food on tongs to prevent getting bit and substrate ingestion.

I would add some more cage decorations in a tank that large. fake plants, wood, all that jazz. Also, try covering the back and sides with dark paper or foam core board. This will help your BP feel more secure in her enclosure.