Aggresive ball...

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by j_h_smith

just reach in and grab him. Sure, you'll be biten a few times, but it will learn that you are not going to give in to him. I believe many snakes will show this agression by your actions. If you reach in to pick him up and he strikes at you, he's learned how to control his environment. If he does this a few times and you stop reaching in to pick him up, he's won. Reach in, get bit or wear gloves the first few times if you need to, but never give up. If you reach in to pick him up, do it. Even if you only hold him for 1-2 minutes. Show him he's your pet and not the other way around.

One caviat. I have a female lesser that's about the same age as your snake, and she's been a biter since day one. She thinks she's a viper. She hisses to the point that the wife questioned what that noise was while in the other room.

Getting bit is just one part of snake ownership. It's going to happen, get used to it. After the first dozen bites or so, you'll realize it's the shock of the strike and the bite isn't all that bad.

Good luck!
Jim smith

---

agree 100%

I tend to like the aggressive ones :) just means they need help plus I dont mind being bitten I have walked around my house with a bp hanging off my wrist lol and ive been bitten on the lip by a red tail boa and on the nose by a bull snake :D

When I first got my ball python from the store, they had two in stock. I ended up getting the 'mean' one (or so they said) because of his size and because he is a fierce eater. I had his cage set up and heated, so when I got back to my apartment, he could hide and get used to his surroundings. So far, he has yet to strike at me. Because they had him pegged as the mean one (the employee even pulled down her long sleeve shirt in case he bit her), I made sure to monitor how I handled him. This includes:
-making sure the temps and humidity are in range
-not moving my hand in front of his face when I pick him up
-not handling him too often (even though its tempting!)

Good luck though. On the bright side, having bite marks on your hands and arms can make you look pretty hardcore.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by LGray23

Agreed, those are great temps for the cool side but hot side should be up to about 90, no more than 92. How do you read temps and humidity?

---

Sorry for taking so long to respond, I've been on vacation. I really am a "newb" when it comes to pythons, so what do u mean by cool/hot side? There is a big rock cave in it's 29 gallon tank where she spends most of the day. As far as how i measure temps, I'm using what came with my "starter tank". What do you recommend?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Evenstar

How often are you feeding and what prey size? He may be snapping if he's hungry, if the prey size is too small, etc.....

---

I was told to feed him every other week but I noticed he was still kinda hungry. I looked around online and started feeding him 2 live mice every Sunday...

Screen top?
Belly heat?

Make sure he has belly heat and a ceramic heat emmiter works great, if you have any type of heat lamp scrap it and replace it with a che.

1.5 year old he should be eating small rat every week or very large mouse every 5 days. Rats are way better, depending on his size a 45-60 gram rat should leave a lump unless he is on the bigger size.

And you will also need a thermostat to control the temps

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rperry03

Screen top?
Belly heat?

Make sure he has belly heat and a ceramic heat emmiter works great, if you have any type of heat lamp scrap it and replace it with a che.

1.5 year old he should be eating small rat every week or very large mouse every 5 days. Rats are way better, depending on his size a 45-60 gram rat should leave a lump unless he is on the bigger size.

---

Glass aquarium, screened lock lid & 75% of the top covered with aluminum foil. Oh yeah I have a Zoo Med UTH in there as well. One of my buddies suggested placing the hide box over the area where the UTH is? Does that sound good for my bp?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by rperry03

Screen top?
Belly heat?

Make sure he has belly heat and a ceramic heat emmiter works great, if you have any type of heat lamp scrap it and replace it with a che.

1.5 year old he should be eating small rat every week or very large mouse every 5 days. Rats are way better, depending on his size a 45-60 gram rat should leave a lump unless he is on the bigger size.

---

Not trying to call you out but...
Ceramic heat emitters, I thought, were supposedly very dangerous to the snake?
And the snake should only be fed a mouse/rat that is about the same size around as the biggest part of the snake itself. This should be done every 5 - 7 days for younger snakes, and every 7 days for older ones. All snakes are different, their snake may not be able to handle a 45-60 gram rat/mouse at the moment, or it may not be enough.

What do you have controlling the temp of the uth? They can get over 120 depending on the size.
I would look into a 60 or 100 watt heat emitter and a thermostat that controls the emitter and uth.

You need hides on both sides so they will regulate their temps themselves.