Re: Introducing Apophis (pic heavy)
Not gonna lie, I doubted for a moment whether he would have enough sense not to drown himself [emoji849]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...4964e6e38e.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...1a506aded9.jpg
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Re: Introducing Apophis (pic heavy)
And he might be the very best periscoper[emoji23]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...21aec6341c.jpg
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Re: Introducing Apophis (pic heavy)
This poor guy got moved cross country again and he was NOT happy about it. He’s finally settled back in after a couple months. He’s getting SO big! I mean, not compared to a Papuan scrub, but still. Mostly it’s in girth. He’s not a scrawny worm anymore! I should try and wrestle him onto a scale. He was 484 grams last time I weighed him and now he’s topped 7 feet!
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Re: Introducing Apophis (pic heavy)
Wow he's getting big. The picture of him eating is pretty cool; it looks really close to how green tree pythons eat. Does he always eat like that or was it just a one time thing?
Re: Introducing Apophis (pic heavy)
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Reptile$ 4 Life
Wow he's getting big. The picture of him eating is pretty cool; it looks really close to how green tree pythons eat. Does he always eat like that or was it just a one time thing?
Mine always eats like that. Because they'll generally choose the higher hides, so they're eating with most of their body above them.
Re: Introducing Apophis (pic heavy)
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Reptile$ 4 Life
Wow he's getting big. The picture of him eating is pretty cool; it looks really close to how green tree pythons eat. Does he always eat like that or was it just a one time thing?
Haha, yep! He’s like a kraken. He barely let me get it through the door before he smashed it...which is I guess why he tumbled out like a psycho![emoji1787]
The interesting thing is, he almost has to take his prey from a high vantage point. I have a bad hand injury and it’s sometimes (often) hard for me to keep the prey gripped on the tongs. If I drop the prey item on the ground, it’s like he can’t find it! It’s disastrous. He always looks confused and gets coco husk in his mouth. I wish we could upload videos on here because it’s hilarious. Like...you’re supposed to be this smart, savage hunter. And you can’t see the rat if it’s on the ground? If I’m dangling it high and then drop it, he usually comes towards me as if he thinks I played a trick on him. It’s not even an aggressive move. It’s more frantic, like “MOM, WHAT HAPPENED I’M STARVING!!”
It feels like such a short time ago when I was so afraid to feed him chicks because I thought for sure he’d die. I used to trim their beaks because his neck was so skinny I just new every feeding day was his last![emoji1787] To my horror, he smashed a medium rat, small rat, and a chick in one sitting the other night and it barely left a bulge. And he fully expected more food. I am sooooo lucky he’s such a freaking angel lamb.
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Re: Introducing Apophis (pic heavy)
Re: Introducing Apophis (pic heavy)
The strength of this guy is an actual marvel. He has no idea that just the casual grip of his tail cal turn my hand purple in seconds! This is what makes scrubs incredible climbers, even if they’re 20 feet long! But it makes him the world’s worst hugger. And he just does not understand why he isn’t allowed neck hugs anymore ;)
I have a whole new respect for scrub keepers now that my little squeak is becoming a big squeak. I am extremely fortunate that he is so good-tempered because I can’t imagine having to dodge teeth and an ever-knotting dragon’s tail!
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Re: Introducing Apophis (pic heavy)
Wow he eats a lot! How big is he? If I remember correctly Tanimbars are the smallest locality of scrub python. He must be a very active noodle.
Re: Introducing Apophis (pic heavy)
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Reptile$ 4 Life
Wow he eats a lot! How big is he? If I remember correctly Tanimbars are the smallest locality of scrub python. He must be a very active noodle.
Yeah, I will switch him to large rats when I get the next batch. I think he’s just over 7 feet now! He’s definitely a big boy. We honestly don’t know that much about Nautas in the wild. Though people often refer to them as a “dwarf” species (it is common that species from small, isolated islands grow smaller than mainland cousins due to food supply), I have personally heard from at least 3 keepers who owned 5 Nautas that exceeded 8 feet. Two exceeded 9 and at least half of those animals must have been wild caught (as I believe mine likely is).
I think only time will tell! Of course, most snakes grow larger in captivity because of food supply. I believe Nick Mutton was the first to breed them in the US between 2001-2004; I can’t remember precisely. But he said he’s bred males at 400 grams and never had one exceed 5.5 feet. I know males of this species grow larger than females. Apophis has not been sexed, nor do I know his exact age, as I suspect he is WC...but I’ve got multiple very educated opinions estimating he is around 4 years old. 4 years means he’s still growing and already 7 feet, so I guess we’ll find out in the next couple years how big they get ;)
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