Re: Aggression/Skiddishness
Wow, there's lots of good advice here! And nice picture of your new BP - congrats on rescuing him! :)
Here's 2 other sources worth checking out:
www.rickysreptileenclosures.com and snakebytes.tv on youtube or bhbreptiles.com. Ricky has some good advice on how to set up an enclosure match temp, humidity and security needs that available in a BP's natural environment.
Brian's snakebytes.tv episode from last week (3/16) gave his Top 10 Worst Advice on Keeping Snakes and he discusses handling, aggression, feeding, enclosures, etc. (worth checking out even for veteran snake keepers!)
IMO, a single tub or a rack system is the most effective way of maintaining proper temp gradient, humidity and provides a BP the security they need.
I used to have a tank with lots of cool decorations and a UVB light to show off my pet, but then realized this was more for appearances (BP's like to hide 95% of the time), plus it was almost impossible to maintain proper temps and humidity for any length of time without constant effort and adjustment.
Now I've got a Sterilite tub and use separate Helix thermostats and UTH's with probes located under each identical hide (81F cool-side; 91 warm-side); probes are placed directly under paper toweling for substrate to get the most accurate and consistent temps. Toweling makes regular and complete cleaning very quick and easy and provides consistent belly heat temps since it's always the same thickness. Also have another UTH on the outside of the tub's lid to provide a normal range for ambient air temp; the third Helix probe for this UTH is located in back corner of the cool-side.
Depending on the natural external temperature fluctuations of my home, ambient air temp in the enclosure maintains a range of 77F - 84F without effecting the constant the belly heat temps in each hide. I love the fact that this set up forms it's own closed-system which is completely self-regulating, effortless, and requires no guess work or temp gun checking. There's a digital thermometer/hygrometer on the cool-side to verify ambient air and measure humidity.
To ensure constant correct humidity - made a "humidity box" out of a 4" diameter round food storage container by drilling as many holes in the lid as possible to dissipate water vapor and filled container with coconut bark. To prepare: fill with water, let soak and drain after a couple of minutes, place on warm side of enclosure - maintains 55%-60% humidity for a week at a time. During shed I add another identical 'humidity box' to the enclosure to boost humidity to 65%-70%.
Good luck on getting your enclosure set up just right to provide for your BP's fundamental needs. Once these are met and your BP has acclimated and is on a regular feeding schedule, I'm sure you'll see your BP's true disposition which will most likely be less aggressive/skiddish.
P.S. - Don't let any friendly debate over technical issues or varying opinions dissuade you from looking for the answers that will work for your particular situation - the more you know, the better a keeper you will be ;). And just remember, when providing for a BP with a normal life span of 20+ years, it's not about what we think is cool looking, is too 'cheap' a solution or somehow unnecessarily expensive ... it's about meeting your snake's fundamental needs all of the time, every time.
