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Welcome to our newest member, Boons
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Meet Toaster Strudel
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Omg. She's beautiful and has a great name. I love her.
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The great thing about snakes is that we never have to go outside & call them- :D That would be an awkward name if that were the case- but as it is, you just made me hungry...
She's very pretty & seems to enjoy your arm- :gj:
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Congratulations on your gorgeous new carpet! Cool name too! 😎
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Thanks! All but one of my snakes have weird food names haha. I have Red Bean, Potsticker, Extra Cheesy, and now Toaster Strudel. My hognose is just named Bumble, she was my first snake.
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Nice baby, love the name! :D
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Here’s an update on Toaster Strudel. She was 144g when I got her and just weighed in at 228g today. She’s definitely noticeably bigger now. And still super friendly although I think I will definitely have to hook train her since she looks at my hand like it’s food until I pick her up, but still hasn’t bitten me yet. She’s eating rats now.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/Qby6dIj.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/8d3hpmx.jpg
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Looking fantastic!
Hook training is a great idea. They are aggressive feeders and have some pretty big teeth (relatively and literally at size).
My CP, Yafe, is a total sweetie when out too (has been since day 1), but the hook is my friend. A few taps/rubs and he's ready to be picked up.
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
I think most of the carpet keepers would agree that your feeding schedule can be adjusted. Let me get my sunglasses out though as I look at her. Lol.
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Oh my hades I love Toaster Strudel-
My snake is William Snakespeare, and I swear he acts like a kitten more than a snake
Anyways, what kind of snake is Toaster Strudel? Very pretty pattern :D
:snake::snake::snake:
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
On the feeding note... All of my carpets eat every 10-14-21 days depending on how frequently they are defecating, time of year/season, etc. I feed weekly to get them established once in my care as very young animals but not for terribly long and then increase time between feedings. Carpets will rarely turn down a meal and can easily become obese or develop other health complications if overfed.
I do not feed to the expectation of maximum adult size. Sure, one or two coastal carpets have been recorded at 12-14'. They are the exception and not the rule. Most are maybe half that length. Feeding to the expectation of a 10' carpet will likely result in a fat snake that dies well short of its full lifespan. Rather, I feed according to seasonal prey availability in the wild as well as according to the body condition and behavior of the snake in question. They act hungry every day and hunt most every night. I let them display these behaviors for upwards of a week before feeding which generally results in about a ~14 day schedule.
For context my 2018 Brisbane coastal is maybe 5' at nearly 4yo and takes medium rats which leave a decent bump in her. My 2019 Rockhampton is close to the same length but lighter bodied and takes a small rat every couple weeks give or take. My 2020 jungle is about 3' and takes a weaned rat as a decent size meal every 10-21days or more. She recently had three meals without defecating and I chose to withhold food until she passed her previous meals which resulted in not being fed for a month. My 2019 Male Brisbane paces the cage like a maniac as soon as 3-4 days after feeding and would eat everyday if offered. I do not oblige him. I only feed him every 2-3 weeks as he doesn't need to be huge and is in great shape as is. He eats weaned/small rats and day old chicks and is maybe 500grams at close to 3yo.
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Thanks everyone. Local_Enby, She is a jungle carpet python. It seems she got way more yellow with this shed than previous sheds. She still has some dark marks on her yellow scales though.
jmcrook, based on that info do you think 10 or 14 days would be better? She was hatched in 2020.
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Your girl T-Strudel is growing nicely. Her colors are popping brightly and I love her head stamp. I feed my carpets a little heavier than average when they’re younger and your girl is right on the cusp of when I start dialing them back a bit. I typically feed my carpets every 7-10 days their first year, every 10-14 days the 2nd year, and every 2-4 weeks when they’re 3 and older.
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Meet Toaster Strudel
[QUOTE=widget;2771310.
jmcrook, based on that info do you think 10 or 14 days would be better? She was hatched in 2020.[/QUOTE]
Can’t make a prescriptive recommendation for any individual animal. They all metabolize differently and convert calories to growth at different rates. Best feeding schedule is no schedule. Sometimes I feed after 7-10 days, sometimes I go a month, and I don’t feed for 2-3 months in the winter.
Feeding regimen depends on that specific animal, their body condition, physical activity, and other factors.
Apologies if this comes off rather bluntly, but it’s what I’ve found to work best for me based on my animals in the captive conditions of my snake room in my region of the US. There’s just lots of different ways to do things right and lots of different ways to do things wrong.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Sorry I never replied, I appreciate all the help. Toaster Strudel has grown a ton since I last posted. She is starting to get more bright yellow and darker black. https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/mwIBp3j.jpg
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Update on Toaster Strudel, I finally got her AP cage. She was pretty scared but after exploring all night she seems to be more curious now than stressed. In this picture she is kind of dull/brownish on her yellow scales so I think she’s about to shed again. She’s been growing a lot but hasn’t shed for a while. I really need to weigh her but I’ll wait until she’s settled a bit more. I also just ordered some medium rats for her and she’s eating every 2 weeks for now.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/oNwWxSh.jpg
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I’m also really dumb because I was struggling with the reflections in the glass of my hands and didn’t even think to open the doors…
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Quote:
Originally Posted by widget
I’m also really dumb because I was struggling with the reflections in the glass of my hands and didn’t even think to open the doors…
TMI- :D Anyway, I've tried to reach thru closed glass doors before...lol.
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It doesn’t surprise me, when I first got my other AP cages every time I’d walk into the room I’d get a little scared because the glass was so clean I couldn’t tell there was glass.
Also, Toaster Strudel has discovered her heat panel and loves it.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/O7f6gun.jpg
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Even with a friendly name like Toaster Strudel, morelias have a sort of majesty about them don't they. Very different from a ball python's kind of goober look.
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Yes definitely. Her head is also getting more blocky.
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Yeah, starting to lose the baby face now for sure
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It was pretty cool seeing her grab her rat and coil it while on her perch. Also, is that her spine and if so is that normal? She doesn’t seem skinny.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/Vnlp6ax.jpg
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Awesome picture and I love seeing Yafe, my CP, grab from his perch and coil the rat while hanging.
You CP doesn't look too skinny, and it's probably the angle making it look worse than it is.
What size prey are you feeding and how often?
CP's can eat 15-20% of their body weight in a sitting. I fed Yafe an average of 15% until his growth slowed. That was every 10 days or so at first and now every two weeks. Now I am offering about 8-10% of his body weight per feeding, but still feeding every two weeks. He could handle a large rat (I am giving mediums), but he's still growing on the medium rats, so why rock the boat? He's also solid.
My point is if you think your CP looks a little thin, you can probably up prey size. It's amazing what size prey and how fast they can digest when given proper husbandry/temps.
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Yeah I don’t think she looks skinny at all, but I am moving her up to mediums next feeding anyway. She is only eating small rats every other week, maybe I should do 10 days? She’s been eating these smalls since she was probably half the size she is now. Everything’s been hectic because I moved recently so I haven’t weighed her for a while, but I will do it after she digests this meal.
She just shed too so I’ll also get some pictures soon in better lighting.
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
First, she looks great!
Secondly, I think mediums every 14 days are fine assuming she's been handling small rats for a while and the mediums aren't more than 20% of her body weight. From the picture, I think it will be fine.
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Beautiful snake! Had to get my shades...:cool:
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Great looking critter. They can definitely handle a medium. I wouldn't worry about what the rat weights as far as percentage of snake's weight. If a medium looks too big once consumed then go back to smalls for a bit. You'll be surprised what a carpet can handle. Share pictures of this animal more. Myself and at least one other Morelia friend here certainly wouldn't mind. I may even feel inspired to share updates on my carpets...
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
How is she to handle? In all the pictures she seems very calm and curious
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She took her first medium rat with no problem. Thank you everyone. I’ll definitely share more pictures.
plateOfFlan she is super chill. She is a bit shy but I recently moved and haven’t handled her much so I think once I start handling her more that will get rid of her nervousness. She’s never bitten me and the only time she tries is as a feeding response when I first take her out of her cage.
(Sorry if this posts twice, the first time I got an error message).
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/SednRyA.jpg
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Quote:
Originally Posted by widget
She took her first medium rat with no problem. Thank you everyone. I’ll definitely share more pictures.
plateOfFlan she is super chill. She is a bit shy but I recently moved and haven’t handled her much so I think once I start handling her more that will get rid of her nervousness. She’s never bitten me and the only time she tries is as a feeding response when I first take her out of her cage.
(Sorry if this posts twice, the first time I got an error message).
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/SednRyA.jpg
Yafe is the same way; a dream when out, but can be a little hissy or worse when I reach in. That's why he's hook trained like my other food crazed constrictors - See all my boas.
I let him get most of his hisses out with the hook and gentle rubs. Then I can pick him and he's not expecting food and is not startled.
Do you hook train? If not, I'd recommend it. I can post instructions/a thread I wrote if interested.
I've seen Yafe's teeth and that would not be a fun bite.
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I know I should but I haven’t. I have a hook. Lately I’ve been almost getting bit in the face changing her water. She’s worse than my king snake but only in her cage because her top perch where she hangs out is at eye level.
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Quote:
Originally Posted by widget
I know I should but I haven’t. I have a hook. Lately I’ve been almost getting bit in the face changing her water. She’s worse than my king snake but only in her cage because her top perch where she hangs out is at eye level.
Can't say enough how helpful hook training is. Better for all involved. Your snake doesn't want to nail you any more than you want to get bit.
It also doesn't hurt the snake at all. There is really no downside.
Either way, good luck and keep us posted on Toaster Strudel.
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Quote:
Originally Posted by widget
I know I should but I haven’t. I have a hook. Lately I’ve been almost getting bit in the face changing her water. She’s worse than my king snake but only in her cage because her top perch where she hangs out is at eye level.
Just don't take it personal- many snakes that are comfortable being held by us are afraid & defensive until they get more "clues" to reassure them that they do in fact know us. In my experience, snakes do not recognize us visually- at least not with any certainty- & they need our scent &/or touch to reassure them. That's why so many snakes may try to bite when we approach them in their home- (it can also happen when they're expecting food). You do NOT want a face-bite. ;) A hook (or a sleeved/gloved arm/hand) makes for a safer approach, because that serves as cues so they recognize & remember that we're not an unknown predator (or prey).
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
You should consider a choice-based handling approach. When I want to play with my Children’s python, I open the enclosure. If he comes out, we play. If he doesn’t, we don’t. Interacting with your snake when it doesn’t want to interact with you increases the chances of getting bit.
That said, I do sometimes need to handle my snake when he doesn’t want to be handled. This is usually when it comes time for him to return to his enclosure after playtime is over. That’s when the hook training comes in handy.
However, it’s while maintaining his enclosure (e.g. water changes) that I’ve taken the most bites, so I’ve started wearing gloves. I tried letting him see and smell me before reaching into his enclosure to avoid being mistaken for food. This worked well when I could see him. The problem came when I didn’t see him and thought the coast was clear only to have him strike from a hiding place.
I also target train, so you could safely say I take a kitchen sink approach to avoiding bites. All this is probably overkill on my part. My snake is tiny compared to yours. I do it mostly because I like training my snake. It's fun to have a purpose to your interactions. In your case, adopting one or more of the above approaches is more of a necessity.
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
I just re-read this whole thread. It's so fun to watch him grow. Keep the updates coming.
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It’s getting difficult to take pictures of her using only one hand/arm lol
(very sorry if this posts multiple times, I keep getting logged out when I try to hit post)
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...m/sphJ9nx.jpeghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...m/4dVkUXQ.jpeghttps://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...m/1VK3q8E.jpeg
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No wonder, that's a hand full (arm full) of snake. :D
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Re: Meet Toaster Strudel
Quote:
Originally Posted by widget
That is a nice size and it appears the disposition is equally nice.
Thanks for the update.
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