Help!!1

I just got a Spider ball python about a week ago......... i have just realized yesterday that it has been holding its head sideways and sometimes upside down.... i have been told that spider sometimes do that but i just touched him to pick him up and he rolled his whole entire body from one side of my tank to the other. Then he started moving his head upside down curling it and weird things. Is he about to die? how can i stop this??!

This behavior is common in spiders. No he isn't going to die as long as he can eat etc, he will be fine. The behavior seems to be more prevalent when the animal is startled. Does he act normal otherwise?

From what i can tell he has been acting ok....... I tried to feed him the day after i got him and he wouldnt eat.... Im going to try again today

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Originally Posted by TDreptiles

I just got a Spider ball python about a week ago......... i have just realized yesterday that it has been holding its head sideways and sometimes upside down.... i have been told that spider sometimes do that but i just touched him to pick him up and he rolled his whole entire body from one side of my tank to the other. Then he started moving his head upside down curling it and weird things. Is he about to die? how can i stop this??!

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did the buyer inform you of this snakes wobbles?

Nope i picked it up for 150 at a repticon show and he said nothing of it

As a breeder we always try to inform people of any excentricitys present in an animal before they buy and generally do not intentionally market spiders with a pronounced wobble. He should have told you.

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Originally Posted by TDreptiles

From what i can tell he has been acting ok....... I tried to feed him the day after i got him and he wouldnt eat.... Im going to try again today

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wait 5-7 days in between feedings if he doesn't eat. Don't handle him either.

Nothing wrong with buying or selling spiders that have a wobble. It's not as though they're going to pass more of one on to their offspring than any other spider would. FULL DISCLOSURE should be the key though. People have the right to make up their own minds about this.

Sounds like your spider is pretty severely affected--the behavior you noticed is called 'spinning', and is one of the first things people mentioned when they noticed the ataxia problems that the spider morph has.

Head-tilt, putting the head upside down unnaturally often/long, tremors (wobbling) when focusing in on prey, and spinning are all signs of this ataxia.

The first spider had the 'wobble', and attempts to breed it out have failed--naturally enough. After all, spiders are one of the most thoroughly 'outcrossed' morphs--people virtually never breed them to one another, because the super form is probably fatal in the egg. No super-spiders have ever been produced, which means the morph is co-dominant, and not dominant as is often claimed.

I personally don't think that a breeder selling spiders should necessarily have to say 'oh, and it wobbles'--unless someone actually asks. I assume any spider wobbles unless I ask and the breeder says it doesn't. On the other hand, when I sell spiders, I mention whether or not I notice a wobble. It does not appear to matter to most people, especially if the spider is a female.

Wobbles can increase in severity as the animal ages--they can also decrease in severity, or even go away. Hatchlings without a noticeable wobble may develop one later. It is probable that all spiders have the wobble trait, but some display it so minimally that we don't notice any outward signs.

Fortunately, in spite of their ataxia, spiders are renowned for being excellent feeders, fast growers, and good breeders (though there are always exceptions to every trend). So, apparently their condition does not impact their quality of life too negatively. If it were otherwise, I wouldn't have them either.

For your future reference--caramel albinos are prone to kinking (being born with spinal deformities), and cinnamons have a snout deformity. The former can be severe enough to be fatal, though even some pretty harsh kinks can be survivable...the latter is harmless and does not interfere with the snake's function or behavior at all--just looks a bit odd. I think the cinnamon's faces are cute. :)
Neither of those traits can be bred out, either.

ya the breeder i bought my spider didnt tell me that he had a wobble, but when u breed so many babies, it must be hard to keep track. also, it seems like the spiders wobble more often when they're stressed.

weird story: my spider had a wobble, but i switched him to aspen (i have no idea y...) and he stopped wobbling o_O.. just hides. i dont think the aspen really has this effect, i just thought it was a freak occurrence lolll. i havent noticed the wobble since then lolz.

i would contact the person you got it from because he should of told you about this snakes issues before the sale. i dont know how a breeder would not notice this even if they had hundreds of animals it surely had to do it when he sexed it. on the other hand if it doesnt bother you and its eating and all that keep it, but me myself i would surely contact the breeder. any respectable breeder would exchange it for one that isnt spinning

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Originally Posted by nixer

i would contact the person you got it from because he should of told you about this snakes issues before the sale. i dont know how a breeder would not notice this even if they had hundreds of animals it surely had to do it when he sexed it. on the other hand if it doesnt bother you and its eating and all that keep it, but me myself i would surely contact the breeder. any respectable breeder would exchange it for one that isnt spinning

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im ok with it, like i said, i only noticed it when he was stressed or hungry. but he doesnt appear to be either ^_^, and i dont see him wobble lol