Peruvian Long Tail Problems

So, I picked up a Peruvian Long Tail on Saturday from LLLReptile. It wasn't an impulse buy as I've been looking at picking up a Red Tail for some time to offset my "boring" ball pythons.

I watched him for 20 minutes while at the store, and after seeing him cruise around for a bit, I asked if I could check him out a bit closer. I think what piqued my interest in this particular snake was when I watched him blow bubbles underwater repeatedly.

I handled him with no problems in the store. He was active and curious in my hands, but non aggressive, wasn't particularly head shy, didn't mind me and my wife handling him.

After we purchased him and began the drive home my wife swapped him out of the bag that we had him in and put him into a plastic tub that we bring with us when ever we go to a reptile shop. Again, the snake was calm as could be, and my wife briefly handled him before placing him in the tub.

We got home and placed the snake in a larger habitat that had already be set up (2 hides, branch, water dish) and regulated for a few days. Thats when our problems started.

Since placing him in the large tank he's been doing nothing but hissing and striking at everything that passes by. Using my snakey logic, I say "oh, he's stressed" and I put up some black plastic around the enclousure to isolate him and give him time to acclimate himself. It didn't do much. Even peeling back the plastic to check on the Temp and Humidity gets a loud hiss. I also need to freshen up his water dish as he deemed it to be a good place to poo.

I'm not adverse to him tagging me once, or twice. He's much faster than my Bumblebee, and I have a jerk back reaction. Its also odd that he doesn't always go for just my arm or hand, but occasionally my head for my face.

More so, I'm afraid that I might be over my head. If I can't get him to calm down at his current size, I don't know what I can do as he gets larger.


What steps do I need to do to calm him down that aren't common to ball pythons?




http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b3...ps951439be.jpg

Make sure your husbandry is on point and let the little guy settle in. When is the last time he was fed? What's his hotspot at? What's the gradient look like? what's the humidity? Is the enclosure placed someplace where there is a lot of foot traffic? If you picked him up sat he's going to need time to settle... Also the striking at the face thing.. Lol boas seem very aware and interactive during handling and striking at the face is not uncommon of a grumpy boa. I hope it works out for you. Patience. :)

Sounds like he just doesn't feel safe in his new home yet. I would ignore him for the most part aside from water changes until he settles. Use something to gently block him when you change water and move slow.

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Originally Posted by blackfish707

Sounds like he just doesn't feel safe in his new home yet. I would ignore him for the most part aside from water changes until he settles. Use something to gently block him when you change water and move slow.

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Water changes and feeding, of course.

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First, out of curiosity do you have photos of the snake full body wise? Not saying it's not (I've bought from LLL before too) but from the photo you posted I'm not seeing any longicauda in that snake, here's my own BCL to compare: http://daybreakerexotics.weebly.com/olive.html

For acting out, it's probably because he's still acclimating and looks pretty young. Some snakes transition better than others, so my personal recommendation would be to wait until the snake has had three successful feedings (this guy every 7-10 days) and once that's established (thankfully boas are rarely picky) then I would start with short handling sessions (every couple days for ~5-15 minutes). These guys can easily pick up on if you're nervous so tell yourself to not feel this way when reaching in to grab him: hesitating around over him will probably induce a strike from him too. Just reach in and scoop him up: if he bites it will hurt less than a paper cut since he's still little. If it makes you feel better you could wear some gloves or start using a snake hook. Only when he's relaxed and not striking at everything is when to put him away: I believe they will know what behavior to pull to get out of being handled so only put him away when he's calm and relaxed. This have worked for my own defensive/striking snakes in the past, including my own Hog Island BCI boa and Sumatran short tail python.

I would cover his whole tank with a towel too while he's adjusting along with the sides you blacked out and keep him in a less-trafficked area. What size tank is he in vs the one he was in at the store? He could be feeling vulnerable also: if you could post a pic of your set up we may be able to offer suggestions. What temp range are you keeping him at? These guys like cooler temps than balls so him being too warm is also a possibility for the temperament change.

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Originally Posted by Daybreaker

First, out of curiosity do you have photos of the snake full body wise? Not saying it's not (I've bought from LLL before too) but from the photo you posted I'm not seeing any longicauda in that snake, here's my own BCL to compare: http://daybreakerexotics.weebly.com/olive.html

For acting out, it's probably because he's still acclimating and looks pretty young. Some snakes transition better than others, so my personal recommendation would be to wait until the snake has had three successful feedings (this guy every 7-10 days) and once that's established (thankfully boas are rarely picky) then I would start with short handling sessions (every couple days for ~5-15 minutes). These guys can easily pick up on if you're nervous so tell yourself to not feel this way when reaching in to grab him: hesitating around over him will probably induce a strike from him too. Just reach in and scoop him up: if he bites it will hurt less than a paper cut since he's still little. If it makes you feel better you could wear some gloves or start using a snake hook. Only when he's relaxed and not striking at everything is when to put him away: I believe they will know what behavior to pull to get out of being handled so only put him away when he's calm and relaxed. This have worked for my own defensive/striking snakes in the past, including my own Hog Island BCI boa and Sumatran short tail python.

I would cover his whole tank with a towel too while he's adjusting along with the sides you blacked out and keep him in a less-trafficked area. What size tank is he in vs the one he was in at the store? He could be feeling vulnerable also: if you could post a pic of your set up we may be able to offer suggestions. What temp range are you keeping him at? These guys like cooler temps than balls so him being too warm is also a possibility for the temperament change.

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Spot on above! I'm also not seeing BCL there. Do you have other pictures? My Colombian male was a bit strike happy the first couple of months I got him. First, try to make his living quarters as close to his old setup as possible. Give him some deep substrate to burrow in and if the cage is too big make a smaller enclosure within the big one. My guy used a moss humid, hide for a long time. Also after a couple of weeks hook train him and handle him often. Does he strike once you have him picked up? Usually they mellow once in hand. You will be fine. BCL males and even BCI are not huge and even my almost 2 year old male would not be a concern. My bet is your new snake will settle. This is common going from BP to boa. You'll do fine.

I hate my wife.

She reached right in and picked him up without any response from him. He was up on a branch, she moved in and scooped him up. Tried to get away for a few seconds, but then ended up climbing all over her.


http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b3...ps0706b1ce.jpg


http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b3...psd91571cc.jpg


Couldn't get a clean photo of his underside.


I will post more details soon, I'm running behind at work. Husbandry is 60% humidity, with an automatic fogger. 88 on the basking, 84 ambient warm, 80 ambient cool side.

Tank is 36x18x18 Exo Terra. Going into a tub soon as I can sort out the conditions for a day and make sure he won't be miserable in there.

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Originally Posted by Tragic Image

I hate my wife.

She reached right in and picked him up without any response from him. He was up on a branch, she moved in and scooped him up. Tried to get away for a few seconds, but then ended up climbing all over her.


http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b3...ps0706b1ce.jpg


http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b3...psd91571cc.jpg


Couldn't get a clean photo of his underside.


I will post more details soon, I'm running behind at work. Husbandry is 60% humidity, with an automatic fogger. 88 on the basking, 84 ambient warm, 80 ambient cool side.

Tank is 36x18x18 Exo Terra. Going into a tub soon as I can sort out the conditions for a day and make sure he won't be miserable in there.

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No longicauda there bud, looks like a normal Colombian BCI to me. You could drop the ambient/cool side temps down to about ~77 too if he continues to act up.

Mmmm, well I'll have to speak with LLL. It was sold to me as a Peruvian, but sometimes mistakes happen.

I appreciate all the advice

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Originally Posted by Daybreaker

No longicauda there bud, looks like a normal Colombian BCI to me. You could drop the ambient/cool side temps down to about ~77 too if he continues to act up.

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But a BEAUTIFUL normal Colombian BCI! He is very nicely patterned! I'm sure you'll grow to love him!

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Originally Posted by Tragic Image

Mmmm, well I'll have to speak with LLL. It was sold to me as a Peruvian, but sometimes mistakes happen.

I appreciate all the advice

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Don't worry about what he is if you like him. He's nice looking and ,,,, it's a boa constrictor and that's the best part. Unless LLL nailed you with a BCL price, and you desperately wanted a BCL, I'd just call them and clarify and keep what you have if you like him. Just for the record, it doesn't look like a Peruvian BCC either which would also cost more than a BCI.

Your wife did what's referred to as confident handling!! She probably reached in without hesitation and picked him up. MOST boas settle pretty quick and start to explore once you've picked them up.

I'm not sure what your experience level is, but if you are just coming from BP's, these boas are much different. I made the "jump" to boas not too long ago. Nothing against royals as my sone still has his, but when it's time to handle a snake, its the BC all day LOL!

Keep the handling going once you get the feeding dialed in. He may have a little stress, but I'd be lying if I told you I let my new boa settle in for a full 2 weeks. I gave him a week based on my observations.


Just in case you want a little extra reading/research. This is Vin Russo's web page. He wrote the book; THE COMPLETE BOA CONSTRICTOR These images and the description should help you with distinguishing the BCL.


http://www.cuttingedgeherp.com/perul...ongicauda.html

Daybreaker and Gio have given you awesome advice and I won't elaborate on that any further. I'll just say that your wife is awesome and did exactly what you should do. :D


But I will agree with them too that there is no BCL there. Gio has a valid point - if you like him (and you weren't rooked on the price) then keep him and be happy. He is a gorgeous BCI and will give you a lot of enjoyment! But a normal BCI would likely not go for more than $60-80. LLL does put a premium on prices since they are a pet store so I'd expect the price to be about 20% more from them, but still, I would normally see a BCL sell for closer to $200 and that would be way overpriced for a normal BCI. Just wanted to throw that out there in case you were unsure about pricing.

I do like the snake, and I intend to keep him and work through any difficulties that I may have. The Peruvian aspect plays little to no part in my affection.

I've spoken with LLL and am awaiting a response. I've done a lot of business with them, and have always had good experiences. We enjoy their stores enough to drive a couple hundred miles round trip to visit their stores I expect no less this time as well.

Also, weight was about 190 grams.... probably empty since there was a LOT of poop in the water and tank

I've spoken with LLL Reptile, and everything has been made right. Its one of the biggest reasons I enjoy doing business with them.

I'd like to thank you all for pointing it out early enough to me that I was able to resolve it amicably.

I'm glad it worked out for you!!

If I may ask, what did they do to "make it right?" You don't have to go into detail here, but did they refund some money or replace the snake with a true BCL? Just curious. ;)

Well, I didn't care if it was a BCI, BCL, BCC or any of that. Replacing the snake wasn't an option for me.

The company simply corrected the pricing, and I wouldn't of wanted anything other than that. In fact they offered more than the difference and I declined.

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Originally Posted by Tragic Image

Well, I didn't care if it was a BCI, BCL, BCC or any of that. Replacing the snake wasn't an option for me.

The company simply corrected the pricing, and I wouldn't of wanted anything other than that. In fact they offered more than the difference and I declined.

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That's good in my book! :gj:

Glad they made it right for you. And in the end, you did wind up with a very nice snake!! ;)

Just as an update. He's calmed down considerably. He was aggressive up until about August when we finally started taking him out and letting him slither around our yard. It was an instant change. Much more calm.

Size wise he's up to 1300grams. He eats regularly, and it's the only time he shows aggression. Occasionally he'll get hissy after eating but I think he is just feeling vulnerable.

Hates getting put back once he's out, and shows lots of interest in our cat. Our black lab runs from him.


I just wanted to come back and say thank you all for the help and advice you all offered.

Glad to hear he settled down and is doing fine. Thanks for the update.