New herp and In need of advice :)

Hey everybody! I never liked the thought of snakes before 2 months ago. I work at petco and one day, a lady came in with a regular ball python and I fell IN LOVE. So I figured I'd play with the ones we have at work. I fell in more love. I bought a BP who seemed most comfortable with me. However, now I have him at home and have had him for almost a week now and he (or she lol) seems terrified of me!? If and when he finally uncoils, I go to grab him and the second he sees my hand he jumps back and he just balls back up :( sometimes when he uncoils in my hands, it seems as if he wants to strike but hesitates. Am I doing something wrong? Is this typical since he's in a new environment? I haven't had my first bite yet and I'm kind of nervous ( I'm sure all of you were too before you realized it doesn't really hurt!). Any help on how to tame him? :) thanks guys! I'll be on in a little to reply if any one replies to me.


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Welcome to the site, and congrats on your new addition!

Is he a baby? It's very normal for babies to feel insecure. You're a lot bigger than he is, so he's naturally going to be afraid that you're going to eat him. Can you describe your set up? Sometimes one little thing in their set up can make a big difference in their attitude. I would definitely try to avoid handling him until he's eaten for you a few times. Then, slowly start to handle him for a few minutes every day (except for the 24-48 hours after he's eaten, and when he's about to shed). Most will settle down after they gain a little size and confidence that you're not going to eat them :)

Hope that helps!

Thanks! I attached a picture of my set up. Left hide has a UTH, middle is the cool spot, and right side has a reflector light. He is a baby and I wish I knew exactly how old! They don't tell us what age they come in at which is just silly! I would say about 5 months maybe? http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/05/07/u6y2amy8.jpg


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Luckily he ate the day I got him since I always feed them on Sundays at work, and he went from live to frozen with no problem at all!http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/05/07/3ydypytu.jpghttp://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/05/07/a5apajer.jpg
http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/05/07/9a9ury4y.jpg


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That's great that he ate for you, and switched to frozen so quickly! And he looks very cute! It is annoying to not know their ages, but it's not uncommon if you get them at pet stores. And there's no good way to estimate age, as it depends largely on feeding, and growth rates vary by snake.

I do have a few questions and suggestions about your set up for you.

What size rat (or mouse?) was that? It looks a little small for him. You want to the rat/mouse to be about the same thickness as his thickest part. To make him feel a bit more secure, I would cover the back and two sides of the tank with dark paper. Do you have anything other than the stick-on to measure the temps and humidity? Stick-on thermometers are notorious for being inaccurate. You can get a digital thermometer and hygrometer from Walmart for around $12, and it will tell you the temps on the cool side and the warm side, and will also measure the humidity. It looks like you don't have anything covering the screen top of the tank. He needs humidity of about 50-60%, and most people have trouble achieving that in a glass tank without covering the top of the tank. Do you have a thermostat for the UTH? Under tank heaters can get way too hot for ball pythons and can burn them, so a thermostat is a must. You can get a basic Hydrofarm thermostat from Amazon for about $30.

Sorry, I know that's a lot of questions and information, but if you can get the husbandry issues taken care of, he'll probably turn into an entirely different snake (in a good way :))

Sad news :( I actually brought him to the vet today for a check up and they let him escape! They will be replenishing him for me but still!!! I want the one I had already! Not a replacement! Never ever going to banfield again.


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by HerpiDerp

Sad news :( I actually brought him to the vet today for a check up and they let him escape! They will be replenishing him for me but still!!! I want the one I had already! Not a replacement! Never ever going to banfield again.


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Oh no!!! That's awful! How do you let a snake escape?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by HerpiDerp

Sad news :( I actually brought him to the vet today for a check up and they let him escape! They will be replenishing him for me but still!!! I want the one I had already! Not a replacement! Never ever going to banfield again.


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Did you leave the snake with them for the day or just went in for a checkup? How did they lose him? That's ridiculous: I'm sorry for your loss; I hope they find him for you! I would be livid.

I left him for about 2 hours while I got a hygrometer and sure enough I get a call as I'm headed there. They're very lucky that I'm a calm person.


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I really appreciate the advice bumblebee. Hopefully I'll be back on the forums soon enough with another BP. You were really helpful.


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I'm glad I could help. Sorry again about your little boy :( I hope they find him, or that you at least get a replacement you can be happy with. They really are fun critters!

I'm so sorry to hear what happened. :( He looked very cute. As someone who works for a Banfield, this is especially saddening to hear. I know that if it were my hospital, we would take all the precautions to properly secure a pet (especially snakes/lizards/other small animals, since they cannot simply be placed in a kennel like a dog or cat. Most small reptiles brought to us are in deli cups) or if we had no way of doing that we would not have kept it with us. I completely understand you not wanting to go back after something like that happened though. Will you have a say in which new snake you would like?

I feel like he'll show up eventually, it's a high traffic area, just hope that none of the dogs or cats get to him first, which is unlikely since he won't be slithering into kennels or any of that.


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I totally agree!! That was careless, and completely the vets fault. Sorry for your loss!!