Aggressive ball python

[texbrat_a]

I have recently joined this site for some advice on my two ball pythons, both of which are rescues. The first one is a few months old. Recently she has developed some incredibly dry skin. I keep the humidity of the tank at about 50, she also gets misted once a day and has a big water/soaking bowl. Normally she loves to sit and soak in her bowl but lately she has stayed under her half pipe and hasn't come out. So I pull her out and put her in a bowl of lukewarm water for about 15 minutes (recommended on a site online). The second ball is over a year old. He is in great health as of now however he is aggressive. I need some advice to get him as docile and friendly as my baby. He has bitten my boyfriend to the extent of my boyfriend wanting nothing to do with him. Though he is getting better with his aggression I would still love some advice on how to improve his temperament, so that we both can get him out without even thinking about it. The baby is getting 2-3 med mice a week while the bigger gets about 3-4 a week (planning on moving him up to rats). Both snakes have been defecating normally and the larger is very active. So....any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[WarriorPrincess90]

to BP.net!

You've come to the right place to get your questions answered.

First off, have you noticed any black dots floating in the water when the smaller one with the dry skin gets out of her water bowl? Soaking is usually associated with mites. So just thought I'd ask.

As to the "aggressive" animal, you also said he is active? That sounds like a sign of stress. He could be striking defensively out of fear.

To help you better, could you please elaborate on your setups? What do you have in them? How are you monitoring temperatures? What are your temps/humidity? What are you using to heat the enclosures? Hides? Etc.

[texbrat_a]

I have a 40 gallon glass enclosure that I currently have both of them in. Eventually I will separate them to prevent any little ones from hatching. The warm side is 80-85 with a basking spot of 90 Cold side is 70-75. The humidity of the tank is at 50. I have aspen bedding with a large half pipe. A climbing log thing (tree O.o?) some leafy green stuff XD and a big soaking bowl. I am planning on getting one of those 3 in 1 caves by zoo med. To heat the enclosure I have a ceramic heat bulb and a heat pad. To check the temperatures i have electronic temperature gauges and humidity gauges.

ok for the baby. No she does not have any mites. But the place where I had gotten her from had the humidity down to 20s -.- so I'm assuming that, that was a reason she is having a crappy shedding and her skin is so dry. The site i looked at said that it could help start the shedding. I know she will have an incomplete shedding due to the move and just having a crappy life style before so im not expecting much.

As for the bigger one. He is active, climbing on the tree thing, and just checking things out. He doesn't strike when he is in his tank just when we handle him. He can be a sweet heart when he wants to be, (seems like only with me).

[VooDooDoc]

Ball pythons are not social animals. I certainly would not want a baby in with an adult snake. Do you only have the one hide? You should have one on each side.

As for the bad shed, you can bump humidty up to 70% to help out and don't soak too often, that can remove the natural oils that help them shed and actually make it worse.

Is the bigger one active during the day? If so that's not normal and he is most surely stressed. A hiding python is a happy python. If he's just out at night, that's probably normal though.

I'd get them in separate enclosures right away and then leave them alone for a few weeks and handle as little as possible, once they have had time to settle in then start taking them out for short handling sessions and gradually build up the length of time.

Also, please post pictures, folks will be able to help out a lot more that way.

[CaitJaye]

Like VooDooDoc said, its a no go on housing them together. Theres stress and they can compete for the best spots in the tank, thus stressing them out more. And a stressed snake will deff be more aggressive.

[barbie.dragon]

you need 2 hides that are tight fitting for the snakes (2 each). They have to be separated ASAP or you should provide 4 hides at least that are identical. The humidity should be at 60-65% @ all times. The half pipe wide does nothing to provide security for the snakes. The big snake bein active means he is stressed or hungry. How much do your snakes weigh? You need to get a Scale to measure it and feed 10-15% of their body weight / feeding. j would def. start wlth the humidity issue and the compete lack of hides. And do not bother the snake for a week to get him to Calm down. They sound incredibly Stressed out

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