Concerned About Ball Python Behavior

[danizduhman]

Hey all, new to the site and I've used it for reference since I first got my ball last May. Great forum!

Here's my concern:
From the time I first got my ball last May until September, no issues. Two separate hides, warm and cool sides that meet temp requirements, humidity seems to meet the standards everyone says is good and I mist every morning and evening before I go to sleep. I used to get him out about every day to every other day and watch YouTube video with him, about 15 to 20 minutes a day. Never had an issue with anything. Feeding has never been an issue and still isn't, it's some mildly aggressive behavior I'm worried about.

In September my girlfriend and I moved in together, and that's when I noticed that he's started getting a little aggressive. He has attempted to strike both me and my girlfriend 4 or 5 times since September, and once he wrapped around my girlfriend's arm and wouldn't let go and I had to unwind him. Little things like this have happened occasionally since we moved here, and honestly both me and my girlfriend have become a little worried/cautious/concerned when we get him out. I know that he can't seriously hurt us, but I can't get it out of my head that he might hurt us somehow. I very much enjoy holding him and having him as a pet, and I desperately want to fix this.

I fed him about 30 minutes ago, and it went well. He is getting darker which means he's about to shed, so I was planning on waiting until after the shed to start holding him again. I was gonna try every 2 or 3 days holding him for 5 or so minutes, and keep doing this until both my ball and I seem comfortable, and then making it 10 minutes and so on and so on to get back to being used to being held.

I really want to make both me and my girlfriend comfortable holding him, and I want him to be comfortable being held. He is a great pet that I really want to have work out. I've never had a snake of any kind until I got this guy, and I've not had any exotic type pets other than hermit crabs. I am willing to do essentially whatever I can to fix this. Any advice is helpful, thanks in advance!

[gameonpython]

First thing you'll want to do is check your husbandry. If that is all okay, then you may want to think about the possibility that such frequent handling is stressing him out. Some bps are okay with frequent handling, others are not. Your plan to slowly start handling him again sounds like a really good one to me. I just want to stress that you should not be worried about him harming you or your gf. And to clarify: striking can be aggressive behavior, but wrapping around your gfs arm is not. He was simply making himself comfortable and sucking her heat what exactly are you doing when he strikes? Be very specific; how do you pick him up?


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[CantHelpIt]

If he wrapped your girlfriends arm and wouldn't let go its likely he was just trying to hang on and felt like he was gonna fall.
The only thing I can say about handling is don't be nervous.

One of my guys, tamest thing, I had him in my hands to clean out his cage, he'll usually wrap around my neck and hangout till I'm done but this time he was exploring and while doing so he wrapped up three of my fingers. I wouldn't usually care but for some reason I got a little nervous, he wasn't be aggressive, he just had a coil around them and was intently staring. Well this freaked me out and I started trying to wiggle my fingers out from the coil and sure enough he tagged me and tightened his coil. He didn't seem to like the taste of the cleaning gloves and let go pretty quick.

My point is, don't make jerky movements, don't snap your hand back if he moves, be calm, collected and assertive when taking him out and when moving him while handling come from below his head. If you haven't been tagged yet, don't worry about it. I would take a bite from any of my snakes over my conure anyday. That little pterodactyl has a nasty beak that can take out chunks. Snakes are nothing

[gameonpython]

If he wrapped your girlfriends arm and wouldn't let go its likely he was just trying to hang on and felt like he was gonna fall.
The only thing I can say about handling is don't be nervous.

One of my guys, tamest thing, I had him in my hands to clean out his cage, he'll usually wrap around my neck and hangout till I'm done but this time he was exploring and while doing so he wrapped up three of my fingers. I wouldn't usually care but for some reason I got a little nervous, he wasn't be aggressive, he just had a coil around them and was intently staring. Well this freaked me out and I started trying to wiggle my fingers out from the coil and sure enough he tagged me and tightened his coil. He didn't seem to like the taste of the cleaning gloves and let go pretty quick.

My point is, don't make jerky movements, don't snap your hand back if he moves, be calm, collected and assertive when taking him out and when moving him while handling come from below his head. If you haven't been tagged yet, don't worry about it. I would take a bite from any of my snakes over my conure anyday. That little pterodactyl has a nasty beak that can take out chunks. Snakes are nothing

I agree!! Snakes can definitely sense fear, I've seen it with my own eyes. And even if your ball does bite you, like the poster above said its really nothing. I'd actually rather get bit by my snakes then a bee or wasp! The first time I got bit, I laughed because it was so pathetically cute!


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[Sauzo]

If this started when you moved into the new place, you need to give the snake time to get used to the new place and smells. Also like mentioned, some snakes just don't like being handled that much and they get cranky. Also some snakes will get cranky when going into shed. I know my big BCI isn't that fond of being messed with when she is going into shed. She usually will sit in her hide for a week and only comes out to drink. I respect that and leave her alone. I think its time for you to look into another snake to add to the collection so you can spread the love haha. Look into a boa, they generally love to be held and out. Both my BCI girls love to come out and sit on me or the couch or bed. Bottom line is let the snake go a couple weeks in the new place with handling only a couple times a week and see he mellows out. This is of course assuming all the husbandry is the same aka temps, humidity, hides etc.

[Kokorobosoi]

Its also good to look around the room. Does your new place have any new animals? (I'm looking for pet rodents here.) Or a bird, anything he may be sensing that triggers him to be a bit more, alert?

And I second the don't be afraid! Once you get tagged, you will settle down a lot more. If I had to choose between getting bit by a parakeet and a snake... no! One parakeet or a box full of ball pythons... My hand would be in the box every time. And don't get me started about conures. How can something be so delicate to remove an earring WITHOUT me noticing one minute, and the next I think he's auditioning for JAWS: Rainforest Terror.

[danizduhman]

First thing you'll want to do is check your husbandry. If that is all okay, then you may want to think about the possibility that such frequent handling is stressing him out. Some bps are okay with frequent handling, others are not. Your plan to slowly start handling him again sounds like a really good one to me. I just want to stress that you should not be worried about him harming you or your gf.

Cage setup appears good. It's low 90's on warm side, low to mid 80's on the other. Humidity seems good, the big stuff all seems okay. It could be frequent handling, I hadn't thought of that. I'm not so sure because of the timing on this that it started as soon as we moved, but it certainly could be.

The reason I'm concerned about when he wrapped around her hand/arm is that it began to hurt her. It started cutting off circulation in her hand. The initial cause of that I have no idea, sitting on the couch like normal, no sudden movements, no dinner smells around, just all of a sudden he went from typical two hand holding to one arm to tightly wrapping around her arm. I suppose she may have done something that freaked him out, but if she did it wasn't anything really outside the norm.

what exactly are you doing when he strikes? Be very specific; how do you pick him up?

I've always picked him up by one hand and transitioned into two hands for support. Typically, he'd either be outside his hide just chillin' or underneath it. If he's outside, open cage lid a little so he knows I'm coming, and then a minute or two later getting him out. If he's under the hide, pull the hide off of him, wait a minute or two (especially if during the afternoon), then get him out. I try to only get him out at night so he can sleep.

When he actually strikes at us we kind of hold him away from us with the same two hands thing, and then as gently as possible put him back in his cage. One specific time my girlfriend was sitting next to me and kinda drop/toss/set him down unexpectedly on my lap after an attempted strike. She didn't drop him or toss him really, kinda like a very quick hand off I guess haha. I just picked him up very slowly and walked him over to his cage and put him back in carefully.

I know everyone says that the bite won't be a big deal and I hear you on that, I'm worried that he'll clamp down. A quick strike I don't fear too much. Pulling his jaws/teeth out of my skin is something else though.

If this started when you moved into the new place, you need to give the snake time to get used to the new place and smells. Also like mentioned, some snakes just don't like being handled that much and they get cranky. Also some snakes will get cranky when going into shed. I know my big BCI isn't that fond of being messed with when she is going into shed. She usually will sit in her hide for a week and only comes out to drink. I respect that and leave her alone. I think its time for you to look into another snake to add to the collection so you can spread the love haha. Look into a boa, they generally love to be held and out. Both my BCI girls love to come out and sit on me or the couch or bed. Bottom line is let the snake go a couple weeks in the new place with handling only a couple times a week and see he mellows out. This is of course assuming all the husbandry is the same aka temps, humidity, hides etc.

It's been several months now, and I've cut back how often we get him out considerably. It almost appears as though he's afraid of me now, and I don't know what happened or what I did. He's about to go into shed because I can tell he's getting darker, so I'm gonna let him be until that process is over, then try to ease my way back into it.

Its also good to look around the room. Does your new place have any new animals? (I'm looking for pet rodents here.) Or a bird, anything he may be sensing that triggers him to be a bit more, alert?

He's actually the only animal in the house now. As long as he's lived with me he's been by himself. He's facing a window from across the room now, that's different than where he was at my old place I guess.

[distaff]

Is anyone handling him when you are not around?
Are you sure you trust your girl friend?

[ChelseaV]

Like some others already stated, some BPs just don't like to be handled a lot. One of my girls used to tolerate being handled while she was still with her breeder but after she arrived here, she tries killing me every time I open her tub, lol. Not really, but she does try to nail me when she thinks she can. Some of them just have little attitude. If yours doesn't get any better as time goes on, you may have to accept that. I'm still working with mine but at this point I'm ready to accept the fact that she's always going to have a little bit of attitude to her. I'm not stressing it though, I have 8 others that are as calm as can be.

Just take it slow, don't show fear and time will tell if your guy decides to relax or not.

[JakeFromSnakeFarm]

Don't be too worried man, my youngest one doesn't like my girlfriend very much either. lol