Owners of Bloods and BPs...

[Ginevive]

Hey. I am seriously considering, getting a blood python. I really like the way they look, and I heard that they are a bit "nippy" but this does not bother me.

I want to know; what are the differences in keeping BPs, VS. a blood? I have had my BPs for several eyars now and my boa for a little over a year. But I want to know the subtle nuances; the little things about keeping blood pythons, that only real keepers know.. how are they (generally) with handling and appetite?

[kraniumz]

Smulkin has a couple of bloods, u might wanna pm him. I have a friend who has em and ive handled the both adult and young ones. I have to say they pretty damn strong. They dont grow that long but have strong muscles and thick girth. I was looking at a few bloods a month ago and the young/juve ones are quite nippy. They will calm down as they get older and as you start handling it consistently.

[Schlyne]

I can now technically post in this section, but I've had my blood for about 7 hours so I can't help you with that

[normballpython2]

well i have only had mine for a lil over a month. for me i think the only difference for babies is watching humidity (watch it!) when mine's humidity is below 70% she gets angry lol (jk she just hisses a lil more ) and as far as nippiness as long as you get a cb baby it should get over it (if it is nippy at all ) mine was devil until about 3 1/2 weeks ago. now she is almost as tame as my ball. as far as appetite...omg they are savages. she has yet to even not look at a meal lol. and handling well. the nly problem i have is the flopping (when one part of the body isn't tocuching the other or isn't being supported they start flopping around ) but sometimes it's really funny to watch. the only other thing i can reccomend is time when it comes to them. some don't calm down for a while and some calm down in a matter of a week or two. either way very cool snakes.

Brian

p.s. the face is probably one of the warmest parts of the body and some bloods like aiming at that during the nippy stage lol

[Smulkin]

Definitely a humidity sensitive one to keep. I have sphagnum beds in the enclosures of our 3 and they get heavy usage - the sphagnum needs swapped out on the weekly cleaning. The large water bowl approach wasnt working out for me - they would frequently soak the cage plopping themselves down into it. As far as appetite is concerned I'd have to say our bloods are among the best eaters (the brown water pythons and coastal carpet contenders too) we have - Ming may have skipped a meal ONCE when he was very blue-eyed and geared for shed but other than that . . . Temperment - the longer i have/handle the more tractable they seem. Vader the curtus curtus is easily the biggest "puppy dog" of our lot - very curious, unshy and rarely even a "hey close that lid" hiss. The two brongersmai on the other hand will occasionally have their moments. They are all three very thick bodied - and def need two hands to properly support them when moving. Kali has tagged me before and when something with that much muscle mass (for her length) punches you like that its pretty disarming. That was a while ago and since then she (and Ming) have calmed nicely but I still wouldnt let the kids hold them like I would the curtus curtus. I know a lot of these are "personality" related and not species traits ro trends so please take this portion with the necessary grain of salt. Just personal experiences. Overall I love these fatties and we'll eventually get a female curtus curtus to pair up with Vader.

Another appreciated inspiration - I'll sdnag some updated pics for ya later this evening or tomorrow if we wind up doign too much running around tonight.

[Ginevive]

Cool; thanks for the info. I love fat, chunky animals and I have been looking for the serpentine equivelant of a fat frog, like my horned frog. I think I might just end up getting one, esp. if any are at the show in a few weeks.
Here's a really stupid question; they require a heat pad (UTH) like BPs do, right?

[Shelby]

I keep my bloods on flexwatt. Kara recommends keeping young bloods at an overall ambient temp of 82-84 with no basking spot in a small enclosure. Worked great for my two.

[Schlyne]

My short tail (finally got that straightened out) is basically in a shoebox. Newspaper over him, and water bowl. It's a small place (with that ambient temp recommended by kara), but he's happy in it. Eats like a champ. He's going into shed right now.

[normballpython2]

well i use a uth for the ten gal tank shai is in (yes i use a tank and it works just fine ) hey schlyne i have had my blood for over a month now and no shed (lots of poop but no shed lol) your lucky i wanna see a shed lol.

Brian

[Schlyne]

LOL. This is his very first shed ever. It's not his first shed with me, etc. First shed ever