very agressive RTB

[Beauty the BP]

4 months ago i fostered and then adopted a 5 year old rtb who has had a very hard life so far. she went from being sick alot from poor tank conditions, to being burned over 2/3 of her body, and then being dumped in a pet store to being given to a complete novice who didnt know better.

Since i have gotten her i have gotten her completely healed from her burns and she has completely shed out of all the old skins. ( her shed before i left for my trip was as thick as leather)

Since getting her into the proper conditions and on a healthy feeding schedule she has come into her own. Here in lies my problem, she is extremely aggressive to all. She is now 6 foot long ( 76 inches to be exact) and has put on some weight. she is now 9 kilos. and all attitude. I have to use a large case( bag) that i made just for her ( 3 feet wide and 3 feet deep.) and have to basically ambush her to get her in it before she goes for me, just to clean out her tub.

Can anyone suggest to me a way of calming her down? or is she as she is for life and I just have to continue with what im doing now? She is in her perment home with me and can live out her life here. Husband had to get 20 stitches while i was on my trip because he didnt believe me to watch her closely. She gets 2 jumbo rats a week right now and will go to feeder rabbits as soon as I can find a good supply of them.

tHANKS
bEAUTY THE bp

[JimiSnakes]

Huh. A big mean Boa, that doesn't sound like a nice spot to be in. I'd try loading her enclosure up with newspaper (might let her feel more secure). Then I'd try to put a shirt of yours, dirty one so your smell is on it, in with her for a few weeks. Are you feeding her live? Maybe, maybe not...but it might calm her down to put her on FT (if you aren't already).

[Beauty the BP]

Huh. A big mean Boa, that doesn't sound like a nice spot to be in. I'd try loading her enclosure up with newspaper (might let her feel more secure). Then I'd try to put a shirt of yours, dirty one so your smell is on it, in with her for a few weeks. Are you feeding her live? Maybe, maybe not...but it might calm her down to put her on FT (if you aren't already).

have tried the newspaper thing and the sweater thing. she just put holes into my sweater ( thank god it was a really old one i only did house work in.....lol) and the newspaper took a month to remove and she was still the snake she is now. she in in a double tub setup, so that she can still have 2 hides and some moving space and all is the same. her temps are 80 cool and 90 warm, and the ambient is around 82 on most days. humidity is constant at 50 percent. AND SHER IS FED F/T. No way am i going to try to add a live thing in to her. its bad enough she kinda chews her food to get a blood response thing going. All I can say is she is a piece of work. But given her past i cant blame her in the least. She is fed 2 Jumbo F/T rats a week. She was so skinny when i got her into my care and in such bad shape i honestly thought she wasnt going to make it. Guess the bad attitude has made her determined to live.

I honestly am afraid to mess with her to much, but refuse to allow her to go to anyonelse so i cna make sure that her days are spent stress free and happy. I have named her rose as she has a very prickly personality. She deserves the best life she can get and she is going to get it if she likes it or not...........lol But by god if she doesnt hate men more then me............lol

thanks in advance for your help. And if any boa breeders are about i sure could use your advice.

Also in november I will be breeding my BRB and will expect a litter in march for those in UK and ireland who miight be interest.

Anyway I hate most petshops just because of this poor snakes experience. sold to a kid who lost interest and dumped her on a pet store, then badly burned and dumped by the petstore on a novice who didnt know his butthole from a hole in the ground where snakes were concerned and out of ignorance did his best but she just wouldnt thrive with him, And him doing the right thing and asking for my help and me getting her, and giving her daily antibac soaks and daily injections and rubbing meds on her burns. Now she is 90 percent recovered and healing up very nicely and much happier as she doesnt have Numerous retained sheds( thick as leather and when seperated had over 10 layers on her belly) This poor girl is a classic exapmle of a fad snake that was forgotten about and thus dumped on for her first 5 yrs of life. I wanna make her last 20ish as good as I can.

Again any and all help will be used. SHe just needs an attitude adjustment and she will be my perfect snake.........lol Though my female BRB is so tame it isnt funny..........lol

Regards,
Beauty the BP

[snakedude56]

wow. It sounds like you've done an amazing job at nursing this snake back to health. Maybe some day she will realize how much you care for her and she'll start to calm down. I always love hearing about when people like you go out of their way to save a hurting animal.

[Razaiel]

She is a very lucky snake to have found you and it's good you're giving her a permanent caring home. I'm not really experienced with snakes I've only kept them for a short while - my BP is just over a year and the same with my Boa. Maybe she was badly treated by one of her previous owners (I know of someone on another forum who took on a snake whose owner used to beat her - so sad). So maybe once your new girl gets used to you and realizes you aren't going to hurt her and are the provider of food she might come to trust you and calm down - I don't really know but that's the way it works with monitors mostly. Perhaps a snake hook might be helpful?


Best of luck - I'm in the UK too!

[JimiSnakes]

Snakes that have a wild temper are usually ok once they are out of their enclosure. Most snakes will not bite the hand that's holding them up. If this is the case, use a towel or a pillow case to cover her face with and then gently but firmly pick her up with her head covered like that. She should be fine once up and out, but becareful! I don't want to hear about you getting bitten and blaming it on me. lol.

[MontyNSpike]

I have a simular experience with my RTB. She was given to me by a co-worker that just couldn't deal with her any more. She would be fed 3 mice a month, and kept in a 20 gallon tank. She's about 5 years old and a little over 5 ft. long. She was mostly healthy when she was given to me, but aggressive as well, something that's really aggressive. I put her in a much bigger enclosure and better substrate, she was on rocks! She would strike at the tank whenever anyone would walk by. I too am still afraid of this snake, even though she has calmed down a lot. She doesn't strike at the tank any more and she's only figity when I first take her out. After that, she's fine. The way I got her to sort of calm down was just enforce my will, let her know who's the boss. I gently grab her behind the head, then one hand around the middle to the end of her, then just pick her up. She struggles sometimes, but I just act calm and it calms her down too. I also tried the shirt thing and I didn't see any effect of that. Hope that helps and props to you for rescuing a snake!! Good Luck!

[Beauty the BP]

Its not that im afraid of her. SHe is just over 6 foot now and eats Either jumbo rats or a large rabbit a week. as long as she is in a quiet room and no one around or she thinks no one is around she is fine. The minute she sees or thinks she sees someone outside her tub she striles and hisses and is down right nasty. The person that had her before I did didnt have any hides for her and barely any heating. I have her set up with 2 hides and a large water tub so she can drink or soak or what not. her temps are spot on, and humidity runs around 50-60 percent.

She has had a hard life before i got her and I guess that can be an influencing factor on anythings future attitude toward things in life. It may be that she never calms down. As for handling her, i wont go near her unless I have a second stronger person with me. she is a total hand full. I finally got her weighed this week and when sh came to me she was only 66 inches long and weighed just under 10 pounds. She is now 6 foot 3ish inches long, and weighs about 35 pounds. NOw I have been feeding her up. And she gets up tp 2 jumbo rats a week, and am thinking on cutitng that in half, or a big rabbit bi weekly. IM hoping she will get to her right weight soon and will pass her vet check. because of her past condition I take her to the vet every 2 months until i get he all clear.

she is so big now she requires 2 pet carrier bottoms turned upside down and she loves them. ( medium dog large cat size) She will never have to worry about her next meal, or have to choose security over heat again.

more advice is always welcome. and I will tell you if it works or not though it may take her some time to get it into her head im not a threat and not a food source........lol

Beauty the BP

[SnakieMom]

I have absolutely no experience with RTBs, I just wanted to tell you

that I think what you've done for Rose is awesome. I wish there were more people like you in the world.

I rescued a 5.5 foot adult male BP from a pet store where he'd been dumped.
He'd been kept in a dark basement for some time, and the only time he
got attention is when he was fed a large rat once a month! :eek:
He had numerous scars all over his body, and he would hiss at anything that moved. After about 8 months of constant TLC, I gave him to a friend of mine
who's 5 year old daughter fell in love with him.
Amazingly, Hisser (as I'd come to call him) curled right up in her lap and they are still the best of friends to this day. Although, they renamed him Fluffy.

It's amazing what a little love can do. Best of luck with her!

[Slithers]

I have an adopted 5 year old RTB, Tyler Durden, as well. He was left in a 4 wall wire mesh arboreal cage for 5 years and never handled. He had mouth rot and snout rub when he came to me, but its mostly gone now. He is about 8 feet long an very heavy. He isnt much of a hisser, but he will give a good one here and there. But when I handle him he will bite. Almost like he's saying "I dont like this."

I am beginning to think the same as you. Maybe he is too old to get used to being handled. The previous owner straight up told me he never handled him. So I would understand.

Tyler is still a great snake, just as Rose is still a great snake regardless of her attitude...ya gotta love her! Good job on the rescue! Maybe she will get used to handling, maybe not. I am hoping my Tyler will, but I will not be disappointed if he stays the same. Good Luck with Rose.