New guy

[vjb]

Hi, new here and this is my first post.
This site has been a great resource, so thanks everyone for your contributions here and sharing your knowledge. I've wanted a snake for about fifteen years so took the plunge after researching extensively. I searched the online classifieds and found one nearby.
When I went to see/get him he was in the (chilly) garage coiled under a heat lamp. The previous owners got him eight months ago when he was one year old and lost interest due to other issues they had I believe. I also think they were afraid of him for some reason.
They said he hadn't eaten until recently (so went 8 months without eating) when they introduced a live medium rat and he ate that. They had tried F/T food previously but he wouldn't eat. I know (thanks to this board) that is no surprise based on the conditions he had been enduring.
So, I "rescued" him last week.
I got him home and saw he had a somewhat incomplete shed, so I let him swim in the tub for ten minutes while my wife cleaned the old shed and dung out of the cage. Some of the shed came off afterward and I was happy to see that he was curious and friendly, so that was a good start. I really expected to get bit because he hadn't been handled very often.
Yesterday I bought a frozen mouse, thawed it out in a baggie in warm water. I took him out and put him in a large Tupperware tub and introduced the mouse with tongs, but the snake was too curious about the new container. I knew he might not eat because of the stress involved with the previous conditions, the move and new surroundings but I wanted to try since it had been so long since he eaten anything considerable other than the rat mentioned earlier.
It was also daytime and I know that's not the ideal time to feed them. So, I put him back in his cage then put the mouse near the hide. I checked this AM expecting to have to remove the mouse, but he ate it! Woohoo!
He is resting comfortably in his cave hide where I will leave him be for a couple of days before I offer him something more substantial.

Oh yeah, this picture was taken as soon as I got him home and I've improved my tank so check out my post in the "Show us your BP's cage setup" thread and give me your suggestions.

[Jason Bowden]

Welcome! Glad to hear he ate. He looks healthy!

[Chocolate Muffin's]

Welcome to the family of BP /herp lovers.
This board is a great resource for information and virtual friends. Please enjoy the archives as they also have some great info too. Nice looking animal by-the-way.

Does he have a name?

Are you certain of its gender?

[vjb]

Welcome to the family of BP /herp lovers.
This board is a great resource for information and virtual friends. Please enjoy the archives as they also have some great info too. Nice looking animal by-the-way.

Does he have a name?

Are you certain of its gender?

Thanks. Yes, I've been pouring through the resources here. Its a treasure trove of information.
His name is Gadsden. My little girls named him.
I was told he is a "he." Not positive though.

[Boanerges]

Welcome to BP.net

[illini4x4]

Congrats on the new snake! Welcome to the forums!

[lance]

welcome to the site

lance

[Kysenia]

Welcome to the site

[ballpythonluvr]

Welcome to the site!