Viscious Ball

[Foschi Exotic Serpents]

Hey I have an idea!!!

Why don't you all just stick to the question of the OP? I'm sure he thinks we're all nuts by now..

Jeeze.

[Anatopism]

Hey I have an idea!!!

Why don't you all just stick to the question of the OP? I'm sure he thinks we're all nuts by now..

Jeeze.

Well no question about that... I admit insanity.

I feed him a small rat about once every 10-12 days. He has never refused a mouse/rat since I've had him. He's in a 45 gallon enclosure, kept at 87-90 on the hot end and 75-80 on the cool end(hides on either end). Humidity at about 70-80 percent. He's never had a bad shed either. I really hate to complain, he's in great shape besides the agressive behavior. I don't have a scale, so I cannot weigh him. That's the only time he's wrapped me. But he's bitten me on many other occasions. I try to hold him AT LEAST a few times a month. When he wrapped me I jerked a little bit, but waited it out, instead of prying him off me. I was a little worried about his teeth, but he fed with no issues 3 days later. He just never seems curious, always pissed off. Am I not feeding him enough?!? The second he sees my hand in his cage he rears his head back like he's gonna strike. I don't feed him in his cage, so I dunno what that's about. Thanks for the responses, it's appreciated. ...And I won't be getting rid of him, he is what he is, and he's still beautiful!

It sounds like you have a great attitude about the whole situation, which is good =) If you don't already, you might try adding lots of hiding places in your enclosure to help him feel more secure.

Foschi had some good advice for safely getting him out of the tank without getting bit. The towel distraction is helpful.

How big is your ball, and what size rat do you feed him? My big male that came flying at my face, turns out, was only calm and docile when he had a huge rat in his belly. He ate more frequently than any of our other snakes, and seemed to only be friendly/content when heading towards obesity.

[angllady2]

Pay no attention to us, we are all a little nuts around here.

That being said, I'm guessing he's a little bit hungry most of the time, and I don't know about you, but I tend to be crabby when I'm hungry. It is also possible he's a little bit stressed, depending on the size of his hides. Some of my guys prefer to wear their hides like hats.

You don't mention if you have the back and sides of his tank covered or blacked out. I know that can be a big issue with balls kept in tanks, they feel exposed on all sides and it makes them jumpy.

Give feeding every 7 days a try, and see if his attitude improves any. I will also tell you from experience, almost every one of my balls will "S" up when I reach in the tub, especially when I come at their face. The trick is knowing when that is a "Are you going to hurt me ?" pose, and when it is a "Come any closer and I'll let you have it!" pose.

I find having a long handled plastic spoon with me can be very useful. If I get a warning pose, I gently reach in with the spoon and lightly tap the head, letting the snake know I'm going to pick it up so it needs to just relax. This works for me a good 90% of the time. It was especially helpful with my import female, who had a very nervous demeanor at first. Once she accepted I was not going to hurt her, but she was not getting out of being held, now I can get her without the spoon.

I wish you all the best.

Gale