question

[rex322]

i was wrong about the bigger rat size. while rex has been more active, his temperment is the same. what do i do? should i not handle him for a while and let him get more acculmated to his surroundings, or should i just keep handling him regardless? on the plus side, i put some fame vines and a tree type thing in there, so it looks more natural. any help would be greatly appreciated, and for anyone thinking about buying from a pet store, dont do it unless the snakes husbandry is great AND the snakes temperment is great... this is depressing :cry:

[iceman25]

What does he do? Has he bitten you yet? Does he hiss? If you keep him in a tank, is it some place that sees a lot of traffic? Identify the problem and you can fix it! Good luck.

[rex322]

hes bit me numerous times, hissed numerous times, still does both, i keep him in a tank in my room...im the only one who ever goes in there

[Marla]

How often have you been handling him and what have you been doing when he hisses or bites?

[rex322]

since a week after i got him. he only really hisses or strikes when i go to pick him up out of hi tank

[Marla]

As long as you're not rewarding him for hissing or striking by putting him back in his enclosure. I'd think making handling a regular occurrence (such as every other day after lights out for 20 minutes except after feeding) and patience ought to calm him down. He's still young and nervous, and some snakes will never calm down but they are by far the exception to the rule among ball pythons.

[green_man]

Ya know, when my BCI had mites, she was pretty cranky. She hissed a struck at me one day. Perhaps somthing is bothering Rex? How is your temps/humidity? Is there a possability that he has mites or internal parasites? If everything husbandry wise and health wise is ok, id say you just have a cranky one on your hands that needs to be handled alot. He will eventually calm down.
Good luck with that

[rex322]

no mites, no ticks, hubandrys perfect, no internal parasites

[Smynx]

Do you have a picture of his enclosure? If so, post it. It could be a question of feeling secure.

Also, where is Rex's enclosure located? Is it in a part of the house where there is a lot of activity?

[Smulkin]

Something that worked for me with a hissy/strikey/ornery lil cuss: use a hook to lift him out than transfer him to youru hands - you will likely be able to work back up to reaching into the cage but it sounds like he is really cage defensive - stick with it man don't be discouraged. I know exactly what you're going through