I have 2 ball pythons, 1 normal, 1 het yellow ghost, not sure of the genders. I was told the normal, Savage 60, is a female and the het yellow ghost, Phantom, was a male, and because it doesn't really matter to me either way, I went with that.

Phantom has always been a very docile, sweet boy, the kind of BP anyone can give face snuggles to without fear of him even pulling away, much less striking. I've had him for about a year, no incidents until about a month ago when I reached in his cage to pick him up, no rat smell on me of any kind on me, and he latched onto my hand. I've gotten much better at reading snake body language since my first bite when I was about 15, and while he was giving me 'the look' I didn't think he'd actually do it. Well, he did, and ever since then, he's been like that. To get him off, I ran his head under water and he let go on his own, and now it isn't just in his cage when he's aggressive. I'm used to this behavior from Savage, who used to behave that way all the time.

The thing is, Savage has turned into the puppy dog that Phantom used to be! She's now the sweet one that doesn't mind handling and snuggles. She's also the heavier of the 2, even though Phantom eats twice what she does, he never seems to put on weight, and she never seems to lose/gain any. What happened? They don't get fed in the tank, they get fed in the bath tub, seperate times, seperate tanks, everything. Their cages are designed the same, but that's about it.


Sorry to bombard you all with questions, this one's just been bothering me a while. Why have they switched personalities on me? It's sort of saddening, because Phantom has always been my favorite between the two.

Pictures, if they help?

Savage 60 -


Phantom -