please help i droped my ball python

[tysonsowner]

hello
i bought my ball 2 weeks ago and ahve started handling him along with my 7 yr old son and 3 yr old daughter. in the week we have been holding him he has showed no aggressivness at all. today i went out and bought him a new 20 gallon long tank. while in the pet store i held some mice (trying to get over my fear of them) so i kno why this happened nyway i came home took him out of his old tank and he started curling around my hand i could feel him tightening really tight then wam he struck my hand. then again i tried pulling him away then he bit down an didnt wanna let go so im sorry to say as a newb i dropped him im 6'2 so he prolly dropped bought 5 foot. he was moving fine on the floor i washed my hand spicked him up an placed him in his tank i figured hed ben through enough. while in his cage instead of retreating to his hide as always he stretched out and was turning his head sideways and rubing his nose on the repti carpet (never seen him do this before).after bout 15 mins he went in his hide an curled up (yes he is still alive). how can i tell if hes ok nearest 24 hr vet is an hr and a half from me. plus i cant really afford it seeing as ive invested nearly 500 bucks into buying him an setting up his tank in the last 2 weeks. he is a male ball python an measures roughly 21 inches about 8 mths old i was told bought from a local breeder.

[SiQ']

to be honest he is fine unless he was acting very scared. you prob scared him more then he scared you I do recommend that since you are new to handling him closer to the tank or sit down on the floor to get used to handling him.

Another thing is you need to wash your hands after handling mice and anything food related.

[OhhWatALoser]

hes fine, you most likely just scared him

[dragonboy4578]

He should be ok. Just keep an eye on him for the next few days.

[fishboyUK]

If it bit you it was probably just realigning it's jaw when it was rubbing it's head.

[tysonsowner]

shhh i think hes ok when i bought him the place said he just finished sheding well i went in to check on him an hes got half his skin rolled down his body guess i broke 2 of the cardinal rules. lol. thanx for fast responses i was very scared im not a real newb per se my buddy has about 12 differant snakes that ive handled as well as my children nuorous times its just that my wife finally said yes to us getting one of our own.

[wax32]

hes got half his skin rolled down his body

Makes the face rubbing a normal thing.

Welcome to the b0ards and the addiction.

[loonunit]

He's probably okay? Honestly, short of rushing him to the vet--which may help, or may not--your only real option is to wait and see. (Luckily, balls are pretty well padded. I suspect they fall a lot in the wild... but obviously, don't drop him again. At 5 feet, if he lands wrong, he could injure or even break his spine.)

But, assuming he's okay... give him a week off and expect him to be grumpy next time you handle him. It may take several months to work through that. And seriously, keep a good grip on him--I've noticed that balls that fall off of things will tend to continue to do stupid things that lead to falling. I have some incredibly strong and agile climbers, but I also have a couple that just don't have any common sense about holding on tight when they're in precarious situations. If he's one of THOSE, you really do have to keep an eye on him.

[tysonsowner]

thanx everybody yea hes a bit of a tard sometimes.lol. he actualy was quite happy when i picked him up today. but ive noticed ive been a lil shaky (never been bit) but it didnt hurt that much i guess till the 3rd strike. more the extremly freaky sight of it will they always contract like that before they strike ? is there any ways i can tell if he doesnt wanna be held or hes grumy or if hes gonna bite not sure i can handle another bite (yes im 6'2 230 an pretty well fit) but im scared to death of mice an now snake bites

[Jerhart]

Pick him back up!