Nim the Bredli

[Gobuchul]

After this snake arrived I had to take away his pvc scaffold while I acquired some endcaps. I did not want him trying to squeeze inside the pipes. He ended up outside of the bin, and I learned two things:

1. This snake sticks to and hates my palms as much as my ball python
2. He's very fast when motivated

I had trouble picking him up as he took off every time I touched him. I put on some gloves and he calmed down enough to be picked up (snakes really don't like my palms), but I failed to put him in the enclosure and he ended up loose again. I eventually put a hide on a short box in front of him, and moved the whole unit to the enclosure after he hid. It's unfortunate that he had to start with the stress of being chased around the room.

I also blacked out the enclosure sides and gave him a smaller water dish when I put the pvc pipes back in. He was a little disturbed and spent some time looking for a way out of the box. He seemed calmer today. He spent most of the day in his hide and is now sitting on the pipes. I noticed he was sticking partially out of his hide yesterday even though it's the same size as those preferred by my much thicker ball python, but today he seemed to fit.

Ambient temp is 80 and surface temp under one of the hides is 88. He has spent most of his time in the heated hide so far, and I have not observed him use the cool hide. Based on a source I don't completely trust, I'm thinking I should increase the day temp to 83 and let night temp drop to 75. In theory I think I should also increase the UTH daytime temp, but I'm wary of making it unsafe and I don't want to disturb him by constantly taking readings with a temp gun.

I look forward to moving him to a larger enclosure post-quarantine. I considered naming him Idris, but went with Nim because he's fast and I don't think he supports dependent typing.

Coming out of bag:


Poor snake losing his mind outside the enclosure:
Sitting on pvc tonight:
The whole setup now:

[Homebody]

I hope you two enjoy many happy years together.

[Bogertophis]

It's what I charitably call a "period of adjustment" for you both- End-caps (& foresight) for the win! I predict it's gonna get a lot better- very nice choice of snake, btw.

[dakski]

AM
Gobuchul,

Congrats on Nim! Bredli are awesome snakes.

There are some Morelia and specifically CP keepers here. Me included.

Do not be afraid to ask questions. They are a great species and you are the right track but know there are people here to help you.

Good luck and keep us posted!

[Gio]

After this snake arrived I had to take away his pvc scaffold while I acquired some endcaps. I did not want him trying to squeeze inside the pipes. He ended up outside of the bin, and I learned two things:

1. This snake sticks to and hates my palms as much as my ball python
2. He's very fast when motivated

I had trouble picking him up as he took off every time I touched him. I put on some gloves and he calmed down enough to be picked up (snakes really don't like my palms), but I failed to put him in the enclosure and he ended up loose again. I eventually put a hide on a short box in front of him, and moved the whole unit to the enclosure after he hid. It's unfortunate that he had to start with the stress of being chased around the room.

I also blacked out the enclosure sides and gave him a smaller water dish when I put the pvc pipes back in. He was a little disturbed and spent some time looking for a way out of the box. He seemed calmer today. He spent most of the day in his hide and is now sitting on the pipes. I noticed he was sticking partially out of his hide yesterday even though it's the same size as those preferred by my much thicker ball python, but today he seemed to fit.

Ambient temp is 80 and surface temp under one of the hides is 88. He has spent most of his time in the heated hide so far, and I have not observed him use the cool hide. Based on a source I don't completely trust, I'm thinking I should increase the day temp to 83 and let night temp drop to 75. In theory I think I should also increase the UTH daytime temp, but I'm wary of making it unsafe and I don't want to disturb him by constantly taking readings with a temp gun.

I look forward to moving him to a larger enclosure post-quarantine. I considered naming him Idris, but went with Nim because he's fast and I don't think he supports dependent typing.

Coming out of bag:


Poor snake losing his mind outside the enclosure:
Sitting on pvc tonight:
The whole setup now:

Congrats on the Bredli!

This species is extremely forgiving and tolerant of most mistakes. I also use a night drop, I actually do with every animal here. Your quarantine enclosure is obviously not going to allow for a variety of climate zones which is OK since it is younger and smaller than an established adult.

I found, and still do find mine to be extremely arboreal.

A night drop between 73-77 seems decent so I think you are OK there although, you could make it 78F for a younger snake in the event of stress or for an unseen health issue. 73 for a younger snake may be a tad cool. Breeders will cool them a lot prior to putting them together for mating. Getting a younger animal going is different as there are stressors involved we may not see.

Basking spots can be very warm, 98+ but I would stay cooler in a smaller enclosure since the snake won't have a lot of room to self regulate. 83 is not a bad temp and with a night drop to 76-77 your animal won't be in eternally hot conditions.

You can make small adjustments as you go and learn from your animal. I like to see some movement between warm and cool areas after feeding but again, you're limited to an extent with a smaller setup.

Keep us posted and enjoy!

[Gobuchul]

Today I decided to check the hide temp, change water, and make sure cleaning wasn't necessary. Nim started climbing towards the CHE right after I removed his lid, so I had to pick him up while doing these things. He did fine, but it took a few tries to get him back inside the bin. At least I now feel a lot more confident picking him up while he's moving. I'm trying to leave him alone, but with the small size of this bin I think I'll often have to handle him when the lid comes off, just to keep him inside.

I'll have a shipment of pup rats for him this week, but I'm considering feeding him a f/t fuzzy from a local pet store this weekend (no store in town has any sizes between fuzzy and small.) I have a feeling he'll take it, and if he does I might try moving him to a larger plastic bin in the next week or so. Nim climbs a lot, and the space for it is so limited in this bin that I think he'll do better if moved to a larger one. I know the small bin can help with security, but if it's forcing me to wrangle him extra to fit him inside I feel like it might have the opposite effect.

[bcr229]

If you don't have a larger tub yet, I've used these successfully with medium-sized snakes for quarantine or temporary housing, and it will give Nim lots of room to climb. Having extra latches on the long side of the lid helps keep the snake secured in the tub.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Hefty-25-Ga...Lid/1000505547

[Gobuchul]

Fed Nim today. The good news: he ate well and didn't mind being moved back into the enclosure after wrapping.

The bad news: I saw a small black dot move across his head. I believe it must have been a mite. I haven't seen other evidence of mites yet, but I'm sure that I saw one crawl across his head.

I guess I should give him two days to digest before starting mite treatment, or is this something I should act on immediately?

[dakski]

Glad Nim ate!

I have not had to deal with mites. I know many who have and I'll throw in my two cents but hope others fill in the blanks or correct me if I am off base.

I would let Nim digest and see if there is any other evidence of mites. Looks like you are using paper towels as substrate and that should show mites well. You might want to switch to a white water bowl, but you should be able to see mites with the paper towels underneath.

There are other insects that could find their way into Nim's enclosure. If you only saw one it is possible that it was not a mite. I am not saying there aren't mites but you want to be sure before treating.

Treatment can be rough even if necessary if mites are present. You want to be sure that is what you are dealing with before treatment. You also want to look into treatment options.

What were you thinking you would use if Nim has mites?

I hope others chime in here and talk about the best mite treatment options.

The most important things are to let Nim digest fully, make sure you are dealing with mites, and find the best and safest treatment option(s).

Good luck and keep us posted.

[Bogertophis]

You're right to let him digest 2 days before jumping into treatment for mites (assuming you're correct that he has them- absolutely verify that first). But once you're sure that's what you're dealing with, don't waste time- get right on it as this is a battle that will be stressful for him & disrupt his meals too. Here's some relevant threads that might help you narrow your options:

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...=1#post2771656

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...s-looking-good

https://parasitesandvectors.biomedce...71-022-05611-1

Happy to say I've not dealt with mites in so long that I can't really comment on the latest methods, at least not first-hand. But in your shoes, I'd be inclined to try the Natural Chemistry spray first, to safely & quickly reduce the number of mites you'll be dealing with & while you order something stronger to ensure the cure is complete.

Another way is gently bathing (soaking) the snake in cool water to which a drop of Dawn or Ivory dish soap has been added, for about 20-30 minutes. You're not going for a "bubble bath here"- the tiny bit of soap is just to break the surface tension so the mites drown instead of floating & surviving. Obviously, this won't help the mites on the snake's head- don't push the snake's head under water. But this is a harmless way to again, safely reduce the number of mites while deciding on a stronger & more definite cure.

Mites reproduce exponentially fast & should not be underestimated. They're assumed to spread diseases & they do kill snakes, despite being so tiny- the blood loss really adds up in a snake's body. And they have a nasty habit of reappearing after initial treatments- don't underestimate them. If you see one or 2, there's many more, hiding under scales, under the eyes, chin, nostrils, cloaca... I don't think you have any natural stuff in there (?), like mulch or real branches- but if you do, throw them out, because mites leave tiny eggs that renew their population surge in about a month.