So my GF and I are talking about geting a retic.....

[CloudtheBoa]

From what I've read, females are pretty docile. Males can be absolute beasts during breeding season, their attacks can require an emergency room and dozens of stitches. They will rip and tear in a combat display, but I'm not sure if they do that without females around, or if the sex of the keeper matters.


I would recommend getting a baby if you've never owned a giant before. I also really caution against jumping straight into retics after only having bps, and going and spending some time with some adult retics in person is definitely a good idea! Handling them and seeing the work required just to hold them may change your mind...keep in mind you should have one person for every 3' above 8'-10' for safe handling. You simply cannot handle the average mainland by yourself if you want to do it safely. People have died from retics.


Females can sometimes have partho clutches, which is a form of asexual reproduction, but it is very rare. Becoming eggbound can still happen even with slugs, but I'm not sure how common that is in retics. Not cycling them should help reduce the chances of that happening.


My main error is be careful about handling! Retics can sometimes be easy to spook, especially when they're smaller. Always keep physical contact with your retic, or you could spook them. I once let my female retic get lost in thought sniffing the air, and when I slowly went up to her to let her know I was there to pick her up, she whipped her head around to stare at my hand. She slowly puffed up with air, rose like a cobra and struck several times, then crawled sideways still with her head in the air. Once she got past me she lowered her head and slowly crawled away. I was able to pick her up at this point, while she slowly huffed the air out. She was only about 4'-4.5' at the time, so I wasn't in any danger, but I do not want her to do that as an adult! I always make sure to touch her every few seconds or minutes now. XD


I would make Length+Width at minimum equal to or greater than the snake's length, and climbing is highly appreciated as these guys are adept climbers. Some owners convert whole rooms or parts/whole basements into their giant constrictor enclosures. I don't think the average 4'x2'x2' or 6'x2'x2' is adequate for the average sized adult, and even an 8'x4' can be kinda small for a larger adult. I know many disagree with me, but I feel like we owe them at least a bare minimum for comfort.


They can be messy as mentioned, I got lucky with my girl and she hardly makes a mess at all. She always neatly pees and poops so it's easy to clean up, and she's only 9' so she doesn't make a substantial mess yet. I just shovel out the area where she excreted and replace the bedding.

Well it's my resident dustbin and gets anywhere between 2 and 4 jumbo XL mice every 7 to 10 days or so ... it's not written in stone

Next time he's out I'll get a photo to show his size .. or lack of it


Edit ... Just had a look at him carefully ... he may be nearer 4' but no more - possibly a few inches less .

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That probably explains it, mice don't pack nearly the same growth potential as rats (for weaned rat and above). Plus, a lot of people feed their juvenile retics every 4-5 days...

I fed my girl pretty conservatively as well, she started out on rat pups every 2 weeks, and then smalls weekly, and for a period was eating multiple small rats weekly, then once she went to larges I put her back to a 2 week schedule, and 2 weeks is about what she eats now that she's eating colossal and 1 lb rabbits. She'll be 4 in October, but fell behind in growth due to some health issues likely related to the house we used to live in. She's already gained noticeable weight, and hopefully will hit a growth spurt again! She's always grown in random spurts, though...even if I fed as much as 25-30% of her weight weekly, she still would only grow at her own pace.

She was maybe 4.5' at a year, 7' at 2, 8.5' at around 3, and I'm guessing she's somewhere around 9' by now surely...haven't actually attempted to measure her in a long time though. Her last record was 7'8" last January, but I'm pretty sure I measured her after that, just forgot to record it, and she has definitely grown a LOT since then. -.-

[Valyrian]

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Jesus, that's one beautiful snake

[Zincubus]

From what I've read, females are pretty docile. Males can be absolute beasts during breeding season, their attacks can require an emergency room and dozens of stitches. They will rip and tear in a combat display, but I'm not sure if they do that without females around, or if the sex of the keeper matters.


I would recommend getting a baby if you've never owned a giant before. I also really caution against jumping straight into retics after only having bps, and going and spending some time with some adult retics in person is definitely a good idea! Handling them and seeing the work required just to hold them may change your mind...keep in mind you should have one person for every 3' above 8'-10' for safe handling. You simply cannot handle the average mainland by yourself if you want to do it safely. People have died from retics.


Females can sometimes have partho clutches, which is a form of asexual reproduction, but it is very rare. Becoming eggbound can still happen even with slugs, but I'm not sure how common that is in retics. Not cycling them should help reduce the chances of that happening.


My main error is be careful about handling! Retics can sometimes be easy to spook, especially when they're smaller. Always keep physical contact with your retic, or you could spook them. I once let my female retic get lost in thought sniffing the air, and when I slowly went up to her to let her know I was there to pick her up, she whipped her head around to stare at my hand. She slowly puffed up with air, rose like a cobra and struck several times, then crawled sideways still with her head in the air. Once she got past me she lowered her head and slowly crawled away. I was able to pick her up at this point, while she slowly huffed the air out. She was only about 4'-4.5' at the time, so I wasn't in any danger, but I do not want her to do that as an adult! I always make sure to touch her every few seconds or minutes now. XD


I would make Length+Width at minimum equal to or greater than the snake's length, and climbing is highly appreciated as these guys are adept climbers. Some owners convert whole rooms or parts/whole basements into their giant constrictor enclosures. I don't think the average 4'x2'x2' or 6'x2'x2' is adequate for the average sized adult, and even an 8'x4' can be kinda small for a larger adult. I know many disagree with me, but I feel like we owe them at least a bare minimum for comfort.


They can be messy as mentioned, I got lucky with my girl and she hardly makes a mess at all. She always neatly pees and poops so it's easy to clean up, and she's only 9' so she doesn't make a substantial mess yet. I just shovel out the area where she excreted and replace the bedding.





That probably explains it, mice don't pack nearly the same growth potential as rats (for weaned rat and above). Plus, a lot of people feed their juvenile retics every 4-5 days...

I fed my girl pretty conservatively as well, she started out on rat pups every 2 weeks, and then smalls weekly, and for a period was eating multiple small rats weekly, then once she went to larges I put her back to a 2 week schedule, and 2 weeks is about what she eats now that she's eating colossal and 1 lb rabbits. She'll be 4 in October, but fell behind in growth due to some health issues likely related to the house we used to live in. She's already gained noticeable weight, and hopefully will hit a growth spurt again! She's always grown in random spurts, though...even if I fed as much as 25-30% of her weight weekly, she still would only grow at her own pace.

She was maybe 4.5' at a year, 7' at 2, 8.5' at around 3, and I'm guessing she's somewhere around 9' by now surely...haven't actually attempted to measure her in a long time though. Her last record was 7'8" last January, but I'm pretty sure I measured her after that, just forgot to record it, and she has definitely grown a LOT since then. -.-

Interesting ... I thought the theory of rats being more nutritional than mice had been debunked ??

Im sure some scientific paper that showed they were practical identical nutrition-wise - may be mistaken ..


So, of course , the rats are more convenient for bigger appetites as its easier to feed one big rat instead of 6 large mice or whatever ..


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[bcr229]

My main error is be careful about handling! Retics can sometimes be easy to spook, especially when they're smaller. Always keep physical contact with your retic, or you could spook them. I once let my female retic get lost in thought sniffing the air, and when I slowly went up to her to let her know I was there to pick her up, she whipped her head around to stare at my hand. She slowly puffed up with air, rose like a cobra and struck several times, then crawled sideways still with her head in the air. Once she got past me she lowered her head and slowly crawled away. I was able to pick her up at this point, while she slowly huffed the air out. She was only about 4'-4.5' at the time, so I wasn't in any danger, but I do not want her to do that as an adult! I always make sure to touch her every few seconds or minutes now. XD

Just a note but I have also seen this exact behavior in young boas and it's never left my Tarahumaras. I think it's just instinct since at that size snakes are a tasty snack for birds of prey, so they react to an unexpected touch or shadow passing overhead from above as an attack. I have a hook that use when the snakes are outside so I can touch them with something other than my hand if I want to pick them up.

[CloudtheBoa]

Interesting ... I thought the theory of rats being more nutritional than mice had been debunked ??

Im sure some scientific paper that showed they were practical identical nutrition-wise - may be mistaken ..


So, of course , the rats are more convenient for bigger appetites as its easier to feed one big rat instead of 6 large mice or whatever ..


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Mice are only better up to large adult mice, jumbos are inferior to weaned rats (they're more fatty than nutritious for a growing snake), and that comparison only works if you're feeding a single appropriate sized meal. Multiple jumbos for your 4-footer wouldn't be as good as feeding a small or medium rat at the same frequency.

Just a note but I have also seen this exact behavior in young boas and it's never left my Tarahumaras. I think it's just instinct since at that size snakes are a tasty snack for birds of prey, so they react to an unexpected touch or shadow passing overhead from above as an attack. I have a hook that use when the snakes are outside so I can touch them with something other than my hand if I want to pick them up.

I mentioned that because I've never seen it in any of the other 13 snakes I've had, and this behavior was radically different than the usual defensive behavior I've seen in the other snakes. My other snakes would not have been startled by the way I had approached her, and instead of running off, she slowly crawled off once she started to calm down. Which is why I was able to pick her up without a hassle. It was like she was startled, and then realized mid-panic attack that it was just me. If I had startled my other snakes, they wouldn't have just calmed down like that until they were put back up, and none of them would move to the side with their head up in the air.

Even my neonate boas are normally not easy to startle in that way once I take them out, they don't just forget that I'm there like she did. Once I get them out, they're always aware I'm there, they don't just go from normal docility to full on defense mode, I assume because they're always keeping an eye on me. It was like she had gotten so distracted by the smells in the air she completely forgot that I was there, so when I moved it was alarming. I'm sure even now at 9' she'd behave the same way, but I don't let her do that anymore. lol

[Ax01]

Maybe consider getting a Dwarf Retic - I've seen them at 10 to 12 foot which isn't as daunting as a 20+ foot monster.

I was also seduced by the Retic's inquisitiveness and personality but I went for a Super Dwarf Purple Albino which is only just over 3foot at two and a half years old.

Mr. Zincubus, what is your feeding regime for your SD Purple Albino? that's the smallest i've heard yet and that size Retic would be very attractive to alotta peeps (including me).

Well it's my resident dustbin and gets anywhere between 2 and 4 jumbo XL mice every 7 to 10 days or so ... it's not written in stone

Next time he's out I'll get a photo to show his size .. or lack of it


Edit ... Just had a look at him carefully ... he may be nearer 4' but no more - possibly a few inches less .

hey Mr. Zincubus, could u also post pix of your Dwarf Hypo Burm? what does this one eat? i think Hypo Burms are the best Hypo/Ghost snakes.

[Zincubus]

hey Mr. Zincubus, could u also post pix of your Dwarf Hypo Burm? what does this one eat? i think Hypo Burms are the best Hypo/Ghost snakes.

My HD Hypo Burm eats jumbo rats every three weeks ...




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[Ax01]

hey Mr. Zincubus, could u also post pix of your Dwarf Hypo Burm? what does this one eat? i think Hypo Burms are the best Hypo/Ghost snakes.

My HD Hypo Burm eats jumbo rats every three weeks ...

how big is it compared to your SD Retic? age?

i think i would actually prefer a Dwarf Hypo Burm over an SD Retic.

[Valyrian]

My HD Hypo Burm eats jumbo rats every three weeks ...




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Your Burm must be a cross as there's no current progschai morphs from what I've read.

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[Zincubus]

Your Burm must be a cross as there's no current progschai morphs from what I've read.

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The HD is Half Dwarf ..

I'm no expert on all this kinda stuff .

He's only about 6' whilst his dad was 5' and mum 7' ... that's all I've got on him .


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