Purchasing a Burmese Python

[Rikki]

Hello again everyone. I am once again purchasing a new reptile and would appreciate your helpful replies, though this time I have aimed for something a little different. Tommorow I am making my second and final payment for a baby burmese python at my local pet store. The burm is a hatchling and is in excellent health, he has clear skin and eyes and is very active. I am picking him up tommorow and am very excited, though I have a few final questions before making my purchase. I have dealt with pythons in the past and large monitors and I have the time and space to dedicate to this python.

I am placing the burm in a 29 gallon aquarium with a under tank heater (is this a decent size aquarium to start for a month of so while he is a hatchling), large heat lamp, screen top, and with a large piece of drift wood and hide box. I am using newspaper as a starting substrate for the burm, with a large water bowl. Due to the screen top I will be placing a wet towel on the main portion of the screen top to to keep the humidity up in side of the aquarium for the burm.

I have not kept burms in the past, though I have kept other pythons and am doing my research before making my purchase. What is the average growth rate for a baby burmese python fed once a week? What would you suggest as a starting food for the burm, should I start with fuzzies (mice) or should I start with a very small baby rat, to get the burm used to the taste? Also how exactly does my setup sound for the burm, what changes need to be made (if any)? When will a size upgrade be needed in your opinion if my snake feeds as he is supposed to, I am guessing with in a month.

One more question; what is the most common attitude of burmese pythons as hatchlings, how severe are their bites?

Any suggestions, advice, or pictures that you can share would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time.