Bloody Mary Struck Again... - Page 2

unknownclown · 10-27-11, 12:04 AM

Ouch! So what do you keep yours in now that they are larger? My female will strike at her feeding tub if she sees anything near and just ignores her food unless I put something over it so she can focus on that. She can actually scoot the tub when she hits it, it scares me cause I don't want her to hurt herself.

CDN_Blood · 10-28-11, 05:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by unknownclown

Ouch! So what do you keep yours in now that they are larger? My female will strike at her feeding tub if she sees anything near and just ignores her food unless I put something over it so she can focus on that. She can actually scoot the tub when she hits it, it scares me cause I don't want her to hurt herself.

With my first one I was using glass tanks. I wanted the see the thing. I learned a couple of things about that in the first few years; no matter what you do or how big the water basin is in a glass tank you'll never keep the humidity quite high enough, and they really don't appreciate being in full view.

That was enough to convince me to try a plastic tub/bin, and the difference in both overall health and attitude was great enough that each one since has been using tubs since their arrival. These hold the humidity well (although I have to ensure it never gets too humid) and the opacity of the plastic, while still allowing them to see movement around them, seems to offer them enough security that they stay more calm than if they have a perfectly clear view. I have to keep upgrading the sizes of their tubs as the younger 2 continue to grow, but I can see them ending their days (eventually) still in large tubs.

Feeding in a separate space can be a very tricky business with one of these snakes, and I don't recommend it, but that's just me. Step One in handling a Blood is to give it several minutes to calm down once you've made it aware of your presence, and that ties into the feeding thing.

I tend to gently pop the lid on any given tub and slowly remove it, giving the snake time to wake-up and realize it's just me. Then, as they go into their heavy breathing mode and think to themselves "Oh damn, I've been spotted", I just go about some other business in the room while they calm down and realize that they're not in any danger. Once they've chilled-out a bit (usually about 5 minutes), they're generally okay with being approached in a non-threatening manner, taken out, cleaned and put back. When it's feeding time, I use a different strategy.

When it is time for one to be fed, I ensure I've done all the above in advance, because once they get a whiff of food, things can get hairy. Some calm down quickly after eating, some remain in Food Mode for hours after they eat, so either way I plan on not disturbing them at all for the rest of the day after I feed them. Once they've been cleaned and such, I tend to leave them alone for a few hours so they don't still have me on the brain when I toss them thawed food. I do NOT want my snakes to make the connection that seeing me equals food coming. This would keep them perpetually on-edge, so...

Feeding my Bloods happens quickly. I look where they are, pop the lid at the opposite end of the tub, drop a thawed item, secure the lid and either remain perfectly still until they have it in their mouths or simply leave the room and not go back in for 15-20 minutes, which is enough time for them to swallow and regroup. I can't imagine having to move one of these things after it's eaten, but I can imagine it's a disaster waiting to happen, so please be very-very careful if you practice feeding in a separate container with one of these. I don't want to hear about what happened on the news

ZARADOZIA · 10-28-11, 05:19 AM

Do Borneo's react like this too? I really want to get one because I absolutly fell in love with the one I held. But I don't want a snake I can't handle.

CDN_Blood · 10-28-11, 09:09 PM

I find all 3 subspecies to share the same characteristics, but brongersmai do seem to be the most high-strung and they do take the longest to calm down if startled.

Compared to my brongs, the breitensteini is more confident and generally less prone to startle as easily, but it still takes a few minutes with the lid off before I approach her. She's more likely to react to having her space invaded than she is to being frightened.

She's never lunged at me or given me a problem at all, actually, but you can see it in her eyes that she has a short fuse.

A Blood is a Blood. You can call them Short-tailed, Malaysian, Borneo or Black, they're all essentially the same animal with a common genealogy and common characteristics. The key to them is simply understanding what they're all about. If you understand that, you'll quite likely have a great experience.

I've been keeping them for over 10 years now and only 1 has ever had to remind me who wears the pants in our relationship. He was just a little thing at the time, and I moved too quickly to pick him up and he gave me a tap to slow me down, as you see posted rather graphically in this thread, lol.

Of course, when you *do* get tagged, you have to keep going so I just gave him a moment to relax and approached him more slowly, picked him up and put him back in his tub nice & easy - business as usual. You can't let them know that biting works.

If my big boy scares himself (happens now and then), even though he freaked himself-out, I'm the only other thing moving, so he focuses his fright on me and will keep lunging out at me until I lower myself (sit at his level on the floor so I don't appear as threatening) and stop moving for 10 minutes or so. Once I've been still long enough, he'll usually start backing away from me very slowly, like all Bloods will do when scared, and once he turns away from me, I don't have any problems picking him up and putting him back in his tub.

Watch their breathing and watch their eyes. They're funny in that if they notice you making eye contact, they'll usually freeze. Once you look away, they'll usually either slowly move forward or start going in reverse, depending on the snake and it's mood de jour, lol.

ZARADOZIA · 10-29-11, 06:34 AM

Thanks for telling me about your experiences! They sound extremely interesting. I will wait until at least next year to get one. I am thinking prob around September/October so I can get a baby. That way I can work with it and build trust between us.

I am hoping that I can do it in a shorter timespan than it took with Sasha. Sasha trusts me so much that I can touch, caress, & pet all of her face without her jerking back. It took me a while to do that and to teach her not to choke the living H* out of me when she is around my neck. The first time she flexed around my neck I was extremely thankful she wasn't very big. Now days, if she becomes antsy and starts flexing all I have to do is gently pat her and she relaxes.

If you have any more personality traits that you would like to share I would love to hear them!

dshin963 · 10-29-11, 10:32 AM

My ball python as well doesnt mind being touched on the head but my blood... I wouldnt even thinking about trying to make her willing to it... I agree with all that Todd said about blood but just wanted to add one thing I've found if you approach bloods with open palms and not closed grasps when picking them up they are a lot less... defensive just something I've noticed

best of luck

CDN_Blood · 10-29-11, 01:09 PM

If you want something that you can drape around your neck, this ain't it, period

Lankyrob · 10-29-11, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDN_Blood

If you want something that you can drape around your neck, this ain't it, period

If you want something to drape around your neck then NO snake is suitable imo

dshin963 · 10-29-11, 02:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lankyrob

If you want something to drape around your neck then NO snake is suitable imo

Agreed :P
Sometimes i will support a snake with my shoulder but even then I make precautions to ensure the snake isn't around my neck...

CDN_Blood · 10-29-11, 03:06 PM

Well, I'm assuming we're intelligent adults who are educated on the animals we choose to work with and are all handling responsibly. Of course, I could well be wrong :P

unknownclown · 11-03-11, 12:00 AM

My male doesn't mind so much bein touched in the face Mary is the hyper psycho out of ours.
So what do you use as substrate in the tubs then? I'm almost positive I will have to eventually upgrade to them later. At the moment we have them in tanks with coconut husk, under the tank heating with plexiglass over the screen top to keep up the humidity plus tons of fake plants moss and a hide. It looks more like a terrarium than a snake enclosure.

CDN_Blood · 11-03-11, 05:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by unknownclown

...So what do you use as substrate in the tubs then?...

I use paper in mine. It's very sterile, absorbent, easy to clean, readily available and they can hide underneath it if the mood strikes them. I've tried all kinds of substrates in the past, but for one reason or another, I always ended-up going back to paper.