# Aggressive Bredli Python



## Slyther83 (Apr 15, 2009)

I recently bought a young Bredli from a reputable breeder online. For about a week now the snake has become quite reclusive and aggressive. Before that I was able to handle it without any problems. She is about 3 feet long and I feed her hopper mice (fed in a separate enclosure, prekilled) every 5-6 days. The tank temperature ranges from 90 degrees (hot end) to 80 during the day. At night I drop the temp down to 80 on the hot end and low 70s on the cool side. I have had the snake for about 3 weeks total. I believe you can see my forum picture, which is the enclosure I keep her in 72"x18"x28" with UTH heatpads + daytime & infrared lighting.

I have kept reptiles before, but this is my first snake, so all of my knowledge on care is pure research before I made the purchase.


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## KaaTom (Apr 15, 2009)

Slyther83 said:


> *90 degrees (hot end) to 80 during the day*.


 
Do you mean farenheit???


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## Slyther83 (Apr 15, 2009)

Yes, sorry, USA here lol


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## Trouble (Apr 15, 2009)

Hi there,

From the look of the enclosure, she could be stressing out... If that's her on the branch, the enclosure is _way_ too big! IMO you need to put her in a more secure enclosure with some more hides, so she doesn't feel as vulnerable. More hides are definately needed. You could move her back into that once she's older & bigger. And, the enclosure is in a high traffic area by the looks of it... is it in the lounge room..? Maybe move her to a different room or something while she settles in for a while longer... the movement past her enclosure all the time could be stressing her out and that's why she's acting aggresive.
Having her 3 weeks isn't much time for her to settle in, and get use to her surroundings... 
I'm not too sure about the temps, cause I'm no good at converting fahrenheit to celsius lol. 
Also, I wouldn't feed her that frequently... every 10 days is good.. especially for a 3ft snake.

But this is just my opinion & advise... Plenty of other people will help too 

Good luck with her, and looking forward to seeing pics


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## KaaTom (Apr 15, 2009)

Yeah I would be putting some fake plants in as well as some more hides


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## KaaTom (Apr 15, 2009)

Trouble said:


> Hi there,
> I'm not too sure about the temps, cause I'm no good at converting fahrenheit to celsius lol.


 
80 farenheit is 26.6 deg and 90 farenheit is 32.2 deg so to me temps seem ok


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## Slyther83 (Apr 15, 2009)

Any recommendations for elevated hides? She is rarely ever on the ground- she went into her log for a bit today, but she always climbs to the highest possible spot and wedges herself up around the lid.


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## KingSirloin (Apr 15, 2009)

First thing that came to my mind too was the enclosure and lack of hiding places. I see you have cardboard at the back. Maybe put some on the ends too, make her world seem a lot smaller for the time being. I have a similar sized aquarium with all glass sides and have lined 3 of them with foam sheeting. 

You can see in my photo I have plenty of plastic plants and ornament logs etc.. and she's out and about without a care in the world.


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## Sock Puppet (Apr 15, 2009)

How old is the python? Most people keep their juvenile pythons in a small enclosure for their first year or so, as they can apparently get stressed in a large enclosure while young, I notice your enclosure is a large one to suit an adult snake. Perhaps it's something to consider, perhaps he's just psycho! haha

Perhaps also she might be due to shed? If she's pre-slough, she may not want to be handled etc.

I have a 4 month old male Bredli which I keep in a small enclosure (400mmL x 290mmW x 200mmH), he has never even looked liked wanting to bite, is a great handler so far (even my mum & 6yo niece handled him the other day!) & never had problems feeding him (he's on thawed weaner mice at the mo').

Hope she chills out soon mate!


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## tenacres1100 (Apr 15, 2009)

mate this is the best thing you can do for it.....

http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/general-herps/guide-to-build-a-click-clack-dial-up-warning-93266


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## Slyther83 (Apr 15, 2009)

Thank you very much for all the replies. 

The first thing I guess I'll try then is covering up the other 2 sides of her tank and adding more decorations to fill in some space. I was thinking she was getting ready to shed because the first couple weeks she was fine crawling all around the poles and stretching out. I don't have a smaller enclosure available so I'll try this stuff first but if it comes down to it I'll get one.


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## Sock Puppet (Apr 15, 2009)

Mate, some pics of my set-up, plastic vented enclosure, 13W heatmat up one end, no additional lighting (although I use a red light at night to watch him when he's more active, set away from the enclosure). He's in a spare room that's not as noisy or busy as the loung room. Hope it helps.


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## Slyther83 (Apr 15, 2009)

Nice pictures, I really like your setup. How big is that snake? I might move her into the den where only the computer is then, I never thought about the TV being nearby. 

This used to be a fish aquarium for 5 years but began leaking. I re-caulked the whole thing and after 6 months it started leaking again, so I'm not going to try that anymore- I've got a 75g fish tank anyway. I just cant bring myself to waste it or I'd def be up to make an attempt at an awesome DIY like yours. Building the lid for the tank was annoying enough for me though, lol.

I'm gonna put a birdhouse missing a partial wall or something up top for him to hide in I think. Definitely gonna add vines all over too.


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## Sock Puppet (Apr 15, 2009)

Slyther83 said:


> Nice pictures, I really like your setup. How big is that snake?


 
Thanks mate. The pic of him eating the mouse is the most recent (about a fortnight ago), that was just after his last shed. He's around 650mm+ at the moment (around 2 1/2 '), & growing fast. 

The setup is an off the shelf item (Pal Pens "Jumbo"), but a lot of people make up their own, called "Click Clacks", often out of a suitable sized plastic container with a "click lock" lid you can get from regular supermarkets etc.


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## Slyther83 (Apr 15, 2009)

Tonksy said:


> Thanks mate. The pic of him eating the mouse is the most recent (about a fortnight ago), that was just after his last shed. He's around 650mm+ at the moment (around 2 1/2 '), & growing fast.
> 
> The setup is an off the shelf item (Pal Pens "Jumbo"), but a lot of people make up their own, called "Click Clacks", often out of a suitable sized plastic container with a "click lock" lid you can get from regular supermarkets etc.


 

Can click clacks house adults? 

@ 2 1/2' he can eat adult mice? Are hopper mice too small to be feeding my snake- cuz she barely stretches to eat them, and she downs them in < 5 mins.


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## Dave (Apr 15, 2009)

Some people in USA keep morelia in tubs (snakebytes/bhb) I keep hatchie bredli i 10L then move upto 20L,30L etc then to adult enclosures (4x2x2 or 4x2x4)




That male was a devil spawn till now (he is around 10months now) and is still a bit snappy. Some just are no matter what lol.






Slyther83 said:


> Can click clacks house adults?


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## John_lisa (Apr 15, 2009)

hey i am only new to snakes i dont even have one yet witch might make what i say sound like bul but with the resarch i have done they are right a click clack is best for younger snakes i would serjest just getting one and placeing him in there and i would belive a larger sized click clack could hold an adult but id just put him in a tank and u defanetly need more hideing spots u should have atleast 3 on the ground one at each end and 1 in the middle IMO and as for the off ground hiding spots im trying to work out how to make a safe one myself so ill let u know if i work out a safe way to do that but good luck


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## Sock Puppet (Apr 15, 2009)

Slyther83 said:


> Can click clacks house adults?
> 
> @ 2 1/2' he can eat adult mice? Are hopper mice too small to be feeding my snake- cuz she barely stretches to eat them, and she downs them in < 5 mins.


 
Nope, Click Clacks usually just for juvenile carpet pythons. Especially for a snake like a Bredli that should get to 2-2.5m (6 1/2 to 8' long as an adult). 

I'm feeding mine weaner mice, they aren't as big as an adult mouse. I thought they'd be a bit big, but since this is what the breeder gave him last feed before I picked him up, I kept him on them & he has no probs, stretches his neck a bit, but a belly bulge only slightly larger than his normal girth. Also I only feed him every 10-12 days at the moment, rather than every week. He gets these down in just over 5min too, so he's not exactly struggling with it.


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## solar 17 (Apr 15, 2009)

*temps ????????????*

While those temps are ok [imo] l have several pairs of bredli and from 2 years upwards mine all bask at 35+c which for you would be 95f. they really seem to love heat especially after dining or at least mine do and my enclosures are floor to ceiling so they have heaps of choice.....cheers solar 17 [Baden]


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## Zena (Apr 15, 2009)

Hi, not sure how old your snake is but my Diamond is 2yrs and almost 4ft. I feed her a medium rat every 14 days and she seems to be happy with that feed size. She scoffs it down in under 5 mins but it leaves a very noticable bulge in her tummy. 

Maybe try feeding a little more (even 2 mice the size you have been feeding rather than going straight to a bigger rat) and a little less often. About every 10 days is fine and as you snake gets bigger you can stretch it out to every 2 weeks.

I dont have full grown pythons but believe some people only feed theirs monthly.

Good luck!


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## Slyther83 (Apr 16, 2009)

I added a bunch of stuff to tank and she seems to be doing better. This is the first time I've seen her come down from the lid area and explore the tank. I am going to reattach the cardboard backing later tonight. Hopefully this will help her calm down, thanks for the tips everyone.


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## gumby56 (Apr 16, 2009)

Slyther83 said:


> I recently bought a young Bredli from a reputable breeder online. For about a week now the snake has become quite reclusive and aggressive. Before that I was able to handle it without any problems. She is about 3 feet long and I feed her hopper mice (fed in a separate enclosure, prekilled) every 5-6 days. The tank temperature ranges from 90 degrees (hot end) to 80 during the day. At night I drop the temp down to 80 on the hot end and low 70s on the cool side. I have had the snake for about 3 weeks total. I believe you can see my forum picture, which is the enclosure I keep her in 72"x18"x28" with UTH heatpads + daytime & infrared lighting.
> 
> I have kept reptiles before, but this is my first snake, so all of my knowledge on care is pure research before I made the purchase.


 could be the vibrations mate,maybe to close to tv ,and traffic.


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## Khagan (Apr 16, 2009)

I'd say the changes you've made would do the trick, but any other hides added would be a bonus too. Looking at the pic of the tank before you added stuff seems to be the reason it was stressed out, it's very "open" with no cover to hide so the snake would be feeling very vulnerable to predators.


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## NinaPeas (Apr 16, 2009)

When I bought my hatchling bredli, she was in a fairly large tank, but had LOTS of hides, on the ground and up higher, in low and warm temps, and a lot of vegetation (silk plants), so that if she decided to move around, she had a lot of cover and felt safe.

I didn't handle her for a couple of weeks except for feeding, to let her settle in and get used to the sounds in my house, then only held her for 5 mins at a time every couple of days.

She's now 3 years old, and a whole lot bigger, and I don't have a problem with her. Hope that helps


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## jessb (Apr 16, 2009)

The extra branches and stuff will help, but I would perhaps even add a couple more hide options - there is only one real 'hide' for her to curl up in, whereas ideally you would want to have at least one hide each in the warm and cool ends (so your snake can regulate its temperature while still feeling secure). 

Also, a hide that is open at both ends may make her feel vulnerable - try a small container like a mini cereal box which will fit your snake snugly and has only a small opening.


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## notechistiger (Apr 16, 2009)

Despite what people say, you really don't NEED to have young snakes in click clacks. I assume the best reason for being so would be to make it easier to clean and have more space. Large enclosures are fine, and MUCH easier to get a good heat gradient in.

All you need for a large enclosure is more hides and hiding places. An easy way to do this is to get some fake plants and stick them around the enclosure. It makes the snake feel secure and think it's invisible (even if it's not completely). You can also make the enclosure crowded by putting sticks, ladders and vines in there. Snakes like it.

Sorry for the shocking photos, but I can't find my good digital camera. This is the enclosure I'm using for a three month old coastal carpet python. The snake is approximately 25cm long, and to show some comparison, that's him curled up in a toilet roll that's been bent over at one side.

If you can't see, there's three hides in the enclosure. Two on the floor, and one amongst the leaves on the ladders (it's wedged in). He uses the hide in the leaves the most, and often hides in the leaves at the top where it sticks onto the glass. As you can see, he often comes out to bask on his ladder (last photo). He isn't stressed, and if you can tell by the size of his belly, eats quite well. Since I've put him in there (from a click clack), he has ceased striking as well.

As soon as the light turns off at night (the room light), he begins exploring his enclosure, then begins to bask. I've seen him out most of the night, and will retreat into a hide not long before the sun begins to penetrate the blinds.


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## John_lisa (Apr 16, 2009)

notechistiger is right (from what i have researched) u dont NEED to put them in click clacks some ppl do and some ppl dont just so long as u have the enclosure set so it feels invisable it should be ok i am thinking about leaveing mine (when i get it) in a click clack just until my set up is done but need the money to get it started that is why click clacks are good aswell for those that are not able to pay for everything straight away but dont wanna lose a good bargen  let us know if ya snake calms down


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## Lovemydragons (Apr 16, 2009)

Click clacks are also mainly so small snakes can't escape, so you just need to make sure all small gaps to enclosures are blocked. So many missing snakes from this mistake.


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## yolbit (Apr 16, 2009)

the bredli is a central australian snake, in the wild they will happily live in temps in around 45ºc (113 ºF).. while i think that the temperature in your enclosure is fine, bear in mind that naturally they are a desert dwelling snake and your enclosure could easily go up another 10ºc, try to bump up the temp maybe 5ºc and see what happens... this may also explain why he is sitting up on the perch all the time, hes sitting in the hottest point he can find in the enclosure

i really dont think your enclosure is too big, if you provide enough places to hide i think a young snake will be quite comfortable and secure in even in the largest enclosures

also, like everyone else said, he really needs a hide, theres a good chance he feels stressed or vulnerable, notice if you've ever cornered a snake the first thing he'll do is rear up in defence, i think your snake feels cornered with no where to hide, so he's constantly on the defence....

its not always as nice to look at when your snake is asleep in his hide all day but after he settles in he will start to explore and lay about in the open and bask... i like to fake leaves in my snake's enclosures, they are great for hiding and add a great look

you've got a beautiful bredli, good luck with him and let us know how it goes


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## Lovemydragons (Apr 16, 2009)

I have a bredli, and I use a heat cord under the click clack, so heat comes from below. She still loves sleeping in a branch off the ground. She has hides at both ends and if she's not heating she prefers day or night to be up higher. So I wouldn't say it would only be in the tree to stay warm. Some just like climbing heaps. 

But I spose if you offer heaps of options up and down cool and hot ends it should be happy anyway, no problems. Then if it still seems unhappy there may be another factor involved.


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## notechistiger (Apr 16, 2009)

yolbit, keeping any snake at 45C will kill it. Yes, they live in a part of Australia that can get to that temperature, but that doesn't mean you'll find them happily basking in it. At that temperature, a snake will find a rock to hide under or a burrow to crawl in- where the temperature is much much cooler.


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## John_lisa (Apr 16, 2009)

i agree with notechistiger that heat would kill it ay there temp shouldn be that high at any time


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## fidzy (Apr 16, 2009)

32 degrees should be your max, try keep it between 30-31.


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## notechistiger (Apr 17, 2009)

I prefer giving all of my snakes a bit of choice in what they want. All of them have access to (when I checked the temperature) 37C at the moment. But I have large enclosures, and they can easily get away from this.

I've always believed that snakes can be kept in a whole range of different ways. It doesn't need to be EXACTLY 32C. It could be higher, but you need to compensate (eg. larger enclosures, glass material, big water bowls, etc.). 45C, however, is just ridiculous.


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## Slyther83 (Apr 17, 2009)

She took her first rat (medium) instantly. Considering the fact it is 5x bigger than the hopper mice I was feeding her, she must have been hungry! She also seems to have calmed down a lot.


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## notechistiger (Apr 17, 2009)

Feeding her more can help prevent some aggressive behaviour (which is just because they're hungry).


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## shn90 (Sep 15, 2011)

The enclosure looks sooo much better than before mate, and shes a great looking bredli


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