jungle python help please :)

[MUD_666]

whats the best way to get my snake out of his tank

i tried to get him out last night to get a feel for him and try get him used to coming out but he just ran and hid straight away

what should i do should i keep trying to get hm out but i dont want to stress him out
but then again i dont want to wait for ever and never get him out otherwise ill never be able to get him out anymore when he is older

 

[Serpentes]

Mr Devil Mud, try guiding his front end with a snake hook while you poke his tail end gently where he is latched on. It can be handy to arrange your cage furnishings so that you can more easily extract your snake. It's also easy to pick them up if they're coiled on the floor under newspaper, or easier if they're in a hide box and you can simply remove the box and snake together. Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it, just remember that indeed, handling is stressful to snakes.

 

[MUD_666]

cheers mate

yeah but he stresses out and runs away like crazy

i just dont want a crazy snake when he is older

 

[Serpentes]

It's really up to him more than you, just be gentle and don't handle him more than you have to. A nervous snake will usually only become more nervous with handling, regardless of how you approach the handling regime. Jungle carpet pythons are notoriously nervous and most respond poorly to handling. I have had one for 9 years that I have handled about 9 times. He freaks out at everything, and takes months and months to adjust to a new cage. Handling is the worst thing I could do for that snake.

 

[MUD_666]

so do you just leave him alone an admire from in the tank and never get him out??

 

[Chris1]

the only thing that seems to work for my jungles is bribing them with time in their sunning enclosures.

my jungles are very bitey in and out of their cages, but after 20 mins outside in the dappled shade, i can pick them up and let them silde thru my hands without even being struck at. i put the boy back in and was stroking his back,...he didnt even flinch,...i couldnt believe it was the same snake that hammered me twice in the 10 seconds it took to carry him out.

 

[Hooglabah]

mud it sounds like you got a nice flighty snake if you want a handler you really have to spend the time to find one realistically it wont take that long. I firmly disagree with "tameing" your snakes if they are bitey or flighty dont handle them as its a fair sign they are stressed out and your causing harm. as stated before jungles have the reputation of being snappy or sometimes down right aggressive.
centralians generally are more placid and amicable to handling but realistically as much as i hate to say it the less you handle you snakes the better off they are

 

[MUD_666]

so do you have a tank out side in the shade chris1 and just leave them in there

because mine dont evan come out when his uv light is on he just stays in his little hide tree thing and comes out only when its dark in the tank and late afternoon sun

 

[MUD_666]

so what is the best type of snake to buy if i want to handle it without to much trouble

now i think i have bought the wrong snake and am thinking i could try sell him and or swap him for a type that will be more ok to handle

as i dont want a snake i will never be able to bring out when he is older

what is everyones thoughts

 

[dtulip10]

jungles are not the best starter snake as they do have temper problems (not always depends on the individual).

i would recommend a species in the Antaresia genus (stimos, macs, childrens) or maybe if you would like a larger species maybe a bredli, coastal, or murray but try to buy as a yearling as they will be calmer then a hatchling.

cheers D

 

[MUD_666]

would someone want to swap a better handeling snake for my yearling yellow and black jungle python in south australia

 

[Serpentes]

If I was in SA I'd talk to you about it, but I'm in NSW. Honestly, most snakes are best admired from afar, and even the most friendly will become a little peeved after incessant handling. That's why the zoos rotate the snakes they use for handling and photography with the public. They're still wild animals, rather than tame domestics. As such they're not "hand-on" pets, and admiring them in the comfort of their cage is the best option, outside of husbandry-based handling necessities. That said, there are plenty of snakes which will tolerate handling, or even learn to use you as a thermoregulatory aid and coil up in your hand, etc, so with a bit of care you'll find a manageable beast. Species like Antaresia, Morelia bredli, Murray-Darling carpets, olive pythons and some others are typically quiet snakes. I bet you'd love a big fat 10ft olive that you could handle!

 

[Hooglabah]

hed love it till he had to feed it

 

[MUD_666]

well 10ft is getting a bit big ill see what happens i know the missus wants one we can handle and get out every now and then but i only want one that grows around 2 meters and i really like the look of the bredii and stimpsons

i love to look of the bright yellow and black but and they guy i bought it from lied to me and said they are great handling snakes thats why we bought him

 

[Serpentes]

Is your little guy under a year old? If so, maybe he'll chill out in time. My tamest jungle was a bitey thing until about one or a bit older, from memory. I just noticed one day that he wasn't striking at the hook any more when I cleaned his cage. Many, many years later he still just refuses to bite me or anything else, except he'll take any prey item you offer, anytime! I guess he makes up for all the difficult snakes I keep

 

[MUD_666]

he is a yearling so should i just harden up and keep trying to hold him??

 

[Serpentes]

NO! He'll freak out if you do that, remember! It's about him, not you.

You'll know when you can handle it, he'll seem like a nice docile snake, or maybe even come to you in a feed response, which you can then redirect whilst handling him (with luck).

Every time a snake bites you it injures its mouth and becomes susceptible to infection, in addition to the immunosuppressive affects of stress.

 

[Chris1]

so do you have a tank out side in the shade chris1 and just leave them in there

because mine dont evan come out when his uv light is on he just stays in his little hide tree thing and comes out only when its dark in the tank and late afternoon sun

I use flexariums from the herp shop, (mesh sunning cages with a zipper round the top)
and put them in the middle of the dappled shade under a big plum tree so theres more shade than sun and they wont over heat, even if the shade moves a few meters.

to be honest, if my jungles were my first snakes i think id be put off.

my bredli was a great starter snake and hes almost 4 now (was 2 months when i got him) he calmed down quickly and since hes been about a year old hes been coming down from his basking rock when i get home from work and wants to come out and just be in the same room as us, he'll sit across the back of the lounge while we watch telly or cruise over to the book shelf for a nap, handles well, but just prefers to hang out near us.

if i take him upstairs to play on the railings he cruises around there fro 20 mins or so , then comes back downstairs, 90%of the time to the room we're in.

while they do get big, it takes years.

if you want a snake u can handle i recommend u get a different breed, i only want to get my jungles to a point where i can take them out to feed/sun/vet if they need it, i have enought snakes to 'play' with to leave my jungles as a visual treat.

 

[Jarden]

Hes a yearling eating velvet mice ? lol dude even if you did get tagged it wouldn't hurt i have a yearling jungle on large weaner rats i get tagged from him hardly ever but when i do it doesnt hurt, Just handle him once a day for about 5 - 10 mins get him use to you he should start to tollerate being handled sooner or later and as im sure every one else has said up his food size

 

[MUD_666]

yeah its all good im just being told not to touch him but he seems to be setteling down now