Snake behaviours

[Mack86]

I'm just curious to know what the general Stimson population on this site is doing currently and over this winter. I have a 6 month old...

My Stimson's day goes something like this -
I wake up , he's in his cool hide. Literally stays there all day (so it seems but he may sneak out if I'm not home). Night time comes he *might* come out of his hide to go into his hot hide or he may still be in his cool hide when I go to bed. I assume perhaps he leaves it to warm up through the night (who knows) but when I wake up in the morning he will most certainly be in his cool hide once more. He is generally not active whatsoever and hasn't eaten in 5 weeks almost 6.

It would seem this is entirely normal snake behaviour but just curious what everyone else's is doing? Will I see him more when he is older? I'd love to see him exploring more instead of hiding non stop. I guess that's just natural snake behaviour though!

Hope everyone is having a nice evening !

 

[Reptilechick]

Hey mate,
I don't personally own any antaresia pythons but I do have plenty others,

When pythons are young, they tend to hide a lot, the world is a big scary place and they are tiny and vulnerable, most likely your little mate is exploring more at night and in time will learn to feel safe enough to explore while you are around, it also doesn't help that it's winter so they tend to slow down a lot more during the cooler weather.

Don't be too worried about skipping a few meals over winter. That's normal. Some snakes eat all year round. Some don't,

Once he is over winter and gains some confidence, you get to experience a lot more interaction, be patient and let him gain confidence in his own time and you will come out with a much more calm and friendly python.

When I got my first python, I filled the enclosure with so many fake plants that I would spend a good hour just trying to find where he was, he would travel the entire enclosure without ever being seen in the open, now, he hardly ever uses his hide and as soon as I open the door he face is straight out ready to explore. It's amazing how far a little trust building can go.

Best of luck,

 

[Mack86]

Hey mate,
I don't personally own any antaresia pythons but I do have plenty others,

When pythons are young, they tend to hide a lot, the world is a big scary place and they are tiny and vulnerable, most likely your little mate is exploring more at night and in time will learn to feel safe enough to explore while you are around, it also doesn't help that it's winter so they tend to slow down a lot more during the cooler weather.

Don't be too worried about skipping a few meals over winter. That's normal. Some snakes eat all year round. Some don't,

Once he is over winter and gains some confidence, you get to experience a lot more interaction, be patient and let him gain confidence in his own time and you will come out with a much more calm and friendly python.

When I got my first python, I filled the enclosure with so many fake plants that I would spend a good hour just trying to find where he was, he would travel the entire enclosure without ever being seen in the open, now, he hardly ever uses his hide and as soon as I open the door he face is straight out ready to explore. It's amazing how far a little trust building can go.

Best of luck,

Thanks!
This was super helpful just to gain a bit of understanding into the habits of my little youngster
I'm not much of a patient person but this experience has sure tested it and forced me to become a lot more patient than I would normally be!
Thanks again

 

[Reptilechick]

I think patience is a great lesson for us all, not only with our animals but in life as a whole, so maybe your little guy is actually teaching you something quite valuable.

I'm also glad that you feel so passionate for your animal and that you get so involved with questions and threads, so many people think they know everything and although we gain more experience, I'm not sure we ever stop learning, so seeing someone who shows so much passion, love for and care for the welfare of his animal makes me smile.

I look forward to the lesson you will teach me in return.

 

[Tsuchinoko]

Will I see him more when he is older? I'd love to see him exploring more instead of hiding non stop. I guess that's just natural snake behaviour though!

Don't be discouraged! during the warmer months my antaresia is super active - even though they're terrestrial she loves to climb and she'll spend hours doing it almost every night in summer/autumn, its super fun to watch. I'm sure as yours get older/more confident and things start warming up you'll see them a lot more

 

[Mack86]

I think patience is a great lesson for us all, not only with our animals but in life as a whole, so maybe your little guy is actually teaching you something quite valuable.

I'm also glad that you feel so passionate for your animal and that you get so involved with questions and threads, so many people think they know everything and although we gain more experience, I'm not sure we ever stop learning, so seeing someone who shows so much passion, love for and care for the welfare of his animal makes me smile.

I look forward to the lesson you will teach me in return.

Thanks so much for your kind words. That was so nice to read. You're right I really really do care for the welfare of my animal and I didn't know much at all to begin with but have very quickly tried to rectify anything I was not doing correctly and my little guy seems to be doing well. I just want him to have the best possible life with me.

Oh and by the way I'm a she

Don't be discouraged! during the warmer months my antaresia is super active - even though they're terrestrial she loves to climb and she'll spend hours doing it almost every night in summer/autumn, its super fun to watch. I'm sure as yours get older/more confident and things start warming up you'll see them a lot more

Thank you, this is really reassuring. I love to hear about people's experiences with their snakes. I find it all very interesting. Thanks for commenting