Tips for Newbies thread!

[Waterrat]

baby snakes do bite(as all snakes can, its what they do when scared- defend themselves) There is no such thing as a snake that doesnt bite..(i get asked alot..)

How wrong can you be?
This really annoys me when someone (obviously with limited experience) makes such sweeping statement. I have up to 100 snakes at times, I feed them, clean their enclosures, transfer them from cage to cage and I handle them (not excessively though). Have a guess how many times I have been bitten in the last 6 years.
Before that? Can't remember.

 

[SamNabz]

o0oh here it comes

 

[CodeRed]

How wrong can you be?
This really annoys me when someone (obviously with limited experience) makes such sweeping statement. I have up to 100 snakes at times, I feed them, clean their enclosures, transfer them from cage to cage and I handle them (not excessively though). Have a guess how many times I have been bitten in the last 6 years.
Before that? Can't remember.

Sure if you handle the hatchies correctly you can easily avoid being bitten (especially with chondros that just sit there and let you clean the cage around them). But the more common species bought by first timers such as antaresia and carpets do have a tendency to bite when young. Coupled with inexperience means they should expect to get bitten. If you dont get bitten, thats even better, but dont be shocked when it happens.

 

[Waterrat]

Sure if you handle the hatchies correctly you can easily avoid being bitten (especially with chondros that just sit there and let you clean the cage around them). But the more common species bought by first timers such as antaresia and carpets do have a tendency to bite when young. Coupled with inexperience means they should expect to get bitten. If you dont get bitten, thats even better, but dont be shocked when it happens.

I totally agree with you but to say "there is no such as a snake that doesn't bite"??? What message does that send out?
I bred and handled many species, e.g. Water pythons, Mackies as well as many, many elapids and there were almost always individuals amongst them, even whole clutches, that had no tendencies to bite at all.
I do believe that if you keep snakes, especially hatchlings, in an enclosure where the snakes can see through the glass, people walking around, etc., they don't freak out when you slide the glass and pick them out nowhere near as much as if they're kept in opaque tabs, out of sight. Just my opinion.

 

[CarpetPythons.com.au]

Come on boys, lets keep it educational. SNAKES ARE A PRODUCT OF THEIR ENVIRONMENT!

 

[Waterrat]

Is that why my GTPs are green? :shock:

 

[redbellybite]

Come on waterrat ....I think it is better for the newbies to have an understanding that owning a snake has a very good chance that they will encounter at least one bite ...that way it puts more of a reality perspective on the whole idea ...YES ITS TRUE you can get snakes that may never bite you BUT you can not give 100% guarentee ever ...I have two carpets that have never ever bitten but then I have got a spotted and two water pythons that do almost 80% of the time ..and it has nothing to do with me handling them ..some just do it .. best be prepared that its a possibility at least ..before owning one ,then have that false sense of security and they die of shock and develop a phobia now ...

 

[Pythons Rule]

I genially sick to this plan with feeding all my snakes (everyone has a different oppinion though);

I feed 1 - 2 (feed items) each week up until they are 2 years old. Increasing food size to suit size of animals gut (middle section) I prefer feeding anything same size to a bit bigger then gut width. so increase when you see no bulge.

I feed 2 (feed items) each fortnight until they are 3years (adult) according to size of their gut depends on size of food item.

I feed 2 - 3 (feed items) each month to the adults. The amount given depends on if the animal is male or female (this is for anyone breeding - males get fed less to stay small and females get fed more to ensure a healthy up to size breeder). If you don't intend on breeding then feed how much ya want 2 or 3 feed items, just remember the more you feed the bigger and fatter they will get.

 

[FusionMorelia]

whats a good thermostat placement in a click clack and good temps for colder climates (5c and lower nights and 15c and lower days) and do what variants between night/day should be used?

 

[impulse reptiles]

Find out where that particular species is found in wild and thurally research what the conditions are like in that area, Always deal with people that have a good reptution or that you know well, get hold of some decent herp books, listen to the older herpers, don't touch the Internet.

 

[impulse reptiles]

there were almost always individuals amongst them, even whole clutches, that had no tendencies to bite at all.

i agree, some hatching's will not bite to the point were it becomes quite ridiculous,some have absolutely no urge to bite what so ever,these individuals in my experience are almost always slower feeders, its shows that the temperament of individual snakes will vary.

over the years i have began to have a soft spot for the snappiest of the clutch and go out of my way to use a hook and eventually get a calm snake that handles well...every time i tryed, iv succeeded in doing this, i have not met a snake that i couldnt calm down with reading the snakes body language, handling it right and not getting bitten.

(IMO) by the sound of it ,people aren't handling there animals right.

 

[Waterrat]

I also think there is a good time and bad time to handle snakes. I know few people who reach into their cage and pull their snake out to show off every time a mate comes in. Some people handle their snakes routinely, i.e. at particular time every day. Snakes are not dogs that start jumping around at 5pm because it's time for a walkie. Then there are those who don't take into consideration "before meal", "after meal", sloughing, cold surroundings (once out of its cage), strange smells (dog, cat, something they have been handling and the smell stays on the hands), situations, etc., etc. There are clues that snakes give us - you don't learn how to interpret them from books or the internet but it all comes in time. Observe before you handle.

 

[J-A-X]

I totally agree with you but to say "there is no such as a snake that doesn't bite"??? What message does that send out?

How about "any animal can, and will, bite in certain circumstances" ! !
You could buy a species of dog that is known to be placid, BUT if it feels the need to bite, it will !

my top tips:
-Research snake husbandry and setup the potential home, run it for a couple of weeks EMPTY and check the temps in all different ambient temps, eg with the room heater/air conditioner on, its no good having a basking spot for snakey that turns into to a roasting spot and his cool spot is 30+ before your thermostat cuts in, or worse, fails.
-go around the tub/enclosure and try and squeeze your little finger into the gaps, (between tub and lid / sliding glass doors, slots in large vents) if you can squeeze the tip of your finger in there, there is an escape route for snakey
- leave it alone to settle in for a week, offer a feed, if it takes it, great, leave it alone for another week and feed again. Establish a good feeding routine before you worry about handling. you have 20 - 30 years to handle it, don't rush it.
- lock all cages if they are in a communal part of your house... nothing gets makes me madder than the drunkin partyer wanting to to be a hero and wrestle my snakes. I keep them locked..

 

[IgotFrogs]

hrmmm my bit of advice i'd add to this is, don't just go from the tempture gage on your thermostat always always have a tempture probe in the enclosure as well, one of decent quilty .....

 

[IgotFrogs]

Oh and another one is while heat rocks might look like a good idea .... never ever put a heat rock in with a Animal with out it being pluged into a thermostat .....reptiles can and do get burnt by these devices so keep that in mind always plug into a thermostat 1st if you feel the need to use one at all

 

[CarpetPythons.com.au]

Michael, we like to call what you are talking about "Animal Sense"! It's not something that a reptile keeper learns overnight, and some never learn it! It's that instinct that comes with looking after lots of animals over many years. It's what we learned through trial and error. It's what we learned through not being able to run to a forum and ask somebody else what to do and how to do it! It's what we learned through losing an animal because we just did not know any better.

 

[smeejason]

Buy all the gear and have it up and running well before you contemplate getting the snake home. Take the time to monitor the room temps and cage temps before you stick the snake in there and wonder why it is stressed because it is to hot or to cold.
Another week waiting will not kill you but it might kill the snake not waiting.

 

[spongebob]

Ensure you have an ample supply of food for the herp prior to getting it, particularly if it is mostly insectivorous/rodent feeder as the little dragon/python will turn into a cricket/mouse munching monster.

Multiply this if you plan to breed. Over the coming months you will see desparate ads for woodies etc to feed newly hatched beardies, and then desparate price dropping ads for the youngsters, and then even more desparate ads for toeless beardies.I see it every year. All the result of poor planning

 

[raycarpetpython]

Here's a tip: never ever put anything sticky in your cage. no sticky stape, duct tape etc etc. Also not sure if anyone has mentioned this so far, but make your enclosures escape proof! The amount of people that seem to lose snakes is unreal. Seems to me that if if you think your snake might have the slightest chance of getting through a small hole or gap, they probably can/will. And I would think an enclosure with sliding glass doors would not be a good idea for a snake any less than 12 months old (or atleast 6months if it was a larger than normal snake).

just my 2 cents

 

[ubermensch]

I'm kinda wishing my baby WOULD bite so I could put a nice picture up on facebook :/
However she's the most placid little snake ever and the most she's ever done was headbutt me once when I poked her awake.
Although she's quite violent with her food....I don't know why she doesn't constrict, she prefers to bite the poor dead rat and bash its head in against the wall till she's sure it's "dead".