Woma Python: Unusual Sudden Agression Problem, Any Advice?

[Morbid]

So I have a 2010 male Woma Python. I have had him since 2010 as a hatchling, and I have handled him ALOT. He has always been super sweet, never even being the slightest bit cage agressive. He was so laid back I would watch TV and he would lay on my lap and roll over on his back and just hang out for hours. I could mess with his face and pretty much do anything to him with no issue. Well suddenly, and I mean overnight he became extremely agressive. More so than my White Lipped Python, or Green Tree Python or any "aggressive" snake I have seen before. Before I explain his aggression I want to go over what I think /may/ have led up to it. I have raised him gradual in click-clacks up to about 5 feet. They have always been kept under my bed so he had always been in pretty much complete darkness, well now that he is close to full grown we got him a huge vision cage. 6 feet long, 2.5 feet deep, 2 feet tall. It obviously has a glass front and that is something he is not used to. Okay back to track.

Now if I walk by his cage, he comes up to the glass and strikes repeatedly at me, and tries to push himself out of the cage trying to attack me. If I open the cage, he immediately wakes up, and comes at me striking like crazy. If I try to use a hook, he will bite the hook and I am afraid he is going to hurt himself on the hook. When I feed him, he attacks his prey and coils, before he would just eat f/t rats without any attack... just come up and start swallowing lol. He was also very calm, slow and laid back before now when he sees me he freaks out and goes crazy moving so fast and striking at anything close.

Now after reading that you might think it has to do with how large his new enclosure is, or that fact he can see out of it or it is now so well lit (it have lots of lighting). Well there are a few other factors first. He did fine, remanning docile in his new cage for the first two weeks, and he eat normal and let me reach in and grab him, then all of the sudden overnight he changed. Now here is a weird part. Right before his change we had a enormous snow storm and the power was out for a day and a half, no heat, all my fish died. However I got a entire pack of hand warmers and placed a few under his cage, and changed them every two hours but it still got very cold. I had held him and fed him a day before the power outage, and wanted to wait a for a few days after to try holding him again, and this is where he got agressive. I don't know if he changed the day after the power outage or if this was a coincidence... but maybe the cold caused some sort of issue?

Now the last, and probably most obvious he is just about reaching adult size and he is of breeding age, this could be breeding related and if it is so I hope that he will come back to normal... Any ideas or advice? Also my boyfriend is afraid of snakes, so he won't try to grab him but I have tried to have him taunt the woma outside the cage and the woma does not strike... but them again he wont even get flush with the glass lol so the woma just might not be seeing him.

I have checked and double checked his temps, humidity, everything and he seems fine. He is acting so aggressive it's become hard to clean his cage... they slightest movement causes an attack. I have never seen a "attack" snake... I mean yes I have seen snakes aggressive if you move there hide, come close to them or wake them but never a snake that will chase you down and attack. I will open up the door on the opposite side of his hide and he will wake up, and lunge at me anyway....

He is 100% male, he eats/poops/sheds fine, he is very healthy.

 

[JAS101]

and whats he like once he is out of the enclosure and your holding him ?
i guess u are feeding it enough?
one of my female womas trys to eat me through the enclosure , but once out she is fine.

 

[thesnakemaster]

woma problems

hi
I just join but my blonde spotted mac (female) had a similar issue but she calmed down its probably getting use to the new environment i left my snake after the change of enclosure for 3-4 weeks but still fed it she calmed down imagine you are the snake whole new area you wouldn't want your owners trying to handle you at that stage i also recommend taking the snake and feeding it in the old container as they think your hands food lol yea soz if it doesn't help you but give it a try it might

 

[Morbid]

I have taken him out twice, once on a hook where he repeatedly struck at me from the hook while trying to lunge off the hook at my face... I kept him out for a while anyway hoping to calm him down. The second time I was sick of not holding him and just grabbed him out... bad idea I got tagged and pretty bad (not really for myself because that was my stupid idea... I felt more bad for him and his poor teeth). I tried holding him still and calming him down and it was not not working... I feed him enough, 1 adult rat or sometimes 2 weaned weekly. They are plenty for him.

 

[thesnakemaster]

actually scatch not holding him otherwise he wont recognise you when you want to hold him hold him as much as you want

 

[JAS101]

actually scatch not holding him otherwise he wont recognise you when you want to hold him hold him as much as you want

i havnt found that not to be true , i have snakes here i hold once every month or 2 an they are all fine . snakes dont like being held , some tolerate it more then others .

 

[Morbid]

Well I know womas can be cage/food aggressive so I just thought to hell with container feeding and have been feeding my womas in their enclosures. I expect aggression, and my female gives it to me but calms down once she is out... he has always been calm and never aggressive. I take my WLP, GTP & BRBs out for feeding, but have never seen the point with womas. This happened almost 2 months ago so I think he would be settled by now, and like I said he was fine for the first two weeks...


PS: I love blonde mac spotted pythons!

 

[thesnakemaster]

thanks i will send u a pic of it good luck with the woma

 

[Morbid]

i havnt found that not to be true , i have snakes here i hold once every month or 2 an they are all fine . snakes dont like being held , some tolerate it more then others .

Agreed, and I have gone months without holding all my snakes, and they act the same when I go to hold them again for the first time in a few months. Some snakes enjoy getting out of there enclosure, but don't like the fact we are the ones taking them out... they just put up with it. However I have heard of GTPs randomly snapping out of tameness if you neglect constant holding.

 

[Trouta]

I had the same situation once and even started a thread called snake gone evil lol
http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/australian-snakes-37/snake-gone-evil-178154/
Similar situation 3 year old snake have owned her for a year no attitude/strikes ever, then i spend 800 bucks on a new enclosure and she struck at my face from within the glass woulda scored me right between the eyes very nasty. I was comparing things what has changed around her as well. Im fiquering it was either new enclosure and need a fair bit of time to feel comforatble/safe or maybe it was the fluro light in new cage that was on 24/7 something she wasnt used to. I would recieve dirty looks from her and she appeared angry at me. Have a read of my post and see if you get any ideas, the good news is what ever it was after some time she has gone back to her normal self again, i dont no what it was lol

 

[notechistiger]

I would suspect that he's either hungry or stressed. If your feeding has been consistent and he shouldn't BE hungry, then try downgrading his tank (even putting him in a tub that would appear to be too small for him) and see if his attitude improves. Just because he was fine for a bit or has been in there for two months doesn't mean he isn't stressed.

 

[yommy]

did the cold trigger a breeding response? What is he like in the presence of the female??

I had a female that was skitish like that bouncing around and striking. I got her for a bargin as the previous owner couldnt handle her behaviour striking the glass and reacting to movement. i covered the cage from view so she couldn't see movement. only handled her for cleaning purposes. and over a few month she's calmed that much down you wouldn't reconise her behaviour - though she sometimes has her moments.
Joys of owning woma's, some have more personality then others

persistance is the key mate. Good luck...................

 

[FAY]

It is coming into Spring. They know that they have to fatten up for the winter.....

 

[Manda1032]

My money is on a combination of the new enclosure causing stress and the cold didn't help. Have you tried reverting back to the old enclosure or turning the lights off and making the new room darker? My Georgetown stressed out for months, didn't eat and was agressive. It was the position of his enclosure. I moved him and within a month he was eating and calmed down. Now he is the perfect angel and even strikes and coils his food (problem eater and i wasn't informed of it from a very well respected breeder!).
It could have something to do with breeding but I would try to replicate his old home first

 

[adz83]

hmmm i am havin a similar issue with my male bhp....not sure wat im gonna do about it

 

[rvcasa]

Stuff him full of food that is how i over came my male woma doing the same thing.

But then he strikes when handled with full stomach, no?
I think that's what happened to mine!? (not sure, I'm still trying to figure that out)

...Well suddenly, and I mean overnight he became aggressive...

Well, (perhaps) I've had a similar issue with mine... and would like to find out too!
(if not for the sake of my wife not 'sending the snake away', after our Woma tagged my boy)

Briefly, 3 weeks ago, just 2 days after a normal weekly feeding (of 1x fuzzy rat), nothing new there...

My son is way too confident holding huge BHP, Womas, Diamonds, Carpets etc. (but they're almost adult, either at local zoo or of friends)
So I don't 'trust' yet our 4 months Woma with him. I seat my son on sofa and supervise both of them.

My son likes to stroke across Woma's body, but he's desperate to be allowed to wrap the Woma around his neck!

Anyway, he was gently stroking the Woma down his body when my son's hand had just reached just before Woma's tail... Woma turned around in a 'U' shape so quickly I didn't see it coming and tagged my son's hand! I was stricken with the speed of events.

A few tears shed from little fella, but his did not scare or stopped him from loving Womas though. (thank goodness for that!) But since then, I've noticed our Woma a bit more nervous and ticklish when we touch him close to his tail. - He turns his head around quickly and he's ready to strike if we don't stop stroking/touching him.

No change on environment or food or anything... except yesterday I noticed a little lump, under the skin, on either side of his (perhaps his bowel) when I stroked him. Since he never ever defecated on his enclosure and only does after a few strokes down his body, when outside, I applied this strategy again and this time he made the longest snake stool I ever seen! It was almost 8cm long, very dark grey, soft and shiny/moist, just like toothpaste coming out of the tube! Now I'm wondering: do snakes get constipated? Could have been this the reason of his snappy reaction when we touched him lower, below it's stomach?

I haven't hold him since to know if anything has changed since. I've also just read an article about Womas getting "fatty liver disease" (KEEPING WOMAS, The Champagne of Snakes) and I hope it's not what this dark stool means!?

Any ideas/tips anyone? Much appreciated.