Everybody meet Floki... My new SD retic (het albino)

[SnakeyJay]

Hey everyone, so after a couple years considering it, I've finally decided to get an SD retic.. It's all new to me at the moment and he's definitely nothing like any other snake I've handled but I'm loving every second of our adventure together so far...

He's only 2 months old atm and very skittish but we will work on that together. I suppose I better post a pic up to show you guys 😜...

Any tips or advice with these guys is very welcome, thanks for reading 👍..

[SnakeyJay]

And another pic...

[EL Ziggy]

Very nice retic Jay! I can't wait to see him a year from now. :)

[Albert Clark]

I hear that retics are very smart and very fast. Congrats though on moving up into giant land. Beautiful animal! I never owned one but I would like to.

[dave himself]

Very nice Jamie my advice would be to start tap training him, I know he's an SD but he's still a retic :)

[SnakeyJay]

Oh I'm well aware he's still a retic mate, and have already started tap training him... I already do this with my boas so its second nature to me anyway. ��

[dave himself]

Oh I'm well aware he's still a retic mate, and have already started tap training him... I already do this with my boas so its second nature to me anyway. ��

Then I would just enjoy him mate, I've only had limited dealings with SDs but I found them to be cracking snakes, they really are mainlands in a smaller package :)

[SnakeyJay]

Then I would just enjoy him mate, I've only had limited dealings with SDs but I found them to be cracking snakes, they really are mainlands in a smaller package :)

I'm definitely enjoying him, just a bit of a learning curve for me atm... It's his first feeding tonight so that will be interesting lol. 😀

[havoc_vulture]

Awesome SD man very nice colors

[SnakeyJay]

Awesome SD man very nice colors

Thank you :D

[SnoopySnake]

Very nice! Do you know what percentage SD he is?

[SnakeyJay]

Very nice! Do you know what percentage SD he is?

50% SD, 25%dwarf, 25% mainland... Looking at 6-8ft possibly touch over that..

[bigsnakegirl785]

So tiny! Congrats on the retic, by far becoming my favorite boid. She's crazy fast for such a small thing, and has the activity level of my garters sometimes I swear....She doesn't look like she's moving fast, but she is. haha

How'd the first feeding go?

[SnakeyJay]

Yeah he's very switched on and aware of everything happening around him.. The first feeding went well thanks, he smashed it down..

[AlexCrazy]

cool! nice pick! i hope my first feed goes as well as yours did!

[malgus]

You beat me to the name hahaha I was hoping to get a woma soon and name it floki

[SnakeyJay]

I'm sure it will... If a retic doesn't eat then there's a problem lmao..

[millertime89]

Very nice half SD. Just be prepared that with the dwarf blood he'll probably have an intense feed response so you may need to actually hook train rather than tap train. Also be prepared for him to get 8-10 ft or bigger. It's definitely possible with the 25% mainland and 25% dwarf blood mixed in.

Do you know the locality of the SD blood? It can influence size.

[bigsnakegirl785]

Nice to hear the feeding went well!

Hey millertime, I know the dwarfes are a bit more food-inclined, but how does that manifest? Like, do they still zone in on you as potential food even if you just give them a quick rub/tub? For example, my mainland girl, if she's zoning in on my hand and reaching for it and I rub a hook her along her side, she'll immediately stop looking at my hand and either go back to exploring or stare out of the top of the tub. She'll stop focusing on me, but she'll still be looking for food.

Kinda curious in case I end up with one in the future.

[millertime89]

Mine stay locked on while in their cage even if they don't smell food. I have to completely remove them with the hook before they'll really calm down.

[SnakeyJay]

Very nice half SD. Just be prepared that with the dwarf blood he'll probably have an intense feed response so you may need to actually hook train rather than tap train. Also be prepared for him to get 8-10 ft or bigger. It's definitely possible with the 25% mainland and 25% dwarf blood mixed in.

Do you know the locality of the SD blood? It can influence size.

I was told 8ft ish but if he gets bigger I've got a backup plan with a new home for him at my friends..

The SD in him is MADU so one of the smaller ones I think..

Can you explain the difference between hook training n tap training mate?

[millertime89]

Madu is the 2nd smallest of the three most common ones. Males will get 6-8 and females 7-9 usually. So with the dwarf and normal blood I wouldn't be surprised to see 8-10.

Tap training is (at least by my definition) where you use something like a paper towel roll to tap the animal to let them know it's interaction time and to break the food response. Hook training is where you actually use a snake hook to maneuver the animal and direct it in a direction of your choosing or remove it from the cage. I use a hook for tap training as well as I've always got one nearby, but with the two snakes that have Jampea blood I've got to hook them out as they ALWAYS want to eat.

[SnakeyJay]

Madu is the 2nd smallest of the three most common ones. Males will get 6-8 and females 7-9 usually. So with the dwarf and normal blood I wouldn't be surprised to see 8-10.

Tap training is (at least by my definition) where you use something like a paper towel roll to tap the animal to let them know it's interaction time and to break the food response. Hook training is where you actually use a snake hook to maneuver the animal and direct it in a direction of your choosing or remove it from the cage. I use a hook for tap training as well as I've always got one nearby, but with the two snakes that have Jampea blood I've got to hook them out as they ALWAYS want to eat.

Ah great, a little larger than expected then😅... Yeah I'm already doing that with him seams to be going ok so far.

[SnakeyJay]

Well here's Floki in his new skin, he shed in one piece and seems to be doing well so far..

Millertime, this hook training seems to be going ok so I'll carry on with what you advised so far in that regard. :)

[Sublimeballs]

Great looking madu cross man. Can't wait til I can get my hands on some pure madus; but I may opt for karoompas instead. I can attest to the food responses of dwarf blood animals... Just wait... You'll see when he gets some size. Prepare for the addiction that comes with retics. It's really hard to only have one.

[havoc_vulture]

Looking sharp Jay

[SnakeyJay]

Thanks to both of you, yes he seems very food orientated so I'm going will full hook training as advised by Millertime.. Working well so far, I probably should have gone with pure madu to be honest with you but I'm giving this guy a go.

[Sublimeballs]

Oh you'll love the mainland in him. My "mainlands"( bali yellowheads) are super calm compared to my dwarves and super dwarves. I'm just a huge fan of pure locales.... That's all the retics I own.

[SnakeyJay]

Oh you'll love the mainland in him. My "mainlands"( bali yellowheads) are super calm compared to my dwarves and super dwarves. I'm just a huge fan of pure locales.... That's all the retics I own.

Pure locals are the way to go to be honest, but yeah I'm hoping the mainland in him will calm him down too.

[AlexCrazy]

Should i consider hook training with my BP? I still dont know his caracter... but even if he is nice.. i dont think it would be a bad idea to teach him a "turn of" gesture... or would it be annesesary?

[SnakeyJay]

Should i consider hook training with my BP? I still dont know his caracter... but even if he is nice.. i dont think it would be a bad idea to teach him a "turn of" gesture... or would it be annesesary?

With royals they tend to just ball up when threatened, whereas a retic will just bite everytime.. It's up to you but I doubt lifting your royal with a hook is a good idea with them being so heavy bodied.

[millertime89]

There's generally no need to hook train a BP.

[SnakeyJay]

Some new pics of Floki from today.. My phone only lets me upload one pic at a time tho 😅

[SnakeyJay]

..... And another

[SnakeyJay]

..............

[millertime89]

You can definitely see the mainland influence on him in those pictures. Color and pattern and eye color are nowhere near what a pure SD is. He still looks great though!

[SnakeyJay]

You can definitely see the mainland influence on him in those pictures. Color and pattern and eye color are nowhere near what a pure SD is. He still looks great though!

Cheers mate, still hoping he stays on the smaller side tho. Hahah

[millertime89]

You bet. Looks a lot like my 75% SD.

[SnakeyJay]

He's 50 SD, 25 jamp apparently..

[SnakeyJay]

A fresh pic of him now lol...