New JCP owner with questions [Archive] - sSNAKESs : Reptile Forum

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jamesb

09-13-10, 06:13 PM

Hi all. I am a new Jungle Carpet Python owner. He is awesome! Named him Bumblebee which I though was very fitting :yes:. I do have some questions/issue I would love to be addressed.

Here is the info:

My GF purchased him for me from a local reptile and fish pet shop. Buddy shopped there for fish, family owned, seemed to know a lot and very nice.
Had him for about a week and a half. Fed him 3 frozen pinky mice last Monday night. Ate them right up, although he didn't look like he just ate. Was out that night and the next roaming around and sleeping during the day.
Took him out almost 72 hours after eating and had him out for a couple of minutes. He struck and bit me about 4 times and at one point pooped a very small amount in my hand. My Corn snake did this when she was nervous. I left him alone for the next 4 days.
This brings me to today. I took him out and he struck a bit, but never connected. Still very jumpy/scared. Jumps/strikes some when I brush his back, etc. He is only a couple months old at most I was told. I had him out for 5 minutes or so, then put him back.
There is plenty of hides in his tank(3 hides), branches to climb, etc. Hot spot of around 92-93 degrees, with the tank having a range of 80-89 degrees. I think that is plenty of range for him to find a place he likes. Cool nights, sometimes get to 78 degrees in parts, but mostly it is in the 80s.
Humidity is usually around 50-60 percent with it going up to 70-80 percent right after I mist the tank. It has gone down to 40 percent during mid day when it is hotest.
I plan to feed him weekly. My question is how much? His last feeding last Monday he ate 3 pinkies no problem. He didn't actually look like he ate much, and it was a PITA getting him back in his tank without him trying to make a meal out of me. (I fed him in a 10 gallon tank with a branch in it).

My main goals for him are to be healthy and docile enough to hold him when I want.

I plan to feed him again tonight or tomorrow. Should I stick with 3 pinkies for the next couple feedings or move to a fuzzy? Would one fuzzy be enough? So far he seems like he is doing pretty good. Just very jumpy and nervous at the thought of being handled. He hasn't pooped from what I can tell from his last meal. Any help, ideas is appreciated.

Here are a few shots of him in my GFs hand as well as what I think is an awesome home.

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j98/jamesbernatchez/Photography/c00bf519.jpg

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j98/jamesbernatchez/Photography/be16567f.jpg

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j98/jamesbernatchez/Photography/d1f08929.jpg

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j98/jamesbernatchez/Photography/c996ca44.jpg

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j98/jamesbernatchez/Photography/b9654380.jpg

Cliffs for those that don't want to read:

How can I tame him down from being nippy?
How much and often should I feed him (3 pinkies a week, 1 fuzzy weekly, etc)? What do other owners recommend?

infernalis

09-13-10, 07:18 PM

Nice snake and setup....... thanks for posting.

marvelfreak

09-13-10, 07:58 PM

Hello and welcome! I try feeding him a fuzzy weekly. As far as taming him down when he bites or strikes don't put him right back in his cage. Keep him out for a few minutes till he settles down some. If you leave him alone or put him back every time he strike or bites he will do it everytime. To get what he wants which would be left alone. also some times it might take a month or so for them to settle in. If he bites alot you can where gloves till he gets use to you.

jamesb

09-13-10, 08:06 PM

Thanks I had some Mechanics gloves and I used that to take him out for feeding. He attacked my glove a bunch but where he was I had to bring my hand over him so that probably scared him. I put him in a 10 gallon with a heat lamp and fed him a fuzzy.

Once I defrosted the fuzzy and really looked at it, it seemed way too big. Probably 4x the girth of his neck. He ate it like a champ without issue. Small bulge in his body but not too big.

Putting him back was uneventful. He was on a large stick in the feeding tank so I just slowly picked up the stick and moved it to his normal tank. He went right off of it and is now climbing around.

Once I can figure out an easy way to get him out of his tank to feed it should be simple process.

I was very suprised he ate the fuzzy like that. Looks like I will be going to a fuzzy every 6 days or so for now.

Thanks for the tips. I didn't put him back in after biting. I did like you said and waited till he calmed down some, then stroked his back a bit and then put him back.

Freebody

09-13-10, 10:00 PM

ya morelia like to bite when they are young and grow to be real mello, do like marvel says and he will me calm in no time, i do the same thing when my baby morelia i have decide to throw a hissy fit, i just hold them real calm and they chill out and start enjoying their time out of the cages.

Meg

09-13-10, 11:37 PM

Babies can definitely be nippy...everything is bigger than they are...thats scary.

Glad you bumped up the size but is he eating mice? or rats? Rats are important for the health of larger snakes like pythons. He will have to be switched over to rats in not very long to promote good health and growth. So its best to get him started soon otherwise it can be difficult to switch them over. That size of carpet can EASILY take a pinky or fuzzy rat. Carpets have good sized heads :)

also the only other note I have is that nervous people make nervous snakes. When you take him out...try and act like you dont care about being bit (even if you do) show no nervousness and dont stand around putting your hand in and out of the cage. Walk over, reach in, pick him up and take him out. No hesitation. The more normal you make it...the more normal he'll take it!

Enjoy :) I LOVE carpets

jamesb

09-14-10, 07:27 AM

jamesb

09-14-10, 08:01 AM

One more thing. I found RodentPro for rats. Should I order the 100 pack of rat fuzzies? I think sizewise they will be OK for him. I think I would have a lot left over once he moves to larger prey though.

Or should I keep doing fuzzy mice and then try and get him to eat the rat pups which are a bit larger than rat fuzzies. Rat pups come in a bag of 25 for $20 so there is less in a bag. At $50 a bag of 100 rat fuzzies that is a lot of money to waste when he would probably only eat some of them.

Or do I find a local place that has frozen rat fuzzies, feed him them for a bit and then go to weaned rats or something?

So many damn options..LOL :D

Sigge

09-14-10, 08:26 AM

A carpet python can easily swallow up to 150 % bigger food than the snakes thickest part. You can give him once in a while two fuzzies. They grow fast, so about when he's 6 months old you can offer him adult mice or similar sized rat. Good luck!

Will0W783

09-14-10, 09:35 AM

They can eat a big meal; it has surprised me at times how much mine can handle and want. As for taming, well he's just a little guy. Jungles especially are known for being nippy when they are babies, but they generally calm down at about the year to year and a half mark, once they get some size on them. Basically handling for 5-10 minutes, 3 times a week or so should be fine. Don't try every day or you could stress him out too much. When he bites, don't put him away until he's calmed down. Wear gloves or something so he can't break your skin and then the bites don't hurt. He will calm down in time, but it may take a while. He's quite the handsome baby, and should develop some real nice colors as he matures!

jamesb

09-14-10, 10:50 AM

Thanks :)

Now i'm just trying to figure out the food options and what is best as I mentioned above in post #8

Meg

09-14-10, 11:38 AM

Freebody

09-14-10, 12:02 PM

100 for 1 snake is still 2 years supply untill your feeding 2 then their is still only 52 weeks in a year. its best to not get 1 years of food at once because it goes bad, When i buy food i buy about 20 or so rats per snake at the size they are currently eating.

jamesb

09-14-10, 12:43 PM

I would say either of those options are fine. However 100 fuzzies is not as much as you think considering babies eat a lot because they are growing. And when he starts to get bigger you can feed him two fuzzies at a time until they are gone and them bump his food. Being on rats is important :)

100 for 1 snake is still 2 years supply untill your feeding 2 then their is still only 52 weeks in a year. its best to not get 1 years of food at once because it goes bad, When i buy food i buy about 20 or so rats per snake at the size they are currently eating.

I figured I am going to try to feed him every 6 days. So for now one rat fuzzy should be good. I am trying to find a place I can order 50 at once. That should be better than having 100 on hand. Or if worst comes to worst I could just order the 100 and post an ad locally to sell half of them. For the next week or so I'll feed him a mouse fuzzy unless I find a local place with the rat fuzzys.

I hope he takes rats without much issue.

jamesb

09-14-10, 01:43 PM

gonesnakee

09-14-10, 05:20 PM

Didn;t read all the posts just scanned a few quickly :o
Ditch the mice ASAP feed this snake rats from now on if possible.
Snake should have never been offered pinky mice, far too small, it should have been started on pinky rats or fuzzy mice preferably rats from day 1.
You do not wnat an 8ft Carpet Python that needs to eat 20 mice at a time instead of 2 rats & you want to switch it ASAP before mice is all it wants.
judging by the pics that snake will have no problems taking pinky rats a couple at a time or even a small fuzzy rat.
Carpets tend to be bitey as babies & will grow out of it over time with gentle handling etc. it is in its nature to be defensive & to "defend" itself.
You will also find it will feed far better if only offered every 7-14 days instead of once weekly or less.
Before offering it a rat pinky I would wiat a good 2 weeks prior the last feeding to ensure it is hungry & more willing to eat, Mark

jamesb

09-14-10, 07:22 PM

Thanks Mark. I am going to check out fuzzy rats next. My plan was to try and feed him every 6-7 days, no less. If I can't find a local place with fuzzy rats i'm just going to order the 100 and try and sell half of them to somebody else locally.

gonesnakee

09-14-10, 07:40 PM

If they are available a live P rat could help make the switch as quite often if its live the snake will just gobble it up despite not being famililar with it, mind you live scares some of them too :rolleyes: LOL Mark

yellowsnakelove

09-14-10, 11:29 PM

Found this site:

Frozen Rats for Sale | All Sizes of Feeder Rats (http://www.laynelabs.com/frozen-rats)
Anybody familiar with them/use them before? They are one of the only places I found so far where I could buy less than 50 fuzzy rats.

Hi, that's laynelabs.com. We've used Layne Labs for a few years. Well, if pinky mice to medium rats is a few years:)

Their mice and rats are really clean, and someone always call us the day the order ships and again on the day it's delivers. Can't beat that for customer service. I'd recommend them, especially if you need smaller bag counts because your little guy is growing.

What a beauty, BTW. Nice setup also.

shaunyboy

09-15-10, 06:46 AM

gonesnakee has covered everything imo

the only thing i would add is i do not mist any of my carpets

mines all shed 100% complete and perfect everytime.

thats a nice looking wee carpet you got there

cheers shaun

jamesb

09-15-10, 08:06 AM

I mist twice a day. Once around 8am before work and once more around 8pm. He does NOT like getting wet. I've been just misting around him if he is in his tree so I don't disturb him. I have a small water dish so if I don't mist, the humidity would be around 30% all the time.

Meg

09-15-10, 09:10 PM

Selling half is a good idea. I dont know what the herp community is like where you are but boy all the snake people in my town would jump at that

Will0W783

09-16-10, 12:07 PM

You should not need to mist a carpet twice a day. That's like the humidity required for a GTP. I also do not mist my carpets, and none of them ever have a problem shedding. I would stop with the misting right away, because you could run into the bedding molding or the animal developing a fungal infection or scale rot. Wait until it sheds and note how the shed goes. If it sheds in one nice piece, you're good to go. If it has trouble shedding, then you need to correct your cage husbandry, but a carpet should not need misting if it's being kept correctly.

Will0W783

09-16-10, 12:09 PM

Also, you MUST have a water dish that is large enough for the snake to soak in should it choose to. This is a requirement for any and all snakes. I use Tupperware sandwich containers for my smaller snakes, and dog dishes for my larger ones. You need to correct that ASAP.

gonesnakee

09-16-10, 12:47 PM

I never mist any of my Carpets either & they all shed fine despite Alberta's low humidity.
They all have water dishes large enough to soak in as well. Mark

marvelfreak

09-16-10, 12:56 PM

The only time i mist my carpets is once a day when in shed.

jamesb

09-16-10, 03:41 PM

Thanks for all the info. I'll relax on the misting. The dish should be OK, but it wouldn't hurt to go up one size so I just did that now.

Meg

09-18-10, 12:29 PM

I think it must depend on humidity of the area, substrate used and the individual snake. My jungles need more humidity then once a day misting or else they have a poor shed. But I dont mist, I use a substrate that keeps the humidity up around 50%

James...the best way to know if you need more humidity is to pay attention to sheds. If your jungle is misted once a day and sheds fine, then you dont need to worry about it :) If it has problems with shedding then you need to raise the humidity.

jamesb

10-06-10, 10:38 AM

So i've fed her two more fuzzy mice (one every 7 days) since this post and she has ate them fine. I just ordered 25 fuzzy rats from Layne Labs, but they won't be shipped till next week. Hope she eats them without issue.

I can't wait to see her shed for the first time. She has gotten better when holding her. Bit me once a couple days ago. Not even tried to bite my girlfriend yet. I had her out the other day and she perched on my hand, wrapped around it, and didn't move for literally 4-5 minutes. Like she was hanging out in a tree. I guess she felt pretty safe. LOL!

marvelfreak

10-06-10, 01:08 PM

Cool! When she shed we want to see some new pics.

jamesb

10-06-10, 07:27 PM

Will do. Just saw your thread on the yellow anaconda. He is awesome!

jamesb

10-15-10, 07:32 PM

jamesb

10-15-10, 09:51 PM

Well, I took him out of his viv, and put him in the feeding tank. went and got the rat, held it with tongs and he ripped it out of the tongs in about 5 seconds. I didn't even realize he struck before he was wrapped around it. I guess mine doesn't mind rats. It has been 9 days since his last fuzzy mouse. The fuzzy rat was a very large meal compared to the fuzzy mice he ate, so i'm keeping nighttime temps around 80-84 and daytime around 85 with a 90 for basking.

Here are a few shots right after he ate it in the feeding tank. I can't believe he actually ate it! Don't mind the haze. The glass is a bit dirty.

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j98/jamesbernatchez/Photography/ebd38c4e.jpg

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j98/jamesbernatchez/Photography/13b59925.jpg

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j98/jamesbernatchez/Photography/2041ecac.jpg

He is happily back in his take for past hour or so and he is sitting curled up on top of his tree near the top of his tank. I'm praying he digests it fine. I guess they really can eat prey a lot larger than I thought :)

Note that his head is no bigger than it was in the original photos posted on page one. He has eaten 5 times since I got him. I'm thinking he is going to shed soon. I want him to grow :)

Lankyrob

10-16-10, 02:12 AM

My yearling jcp eats prey almost as big as my adult corn will eat yet the corn is much larger in terms of girth. It is amazing how fast they strike tho isnt it!!

marvelfreak

10-17-10, 04:23 PM

Congrats. He looking sweet. From the looks of the lump in him that's perfect sizes.:)

presspirate

10-17-10, 05:30 PM

Yessir, thats a satisfied little carpet. Congrats!

shaunyboy

10-18-10, 08:18 AM

I'm in the process of defrosting a fuzzy rat from Layne Labs for my carpet. They are much bigger than fuzzy mice! I'm a bit nervous its too big. Some seemed to almost be the size of an small adult mouse. I picked one that is maybe 2x to 2 1/5x the size of the fuzzy mice he ate without issue. Fingers crossed....

its only carpets i work with mate

you would be surprized at how big a food item a carpet can comfily put away they are awsome eaters

cheers shaun

Ch^4

11-01-10, 11:31 PM

I figured I am going to try to feed him every 6 days. So for now one rat fuzzy should be good. I am trying to find a place I can order 50 at once. That should be better than having 100 on hand. Or if worst comes to worst I could just order the 100 and post an ad locally to sell half of them. For the next week or so I'll feed him a mouse fuzzy unless I find a local place with the rat fuzzys.

I hope he takes rats without much issue.

Just to throw in my 2 cents; I'm a new JCP owner as well and my little girl is more or less exactly the same size as your little guy. Also very nippy and nervous, but calming down quickly!

The breeder had her on 2 F/T mice fuzzies every 5-7 days. As mentioned by many of the other members, it's good to get your snake on rats as soon as possible. I decided to get my girl some F/T rat pinks, which are actually a gram or two larger than mice fuzzies. I gave her two on Friday night (first time being fed from me....woohooo!) and she knocked those pinks down like nothing! There was a good size bulge in her belly and she was inactive until tonight, so I'm fairly certain it was an appropriately sized meal.

I got 25 F/T rat pinks from Snake Food, Reptile Food, Feed Carnivores, Birds of Prey (http://www.laynelabs.com). I looked at MiceDirect and some others, but you're somewhat limited to large quantities. I am not trying to praise or bash either company (I will order from both), but for smaller quantities, Layne Labs does the trick.

Hope that helps and GORGEOUS JCP! (We can breed ours in a few years since they're about the same age ;) ).

Xanafein

11-02-10, 03:24 AM

lol i wouldnt mind letting my sweetheart breed with bumblebee, he has a pretty pattern

trying to get her on rats is tough for me though shes ue to eat in a few days wish me luck

Ch^4

11-03-10, 12:05 AM

lol i wouldnt mind letting my sweetheart breed with bumblebee, he has a pretty pattern

trying to get her on rats is tough for me though shes ue to eat in a few days wish me luck

Good luck getting your JCP on rats! Mine didn't take the rat pink the first try, but a couple days later she gobbled them right down.

I just went through changing 2 other snakes to F/T rats from mice. They both had no clue what to think of it at first. My BRB sniffed it and rubbed it, but then down the hatch. My CaliKing was not interested at all, but I made the rat pink do a little dance and that was enough to get him eating! Good luck!

Xanafein

11-03-10, 03:03 AM

thanks, shop ii go to was out of fresh rat, so i tossed her a smaller adult mouse, she struck and pulled him off the ground so hard the poor thing hit the mesh top of the tank, it was one hell of a strike

jamesb

11-04-10, 07:32 AM

He downed another rat two nights ago. My GF couldn't even watch cause she thought it was too big. He ate it and I put him back into his tank and he happily crawled into his tree. He is still hanging out.

Forgot to mention that he shed the day before I fed him. He shed well, but it ripped in two pieces so it was hard to measure. My estimate is about 2 feet long.

I keep trying to take him out every now and then so he gets used to me. He is doing better. Much less biting, but still a bit jumpy. I'll get some new photos once he digests his last meal.

jamesb

02-02-11, 08:44 PM

Here is a video I forgot I uploaded in December. Just him checking me out a bit. He is going to shed in a few days and then back to eating another rat!

YouTube - Jungle Carpet Python - Bumblebee (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_3veBhVVlU)

shaunyboy

02-03-11, 06:35 AM

Thanks :)

Now i'm just trying to figure out the food options and what is best as I mentioned above in post #8

your jungle will take a rat fluff/fuzzy no problem if that does not leave much of a bulge then try small rat weaners

i feed carpets rats right out of the egg

it can be difficult to get them swapped over from mice as they get older

an adult carpet will take a lot of large mice to keep it content and fed

its always better to get them onto rats asap

a carpet can take 2,3,4 times its girth in prey size

thats a really nice carpet you have there

cheers shaun

belovedboas

02-03-11, 10:45 AM

Beautiful jungle!! and full lol