'Tic Talk!

[Will0W783]

I know a few of us on here own beautiful reticulated pythons and retic morphs, so I figured I'd toss up a thread for everyone to share their favorite pictures and stories of their retics!
For those who don't own retics yet, share your retic wishlist! :)

Here are my 'tics:

First is Calypso, 2011 supertiger female
Next is Mojo, 2011 half-dwarf lavender albino tiger male
Finally is Orchid, 2005 purple albino (possibly het caramel).

[marvelfreak]

They're all beautiful. I would love a White phase like Jenn got.

[Jay]

Just a really nice looking Local for me. Not a fan of orange and yellow snakes. I prefer the most natural look possible. If I were even going to get a tic' it would be a Dwarf or SD.

[stephanbakir]

Mojo is healing nicely!
Glad I could help with Orchid :)

[KD35WIN.AS.ONE]

I like Calypso the best!

[Will0W783]

Thanks everyone...Stephan you've been a huge help with the genetics! :) I had her out a bit tonight and she's quite tame..although she's always moving, like the Energizer Bunny...she keeps going and going and going.

[Will0W783]

Jenn does have an incredible white-phase. The cool thing I learned about the Clark Type 1 albinism is that any parent animals will produce all three phases of offspring- white, lavender, and purple. But if you breed purple x purple, all you will get is purples.
I plan to breed Mojo to Orchid and Calypso when they are all large enough.

[youngster]

I really like Orchid but Calypso is probably my favorite

[stephanbakir]

What sex is orchid? Calypso is a stunner, only wish she was het albino!

[Lankyrob]

I will take any opportunity to post pics of my SD!

http://i375.photobucket.com/albums/oo200/Lankyrob1975/Photo0316.jpghttp://i375.photobucket.com/albums/oo200/Lankyrob1975/Photo0315.jpghttp://i375.photobucket.com/albums/oo200/Lankyrob1975/Photo0314.jpghttp://i375.photobucket.com/albums/oo200/Lankyrob1975/Photo0309.jpghttp://i375.photobucket.com/albums/oo200/Lankyrob1975/Photo0275.jpghttp://i375.photobucket.com/albums/oo200/Lankyrob1975/Photo0224.jpg

[stephanbakir]

For a second I honestly thought that last pic was one of those rubber chew toys you put the treats in for dogs :P

[Kayla90]

In the bath tub :D Lmao

I love mojo's colouring
but I also like calypso's colouring and pattern. They are all simply breath taking :D

[stephanbakir]

Hope you heal up quick Kim :)

[Will0W783]

Yeah I'm fine Stephan...John just knows not to sneeze on a retic anymore. For everyone else, I had Orchid out two nights ago for some socializing, and she was docile and curious. She's a tad more nervous than my others though, so I kept good hands on her. My fiance came in to see her, and sneezed. It startled Orchid, and she lunged, catching my middle finger on my right hand. My advice: do NOT get bitten by a large python- it really sucks. It required a few stitches and a half a night in the ER. I'm fine now though and Orchid is fine...she's not a mean snake by any means, but the incident highlights the need for cautious, calm slow movements around any snake, and awareness of their strike range at all times.

[Gungirl]

Glad to hear you are ok!

[Lankyrob]

Would normally say pics or it didnt happen but will let you off this time!! Glad you and snakey are both ok! :)

[Will0W783]

I know...pics or it didn't happen. Here you go, but I'm warning-they are not pretty.

[Kayla90]

Ouch XD
Well at least when people ask what happened you can stick the middle finger up at them.. lmao

[Jenn_06]

All the retics are looking sweet and the bite looks bad just got done watching a show about retics and this guy was looking for them in caves and got bite on the back of the lag by one, it looked really painful. I never want to get bite by any retic.

[brylecc1989]

Jenn it was Brady Barr right? I agree it looked painful, but he really set himself up for that one. What a stupid, unsafe way to catch a giant python. He did kinda sound like a girl when he screamed tho :p

[Will0W783]

I saw that episode too, and was thinking, "yep he deserved that one."
Really any time you get bitten it's your fault- a snake will always be a snake; we are the ones who lack consistency. Orchid is new, she was settling in and probably nervous, and I could have had a better grip near her head, but I was giving her space and she got spooked. I'm glad it wasn't a worse bite, and that it's on my non-dominant hand. I am hoping that this is the only giant python bite I'll ever have to take- it just sliced me up like a meat grinder. Ouch! A painful reminder to always keep on guard.

[brylecc1989]

I just got my Retic less then two weeks ago. I'm not totally sure of her genetics, but was told that shes a "slayer" and would top out about 12 feet. Her pics are in the thread "New Slayer Retic :)" She is so sweet and calm and curious i love her to death. But at feeding time, shes a monster! Right now shes around 4 feet, i cant imagine a feeding response bite off her at 10! I am soo happy i got her and totally reccomend these snakes to anyone with the space and resources for them!

Note to self: Remember willows middle finger and always stay on my toes!!!!

[Will0W783]

Brylecc, I saw the pics- very nice retic. "slayer" is a common misspelling of "Selayar" (See.lay.R). They are an island locality of retics that stay slightly smaller, like the Jampea dwarf. Selayars are known for aberrant patterns and brighter colors.

[brylecc1989]

Thanks willow. i love her :)

[Will0W783]

Selayars are really awesome- I almost got one, but the seller backed out last minute and decided to keep her. I was bummed, but as luck would have it, I ended up with Calypso, Mojo and Orchid instead. I love all three of my retics!

[stephanbakir]

Glad you are better Kim!

[Jenn_06]

older pic of Cleo my super tiger retic, this girl can eat and eat and eat if i let her.
http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o284/joejenn06/4-23-20111.jpg

and Isis my White phase albino retic.... my baby i cant love a pet more then i love her, she is the sweetest snake i ever seen.
(a old pic but i love this one the most)
http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o284/joejenn06/roxy/IMG_0822.jpg
she would sit like this for hours if i let her.

[Will0W783]

Awesome Jenn- I love your retics. Isis is sooo gorgeous.
I think my fiance is afraid of Orchid now. :-/
She's sure a hateful snake. She hunkers into a corner of her cage and will just watch intently, but as soon as you get her out she's ok. Then when you put her back into the cage and close the door, she starts striking at the door. She doesn't strike when you open the door to get her out...only when you've put her back in. It's weird, but my fiance is getting irritated by it. I'm also concerned about nose rub. She keeps peeing a LOT so I have to get her out to clean the cage, and I also want to work with her to try to get her used to me and hopefully tame her a bit more.
I really hope she calms down, or I fear my fiance will pressure me to sell her.

[Gungirl]

Jenn I love seeing pic's of Isis. Her colors always make me :freakedout::yes: :shocked:

[Jenn_06]

How are you taking her out of the cage with a hook?

that sucks Kim, just remember me if you have to sell her.

[Jenn_06]

Jenn I love seeing pic's of Isis. Her colors always make me :freakedout::yes: :shocked:

Thanks, i cant go in the room with out looking in her cage.

[stephanbakir]

older pic of Cleo my super tiger retic, this girl can eat and eat and eat if i let her.
http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o284/joejenn06/4-23-20111.jpg
Stunning super tiger, does that black stripe run the length of her body without breaks?

Awesome Jenn- I love your retics. Isis is sooo gorgeous.
I think my fiance is afraid of Orchid now. :-/
She's sure a hateful snake. She hunkers into a corner of her cage and will just watch intently, but as soon as you get her out she's ok. Then when you put her back into the cage and close the door, she starts striking at the door. She doesn't strike when you open the door to get her out...only when you've put her back in. It's weird, but my fiance is getting irritated by it. I'm also concerned about nose rub. She keeps peeing a LOT so I have to get her out to clean the cage, and I also want to work with her to try to get her used to me and hopefully tame her a bit more.
I really hope she calms down, or I fear my fiance will pressure me to sell her.
I would invest in a new cage with a center divider. It gives you the option of cleaning out the cage without a second person, feeding alone etc.

[Jenn_06]

There might be one really really small break in the stripe but you cant really tell.

[stephanbakir]

Damn, breed that puppy :)

[Jenn_06]

she is a possible het albino & Genetic stripe

[stephanbakir]

66%? /drool.

[Jenn_06]

I think so

[Will0W783]

How are you taking her out of the cage with a hook?

that sucks Kim, just remember me if you have to sell her.

Yes, I am hook-training her. The previous owner threw a towel over her head to distract her when he'd get her out, so I think she has no clue what the hook is and thinks that she's going to get blinded every time someone approaches her cage. I'm hoping that she will calm down with patience and a routine. If not though, I will remember you Jenn. :)
Orchid is one of the nicest purples I've come across though, so I wont' part with her unless the fiance makes it so. I think if she calms down a bit though, he'll become less freaked out by her.

[Jenn_06]

I think showing her the hook and working with her is going to help a lot and should not take too long because retics are so smart. best of luck

[Will0W783]

I'm hoping. The guy I got her from has already put the stuff he got from me for sale, listing extra morphs that are not there. *GRRRRR*** I think he's a flipper and who knows what he's done to poor Orchid. :(

I am trying to slowly teach her that I mean no harm, and hopefully she'll catch on. I'm taking her out for a handling session tonight- wearing a sweatshirt and jeans to protect myself a bit if she gets feisty. I'll let you guys know how it goes.

[stephanbakir]

Leather jackets are great too.

[Will0W783]

True. But I'm not risking my baby soft Nine West jacket. It's like the only designer piece of clothing I own.
Orchid cannot make minced meat of that.

[stephanbakir]

Go to value village and pick up a ratty one for like 15$, it will save your body from allot more then a sweater will.

[Will0W783]

I don't have Value Village around me, but I'm sure I'll find something comparable. Darn Orchid- she's costing me a pretty penny already, what with the bite, now I have to buy more clothes....shame on her! She's lucky she is so damned good-looking.

[stephanbakir]

You can make money selling pictures online, but thats not for everyone.

[Jenn_06]

You can make money selling pictures online, but thats not for everyone.

how you do that?

[stephanbakir]

Against the rules to talk about it ^^

[Jenn_06]

darn it lol

[Will0W783]

lol, Jenn and Stephan!

[stephanbakir]

http://www.newenglandreptile.com/images/retics/gchildblack/gcblack_main.jpg
Black golden childs are sexy as hell.

[Kayla90]

That is a really nice snake XD
Definitely some beautiful colouring going on :)

[Will0W783]

OOOh, that black golden child is awesome. I love pure black serpents....so sinister-looking. :)

[stephanbakir]

You buy one and I'll get the other and we can make babies :)

[stephanbakir]

Side note : Dibs on golden child <3

[Will0W783]

Sounds like a plan ;)
Baby making is always fun....even if you're just the matchmaker. lol!

[Lankyrob]

You buy one and I'll get the other and we can make babies :)

Are we still talking snake babies here?? :crazy::rolleyes::eek: Just checking!! :Wow::freakedout:

[stephanbakir]

Are we still talking snake babies here?? :crazy::rolleyes::eek: Just checking!! :Wow::freakedout:
Not 100% sure if the snakes will make babies, or the snakes will be gifts to the other person in exchange for baby making privileges.

[Will0W783]

Not 100% sure if the snakes will make babies, or the snakes will be gifts to the other person in exchange for baby making privileges. :Wow: LMAO!!!!

[Kayla90]

Stephan I want your babies.. but you already know that...
Your Taiwan beauty babies.. and your future cobra babies.. I want at least one of all your babies.. :D

[stephanbakir]

Could be arranged.

[marionsclan]

Could be arranged.

You can't talk about making money selling pics but you're OK with pimping yourself out. Sheeeshh... what's wrong with this picture? ;)

[stephanbakir]

You can't talk about making money selling pics but you're OK with pimping yourself out. Sheeeshh... what's wrong with this picture? ;)
It was subtle. I cant directly talk about selling pics for money on this forum because of the young eyes. The ssnakess chatroom is crazy and there is nothing subtle about it :P

[Kayla90]

It was subtle. I cant directly talk about selling pics for money on this forum because of the young eyes. The ssnakess chatroom is crazy and there is nothing subtle about it :P

LMAO yea I'm pretty sure this stuff is pg-13 compared to half the stuff we talk about in the chat.. wahahah

[Will0W783]

Oh God, the chatroom is hilarious!

[Will0W783]

Update on Miss Cranky pants snake, Orchid. She ate 3 large rats for me on Tuesday. She's been moved into a Vision 422 cage so that I can use an external lamp and she can't knock it down like she did the heat panel in the Boamaster.
She's been calming down a lot- went a whole week without striking at the glass once. But then this morning she was lying in an odd, knotted-up position and I got concerned so I cracked the door and tapped her with the hook. It threw her into a rage and she started striking the glass again. *sigh*
My beautiful, moody diva....whatever will I do with her?

[stephanbakir]

Make babies and love her for her unique personality.

[Jenn_06]

its just snake PMS lol

[stephanbakir]

Lol, I tried quite hard to avoid that statement :P

[Will0W783]

I am wondering about the female side of it actually. The guy at one point had said she "hooked up" with his male. She's way too small to be healthily bred (9.5 feet and 22 pounds), but could it be possible she's pregnant and that is contributing to her anger at the world?

I'm going to bring her out for a friendly handling session again tonight. Hopefully it will go as well as the last one. She was fine last night until she got the medicine and then she got really angry and was striking the tote she was soaking in over and over. It shook from the force of her attacks.

[stephanbakir]

It's possible, it would be risky but is it possible to palpate her?
Just give her some alone time for a while.
What male did she hook up with.

[Jenn_06]

if she did hook up with a male i would ask the other owner when it was and might go to the vet to see if they can get a xray and see if you can see any eggs.

[stephanbakir]

By now, the eggs should be visible for sure.

[Will0W783]

I've only had her for a week and a half. The previous owner had mentioned about a week before I got her that he might keep her because his male (purple albino, 12-13 feet long) had locked up with her. I have no idea if this is true, or if it happened once, twice...whatever. The guy seems to have no recollection of things he's said once he's said them. I think he's a whack-job to be honest. He told me she was 7 years old...there's no friggin' way a 7 year old female retic would only be 9.5 feet. So I have no idea what, if anything, to believe from him. He also said she was friendly outside of the cage but could be touchy inside the cage. "Touchy" is the understatement of the year...lmao! I was concerned for her well-being, so when I was offered her again, I opted to take her away from the guy, who either was lying to get me to take her, or didn't know what he was doing and was breeding her way too soon.

[stephanbakir]

If shes 7 years old is there a chance shes a dwarf... Even then shes the smallest 7 year old dwarf female on the planet...

Give her some alone time and just wait... Cant hurt. Does her viv have a divider?

[Will0W783]

Oh, also she ate 3 large rats on Tuesday. She's quite thin for a snake of almost 10 feet...she's only 22 pounds empty. I'm just wondering if she could be more aggressive because she had been breeding? Most likely she's just a hateful snake and will always be. But I can hope and continue to work with her and see how we progress. If she becomes more aggressive than she is now....i.e. bitey outside of the cage....I cannot keep her. I really don't relish the thought of a violent 18-foot snake. It's rather frustrating and I feel cheated by the tool I got her from.

[stephanbakir]

After a while if she is still like this you might want to pass her to a breeder friend who is willing to deal with an angry snake. I'd do it if I was ready/closer.

[Will0W783]

That's definitely a possibility. I have always wanted a purple albino, but I dont' want to fight with my fiance over her all the time either. Time will tell if she cools off or not. As she settles and recovers from the RI, she'll either get nicer or she'll have more energy to be angrier, lol.

[Jenn_06]

She might be 7 years old and under fed, feeding has a lot to do with the growth rate of a snake.

[stephanbakir]

Thats REALLY underfed if its that... My shortest female mainland was 8 feet at a year old..

[Will0W783]

Well, I guess I'll have to see how her growth rate goes with me. I'm thinking she's around 2 years old, but then again I've seen people who have retics that are 6-7 feet and 2 years old. She just seems too small to possibly be as old as the guy said...
She's way too thin to handle the rabbits I have, so I gave her a large rat and the next day I gave her two more. They left a noticeable bulge. I am going to look for XXL or Jumbo rats or smaller rabbits tomorrow at the expo. I'm also going to do another handling session. She hasn't been out except for the shots the last week because I've been too sick to do much of anything. However, after her spazfest last night I would like to follow up with a positive experience for us both.
Hopefully she still flips the switch from angry snake to calm, curious snake once she's out. I can deal with that if she stays that way.

[Jenn_06]

Well Isis is 2 years old and 9ft but her mother was only 14ft so she might be on the smaller side of retics. All retics grow different some get 10 there first year some don't. Just try not to over feed i see too many retics look as fat as brums.

[Will0W783]

I plan to give her either 3 large rats, or 1 larger appropriate food item (small rabbit?) every two weeks. Then I will judge her shed rate and growth over the next few months. If it needs to be adjusted I'll adjust the amount of food.
I'm feeding my hatchling, Mojo, once every 5 days. Calypso, at 2.5 feet, gets fed every 7-10 days.
I work hard to make sure none of my snakes are obese, as it can be really bad for them and really hard to get something as inactive as a snake to lose weight. I would think Orchid's more along the lines of 2-3 years old.
I highly doubt the guy had her for 6 years as he told me. He claims he fed her 4 jumbo rats every 2-3 weeks, and that should have put her growth up over 9 feet in 6 years. But who knows. I just want her to be healthy and comfortable. She is very nervous and defensive.

[stephanbakir]

Its HARD to make small retics overweight, we powerfed ours for the first little while, to get them on pinky rabbits asap, then slowed down to a 7 day cycle till a year, then after that down to a 7-14 day cycle dependent on size/growth rate.

[Will0W783]

That's pretty much my plan, except I'm trying to ride the line and not quite powerfeed. Mojo will eat, and then poop 2 days later, so I try to feed him every 5 days or so.
He just bumped up to rat pups though, and they fill him up well so he will only take food every 6-7 days.

[stephanbakir]

Nice, upload pics of the new tic'!

[Will0W783]

I will once she sheds out. She's deep in shed right now and scared out of her little mind. She's very docile but I can see the heavy breathing and she's mushed into a corner, crammed behind her hide. I need to come up with good names for her and the A. ceratophora....I'm running out of ideas. lol

[stephanbakir]

Call her "Willow"