It's all your fault!! and I have a few questions...

[trailblazer295]

One question I do have is do IJ's fade in colour as they age? I worry they are like BPs where adults look nothing like juvies.

[EL Ziggy]

I agree with Mink, I doubt you'll need a mister. I have seen others use high hides with great results. I wish I could attach some to the top of my enclosure but I'm not very mechanically inclined. I haven't heard of IJs losing much of their coloring as adults but I can't say definitively. They may dull some as they age.

[trailblazer295]

The mister is basically built into the cage and stand I can always turn it off or use it as a booster in the winter. I intend to get some new humidity sensors so I'll regulate from there.

When I refered to high hides I didn't mean right to the top but more so just up in the air supported off the ground a few branches, a cork bark ledge and a hide and you're done. I'm also kind of a mechanic by trade so maybe it just seems easy to me I don't know. I can figure out a hide up in the air in the hot spot and provide cover in other areas so it can seek refuge in various temps.

A slight dulling is one thing but as you know BPs change A LOT which is my worry.

[Minkness]

So far, my female IJ has had a beautiful chamge in colors. Very subtle. When I got her she was black and cream. And now she's got black, deep chocolate, pale cream and some rich gold tones.

[toddnbecka]

Regarding how quickly they grow, here's a couple pics of my jungle/cross. First was when he/she arrived about 15-16 months ago hanging on the edge of a 12" wide aquarium, then about a week or so ago. Note the difference in colors, the baby beige has become bright yellow peppered with black. Still the same easygoing disposition though, even when hungry:








I moved this one out of the 29 and into a 40 breeder at about one year old, the new baby IJ now has the 29. The jungle/cross has been as mellow as a red tail boa from the start. The little IJ was striking at anything that moved at first, but settled down after a couple months. Still not quite as easy to pick up as the first one (a bit cage defensive) but not a problem to handle once in hand.
Though not bright yellow like the jungle/cross, she is showing some lighter/brighter colors as she grows.
This was on arrival, looked like a month-old hatchling then:




I don't have any recent pics, but the cream color is becoming brighter, leaning towards yellow in some areas. Growth is also fast, just like the first one. Carpets do change as they grow, but always for the better, unlike BP's that dull out with size and age.

[trailblazer295]

Thanks for the pics, getting better is fine I was worried IJs were like coastals and dulled out a lot. I don't mind getting tagged by a baby and work on taming before they are adults. I'm nervous holding nervous adults, I got very lucky holding a new to the store adult bolovian boa, I intentionally held her body and positioned my hand in such a way the slack to her head couldn't reach my head and sure enough at one point when I looked away I could see out of the corner of my eye a flash of grey. She fell short of hitting me but I'm pretty damn sure she striked at me. Thankfully long arms and hand position saved me. Needless to say she went back in her cage after that. I'm also nervous holding largish snakes now because of fear of being struck in the face. Small snakes biting my hands and arms I'm not worried about, a baby spotted python bit my thumb like it was huge but really didn't break the skin.

I trust my snakes because I have worked with them. Mushu I can wrap around my neck and chill, banzai is mostly there but work in progress and yzma is still just nervous in general but working on calming her down. She doesn't bite or fight just stays very still or flees.

[toddnbecka]

None of our snakes have ever gone for the face. I have been tagged on the fingers by both carpets, once when the jungle/cross was moving from the footrest toward my lap. I really think that was due to lack of stable support. As he came up along my leg he seemed a bit wobbly, and grabbed my finger a split second before he fell onto the floor. I remamber a similar incident with a red tail boa many years ago. A girl wanted to hold my 5' snake, and before I could say anything picked her up with both hands across the back. No belly support, the snake started wiggling a bit, then the girl panicked and literally threw her at me. The snake bit her in the forearm to grab hold of something before she fell.
The little IJ got me when I was reaching down too close to her cave entrance to retrieve a f/t mouse that had fallen down into the tank. Both drew a little blood, but the strike from the much smaller IJ hurt because she had her full force behind it.
One or both of the thayeri kings have tried to eat a finger that smelled like rodent at feeding time, but neither incident broke the skin, though I did have to run water over one to discourage it, lol.

[EL Ziggy]

I like your carpets TnB. You have a very diverse and impressive collection.

[trailblazer295]

That's good to hear, I would be getting a baby so I would be able to work with it as it grows. I always use tongs for handling food so there isn't any association with my hand and food. I've been tap training my boa as well although he is just a worm at the moment but just getting into that habit. Would be tap training a carpet as well.

[EL Ziggy]

Blaze, I think getting a young snake is a good idea too. I like growing with my snakes. Better a nippy hatchling than a nippy adult . If you want a great book on Morelia try to find a copy of The Complete Carpet Python by Nick Mutton and Justin Julander. The information and pictures are great.

[trailblazer295]

Yeah a carpet isn't the kind of snake I'd want to get as an adult. With feeding response and size I don't have the experience with herps in general and certainly large snakes to handle a adult biter from someone else.

[Aaron_S]

Originally Posted by trailblazer295

Oh you're getting added to the list man, damn I can't edit on this site.

Mod I need you to add jpsteele to the list lol

Done.

We had an issue some years back so there was a change to only allow edits for 30 minutes after a post.

[trailblazer295]

Originally Posted by Aaron_S

Done.

We had an issue some years back so there was a change to only allow edits for 30 minutes after a post.

Thanks lol

That's weird I'm on a lot of forums and they all allow you to edit. It's very annoying sometimes.

[Aaron_S]

Originally Posted by trailblazer295

Thanks lol

That's weird I'm on a lot of forums and they all allow you to edit. It's very annoying sometimes.

Yup. We don't. We had an issue and this was the resolution.

[trailblazer295]

Back on to serious topic what would be the size of a carpet that a 24x18x24 wouldn't be big enough?