New to Blood Pythons - Page 2

Bonecrusher82 · 05-10-10, 03:08 PM

I know they are from different parts of the world, and there was a parasite in a fresh bag of Cypress

Feebo · 05-10-10, 03:18 PM

Hi Bonecrusher, I keep Blood pythons, looking at your tank in the photograph I`d say you need to up your humidity by quite a bit. The glass should be speckled with water most of the time, they need it good and humid. As for the things you`ve mentioned, Bloods aren`t really a snake that can be handled very often, especially as they start to get bigger. They`re nervous and they`re grumpy. They hide ALL the time, I hardly ever see even my biggest Blood python just loafing about the viv, he`s always hiding.
They aren`t a display snake, they really don`t want to be in a high traffic area at all and as I say, even moderate handling is too much for a Blood. That`s not to say you should never handle your snake! I get to handle all of my snakes at some point during the course of looking after them and doing health checks, but some species just aren`t for touchy feely and Bloods are most definatly one of those snakes. A fantastic snake though! I adore my Bloods!

Bonecrusher82 · 05-10-10, 03:22 PM

The water spots are there from me cleaning it with wipe out before I put her in it. I am very picky on keeping things clean ever since my red tail got sick before I left for Iraq. I do apologize for not dry wiping the spots off. Jasmine has been spending a fair share of time today out of hiding which made me happy

marvelfreak · 05-10-10, 03:42 PM

No feebo saying you want to see water most the time . That way you know the humidity high enough. Also at a foot and a half long it should be eating rat fuzzies. Blood can eat rat from the time they're born. Plus they have less fat than mice. Nice looking blood by the way.

Bonecrusher82 · 05-10-10, 04:01 PM

She hasnt eaten for me yet but I will prolly try again tomarrow, also what do you guys think about moss for humidity? I've read that it'd be quite good for her as it's something native to her. I basically am trying to set her viv up as close to what she seen in the wild. Granted I have reused the tank and water dishes from my ball but she does seem to be happy so far

**Aaron_S** · 05-10-10, 04:07 PM

Native eh? I'm sure she burrows deep into the piles of aspen deep in the jungle of Sumatra.

You could use a 6 inch deli cup and cut a side out and keep damp moss in it for a humid hide. I personally used paper towel when I first got my borneo short tail python. She did fine with just hides. She's now in a rubbermaid with some jungle earth substrate for humidity purposes.

Bonecrusher82 · 05-10-10, 04:09 PM

Wow really? I must have joined with a big kick me sign on my back

**Aaron_S** · 05-10-10, 04:12 PM

Remarks aside, I still answered your question with a method on how to utilize the moss if that's your preferred humidity.

Don't listen to people who say "you need wet sides to tell you it's humid." You should be using a hygrometer and I assume you do since you mentioned it's in the 80 percentile.

marvelfreak · 05-10-10, 04:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bonecrusher82

She hasnt eaten for me yet but I will prolly try again tomarrow, also what do you guys think about moss for humidity? I've read that it'd be quite good for her as it's something native to her. I basically am trying to set her viv up as close to what she seen in the wild. Granted I have reused the tank and water dishes from my ball but she does seem to be happy so far

I have a friend who use peat moss for his rainbows an it works perfected. Hold humidity real good. He mist it once a day, twice a day when they're in shed.

Bonecrusher82 · 05-10-10, 04:13 PM

I figured it's be worth checking out, try something different, maybe a soaked stuffed monkey with a big goofy grin

Terence · 05-10-10, 04:18 PM

Try geting rid of the "fish tank" and get a reptile enclosure. I know cash is frequently an issue, just wanted to give you a little food for thought. Screen tops just don't work well with maintaining high humidity.

Bonecrusher82 · 05-10-10, 04:20 PM

It's actually an R-Zilla reptile/amphibian encloser size:40 Breeder

marvelfreak · 05-10-10, 04:41 PM

Like Aaron S i keep mine in a tub. It makes keeping the humidity up lot easier. Remember they are very touchy as babies. Do you use a under the tank heatpad? If so put a second smaller water dish over the heat pad part way help up the humidity. This works really good. It's how i keep the humidity around 80% in my Borneo and Rainbow cages.

Will0W783 · 05-10-10, 05:36 PM

I keep my bloods in melamine cages-even the reptile R-Zilla tanks have a screen lid which is often too much ventilation for a blood. Moss might work, but you need more than just moss since she will want to burrow. I do not recommend keeping a blood on paper since they really are a burrowing snake, but I know many do it and have success. If you want, you can put moss in a humid hide for her and have cypress mulch or jungle floor dirt (basically a clean peat stuff). There should not be parasites in cypress mulch; if there are, get it from a different store, but you NEED to have a good mulchy, heavy substrate that will hold humidity well for her to be truly healthy. She most likely won't eat if the conditions are not good for her in her cage. We are trying to help you here; some of us may have a more blunt approach than others, but really we all just want the best for your snake. I would also recommend reading as much as you can on blood pythons, both their wild lives and their care in captivity- websites of established keepers and books published by reptile-oriented publishing services are very good sources. In the future, it's always a good idea to have a proper enclosure set up before getting a new species. Some species are not for everyone, and you need to know beforehand if you can give a certain animal proper environment; it will save you tons of stress, headache and heartache.

Bonecrusher82 · 05-10-10, 06:01 PM

Yes I do have a UTH. I only have 1 pet store in the area and it's Petco. I will look into some Cypress Mulch. I know you are all trying to help and you are. I am planning to build a viv by hand with all the comforts of her home as I plan to keep her for a very long time. Then her tank gets to be the new home for my behemoth red eared slider