Posted by:
toshamc
at Fri Feb 10 14:11:13 2006 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by toshamc ]
First of all - I don't know how long you have had this animal - but the constant handling - will stress him out and he'll keep biting. Put him in an enclosure and leave him - he's heavily stressed and he's been mistreated - this means the only time he should see you in the next couple of weeks is when you change his water or feed him. If he has been eating live at the store - this is not the time to get him switched to f/t - continue feeding him live until he settles in - you may feed him in his cage to reduce any stress - keep an eye on him and remove the mouse if it's not eaten in 15 to 20 minutes (a mouse running around the cage will further stress him). The t-shirt trick works great - put that stinky old shirt in the cage with him and then let him get comfy - make sure that it's your wifes shirt since she will be the one breaking him in.
After a couple of weeks - then you try handling him - 5 minutes at a time and what ever you do - do not teach him that he can get away with biting you - if he strikes at you reach in and pick him up anyway. Then once he is in your hands - just sit with him don't walk around or try to play with him - let him just sit and huff and puff at you - then put him back in his cage. Do it every other day and gradually increase the time of handling.
Most balls will eventually outgrow the bitting - some don't - but even an adult ball doesnt bite too bad.
BTW Did you heat up the rat after thawing? And 8" tweezers aren't quite long enough - I use 18 - 24 just so there is only one hot spot dangling in front of the snake and no confusing my hand with the food.
Hope some of this helps.
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Tosha 
"Nihil facimus sed id bene facimus"
11.42.0 Ball Python (Harry and Fluffy and gang)
1.0.0 Angolan Python (Anakin Skywalker)
0.0.1 Green Tree Python (Verdi - yeah I know but my kids love the book)
0.1.0 Bredls Python (Smurfette)
0.2.0 Feline (Pippen and Pandora)
0.0.1 Desert Tortoise (Pope John Paul aka JP )
2.2.1 Fish (1,2,3,4)
0.0.0 frogs rescued from pool skimmer
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RE: Here's my experience... - toshamc, Fri Feb 10 14:11:13 2006