Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello everyone. I just purchased my first Green Tree Python today, and absolutely love it. Granted it bit me a couple times. I had a couple questions though, and imput would be awesome.

1. What is the desired humidity in the cage. I read places various things. Most people say moderate to high, I have heard 70-80% and then I have heard 90% and I was wondering.

2. How should I go about taming it. It is captive born, and about a week old, I know young pythons are a bit fiesty.

Here are some pictures of my set up. Any help would be appreciated, you can email me as well at "bigsmooth1269@yahoo.com"

Thanks

ok pics didnt work

Image

Congrats on your new aquisition!

Humidity isn't really anything to stress about. It's more a relative thing and there is no accurate way to guage the percentage......at least there's no inexpensive way. It can depend on many things such as, the cage, the animal, the region in which you live, and your room. Try giving the chondro a good spraying and see how long it takes for your cage to "dry" out. My adult cages get sprayed about once per week and sometimes less. My baby and yearling cages are sprayed once a day or every couple of days. Just use your judgement.

As for taming, it looks like you've purchased a nice little Biak type. I wouldn't worry too much about taming at this point. Although Biaks are known for their "snappy" attitudes, your little guy is really too young to be handled. I would give it at least 4-6 more months of growing before attempting to "tame" it. If having a calm animal is your ultimate goal, try getting it out a couple of times per week while on it's perch. Try to get it to tolerate gentle touching until it reaches a size suitable for holding. Most chondros seem to have a turn-around point where they can be handled with less fear of biting or "freaking out". lol. This point can vary from one animal to the next, but it's usually around 1 year of age.

Good luck and have a blast!

Brandon Osborne

Brandon Osborne Reptiles

Congrats on the addition, and let the addiction begin for you. I have to say though, you might want to spring for The More COmplete Chondro, by Greg Maxwell. It has answers to many many questions, and will be constant refrence source when little questions may arise.

I am not going to act like I know everything about GTP's, but I have learned a thing or two from my five that range in age from neos to adults. This was the first snake species I ever kept and if you just figure out a system that works for you then everything will click on all cylinders. By system I mean a routine; To be honest with you, I have no idea what my humidity is, and I havent known for a year (I bought a humidity gauge when i got my first gtp). All I do is make sure every morning I spray all of their cages heavily, and that five minutes later the cage glass or tub is completely fogged up. Thats it....I have read on other forums that some people will wet a towel and use it as their substrate and it works well too. The key in my eyes is to make sure you have enough venilation to where the cage will be dry by night. The only exception to this is in the evening I will spray down a cage of a snake coming to the end of their shed cycle. So that is the long winded approach "I" use. Others may do things differently, but like I said the key is finding out what works for your snakes and know how your cages will exchange air.

As far as "taming". Well no snake is tame, some are tolerable of being held, and others aren't. True some may grow out of their bitey younger years. But I have a Aru type male that grew into being a real wild man, and he christened me with my first snake bite. The key to not getting bit will be to interact with your snake during the daytime, have removeable perches (you can cradle the snake in your hand as opposed to trying to pull it off its perch), and dont force anything...if it wants to leave its perch it will. It looks like you have a baby Biak type so it may be a less than happy camper for its whole life, not a lot you can do to change that.

I wish you the best with your little one, and I hope you enjoy the addiction as much as almost everyone who gets into these wonderful snakes. Two tidbits you might want to consider: get some plastic perches **coat hangers or 1/2 inch pvc for a neo that size, because those wood dowels are going to start getting moldy and harbor some nastiness you wouldn't want your little one perching on. Also, (If you haven't done this already) you might want to get some fecals on that little one to make sure it doesnt have any internal parasites, which could ruin your first experience with green trees even if you are doing everything absolutely right. GOOD LUCK

I'm assuming that when you said it's a week old, you mean you've had it for a week. A week old neonate will probably be a serious hassle to get feeding! It's a very cute baby and handling should be kept to a minimum to avoid kinking of the spine. They tend to be more nippy as youngsters anyway. Out of my five, I have one that will bite you each time, every time if you try to handle her. One is fine once he's out of the cage, and the rest are perfectly fine to handle. Looking forward to seeing your little one change.

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4.5~Cornsnakes
2.3.1~Green tree python
1.0~ATB
Dogs, cats, horses....
www.franclycac.com

I bought it at a Reptile Show in Hamburg Yesterday. They told me that he was between 1-2 weeks old, but he already has eaten. They had a whole clutch there.

You need to use caution when buying anything at shows just as when you buy online. An animal sold as 1-2 weeks old raises all kinds of red flags. Most reputable breeders wouldn't let these go until they are at least 4-6 months old. You may have your work cut out for you trying to get it established to feeding if the age is correct. Other than what was already mentioned about the wooden perches, your setup looks good, just keep the temps around 86 on the high end and humidity up (just not constantly). Forget about handling it or even taking it out on the perch until it settles in and you get about a dozen meals into it. Where are you located, in general? I live in western PA and may be able to assist you if you have any problems, if you are nearby. Keep us posted on its progress, especially regarding feeding. If you have other herps, isolate it from them for quarantine purposes (keep it in a separate room).

Good luck,
Bart

I definitely wanted a young one, because I love the colour red that they are. I live in central New Jersey. It shows interest when I move around it, I would open the top to check the temp and it would use its tongue, and at night I walked by and I am pretty sure it snapped at the cage. I will let you guys know my progress, thanks for the help.

They don't usually start changing color until they are closer to a year old. Mostly anyway. The problem is that most chondro babies are very difficult to get feeding consistantly at the beginning and will usually try the most experienced person until established. Most reputable breeders will not sell babies until they've had at LEAST 10 meals in them, and some want 20. You might have some serious problems getting this one to eat. A lot of times they will take the first meal, but won't eat after that unless you work at it. If you don't have problems...consider yourself darn lucky!! I wish there were more honest people out there. Those babies should never have been sold that young, and there's a good chance that a lot of those will die because they are sold to people like you who didn't know better and won't know how to get these suckers started.
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4.5~Cornsnakes
2.3.1~Green tree python
1.0~ATB
Dogs, cats, horses....
www.franclycac.com

Well Thats reassuring. Thats why I talk to you guys, to get the most info I can so I can raise a good snake. The breeder told me that the snake ate before, and I just fed it about half hour ago and it took the pinkie fine. Thanks for the help though

I just got a new one myself. It's a yearling and it's a beaut.
I haven't tried to handle it yet. But it seems pretty calm. When I open the cage to mist, it just looks at me and then starts drinking off of itself.

Here's one pic-

Here's another pic

University of Southern Indiana huh? Where are you located? Was this shipped to you or do you live in E'ville? That's where I'm from.

BTW, nice looking chondro.

Brandon Osborne
Brandon Osborne Reptiles

I live in Florida. Those were pics that the breeder sent before it was shipped. I haven't had a chance to take any photos of my own yet.

Thanks,
David
http://www.FloridaPets.org