Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My Black Rat female is quite shy, even weeks after coming to her new home. (She has a 60-gallon vivarium with naturalistic setup, 6 times larger than her former setup.) I had hoped for more inquisitiveness & activity, but she tends to stay hidden well over 95% of the time in the same corner.

Once out of her "room", she handles like a gem, and I enjoy her demeanor. She never hisses, musks nor bites.

I hear from others that their Black Rats are quite active, constantly exploring their cages. I've also learned from experience that there may be a gender issue here. Males of many snake species tend to be quite active & inquisitive; females are less so.

Are your females prone to stay hidden in the same spot of their enclosure, or do you find that behavior greatly depends on the individual?

In the wild, it is males that seek out the females. Males will travel over a larger range to find females to mate with. But does this translate into males being more active or more bold in captivity? I haven't seen it. It is not like you can guess the sex of your snakes by how much time they spend out of their hides.

I don't see any behavioral differences in my black rats based on gender. My female lemon is probably my most active black rat. I watch her on the prowl every night for hours. I also have a normal male and rusty female in a cage together, and both of them are extremely active, as well. In generally, I either see them both curled up together in the same corner, or both moving around in different parts of the cage.

It definitely depends on the snake itself. You haven't had your snake very long, have you? Give her some time! Let her settle in a little more, without holding her every day. Also, I'm not sure how warm they are, but my black rats seem to be a lot more active if there's a basking lamp on them than if there's a heat pad under them. They like to climb up on things to bask, and prowl around a lot while they're at it, compared to the ones who curl up on heat pads.

Yes, I agree. Be patient, give her time. I'll know more next spring & summer.

For heat, mostly I've been using a broad-spectrum basking lamp, but she seems to disregard it. I've yet to see her under it basking. I've begun using the under-tank heater to warm her biome more.

Either way, cool-end temperatures are at least 74 degrees. Her body remains cooler, however, hidden under wooden objects in her corner.

I can hardly wait until spring. We have almost an acre, with many trees, for exercising.

I can hardly wait until spring. We have almost an acre, with many trees, for exercising.

Carefull! Tame or not, given half a chance outside and she'll be gone! Turn your back on her for a minute and she'll be up a tree out of reach.
Mike.