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I have had a baby borneo for about 3 weeks. I have handled her a few times with no problems, but since I fed her last she keeps trying bite me through the glass. Why all the sudden mood change?

Have you tried to pick her up?...I have a little female right now that would strike at the side of her tub anytime anything moved in the room but when I actually stuck my hand in to get her out she turned into a big pile of goo. She is actually very docile and easy to handle, she just didn't like things moving around her cage. Also, I have had a few that were ok the first few times I held them and then became aggressive but they have all calmed down with regular handling.

Maybe getting ready to shed?
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I got her out today and she didnt try to bite me, but she was kinda tense. I fed her today, and she ate pretty fast. Doesnt look like shes fixing to shed yet. Dont they ususally shed 3-4 months after birth? Also, is there anything wrong with just droppin the mouse in? I have used tongs before, so I know thats how most people do it. But, when feeding small mice, is there anything wrong with doing this.

>>I got her out today and she didnt try to bite me, but she was kinda tense. I fed her today, and she ate pretty fast. Doesnt look like shes fixing to shed yet. Dont they ususally shed 3-4 months after birth? Also, is there anything wrong with just droppin the mouse in? I have used tongs before, so I know thats how most people do it. But, when feeding small mice, is there anything wrong with doing this.

Hurm. I suspect I am going to embarrass myself. I didnt use tongs as much as I should have until I got my first borneos. Honestly, ball pythons dont do much and when feeding my large burms, a BBQ tong worked. (Dont tell the family I use the same things to cook with). When I started working with the borneos and specifically my Allister (eva is VERY mellow and a very light feeder) I was floored with their reaction. For the record I have had allister for about 2 years now and he feeds the exact same EVERY time. Yesterday when I put his rat in his cage, he was so excited he just struck, open mouthed, I jumped because I barely had the door open and fell off the stool. Now he, along with the rest of my younger bloods and carpets will not eat off of the ground. Honestly I would NOT want to me holding ANYTHING food related that close to his mouth.

Tongs give us added space and ability to work. I now have 4 pair in my small room. Honestly if allister would have grabbed me yesterday we would have both gone for a ride because I was already falling! They give us a barrier for safety as well. Always practice safe snake.

Also I would limit your handling a little. They are a quiet snake and like their privacy. Minimal handling for first few weeks. At least thats my thoughts.
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Cindy
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Good points from Cindy (excluding the falling of the stool...don't recommend). Carpets like to eat high so placing food in the branches is like leaving a rat on teh floor for a ball python.

Most STP's love to eat wiggling food which is best done with tongs. They have lousy aim and STRONG feeding responses and easily can overshoot a wagging mouse and hit your hand. Not a prefered feeding method!
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>>Most STP's love to eat wiggling food which is best done with tongs. They have lousy aim and STRONG feeding responses and easily can overshoot a wagging mouse and hit your hand. Not a prefered feeding method!
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I was wondering about that. I thought perhaps it was just Kevin. He is probably the worst aimer. Thankfully he is a snake and not a husband. Allister aint so great either but usually he doesnt miss, unless he scares me and I fall off the stool. Eva and Bucca have perfect aim.
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Cindy
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Your and Rich’s comments about the poor aim of the "curtus" group is a very good point and probably fairly well known by anyone who has kept them for a considerable amount of time. I believe the main reason for this is their strong reliance on heat and touch when feeding, and less on sight. If the rat is not as warm as your hand, bloods will invariable miss the rat in an attempt to hit the main heat source they are sensing. I have had them strike ceramic water bowls that were still warm from cleaning as I placed them in the cage, where cooler bowls are always ignored.

Although not a tactic I would use with the more shy very young bloods, subadults and adults that are reluctant feeders can many times be induced to strike and constrict by bumping their neck with the feeder a few inches behind the head. I believe a fair amount of their feeding at night in the wild is initiated by prey animals brushing by them in the dark from outside the field of aim of their infrared sensors.

Kelly

>>Your and Rich’s comments about the poor aim of the "curtus" group is a very good point and probably fairly well known by anyone who has kept them for a considerable amount of time. I believe the main reason for this is their strong reliance on heat and touch when feeding, and less on sight. If the rat is not as warm as your hand, bloods will invariable miss the rat in an attempt to hit the main heat source they are sensing. I have had them strike ceramic water bowls that were still warm from cleaning as I placed them in the cage, where cooler bowls are always ignored.
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>>Although not a tactic I would use with the more shy very young bloods, subadults and adults that are reluctant feeders can many times be induced to strike and constrict by bumping their neck with the feeder a few inches behind the head. I believe a fair amount of their feeding at night in the wild is initiated by prey animals brushing by them in the dark from outside the field of aim of their infrared sensors.
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>>Kelly

I have used to wonder in regards to their vision. To me they seem more to wait for it to come to them. In their early days most seemed to wait in their hides and made me dance. Even with Eva, who will just refuse to eat frozen and have to switch to live for a few weeks, she will wait forever in her hide until the rodent come in front of her. She doesnt hunt. Bucca the black will somewhat hunt if it is close to his hide. He is also the only one with dead on aim. The sarawak is the worst of the babies. Of course in this looking I am only observing 3 borneos and 1 curtus. Be interesting if anyone else sees any of this behavior. Perhaps they are nearsighted? Or the other thing I wondered if they are night time hunters, vision is less in the day time?

Welcome to the random thoughts that run through my head in the reptile room.

(mrs snakeypants eats from the ground and far less often)
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Cindy
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Bloods and STP’s are definitely ambush predators and usually do not actively hunt prey. However, I have seen WC bloods in the early 80’s that were setup in naturalistic cage environs actively stalk and constrict live rats, but even then they would only move a few feet. Typically they sit and wait at likely prey sites, burrowing into the leaf litter and humus for camouflage. In captivity their hide substitutes for this leaf litter or other forest floor cover. Their tactics are identical to the hunting strategy of Gaboons and Rhino vipers. As opposed to some use in daylight hours, I believe their vision is essentially useless at night, and they tend to use their tongue mostly to identify prey in captivity that is ambient temp or less. Most of their prey species in the wild are active at night, (excluding birds), so that is probably why they seem to rely heavily on heat and touch to take prey. They most likely sit and wait in the leaf litter at a likely site and strike at prey that either passes in front of them detected by heat radiation, or strike at prey that touches or steps on them from the sides or from behind. In captivity they are highly prone to make a feeding strike at something bumping the front third of their body at night. This strong reliance on temperature is also probably why many reluctant feeders in captivity will not take ambient temp prey, but can many times be induced to feed by heating the prey item to slightly over 100 F which will many times elicit a strike. Random thoughts can be insightful.

Kelly

>>This strong reliance on temperature is also probably why many reluctant feeders in captivity will not take ambient temp prey, but can many times be induced to feed by heating the prey item to slightly over 100 F which will many times elicit a strike. Random thoughts can be insightful.
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>>Kelly

Yep! I learned that offering prey at 104 degrees is what gets my bloods to feed.

I have many random thoughts in the reptile room, but I also sing to some of the snakes as well, so some of the stuff that happens in there is like vegas.
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Cindy
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Kelly:

I've seen that with my baby when I used to feed live mice. It would come out, pass by the prey, & hunker down into the newspaper before catching its meal. Took a mouse from my fingers just once, but refuses to eat if I'm watching. I also only feed FT mice now ( soon to be rats).

Matthew

Matthew,
Definitely typical of bloods. Many babies can be really nervous and shy. I have had great luck with reluctant neonates by placing them in a few inches of damp spagnum where they burrowed in and readily took live juvenile mice at night.

Kelly

Yeah. Well, he seems to have acclimated to his new cage, although I need to drill a few mor air holes & improve the ventilation in it. TOO much humidity I think. He ate two mice as soon as I put them in there however. Less visibility is making him more secure..

Matthew