Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So I just got a Woma about 10 days ago and he's been aggressive. He' struck at the glass of his 55gal tank when I walked by and I thought nothing of it. I know it happens. My very tame boa does it on occasion. I didn't touch him until Tuesday night when I fed him 2 ft mice. I put him in a separate container with no incident. After he fed though he became quite aggressive lashing at me 4 times. I gave him a minute to settle and he was fine. I even held him for 15 min and sat next to his tank for another 15 min and he seemed happy as a clam. I know they tend to have a strong feeding response but could mine be cage defensive? Any thoughts? Thanks.

Sounds like a feeding response to me. I would recommend feeding him in the enclosure (there will be some debate about this), making sure he has a hide on both the hot and cool sides, and invest in a hook for when you initiate handling. Considering the way he calmed down after you left him alone for a bit after feeding, I think once you get him out of the cage, he'll be ok.

How big is he, and has he managed to get his mouth on you yet? I've got a couple like him and the best way to get them off is to run them under water while turning up the heat. They release as soon as it gets uncomfortable....or you can just try being more cautious than I've been at times in the past, LOL.
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"He who would stifle debate rather than engage in it, does so at the expense of his integrity and credibility"

Mike Curtin

He's about 2.5-3 ft. He's very well mannered outside his tank. Once he was calm, I was able to bare hand him out of his feeding container. He hasn't gotten me yet but I'm sure he will, lol. I did forget to mention he was coiled in a defensive s shape like many vipers tend to have. He tried to look as big as he could. He warned me before he struck.

Feed the heck out of him, it is just a good feeding response. I have a young female who strikes the cage if she even smells a rat thawing. Once out of the cage and in my hands, she is fine. Young, growing womas just have a very strong feeding response. Probably hard-wired from evolving in harsh Australian desert regions. Just feed him in his cage. I never understood the idea of a seperate feeding cage for snakes. Womas grow incredibly fast if they have a good temperature range in their cage and plenty of food.

I agree with everything said so far. One of my August 08 hatchlings just went over 1000G. Almost all of them will "S" up and sometimes strike, but I've found that an open palm coming down on their head calms them down and they do not strike. Then they can be picked up and don't bite. And striking is not always biting.
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1.0 Blackheaded pythons
2.4 Woma
3.2 Aussie Olives
1.1 Timors
1.3 Bloods
2.2 IJ Carpets
2.0 Coastal Carpets
1.3 Macklotts
1.2 F2 Carpondros
2.0 Jungle Carpet
1.0 Jag IJCP
0.1 Carpondro
1.1 Brazilian Rainbow boas
1.1 Striped Bolivian Boas
0.1 Madagascar Tree Boa
0.1 child, CB
0.1 wife, WC

Hey Mike, just wanted to give you a shout and let you know that our Woma boy Danny is doing awesome! I can't thank you enough for such a great animal. No aggressive qualities, his head is a bright orange color and he's growing like a weed. I would say he's in the 4-ft. range now. Eats EVERY time he's fed. Perfect sheds and tolerates handling really well. All in all, he's every bit a pleasure to own. I've been meaning to give you an update for a long time, and sometime soon I'll post a picture or two.

I still think that of my three snakes (BP, blood and Woma), Danny is far and above the most inquisitive and entertaining to watch.

Thanks again!!!

Chris

Great to hear, Chris! For some reason, most of the males are really cool, whill the females tend to have attitudes...go figure.

But yes, a strong feeding response is VERY typical.
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"He who would stifle debate rather than engage in it, does so at the expense of his integrity and credibility"

Mike Curtin

Mike,

You're right--he's a real chow-hound. Not aggressive, but definitely on task as soon as dinner is on the table. He hardly even checks it out. As soon as he finds the head, it's a done deal. He's swallowing within a minute or two. Now, my ball on the other hand... That one hasn't eaten since Thanksgiving.

I'll post Danny pics sometime soon, and great to hear from you!

Chris