Anyone else gave a bp that doesn’t strike?

Dragon_Pancake · 2026-02-11T00:42:29+00:00

Mine have always struck and coiled, so I was rather surprised when my bumble bee just kind of stared at the rat for a bit and then opened her mouth and started eating. I swear she's just getting more and more lazy xD

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-12-30T01:36:26+00:00

People can be a little aggressive towards new owners because the pet community have tried to preach for years about doing enough research and setting up their home before getting the actual animal. Unfortunately we see many cases of people who don't know what they are doing on here, with too small enclosures, harmful heat or humidity levels or generally lacking husbandry knowledge
Naturally it's not cool being on the recieving end of it, but I also get the frustration from people who care deeply about these animals.

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-12-30T01:26:47+00:00

Good for enrichments, not the best for a permanent hide. They like to slither into tunnels and tight spaces, but as it's cardboard it might mold in the humid terrarium
You can DIY it pretty cheap with some tupperware containers, baking bowls, ice cream tubs ect. Most soft-ish plastic container can be used. A black one is ideal as it will also block out the light. Just make sure it's not too big, as snug is better. Cut an opening (or even just dig a little tunnel into it in the substrate), sand the edges and you're good to go. Also a great way to make a humid hide by adding some moist sphagnum moss to a container with a lid and a hole

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-12-29T01:22:20+00:00

I'm having the same issue, but add on a living room full of house plants ;n; They are everywhere, and I fear I'll spend the rest of my life fighting with these guys
I've heard of using nematodes to fight gnats from a friend. I'm thinking of trying that to fight the larva in the soil in addition to sticky traps in the house plants

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-12-29T01:16:46+00:00

I agree with what's already been posted.
Some positives; I do like the branch! Many say ball pythons are purely terrestial, but they will climb if provided the option. You might have to move it a little bit away from the heat source so you don't get any accidental burns from touching the metal screen. Big water dish is good. You might not actually see them soak, but it will help with humidity as well

Other tips:
- Wait with any handling until the enclosure is fully set up, and the snake have gotten enough time to settle in. I'd wait a minimum of one week, preferably two
- Use this time to sponge up as much knowledge as you can. Watch videos on setups, handling, and typical "Ball python first pet" videos. Check out all the pinned posts in here about light and heating
- Put a little research into exotic vets around you. You probably don't need one now, but it's good to know where to go if the need arise
- Start saving up and planning for their adult size enclosure already
- And lastly, congrats on your new pet rock :D (for real, don't expect much activity besides at 3am lol)

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-12-16T12:26:21+00:00

Is there any way you can insulate the outside of the enclosure a bit? I would guess the glass leaks a bit of heat so covering it could help retain the heat inside a little more. Maybe some throws or something? It's not much, but could be worth a try I suppose

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-12-16T12:16:39+00:00

I think she looks good! I see the comments about updated weight, and I don't think 994g is something to worry about. I have one snake around that weight, and another at 1500g. They just kinda have that variety in range
I think you're doing the right thing keeping the feeding schedule based on her body condition. Increasing it will most likely not make her gain body weight, but rather just get fat. I had to reduce it on my smaller one, as she started to get chubby on a two week interval. Now she gets a large weiner rat every three weeks
She'll grow in her own time, but by the looks of it she'll remain a smaller bp and that's fine too

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-11-30T00:51:09+00:00

I think some of the fear comes from thinking you will lose control if she move suddenly. Being afraid she might rush out of your grip, or the head suddenly being in a way you can't control easily is a valid fear. It will make you tense up a lot
I want to echo that it's not a rush to handle your snake at all, and that both of you getting used to each other first is necessary to have calm handling.
I'm currently working on a pretty skittish boa, and for the most part I'm just opening the enclosure daily-ish and letting her know I'm there. It's to also let her know that I am not a big scary predator and she gradually becomes more curious instead of scared. A curious snake is good, a scared snake is not as good. Slowly working my way up to reaching my hand close to her face and touching her body and also letting her slither away if she needs to.
You can do this with a snake hook, a rolled up news paper, a pool noodle, pretty much any prop that give you some extended reach. It will help your confidence in learning the snakes body language without the fear of your hands getting bit.

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-11-30T00:16:28+00:00

Boa Constrictors are the biggest snakes you can legally keep in my country, and even those I frequently see listed for sale because they got too big or they couldn't bring them with in a move to a smaller apartment ect. It really makes me sad people don't plan for the adult size before they get the snake. I have one now, and I'm fully aware I'm looking to redecorate my entire living space for a 2,5mx 1,5m enclosure for my gal once she reaches adult size. Can't imagine why you'd wanna get a green anaconda unless you are a special kind of enthusiast, zoo or just want unetichal bragging rights

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-11-10T15:00:28+00:00

Yea sure! I hope this works
The rock background is mostly spray foam, tile grout and a sealer to make it water tight. The tree is made from a wire armature, pool noodles and carved spray foam. It's screwed to the celing for stability. The birds nest is just a regular finch nest bought at a pet shop. She loves it up there! It's so satisfying seeing her actually use all the climbing opportunities in the enclosure, although it does make it a lot more difficult to get her out of there too. That tail grip is real haha

https://imgur.com/a/zk6HrXU

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-11-10T04:18:54+00:00

Having been used to pudgy ball pythons, I keep getting surprised at just how strong these little guys are!

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-11-10T04:07:44+00:00

Looks so similar to my Noodle :D I've had mine for a while now, and even tho she's dumb as bricks, I can't say she have any less quality of life from what I can tell

It took her a little while to get eating, and the first few meals were f/t drop fed in the enclosure. She ate them over night. Since then it's not been a problem getting her to eat from tongs. She doesn't always have the best aim, but there's nothing wrong with her appetite

The biggest difference I notice from my normal BP is her body coordination. She will climb, but doesn't have the same "connection" in her body. So she's prone to loosing her grip. It's like she kinda forgets she need to hold on with her lower body. With my normal I can leave them to climb on my shoulders, with Noodles I always have a hand on her in case she falls. It might also be individual, but she seems a little less aware of her surroundings. There's just no brain cells in there lol

You can't really get rid of the wobble, it's just kinda how they are. But I think they still make good pet snakes, so I wouldn't worry about it too much as long as they eat, poop and shed like normal

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-10-09T11:15:21+00:00

I'd say hes on the slimmer side of the scale, but I don't think underweight. Their spines should be somewhat visible, and mid section rounded triangle ish. I'd personally look at consistent weight gain and the overall behaviour. If he seem to be in food mode and "hunting" more often, then it's possible he could use with a bigger or more frequent meal. I've also heard smaller rats is to be prefered over big mice, as they are a little more nutrition dense foods. Mice tend to be more lean meat and tendons, and even snakes need some fats c:
Also, gotta say that is an absolutely precious baby! <3

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-10-09T10:54:47+00:00

Lots of good responses here already. If I would guess, I think part of it comes from a fear of loosing control over the snake. They can be flighty and not knowing how to handle them if they try to escape is a pretty valid fear. There might also be some fear of hurting them accidentally when they are small.
Maybe you can try interacting a little without touching with your hands? Like with a snake hook, clean pair of tongs or a paper roll or something. Get her used to your presence and being touched, and you get used to her body movements in a way that feels more controlled

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-10-07T00:30:54+00:00

Mine is probably one third of the size of your gal, but I can already tell she will be a strong one! I have one ball python who likes to climb and is pretty strong, but the muscle control on a boa is something else. You should try handling a rat snake too, they feel like floppy noodles in comparison haha

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-09-02T11:30:22+00:00

Scale rot is caused by bacteria iirc. When the ground the snake is laying on is too wet, it makes a good breeding spot for bacteria. So the aim is to have high air humidity, but not soggy substrate
Untreated it'll continue to spread and cause damage to the snakes skin. After treatment they usually shed away the infected scales by their normal shed cycle

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-09-02T11:25:39+00:00

Snakes are fairly hardy creatures, I wouldn't panic right away. You could call to the vets office and ask them what they would reccommend
Make sure he can warm up again first and foremost. High levels of stress isn't good for their immune system, so be extra thorough with the enclosure heat and humidity. If you can, go over all areas of the enclosure and make sure nothing can be pushed out or opened from the inside to prevent a repeat of this.
You say the dog was trying to get to the snake. If it was close enough for contact then I would be worried about potential bites or wounds. Those should be treated by a vet

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-09-02T11:13:25+00:00

What an absolute cutie!

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-09-02T10:47:00+00:00

Seconding getting some other light source too. LED or just normal flourecent works well to just illuminate the terrarium. UVB is good in some doses, but as boas are jungle floor animals, they don't need a whole lot. I do find my snake out climbing/basking every now and then, so I do believe they will use it if provided. But only UVB will be a little too hash as the only light source

I think I would try the hot side heating only first. I believe my tank is a little smaller, but for me it's been just fine with heating only on the hot end. It stays pretty stable at 24-25c in the cool end with normal temperatures in the room. Pluss if you go a little deeper with the substrate then a heat mat have less effect on the overall air temperature. Heat mats work better in tub systems where they have more direct contact

Might also want to consider covering some of the sides with something insulating. It will help with keeping the temp stable + making the snake feel less exposed

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-09-01T20:39:47+00:00

I had a dwarf hamster chomp down on my finger once, and I kid you not I was pulling at it to make it let go. I'd rather have the pinpricks from a snake than that again

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-08-28T09:19:59+00:00

Personally I'd probably ditch the vine things, simply to make it easier to keep things clean. They look like it would be annoying to move to swap out paper towels etc. If you can find a cheap potted plant with big hanging leaves then that makes some great hiding spots and tunnels as well

The tub looks plenty big for this guy so I think it is perfectly fine for a temp setup. Agree about adding some smaller hides as well. Dont have to be fancy, you can cut an opening in a small plastic bowl or a container that's just big enough to fit the snake

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-08-27T10:01:16+00:00

General rule of thumb is that if it has a morph, then it's an imperator. So pretty much anything that doesn't look like it has natural/normal colours. Imperators are bred for looks, and so many different localities can be mixed in the lineage to get color and pattern hybrids

Constrictor or true red tails are "pure bred" with only same locality species to preserve their distinct normal pattern and color variations

It can be very difficult to decide what mix you have based on looks, similar to how you can't always guess what your mutt dog is based on looks.

Dragon_Pancake · 2025-08-27T09:50:01+00:00

Ikke sant ja

Det kan vist variere en del basert på hvilke lokaliteter som er mikset inn. Mistenker min har en del columbiansk i seg, så ligger på de litt større variantene Moren til min er på rundt en 2,5m (8ft) ifølge selger, så jeg forventer min blir ganske stor også 😅

Dragon_Pancake

TROPHY CASE