Suddenly active snake!

[GarethUnsworth]

A couple days I posted about my snake suddenly biting my Mom. When she did so she did not strike, just slowly opened her mouth and bit. Thoughts?

Since this she has been extremely active in here tank. Searching often and with lots of head movement. Thoughts and tips?

Things that may be important to consider:
-she was fed a couple days before the bite
-my parents were visiting so there was a couple extra people here
-my parents have a pet dog that was kept away from the snake

Would love to hear some peoples opinions on this. Thanks!

 

[niki_g]

I don't know anything about the biting behavior, but I know that my snakes become much more active in the summer time which is quite normal.

How is her prey size? Just thinking that maybe if she isn't eating enough, she could also be cruising for food and testing out your Mom as a mouse because she didn't know her scent. Random thought..

 

[GarethUnsworth]

Usually an adult but not yet a jumbo, should I upgrade? It just seems so weird because she held her for a few minutes before Flora bit. Im not disagreeing, infact I had thought that she might need bigger prey.

 

[niki_g]

The "bigger prey" thing is always hard for new folks. Do a search for the "Munson Plan", it may even be a stickie in the Feeding section. This will break it down by weight for you, snake weight vs. prey size.

If you don't weigh your snake, I use the typical 'eye balling' method, the prey should be up to 1.5 times the widest part of the snake (not the neck). Also, you should visibly see the prey and digestion should be around 48 hours. Since I do not weigh my snakes, I observe how fast/easily they take the prey down and if I can notice the prey in the bellies, along with digestion time. This has worked for me, others are more methodically. You will find a thousand threads on this subject.

I'm not saying this is necessarily the "issue", but if you were thinking about prey size anyway you should take a moment to cruise around pre existing threads. Either way, the behavior doesn't sound like anything to really be worried about. Enjoy her cruising around the tank, lots of snakes just hide and we have to harass them to enjoy their beauty!

 

[bitsy]

Once they're on adult mice they don't usually need anything bigger. There are some monster Corns out there which will take larger, but your Average Joe will be fine on adult mice for the rest of its life. I feed once every 2-3 weeks once they're on those.

As to why your Mom was bitten, I must admit I'm at a loss. It wasn't a quick strike, so I'd say it wasn't fear. As a guess, I'd go with the idea that it was something warm that didn't smell familiar, so was worth a chomp just to check whether it was edible! Sometimes it's a mystery as to what goes on in those scaley little noggins.

Bear in mind that snakes are opportunistic feeders in the wild and hunt all the time they're not digesting. Essentially they're "programmed" to always want food and be looking out for it - it's just that in captivity, they don't always *need* it. Beware of intrepreting such behaviour as a need to increase feeding, as that's a quick way to end up with a tubby beastie. I'm afraid you're now on WeightWatchers duty for the next 15 years!

As for the increased activity, check the temperatures at floor level with a digital thermometer. Over-activity at this time of year might indicate that the temps are a little high - that can make them quite antsy and is worth a double-check in case you have a quick fix.

Just a side-thought - Is she a new arrival with you and could she have been housed with a male before you got her? Sometimes females get very active when looking for somewhere to lay eggs.

 

[GarethUnsworth]

Once they're on adult mice they don't usually need anything bigger. There are some monster Corns out there which will take larger, but your Average Joe will be fine on adult mice for the rest of its life. I feed once every 2-3 weeks once they're on those.

As to why your Mom was bitten, I must admit I'm at a loss. It wasn't a quick strike, so I'd say it wasn't fear. As a guess, I'd go with the idea that it was something warm that didn't smell familiar, so was worth a chomp just to check whether it was edible! Sometimes it's a mystery as to what goes on in those scaley little noggins.

Bear in mind that snakes are opportunistic feeders in the wild and hunt all the time they're not digesting. Essentially they're "programmed" to always want food and be looking out for it - it's just that in captivity, they don't always *need* it. Beware of intrepreting such behaviour as a need to increase feeding, as that's a quick way to end up with a tubby beastie. I'm afraid you're now on WeightWatchers duty for the next 15 years!

As for the increased activity, check the temperatures at floor level with a digital thermometer. Over-activity at this time of year might indicate that the temps are a little high - that can make them quite antsy and is worth a double-check in case you have a quick fix.

Just a side-thought - Is she a new arrival with you and could she have been housed with a male before you got her? Sometimes females get very active when looking for somewhere to lay eggs.

Thanks.
Yes she is a new arrival however, as far as I am aware she was housed alone as the owner did not have any other snakes. I will check the temps and go from there.
I am also confused as I have held her frequently before this with no issues at all.

 

[bitsy]

You'll probably find that it was a one-off. Sometimes they do just do odd unpredictable things - the quirks are what makes them fun! In this case, as long as you're not the one being bitten I guess...

At least she went to bite in slow motion. Now that you recognise the action, you can just distract her if you see it starting and stop her doing it in future.