Does he sense an intruder? HELP!

[ae88weaver]

I just got a new male normal ball python yesterday (Erikson) and last night when I went to play with Freud (my Butler garter) he went nuts and spazzed out on me... He was flailing all over the cage and didn't want me near him or to touch him... It was actually freaky because he is usually very mellow... I though it might be that he was hungry because it was feeding day so I just let him be and gave him an earthworm. Then today I tried to change his water and he did the exact same thing! He went crazy on me! I though he might break his back by the way he was jerking all around! Do you think he can sense I brought home a new pet or is something else the matter? Nothing else has changed... No temperature changes, no food changes (he's still eating the same), no relocating... HELP! :eek:

[zooplan]

I´m quiet sure:
He needs vitamin B1...

fast!

[guidofatherof5]

How does he act if you are not trying to pick him up or mess with him?

[ae88weaver]

How does he act if you are not trying to pick him up or mess with him?

He's fine if I don't try and pick him up or open his cage up...

[ae88weaver]

I´m quiet sure:
He needs vitamin B1...

fast!

I feed him a mixed diet of frozen pinkies and worms, his last meal was a pinkie...

[guidofatherof5]

He's fine if I don't try and pick him up or open his cage up...


Were you handling the BP before you tried to pick up Freud?
If so, try washing your hands before working with Freud.
You say this all started after purchasing the BP.

[ConcinusMan]

Good idea. I'm 100% sure that your garter can smell your BP and perhaps he perceives the BP as a threat.

I have garters that are as loving, tame, and calm as can be. If certain people try to hold them, they flip out and musk, try to get away, or even bite or threaten to bite, as soon as they "sniff" that person.

I chose two baby concinnus for chantel (kibakiba) that were two of my most calm and handling tolerant babies. One of them proved to be just the opposite with her. I have a snake or two that were just impossible with their previous owners but are as calm as can be with me.:cool: They can smell things so subtle we can't even imagine. Obviously, your snake smelled something on you that made him perceive you as a threat. The BP might be a good guess.

Perhaps in time, your garter will grow more familiar with the smell and won't find it so threatening. Sometimes just the "newness" of it will cause that reaction. Case in point - a garter in a new home, even if still in the same enclosure, will at first be uneasy due to the new smells.

[zooplan]

...perhaps he perceives the BP as a threat. I would agree it it was a milk snake or king snake.
Vitamine shortness could be caused by some kinds of amoebiasis too!

[Stefan-A]

Any scent that's out of the ordinary can put them off. It doesn't have to be the scent of a predator.

[ConcinusMan]

Exactly. It can be something as simple as a new deodorant, cologne, after shave, laundry detergent, etc.

[guidofatherof5]

I was just holding my big female Hypo Bull Snake, when I decided to see some of my radix girls. I opened the enclosure up with the Bull snake on my shoulder.
My girls rushed out to smell the big girl and showed no signs of fear or concern. Some even climbed up on her and me.
Lightning(Bull Snake) showed no interest in my radix girls.

[ae88weaver]

I was just holding my big female Hypo Bull Snake, when I decided to see some of my radix girls. I opened the enclosure up with the Bull snake on my shoulder.
My girls rushed out to smell the big girl and showed no signs of fear or concern. Some even climbed up on her and me.
Lightning(Bull Snake) showed no interest in my radix girls.

So are you saying that he might not care about having a new snake in the house?

[guidofatherof5]

It's possible the new snake had nothing to do with it.
Many things can trigger a response like you described but without the presence of other factors you have to lean towards the new addition.

[ConcinusMan]

I agree

[ae88weaver]

His eyes turned milky and blue which is making me think he might have been starting to go into shed and that could have added to his fear... But I just noticed the actual major difference in his eyes yesterday.. I don't know how long of a period they are in pre-shed and shed for.. He hasn't started the actual skin shedding process yet... Here's two pics of his eyes, the second one is the best

[guidofatherof5]

Shedding will take place a few days after the eyes go back to normal.
Make sure there is plenty of water available.
Most of my snakes presoak before they shed.
After the shed, inspect the old shed. Look for the 2 eye caps and a complete tail shed.
Best of luck.

[ConcinusMan]

Flicker, the high red northwestern male, just turned cloudy too but I noticed his colors fade before that. For the most part, northwesterns aren't really big on soaking unless you're keeping them very dry and low humidity. In fact, my concinnus don't pre-shed soak either, for the same reason. As you know, I'm using fir bark / coconut fiber and moss. I keep an area of it damp, letting it dry between spraying. This helps keep an adequate humidity level in the tank since the heat sources can make way too dry if you don't spray. Ever since he went cloudy, he's been spending all his time buried in the damp area with his head sticking out. Given the option, concinnus and northwesterns will choose settling down damp substrate and high humidity over soaking. Those conditions are possible and preferable so long as it dries out quickly so I spray daily or every few days, especially for babies, and snakes in shed.