Looking After Womas.

[nickskioner]

Hey everyone,
just bought a baby woma, although have no real experience in looking after one.
Looking for some advice, hints and tips for breeding etc etc.
Cheeers.
Nick

[MoreliaMatt]

probably should have done your homework before you bought the snake!!!!!

what do you want to know?

[nickskioner]

haha. well i know abit but would like to know some tips, for example is it possible to have 2 in the one tank? How old until they will breed? And how often i should feed them.
Cheers

[tan]

No keep them separate, they breed once a year but it is advisable to give them a break now and then. Mine are two and a half to three and I will try to breed them this year. I feed my babies once a week and as they get bigger stretch them out to ten days then 2 to 3 weeks for example (adults). Hope this helps.
I find it helpful if when people on this site ask a question that we should answer them correctly (no guessing or assumptions) and also with respect. Sometimes people are put off by being "flamed" for asking a question which may seem silly to some but for beginners is very necessary. (No accusation intended)
Personally I find my Womas one of the best pythons I keep and I hope yours are also great pets for you. They are mostly docile (except with food) and are easy to keep with the correct requirements. Don't feel silly for asking any questions you may think are unworthy of an answer. Take in the good replies and ignore the rest.
Good Luck with your new pets and I hope you learn what you are after.
Welcome to the site!

[COOP]

Well said Tan. Totally agree

[sxc_celly]

Very well said Tan. Pretty much keep ALL snakes seperate from any other snake, except for breeding. Its better to be safe than sorry. They are solitary animals remember, not pack animals and prefer to be alone. Snakes WILL eat other snakes given the chance. They breed at around 2.5-3yo minimum providing they have been fed up properly, cooled down during winter (imitating natures cold months), are the right size, and providing they are actually male and female. You should be feeding at least every 2 wks, id say every 7-10days, but everyone has their own opinion. As a hatchy they eat pinky mice, then at a few mths old should be one fuzzy mice, and as the snake grows, increase the size of the food. Try and wean it onto rats as they have more fat and are generally better for them! Never handle a snake within 48hrs of it eating, and only handle a few times a week so not to stress it out too much, for as long as it accepts. You can generally tell when its had enough, they move quickly or constrict your hand/arm or hiss. Dont feel silly for asking questions, if you dont ask you wont know Hope this helps!

[inthegrass]

whats going on here!!!!!!!!!!. two out of three replies with sensible suggestions, stop it now i say!!!!!!!!!.
cheers

[Rennie]

Originally Posted by nickskioner

haha. well i know abit but would like to know some tips, for example is it possible to have 2 in the one tank? How old until they will breed? And how often i should feed them.
Cheers

Most snakes might occasionally eat reptiles amongst other things, but womas normally feed on other reptiles in the wild. If you keep another snake with it there is a very good chance you will lose one. Not worth the risk in my opinion, except for breeding of course. Should breed at 2-3 years old. Feed once a week while young.

[Mayo]

They are an awsome python to keep, as Rennie said they are not a good python to keep in pairs year round as there main diet in the wild is other reptiles. They have been known to breed from as young as 18 months, but more common around the 2 1/2- 3yr mark. Whilst young, ie first 9 months feeding every 7-10 days, 9-18 months every 14-17 days, 18 months plus around every 3 weeks. Get them onto rats ASAP as they have less fat which is better for them. Womas are prone to obesity. If you have any Q's you don't want to ask on an open forum feel free to PM me.

[Gut-Axe]

Hey there nickskioner. Welcome to the forums

I think tan hit the nail on the head. I think forums are foremost a place to ask questions and advice and if people have nothing useful to offer or nothing nice at all to say then they should just keep it to themselves and not past – it’s as easy as that.

Anyways I think Womas are awesome and I’ll give you some heads-up from my experience (very limited but hey, take what you will).

First off I’m gonna assume a few things but if I’m wrong just hit me back and I’ll see if I can help out some more. First off I’m assuming by baby that you got a hatchie and you’re going to be keeping it in a click-clack. So basically I keep mine on a heat mat (you can use heat cord too) so that the heat-mat sits underneath on the outside of the container covering about 1/3 of the bottom of the container with the heat-mat connected to a thermostat. I keep a small hide at the hot end and make sure the heat inside gets to the very most in there to 36 degrees (this is the “hot spot”) the rest of the area on top of the heat-mat should get to a max of 32 degrees, and the area not on top of the heat-mat (the other end) I like to get probably no colder than 24 degrees. Womas don’t really need much humidity so I try and keep the water (unless they’re about to shed) closer to the cold end. I use newspaper as substrate and I have a hide at either end and it’s up to you weather you want to put anything else in the click-click (like a piece of dowel or other cage furniture etc).

I think feeding has been pretty much covered by the other people so far but just try and stick to what the breeder was feeding them and gradually increase the size of the mice and then rats as the Woma grows (I usually work on the 125% rule i.e. make sure I’m not feeding them anything 25% larger than their heads) and I feed them once a week (until they’re about 1).

People have a lot of different ideas about breeding – some base breeding a snake on size and some by time. I’ve never bred Womas but I will be leaving mine until they’re at the very least 3 years (but most people will tell you 2 is fine) and will probably only put them in together once every 2 or 3 years at the most after that.

Basically I would house my Womas (or any snake as I do) separately as you’re only taking a risk you obviously don’t have to take if you house them separately.

Ok that’s all I got for now and I hope it helps. Good luck with your Woma

[PilbaraPythons]

Hatchling womas readily accept day old rats pups with no problems. In most cases you do not have to consider mice at all. Good luck with a great species that I know you will thoroughly enjoy.


Cheers Dave

[wingnut]

is it true that woma females need 3-4 differnt males before thay can get preggers?