Bredli people please advise!

[Tigerlily]

Long version first - skip to the end for short version

So I finally found a hypo Bredli in my area and I jumped at the chance to buy him. He's said to be 18 months old, but seems ridiculously small when I compare him to my roughie's size at 18 months. Breeder told me he was on weaners and never missed a feed.

I don't mind that he's small, I wanted a hatchie/juv to raise anyway - I was just surprised because I thought a Bredli would grow much faster than a roughie...

He seems perfectly healthy so am I being overly concerned?

The other issue I have with him is that his colours seem a bit dull. I understand that snakes colour up as they mature but all photos I've seen online of yearlings/18 month olds are already showing bright beautiful colours.

*****More specifically, I want to know if the grey markings on his head will ever turn more whitish/creamy nice or if they'll stay grey forever.*****

i was happy with the photo of the mum (couldn't see her face; didn't occur to me to check because I just wanted to see how much black she had on her tail end) and I didn't see the dad because he'd been sold.

So long story short:

Can you please give me advice on appropriate size for an 18 month old male Bredli, and if he will become brighter (especially the grey on his face)?


Pics taken indoors under fluorescent light, they're pretty accurate.

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[pythoninfinite]

I don't think the size should be a concern - snakes grow according to how much they're fed, so if your feeding regime is more intense, the snake will grow accordingly and catch up quickly to its (always overfed) captive peers . Weaner what - rats or mice? As far as colour goes, they always look brighter just after shedding, but to me this looks pretty much like a standard bredli, nice, healthy looking animal at first glance. Like most bredli (and indeed most Carpets) however, even the hypos, they usually darken with age. 12 months to three years seems to be the best age for the brightest colours.

Jamie

 

[Herpo]

I think he looks pretty good. Almost caramel coloured. Nice pickup.

 

[BredliFreak]

Gr8 looking snake there

 

[meako]

Not sure what you mean by hypo. This guy is probably over 2yo .Not quite sure because he's a foster child. I thought he was standard colouring but the markings vary a lot between head and tail.He sorta looks the same as yours. Is this then a hypo?

 

[pythoninfinite]

The patterns on bredli always become more bold towards the back end of the snake, with stronger outlining in black, and it usually becomes darker and less distinct with age. The one above looks like a lighter coloured version of a pretty normal bredli - within the range of normal variation. "Hypos" are really only one end of a broad spectrum, and look their best at around 12-18 months. I might not have had exposure to enough snakes, but I have yet to see a fully mature (5yrs +) bredli which has held the vibrant oranges you sometimes see in growing juvies. Happy to be corrected if I'm wrong ! Beautiful snakes either way however... I remember work with Graeme Gow in Darwin in 1974, he had a couple of juvies in a tank at his home, the first I'd ever seen, and he was in the process of describing them as a separate species. They were beautiful, and so "deserty"!

Jamie

 

[Tigerlily]

Thank you everyone for your replies and lovely compliments for Mufasa!
[MENTION=38838]meako[/MENTION], your pretty python is probably what mine will look like - my understanding of "hypo" is that they lack the black of the classic Bredli, but how much black they have varies and from what I've heard most "hypos" develop black over time anyway, especially towards the tail. I think yours and mine probably had one hypo parent and one classic, or maybe just not A grade hypos - I quit caring after a while lol, I'm smitten with my snake
[MENTION=41820]pythoninfinite[/MENTION] thanks for the reassurance! He had no problem chowing down a weaner (rat... about the size of an adult mouse or bigger?) and he's so settled in that he doesn't even use his hides, just hangs out on the branches (which is astonishing for me as to this day my roughie doesn't come out unless it's dark) so I feel much more comfortable now.

In response to your comment about captive pythons being overfed, I'd like to ask you if this feeding regime sounds ok for my 2years old-ish male roughie: one small rat (my supplier calls them weaners but they are about the size of small to medium adults) about 1.5 times the girth of the snake's widest point, fed once a fortnight. I always wait until he's pooed before I give him the next feed, so sometimes it's longer than that. When he eats, he expands so the skin between his scales is VERY stretched and visible, but once he's digested his scales don't have any gaps. I should probably take a photo but from my description does it sound ok?

FINALLY, Can I get some opinions on an enclosure I'm about to buy... It's within my budget, everything's perfect, but I'm having second thoughts whether it would be large enough for my roughie. It's 90cm X 50cm X 54cm. I know, it's not vertical, but I don't think he'd mind that as he seems to enjoy hanging out on the ground. I'm just concerned that it's not big enough. Thoughts please, thanks a million!



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[pythoninfinite]

Food sounds fine, but you don't need to wait for the snake to defecate before offering the next meal. They eat very irregularly in the wild of course, and are certainly not feeding to any regime such as we like to offer them in captivity - they might eat two fairly large meals on consecutive nights if the opportunity arises, then go for 3 months of more until the next chance avails itself.

The enclosure may be a bit small - bredli are fairly large, fast-growing snakes, so you might find a 4x2x2 (120x60x60) is a better long-term option. It's possible that your animal may outgrow the one you're contemplating within 12 months... Sounds all good though, and I'm glad you're really enjoying the experience. Oops, sorry, just noticed the enclosure dimensions you mention are for your Roughie - yep, I think that would be fine, my pair are in cages approx that size and are perfectly happy.

Jamie

 

[meako]

Boris pictured above has shed 3 times in the 6 months I have had him.Definitely a growing lad.Has settled down a lot from the cage defensive glass hitting snapper that he was at first.I cant speak for his previous owner but he has definitely mellowed.yes much blacker at the tail end .
And that burnished copper tiger stripe amidships blending to pale deserty colour at the head.I also give him large quails and the rats are adult sized.I think the feathers and fur are good for him.He seems always hungry.he put away 2 large rats in 3days last week.next feed at least 2weeks away.cheers.ill post up a pic of his present home and the stately new mansion im building.

 

[Tigerlily]

Thanks [MENTION=41820]pythoninfinite[/MENTION], yeah it was for my roughie but it got away (enclosure, not snake) so I'll probably look at a bigger one anyway. Great to know the size would work though, thank you!

Re: the waiting for poo before feeding again, it's actually more for my own peace of mind since one indoor snake "accident" was extremely difficult to clean, I mean omg really... He used to go every 10 days after a feed like clockwork if I took him outside and I could always tell when he was ready, but for some reason he likes to drop urates and feces separately now and is much less predictable than before.

So, for the very same reason you wrote (they don't follow routine in the wild), I figured it should be ok to feed only once he's emptied his stomach, so I'd have a period of time where I could let him roam inside without constantly watching him - he still eats every 2-3 weeks give or take a little, I was more concerned that the rat size was too extreme because it looks pretty crazy when he's done eating (skin stretching between scales, massive lump etc) but he's never regurgitated and seems to get it down without much extra effort... if you say it sounds ok, I'm ok with it

Sorry for the late and long reply! While we're on the topic of snake poo (I realise a lot of my questions on this forum are snake poo related so am a bit embarrassed to start a new thread), can you please tell me if pythons usually go while being on solid ground or if it's possible for them to go while being handled (I don't mean out of fear, just regular toileting)? I can count on my roughie to only go if his whole body is on the ground, but I don't know whether it's a possibility with the bredli because he's pretty comfortable just hanging out on people (roughie is usually in constant motion, I actually don't think he's ever just draped around anyone's neck without moving like the bredli does). The python scene from Gentlemen Broncos is basically my worst nightmare (if you haven't seen it and are morbidly curious here you go https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKACoMSDS1o ) ... is that realistically something that happens to people with relaxed/"comfortable" snakes???
[MENTION=38838]meako[/MENTION] on a much lovelier note, your description of Boris' colours is so beautiful and spot on! I hope you don't mind me borrowing it when I want to try and convert my more poetic but snake-phobic friends... and can you tag me in your post with his mansion? He sounds very spoiled, lucky lil guy!

 

[cement]

I'm not so sure about them losing colour Jamie, at 8ft, 5kgs and 8yr old these guys were still going allright.


Tigerlily - Motion is quite often what helps a snake to crap, getting all their muscles moving along the length of their bodies is a good crap maker after being immobile in an enclosure. Yes they will poo from the trees, and drop it. So yes they will poo on you and your friends too if all the factors align

 

[Tigerlily]

[MENTION=4778]cement[/MENTION] thank you for the warning! My thumb is not so enthusiastic about what that means, but I'm glad to be informed and ready at least should "all the factors align" lol.

Gorgeous Bredli btw!!

 

[cement]

Hahaha! "thumbs up" for that not happening!
Cheers