The popularity of blood pythons has increased dramatically with the introduction of numerous morphs and colors to the pet trade.
Despite their rise in popularity, the old stigma of them being a challenging snake to work with still remains. This has left many people wondering whether or not they make good pets.
Do blood pythons make good pets? Most blood pythons available in the pet trade today are captive born, with even temperaments and docile natures. These thick bodied snakes measure 4-6 feet in length making them impressive to look at, yet small enough to easily manage. These things plus their ease of care make blood pythons great pets for intermediate snake keepers.
When I first began collecting and breeding reptiles in the 90s, you rarely saw blood pythons in collections or for sale. Back then it was hard to even find any literature regarding their care in captivity.
Today they are readily available at many pet stores, reptile shows and through private breeders.
How Hard Is It To Keep Blood Pythons?
Caring for these snakes is pretty straight forward, and is comparable to many other pythons. Here are the things that must be provided for your snake to thrive.
- Adequate housing
- Regulated temperature and humidity
- Lighting
- Food and water
I have a blood python care guide if you want specifics, but here are the basics.
Blood Python Housing
Your ability to have and maintain an adequate enclosure for your snake is one of the biggest factors in determining if a blood python will be a good pet for you.
These snakes grow to an average length of 4-6 feet, and typically weigh around 15 pounds.
Your snake should take up no more than 1/3 the size of the cage. For an adult, that would be a cage with at least 6 square feet of floor space. 12 square feet would be even better.
Provide plenty of hiding places for your snake too.
Blood pythons can be easily stressed, and like to hide under newspaper, boxes or shelters. You might even consider covering a third to half of the glass in the enclosure if you’re using something like an aquarium.
Temperature And Humidity
Other factors to consider when deciding if this is the right pet, are temperature and humidity.
In the wild, mother nature provides the perfect balance to meet the snakes needs. In captivity they are completely reliant on you every single day of their lives.
Fortunately blood pythons don’t have extremely strict needs like some of the snakes that require more advanced care!
These snakes need day time temperatures in the low to mid 80’s, and night time temperatures in the upper 70s
Humidity should average 60-70%. Lower than 60% can cause issues when they shed. Above 70% can lead to respiratory infections.
This is the most challenging part of keeping these snakes. You should stick closely to this humidity range to avoid health issues.
Lighting
These snakes are primarily nocturnal. They are most active around dawn and dusk.
They are also ambush hunters that like to lie and wait for their food to come by.
As such, they are not directly in the sun too often, and get much of their vitamin D3 from the prey they eat rather than sunlight.
Ambient light from the house as well as a heat lamp are all this snake needs. That being said, I personally have always preferred to offer full spectrum lighting for all of my reptiles. It’s just the way I do things, but not absolutely necessary for this species.
Food And Water
Blood pythons have a voracious appetite, and will easily overeat if allowed.
Obese specimens of 40 pounds or more have been observed. This is not healthy for the snake and can lead to serious medical conditions and a shortened life span.
Unlike most snakes that should be fed every 7-10 days, this snake only requires feeding every 2-3 weeks. They have a relatively slow metabolism as is evidenced by the fact that they usually only defecate once a month or less.
Pinky rats or small mice work well for juveniles, while large rats make a good meal for adults.
Clean water should be provided at all times. You might even consider a bowl large enough to allow the snake to submerge themselves in, especially when they are about to shed.
Are Blood Pythons Aggressive?
The blood python of the 70’s and 80’s were mostly imported from Malaysia. They were noted for being highly aggressive, and never adapting to captivity or human handling.
Are blood pythons aggressive? Modern blood pythons are not aggressive. Today’s pet blood pythons are primarily captive bred or imported from Sumatra. Specimens from this area are known for being calmer than their counterparts from Malaysia. They do well in captivity, are fairly docile and accept handling.
Unfortunately the stigma of this being a difficult snake still persists in many publications.
Here is a great article that describes the difference in temperaments between blood pythons found in Malaysia compared to ones from Sumatra from Reptiles Magazine.
These snakes can be stressed easier than other species however, if their housing needs aren’t met.
Maintaining consistent temperature and humidity, and providing an environment where your snake will feel safe and secure will lead to a calm, stress free, docile snake.
Poor husbandry is the leading cause of bad behaviors with these snakes.
Are Blood Pythons Good Pets For Beginners
The popularity of blood pythons as pets is currently on the rise.
Are blood pythons good pets for beginners? Blood pythons are considered intermediate level snakes. They’re humidity range is stricter than most snakes recommended for beginners. They adapt well to captivity and handling, but stress easier than many other pythons which can lead to health issues and aggressive behaviors. You should have some experience with snake husbandry before getting a blood python.
You might consider gaining experience with easier to keep snakes such as ball pythons, or red-tailed boas.
Become accustomed to reading a snakes behaviors and body language.
This will also allow you to gain experience in maintaining specific temperature and humidity ranges with snakes that have a broader tolerance for fluctuations.
Why Should I Choose A Blood Python For A Pet Over Other Snakes?
- Ease of care – The standards for these snakes are pretty easy to meet for intermediate snake handlers.
- Size – Large enough to look impressive, small enough for one person to easily handle.
- Hardiness – There are no inherent health issues associated with this species.
- Availability – Blood pythons are readily available and affordable.
- Variety – The number of morphs for this snake is unbelievable. No two look alike!
The one drawback I see to this species is that they aren’t very active.
If you want a snake that is awake during the day, and constantly moving around its enclosure, this may not be the right snake for you.
For the most part these pythons prefer to sit under something, like a newspaper substrate, and only come out occasionally.
How Are They As Juveniles?
Like most snakes, blood pythons can be a bit nippy when they are first born. In the wild, anything that is reaching for them probably intends to eat them, so they are naturally defensive.
They usually calm down in a few short weeks through routine handling.
How Fast Do They Grow?
Babies are around 10-17 inches in length when they hatch.
Their growth rate is largely determined by feeding and temperature. Feeding your snake more often, and keeping the temperature slightly warmer will result in a faster growth rate.
On average, they will reach their adult size in about 3 years.
It’s important to note that accelerating their growth rate can lead to a shorter life span!
Feeding them slightly more often than is recommended might be OK, but regularly over feeding should be avoided. Temperatures for this snake should never go higher than 90 degrees, and even that is not healthy long term.
How Much Do Blood Pythons Cost?
Prices for blood pythons vary widely. Normal ones typically start around $100. Specialty morphs can go for as much as a few thousand. Prices largely depend on the desirability of the look of the snake. That being said, do your homework and make sure that any snake you buy is from a reputable breeder.
Neither end of the spectrum is better or worse.
Wild caught specimens, or ones housed in poor conditions will often lead to health conditions, and a potentially aggressive snake.
Summary
The things that make a good pet snake differs for each person.
For some it’s all about the look. They want a snake that is completely unique, with brilliant morphs and colors.
This snake definitely offers almost anything you could want in this category!
For others it’s about ease of care.
Blood pythons take more experience than something like a rosy boa, but they aren’t as challenging as say, a green tree python (link is for a green tree python care guide).
For someone with a little experience, these snakes aren’t too big of a challenge to care for.
A newbie on the other hand may have a few minor issues they don’t even realize, which can lead to bigger behavioral and health problems. Before you know it you have a pretty mean snake which will soon become a very sick one.
Still other people are mostly concerned with the activity of a snake.
While some simply enjoy its beauty, others want a snake that is lively and active. The blood python isn’t a lethargic rock, just sitting there doing nothing, but it isn’t a rat snake that is always on the move either. They are somewhat less active than many other species of pythons though.
At the end of the day the choice is yours. Are blood pythons good pets? You be the judge.