It's especially important to pay close attention to the shedding cycles of juveniles, and make certain that stuck sheds or incomplete sheds are quickly corrected. Most blood pythons are fairly drab and brown in coloration at hatching and for the first year of their life. This youngster was captive-bred from parents that probably were from Pinang or adjacent Peninsula Malaysia. Pictured here at about five months old, two years later he had transformed into a beautiful red specimen. Hatchling blood pythons are never red.
Most youngsters undergo a dramatic color change as they mature.
Animals typically don't begin to show some red color in their pattern until their second year, and the brightest red colors usually develop from 2 -3 years of age. Thereafter, the red coloration of most adults darkens with age. Most python species shed one or two weeks after hatching, but blood pythons do not shed for about three or four months after hatching. Hatchling blood pythons usually begin feeding 14-21 days after hatching. Often a youngster has more than tripled his weight by the time he completes a first shed.