What does a bite from a ball python feel like?

..I always tell people it feels like someone flicking you...

I've been bitten many times by all sizes. Sometimes I can't even feel the small BP bites and wouldn't even know I've been bitten if it wasn't for the little pinprick of blood. The young snakes definitely bite more than the larger ones, but then they think everything is out to eat them. :)

The worst bite I received from a BP was from a large, semi-aggressive female that I just received. I was taking the temp of her enclosure with a tempgun and I guess she thought the strap looked like a rat tail. She bit and wrapped around my arm thinking she was about to have a large meal. :8: She eventually let go, but not after gnawing on my knuckle for a minute or so. I didn't really notice the pain while she was latched on, but it ached a little for a few days after.

Even with that relatively aggressive bite, I don't think it was as bad as some of the bites I've received playing around with my dog. Snake teeth are very thin and don't do much tissue damage.

I got bit by one of my females a few months back when she was about 6 months old. I went to pick her up, but I scared her and she swung around and bit me. It didn't hurt. It felt like I got pricked with two safety pins and only a little blood dribbled out.

Depends on the bite and the age of the animal a defensive strike will feel like a paper cut. (Quick bite and release)

A feeding bite depending where they hit can be a little more painful ( Bite + Constriction).

I had a big girl hitting me right on the knuckle (feeding strike) and it was painful for several days and my knuckle swelled up a little and bruised nothing really compare to the damage a big snake could have done.

Note: I will take a BP's bite over any other type of bites any day (rats, mice, dog, horse…)

Felt like being pinched really hard while being pricked by tiny pins. It did bruise a lot, but really wasn't as painful as I'd expected. It was by my 5 foot, 3000 gram girl, and she thought I was food so she was hanging on until I put her under running water :D. I suppose none of my future BP bites will be quite as awesome as this one (unless it's by the same girl).

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Originally Posted by Jerhart

..I always tell people it feels like someone flicking you...

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That is the exact way I describe it too. Then you look a minute later to see yourself bleeding pretty good. Those little teeth are very sharp, so in turn you barely feel it.

My first bite was by this 1200 gram (?)snake that belonged to my friend. He was supposed to be very lovey dovey, small children handled him, blah blah blah. It was more than a pinprick. He bruised my hand and I had blood flowing enough to stain my shirt and get on the floor and table before I realized it was making a mess. It probably depends on the size of the snake and the type of bite AND on where they get you. Some body parts are going to bleed and hurt more than others....

I got bitten by my yellowbelly when he was around 400g and I was checking his enclosure for an uneaten mouse running around. It left a tiny scratch on my knuckle. I won't lie that I was pretty happy to have finally been bitten and knew what it felt like, and even more happy that he'd eaten the mouse!!

And I agree that it does feel a lot like a "flick"... at least from a juvie ball.

What's with all the bite threads lately? I thought I was the only one getting eaten up on a regular basis....Yes, Dutch, the Cinny boy is still at it :P

I've been bit many times by both babies and old adults. Sometimes I don't even notice it until I see a little drop of blood on my hand. Ball python teeth are very sharp, but they're also very short and don't penetrate the skin very far, usually you can't even tell where you've been bitten after a few days.

Got a nice bite last night as a matter of fact. I was feeding all of my sub adults and one of the mice got squirmy and I accidentally dropped it outside of the snakes tub. I reached over to pick up the mouse to get it in the tub and the snake, smelling food, reached out of it's tub and tagged me. I just thought to myself, Hmmm, that was kind of stupid... Then I washed the blood off my hands and then went on to feed the next one.

Bloodiest bite I've ever received was from my Cat when I was trying to restrain her for the vet when she was in a lot of pain. No stitches but I probably should have had one or two.

Most painful bite I've ever received was from my Shetland pony when I was a kid. I ticked him off one time and he swung his head around and chomped on my leg. No blood but a nice painful bruise. Snake bites are NOTHING in comparison.