What's the best way to get over fear of snakes!

[cheryls]

I've been caring for my daughter's bp and I am admittedly afraid of Dakota. I'd like to get over that for taking care of him without actually picking him up, although do-able (I've read alot on this site) is a challenge. Any helpful hints?

[West Coast Jungle]

A couple of shots of tequila might help.
Just have someone take her out and start by holding her little by little.

Truth is the snakes are much more afraid of you. But they can't drink tequila

[2kdime]

Just try and admire they're beauty. And know that its a ball python. And unless you smell like a rat. Your more than likely not getting bit.

I hate to say it. But ball pythons are magnificant I don't know how anyone could be afraid of em!!!

[Het4Something]

But they can't drink tequila

says who??? lol the best way to get over ur fear is wats called the "NIKE" way. just do it. dont think about it, just reach in and pick it up. close ur eyes if u have to.... just avoid sudden movements and touching the head. eventually the two of u will grow on each other. snakes are the best pet in the world!!!!! do it for ur daughter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[cheryls]

oh...he's a beautiful animal - I'm fascinated and obsessed with doing the right thing! I spend hours on this site, for example - stop in at pet stores - order mice online - even pet him on Sunday (after a scotch - but tequila might be better), but only while his head was in his hide. brave, huh? There's no one here who will pick him up to help me out with this project! I was quite proud of myself after getting him in a box to clean out his home..now I really want more! Maybe the Nike way would be best. I held him once when he was real little, but he's much bigger now!

[zx92027xz]

as was said before, holding them is the first step.

i know the first time i held a snake i wasnt "scared" per-say... but i wasnt comfortable.

the guy holding it was at a petstore and i wanted one, hes like "here" and handed him to me.

just gently hold the body, dont "spook" it (quick movements; especially at the head of the snake) and relax.... eventually he or she will loosen up to you and start to explore, being to crawl. and you will also get more comfortable with it as time goes on...

the main thing is, if youre uncomfortable (jumpy/nervous) odds are thats how the snake will be. youll be nervous, but the trick is to remain calm.



if all else fails, DO NOT!!! freak out, scream and drop it. (seen it done.)

[GirDance]

I would suggest washing your hands, removing his hide, and seeing if he'll just come over to you for some attention.

Avoid his head, that will most likely make him jerk away, scare you and make it a no go.

If it will reassure you: Put on a long sleeve sweater and some garden gloves, pick him up, hold him for a bit, put him back. Keep doing it till you're comfortable enough to try gloves with short sleeves, then move up to no gloves. It will add in the 'bullet proof' reassurance that even if he did snip at you, he couldn't get through the layers to hurt. And since he's a BP he probably won't snip.

[Kennyxemerson]

yeah basicly just pick him up with confidence, he'll be just as calm as you are, let him explore a little but make sure he knows he isnt getting away haha. I have a few bps and one of my adult females used to bite me pretty much daily and it didnt even phase me. doesnt hurt. I was more worried she might hurt herself on my hand hahaha, but most bps wont even try biting, they're too shy.

[frankykeno]

Like Adri said, if for now gloves give you the confidence you need then by all means use them. I think it's far better to do that and feel calmer then to try to handle the snake bare handed and be nervous of him.

Just pick a quiet evening when Dakota's had a good meal in him a couple of days before, gently remove him and just sit quietly and watch a bit of tv while he gets used to you (that way you won't fixate on him and be more relaxed). Just make sure he can't get away on you and if he tries remember to redirect him by moving his body, not grabbing near his head. Something short like 15 minutes and then back home he goes, both of you having had a nice handling experience. Don't handle him within 48 hours of a feeding or right before a feeding when he's in a hunting mode.

If it helps, my 6 year old regularily handles snakes and I wouldn't allow that if I thought it was particularily dangerous. He knows already it's all about being calm, quiet and steady with the snakes so you don't trigger them to feel defensive. I'm sure you'll do fine...just take it slow.

[kc261]

I believe it depends a lot on just how scared you are, and what exactly you are afraid of.

Since you say you have held the snake before, and are able to do things like getting him in a box to clean his enclosure, and reach in and touch his tail when his head is hidden, you obviously don't have a really big out of control fear of snakes. So in that case, the "just do it" advice may be best, but I'd never recommend that to someone who had a greater fear... they'd need to work up to it more gradually. Only you can judge if you are at the "just do it" point or if you need to take more baby steps first.

What do you think you are afraid of? Are you afraid of being bitten? In that case, the gloves and long sleeves that have already been suggested could build your confidence a lot. An alternative to this would be to have the protective layer on the snake. Put it in an inside-out pillow case, and tie a knot in it (make sure the snake is well away from where you are tying so it doesn't get hurt). Then curl up in front of the TV with it on your lap. The snake will feel secure in that nice dark place, and you'll feel secure knowing you can't get bitten, but you'll also both get to feel each other through the layer of fabric.

Also, you might want to at some point consider getting bitten on purpose, and you'll see that it really doesn't hurt as much as you might think. I DO NOT mean aggravating your BP until it finally bites you. Instead, find someone that has a nippy snake and handle that one. Also, hopefully this is obvious, but I'm talking about doing this with a small snake. Pet stores frequently have baby snakes that are a little nippy partly just because they are babies, but partly because the pet store employees don't handle them often enough and/or don't know how to do it in a way that helps the snake calm down and stop feeling defensive.

Maybe your fear isn't so much of a bite in particular, but just snakes in general, perhaps rooted in "snakes are evil" stuff that comes out of the bible and so many other sources in our culture, or perhaps from Hollywood making totally unrealistic movies about snakes. In that case, educating yourself about snakes will probably help a lot. Learn which snakes are dangerous and which aren't. Learn how almost all snakes, even the dangerous ones, would much rather be left alone than do anything to hurt a human being. Learn that when people get bitten by snakes, it is most often because the snake was afraid. Sometimes it can also happen if the snake mistakes a person's hand for something it can eat, such as if the person was handling a rodent so their hand smelled like food.

Learning about your BP in particular can help too. For example, do you know that the name ball python comes from the fact that they tend to curl up into a ball when scared? This is part of what makes them good pets; even when scared they are less likely to bite than many other species of snakes. Just watch your BP in its enclosure. You'll notice it spends most of its time hiding. You may see it moving from one hide to another in order to thermoregulate itself. Try checking in on it late at night after the room it is in has been dark and quiet. That is when it is most likely to be active.

Like Joanna, I have kids (10 yrs and 5 yrs) that regularly handle our BP. It is probably far more dangerous for the snake, if they weren't careful and dropped it or something, than it is for the kids. While we were in the shopping and researching phase before we bought it, my 10 year old got bitten by a baby king snake in a pet store, and I was momentarily afraid she would freak out, either in that moment and hurt the snake, or just in general and decide she didn't like snakes anymore. But she found it didn't hurt at all, and stayed calm. The experience actually increased her confidence level so it ended up being a good thing.

Good luck! It seems to me you are already having lots of success and I'm sure soon you'll be looking back and laughing at yourself because you used to be afraid of your wonderful BP!