my children's python feeding response

[blisterbeetle]

hello everybody hope you're all having a great day/night !!

just wanted to come on here for some advice, i am a new keeper, i have a children's python who i've had for about a year now. he is about 1 1/2 years old and doing great! he is very active and makes great use of the enclosure i gave him and takes every opportunity to climb.

as much as i enjoy watching an active and healthy snake in his enclosure, i would like to be able to handle him from time to time. he is still growing but is around ~2ft right now and he is very little. that being said, he has a VERY strong feeding response and will never not readily take food (unless he is shedding). i cannot attempt to pick him up without him striking and wrapping around my hand, sometimes i can take him out for a few minutes but eventually he will end up biting my hand and coiling around it again, which is no fun for the both of us. i try my best to remain calm in these situations because i dont want to stress him out anymore. i was able to successfully handle him once without being bit, however i was wearing gloves at the time.

what should i do to help calm this feeding response? will it go away as he ages? i don't think most of his strikes are defensive, just thinks im food i love the little guy nonetheless.

i provide him with plenty of places to hide and i upkeep his husbandry every day, so i dont think that is the problem, but feel free to give any advice.

also, if a snake bites and coils around you, how do you guys personally go about removing them from you? i havent had problems with what ive done so far but i wonder if there might be another way thats easier

happy (almost) 4th of july