Do BPs get comfortable with particular people?

[blueberrypancakes]

My BP really does seem to favor me. I handle him the most. My husband and anyone else who picks him up seems to make him stiff and jumpy, but he seems to loosen up a little and relax when I handle him. Is this my imagination, or can BPs tell who their handlers are and who is safe?

[Jessica Loesch]

I would love to know this too.

[Cendalla]

I'm not sure. My male is more comfortable in my hands than my husbands but I'm the one who handles him more. I'm also more familiar with snakes than he is so maybe they can tell that. Don't know

[crepers86]

I believe this to be true for some snakes. I mean each snake is different from the next one. Mom has a dog that can't stand me even though I lived with it for years and will give it treats. My snakes are the same with anyone else as with me. I have seen some BPs that will only let there owners handle them. I think this all depends on the indivuela snake though

What I am wondering... Can a snake taste its food

[Jessica Loesch]

I'm guessing yes they can taste, and I know they can smell their food and often tasting coincides with smelling in that sensation .... so that's my guess.

[babyknees]

I doubt the research has been done to give you a definitive answer to this.

[loonunit]

I'm going to say "sort of". My bps aren't all that fond of me as an owner because I'm constantly waking them in the afternoon to clean their tanks/tubs, and picking stuck sheds off of their noses and eyeballs, etc. And the snakes that are friendlier with me are friendlier with complete strangers.

But it is the case that the neurotic snakes sometimes ball up completely when I give them to other people. They don't ball up with me at all. And except for the very friendliest snakes, most of them do that thing, you know, where you hand them off to a friend and they crane their necks and try to get back to you? I assume that's all smell-based, and is about comfort and familiarity.

[loonunit]

Oh, and: I'd like to add that "more comfortable with me" sometimes seems to include "wiling to bite me, but not complete strangers"...

[Vine]

How relaxed a person is around a snake---particularly when handling it---plays a huge part in how the snake will behave (or misbehave, lol). I believe a lot of it has to do with smell. And remember that snakes also detect heat, which I'm sure plays a huge role as well. If someone is nervous and attempts to handle a snake, the snake will be able to interpret all sorts of stimuli which us humans may not even think about. Things like perspiration, increased blood pressure, breathing pattern/rhythm. When you think about it, all of these things (and likely many more!) come into play and, I believe (though I'm by no means an expert) play a role in at least some measure. And of course, how physically 'tense' a person is while attempting to handle a snake will surely be felt by the snake as well---just as us humans are able to detect how tensed-up or relaxed the snake is just by touch.

Awful lot of things to consider!
And by the way, I share this based on working with hundreds of snakes on a daily basis and handling dozens daily at the breeding facility I work at.
Vine

[blueberrypancakes]

Jessica: Love the new pic! Great pose...

Vine: Well put. My husband is very nervous around Jackson, as are strangers (to him) that I show him to. I am completely comfortable with him, though, and therefore not at all stiff and jerky with him.