Suddenly aggressive

[IamMyEnd]

Haven't been here forever. Had a bad accident two and a half years ago. Paraplegic now. Anyway a month ago I took out one of my bp's out to feed and he suddenly squeezed my hand then bit the other. Gonna be 5 years since I had him and haven't been bitten once. Since then he's always aggressive and now it's got me all feeling all sketchy with my other three. I haven't been handling them much since I've been in a wheelchair and sometimes just take them out to feed them. But it's been like this for over two years. Any tips on how to tame him? Thoughts? Need help, never felt anxiety towards my snakes before

[Bogertophis]

Sorry to hear about your accident. I have to ask, why would you take your BPs out to feed? It is preferable to feed all snakes in their normal enclosures,
and handling a snake that is hungry & expecting food is asking for a bite. Our hands are "warm & wiggling" (like prey!), they are expecting food (& easily
jump to a conclusion when hungry!) and IF you have the faintest whiff of rat-scent in the room OR on your hands, that pretty much completes the picture
in their mind. I don't think it's personal, they don't want to bite YOU, but they are confused. You should feed them only in their normal cage & using tongs
to offer the prey. It doesn't help that you haven't been handling them so much- it makes their mistakes more likely.

Do you know about "hook training" your snakes? It has nothing to do with picking them up using a snake hook. It's actually a method using a snake hook
to signal to the snake that it's NOT food coming their way, only that it's time to be handled. With minimal effort, most snakes catch on & don't bite...it's one
of several ways of communicating what's heading their way. Personally I use my scent, & sometimes touch as well...remember that snakes best senses are
their sense of smell & touch. They do not recognize us visually...they use vision to see motion that they assume means prey to chase. And obviously they
cannot hear us either. If you take a moment to signal to them that you are not food (by using their best senses, touch & scent), it should greatly reduce
their mistakes in biting you.

[IamMyEnd]

I feed all my snakes in a seperate a container, so they never associate cleaning or anything else with feeding. Plus I feed them thawed rats and dont have to worry about substrate getting digest. Been doing that for 12 years with my oldest, never been bit before. I have been looking up hook training for that one snake. He has been the most agressive. Guess getting bit and feeling bad for not taking them out as much has got me down. Thanks for your reply.

[Bogertophis]

It's actually not a good idea to feed in another cage...your snake is more apt to bite you while in feed mode, either before or after. With larger snakes it's actually
dangerous to do it that way, as some stay pumped up ("feed mode") for even a day or more after eating, so you can get bit trying to put them back in their cage.

The best way to avoid bites is to signal your snake that it's NOT feeding time, using your scent & touch (with hook or similar item). Some snakes actually will not
eat if you handle them first (just to move to another cage), it stresses them & interferes with their instincts to eat (because the only thing that normally picks up a
snake in the wild is a predator about to eat them!) I'm glad yours eat anyway, but it's not the best method, especially since you're getting bit.

As for them ingesting substrate, just feed on a "plate" (either a real paper plate or a cardboard box lid, or similar thing to keep the rat off the cage floor).

Sometimes snakes may be inclined to bite when they aren't being fed enough...without seeing your snakes & the size of prey, I can't tell if that may also be a factor.
There may be other issues going on too.

[zina10]

Sorry to hear about your accident.

First of all, don't take it personal that your snake bit you. And don't let it get you down. I know, easier said then done.
I completely understand that it becomes a bit harder to handle any of the snakes, after you've had a couple of unexpected and bad experiences. It removes some of the trust that built up over the years.

Honestly though, I agree about it being a feeding response. It really doesn't matter how you fed for 12 years and how they acted, sometimes instinct just takes over. It also doesn't make much sense to remove a snake for feeding in order to keep them from mistaking cleaning/handling time with feeding time.

While animals get used to routine, that is simply giving them to much credit. If you remove the snake from its enclosure for any reason (handling cleaning feeding) and it suddenly scents food in the air, it can go into full on feed mode within a second. Especially if it has been smelling the food before you even took it out. Anything warm (hands) and movement can trigger a food response in that moment.

I have noticed that my Ball Pythons go through stages of just "how" crazy they are about food. Sometimes in the year, the scent of rats warming up doesn't seem to get them all excited. They will still take the food, but quite calmly and without much drama. The last two feedings (some took a break for a few weeks) have been insane !! Far bigger food response then I have seen before. A couple of them literally spazzed out !!! Thrashing around open mouthed as I got close. I have never seen that before. That same snake got fed again today, and OMG. All the years of snake keeping under my belt and she almost got me !!! She was SO ready to eat, I held the rat up to her, the rat was VERY warm, she went up to it, but then turned her head to me and lunged towards me, mouth wide open, at least a foot and a half. It was close and it got my heart pumping, LOL. Take her out during the day or no food smell in the air, she is a sweetheart.

Perhaps your male is going through a "want food, and fast and now" stage and he smelled it in the air. When you picked him up, the scent got stronger and your hands were moving and warm.

I never remove my snakes for feeding, and not a single one is aggressive. I try to do maintenance and/or handling during the day, when they usually aren't looking for food. If I have to mess with them while they are hunting, or during those "ready, and ready now" times, I simply open the tub and gently tap them on the hand with a paper towel roll. (gently, not a smack!!) That snaps them out of feed mode instantly and I can pick them up. But I wouldn't do that while the smell of food is in the air. That is setting your animal and yourself up for failure.

If you came up to my tubs at night time, esp right now when they are going through a ravenous stage, you would think they are aggressive. But no, just looking for food, and ready to lunge out for it. They are perfectly fine during the day, and most of the year they aren't going quite that crazy for food.

Long story short, while this has worked for you for many years, just see if you can switch things up for that one snake. Take him out during the day, and NEVER while food is thawing or he is hungry and searching for food. See if his temperament is different then. Feed him in the cage. Then take him out a couple of days after eating, and during the day. (no rat scent in the air) See if he still acts iffy.

[zina10]

I meant to say HEAD, not hand. I gently tap them on the head.

[IamMyEnd]

Thanks you guys makes sense. Will the snakes become confused if I try feeding them in their cage? I got three in tubs and the big one in a animal plastics cage. I dunno if the plate would keep substrate off, one likes to take his meal all over the place. I think they are smelling their food. Before my accident I had them in my so called man cave, now I'm in a very small apartment, probably no where to escape the smell. Forgot how good their sense of smell is.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

Feeding a snake outside the enclosure is just the worse idea, setting you up to get tagged, it's not a matter of if it's a matter of when. They are in feed mode hours before being fed and hours after being fed, therefore you are setting yourself up for a bite every time.

There is not one single advantage in feeding outside the enclosure only inconvenience and risks. Not only risky for you but risky for the snake should it break a tooth while biting you.

Your snakes will have not issue transitionning.

Most people do feed in the enclosure, those that do not were usually misinformed, and led to believe a persistent myth.

I have fed hundreds in their encore without issues and regardless of the substrate.

[Sonny1318]

I fed large constrictors for years in a separate feeding containers in the early nineties. I’m talking for years, what a mistake!! No benefits what so ever (besides one hell of an adrenaline rush). I don’t always agree with everything or everyone on here. But this right here, feeding in habitat, it is truly a no brainer. The snakes I have now are tiny compared to before and they still are aggressive as all get out at feeding time. Please just feed in enclosure. Trust me. Just unnecessary on every level. For you, for the animal, it’s just not.

[Bogertophis]

And I've been feeding a countless number of all kinds of snakes IN their enclosures for literally decades with no problems handling them, just NEVER handling
them at feeding time. Please trust us on this...feed in their normal cages, always, and find ways to signal when it's time for you to just handle them.