Please help! Really aggressive ball python

One of my snakes was just like that when I first got him! Every time I'd go past his cage and he was out he would strike the glass. He'd strike at everything that moved when I had him out. Regular, brief handling will calm him down. You would be better off to make sure he had plenty of meals in him before you begin to handle him regularly. Then when you do, start with 5 min and gradually go longer. If the snake is hissing loudly or bites you, don't automatically put it away. Let him calm down to realize that you aren't going to hurt him, and also to show him that hissing/biting doesn't work to get him put down. He's afraid and doesn't understand that you aren't going to hurt him! I've had mine for several months now and he has (gradually) calmed down! He's a lot more aggressive during his shed, and he does occasionally hiss at me when I go in to get him. Also, when you go in to get him, do it quickly. Reach in, grab him and pull him out. Don't give up on him yet! Snakes are not domesticated pets and they need to be tamed! Some of them it takes a little longer than others! Good luck!

Truthfully, some babies are a little easier to spook than others are.

For one, he just might be hungry, even if you don't think so. Secondly, you have to see things from his point of view. You are very small, and in the wild you are an easy meal and a target for all kind of predators. You really want to be able to keep yourself hidden to protect yourself, but where you live is a very wide open area to a tiny little guy like you. If you venture to far away from your hide, the odds are good your going to get eaten before you can get back.

To make matters worse, there a lot of huge predators around your home, and they are forever swooping down on you when you aren't prepared and even worse they sometimes snatch you up to eat you, then decide they aren't hungry at the moment, and let you go only to do it all over again.

Sometimes you wish they'd just eat you and get it over with, but the torment continues so you do the only thing you know to do. You try and convince the predators you are just as big and just as nasty as they are, and attempt to bluff them into thinking if they aren't careful, they'll end up the ones getting eaten.

I had a baby just that way. He came out of the egg snapping and hissing at everything. Any movement whatsoever near his tub would send him into a snapping frenzy, sometimes he'd hit it so hard I worried he do brain damage to himself. I was very patient with him, and after several good meals, I started getting him out for 5 minutes at a time, then gradually 10, eventually 15 to 20. At first he never stopped snapping, I lost count of how many times he tagged me. But I stayed gentle and patient, and slowly but surely, he learned I wasn't going to eat him. Once he figured that out, he still hissed once in a while, but only snapped in impatience on feeding day when I was too slow with the mouse. Don't give up on the little guy.

Gale

You've been given some great advice so far! Please don't give up on him yet. I'm surprised this hasn't been more clearly addressed, but your baby IS hungry! Snapping at movement when you walk by is a sure sign. If he's over a foot long, he should be eating small adult mice or rat pups by now. 3 fuzzy mice in 3 weeks is NOT enough food for him. Feed him a small adult mouse every 5 days and it'll help a LOT - seriously, it will. And try the t-shirt trick. It'll help him get to know you. And don't put him down if he does nail you - hang in there so he doesn't learn that nipping gets him put back in his cage where he wants to be. Once he has a full belly, he'll start taming down in no time. Good luck!

Just reach in and pick him up. He's going to try to bluff his way into you leaving him alone. If you have to use gloves, use gloves. The snake is naturally going to be shy and he's trying to get you to leave him alone.

One Caveat, some ball pythons don't like to be handled. I've got a female Lesser Platty and she's always been nippy.

I prefer a hatchling BP to be aggressive. That usually means they have a strong feeding response. I have a female mojave and Het Pied that are both crazy agro, but they eat every time for me! In fact...I just got tagged twice a few minutes ago by my het pied while just trying to clean her cage. Some snakes are just more aggressive than others...they seem to grow out of it as they age though.

Thanks for all of the great advice! I tried feeding him today, he wouldn't take it. Usually literally within the first 15 seconds of it entering the cage he will eat. It's a thawed fuzzy again so I left him alone for a bit with it and nothing.

I think he might still be a little scared or stressed after yesterday's strikefest.

I'll never give up on him. It's not his fault that he is aggressive. I'll keep working on it. I believe he is going to shed in the next couple days so i'll try to feed again after that happens.

Thanks for all of the great advice, maybe soon i'll upload some pictures when he's not so stressed.

He might've refused because of the shed cycle. Some do not feel comfortable eating during that time.

But I strongly suggest upping his prey size. If you have a lot of frozen fuzzies left, I would probably feed him 3 per feeding until you run out and are able to buy some larger sized rodents.

I love aggressive hatchlings.

i am having this problem with my snow corn snake, very agressive and it always strikes at me when i walk by/ clean cage. i just ignore the bites it dont hurt at all, but i will say over the past few weeks he/she was calm down ALOT!! i usually get bit everytime i reached into the cage, now its once in a while.... what i did was....

take a tee shirt that i wore all day and cut some of it off, like a sleeve or part of the chest.. ( old shirt ) and layed it over his hide... and i got him out every day for just like 10 min. i wouldnt go to pick him up right away, i would leave my hand in the cage and let him get use to me then go for the pick up... she/he has calmed down alot and is doing better

also i think a 20g long is too big for a baby, i say you should get a 10 gal and provied more hiding/covering....

i am lucky, with my ball python she was always very freindly... always i can pet her head, i can handle her while im feeding her even... and i only have 1 hid on the warm side but dont think that matters in your case, like what everyone says, i think yours is mostly hunger, and lil scared... feed what the recommended above and maybe provide some more cover for hiding!!

good luck, and dont give up!!

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Originally Posted by Compher

I read that it's good to let them be for a little while with no handling so that they get used to the new home. He was really active the first few nights that I've had him, until I got a hide for him. Since I've gotten the hide I havn't seen him come out of it but twice, and when he sees people, he gets back in as fast as he can.

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This is normal.

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Originally Posted by Compher

However, now when I try to handle him, he gets really aggressive, tries striking a lot and sometimes hisses. I've noticed that a few days ago his eyes were a little glazed over looking indicating that he might be getting ready to shed. Could this really cause such aggression?

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Absolutely. Ball pythons that are opaque cannot see well, and this makes some animals extremely defensive toward any movement. Ball pythons in shed also frequently refuse food.

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Originally Posted by Compher

How can I get him to be not so aggressive so that I can handle him without having to put on gloves? I've tried almost everything, Approaching slow, fast, and nothing he strikes at me every time I try to get near him. Is this normal?

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First, wait for him to complete his shed cycle.
When you approach, put your hand in and move it toward him from the side that his head is pointing away from. Put your finger down on top of his head, this will defuse his intention to strike--then just pick him up. Ball pythons rarely try to bite the hand they're sitting on. It's important to use a smooth motion--not super fast, but not too slow, and definitely not hesitant. If you hover over him out of range, that just gives him a chance to become more frightened and worked up.

Some folks have suggested the snake is hungry--he's not. This is a defensive reaction. Ball pythons have poor eyesight, so unless he is very close and can smell you, he has no idea what you are--you're a large, warm moving shape that could very well be preparing to snap him up and swallow him. Hatchlings, being so small, vulnerable, and inexperienced, are instinctively far more reactive to potential threats.

Your snake will most likely grow out of this behavior, literally--even without handling, ball pythons become calmer and less defensive with age and size. They may also be touchy while in shed, for obvious reasons. You shouldn't handle a snake in shed unless necessary, anyhow. The new skin forming beneath the old can be delicate, and easily damaged.

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Some folks have suggested the snake is hungry--he's not.

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You can't unequivicolly state that. Several years ago, I rescued two very thin females that were starving. As I rehabilitated them, feeding them slowly and not trying to feed them too much, too fast, they struck at their tubs every time I walked by, they were so desperate for food. They tracked me VERY intently - all they knew was that their food is warm, and there was something warm outside their tubs.

Once I opened their tubs, and they COULD smell me, they calmed down immediately.

Once they were back up to a healthy weight, they no longer did that desperate striking.

I agree that it could be stress, but it could also be hunger. Now, because he's in shed, he's not one that will feed in shed (or the prey wasn't warm enough for him to recognize as food).