handling BP more= tamer pet?

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Originally Posted by SadieJ

I've had misunderstandings w/my BP, & he seems to forgive (more likely that he forgets completely but who knows?) One thing I'm trying (& I'm a new owner, so take that into consideration) is that before I go to handle him, I wash my hands & arms up to my elbows with th same soap, every time. I'm thinking eventually he will be conditioned to realize that this smell isn't a threat, just th moving scenery w/a heat signature that's coming to pick him up & hold him for a little bit.

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I do that too. It's good habit to wash hands before handling anyway, so I use the same soap each time to be more familiar.

I play a few games with my snake: He's on the ground or sofa, and I squeeze one or both hands around him, Gently, with just enough pressure that he has to flex his muscles and push through to move forward. I never do it hard enough to completely prevent him from moving, and if he stops tensing up I just let him go. We do this 2 or 3 times until he makes it obvious he's had enough of the 'game'. I took a video one time. Not much to see really but his tongue is flicking and he seems pretty relaxed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJFPbkgX8-Y


Another 'game' is to have him wrap around one arm and use a wet paper towel to wipe him down and clean him. I'm pretty sure he enjoys it because he will hold on and let me wash him from head to tail a few times, then I dry him off with towel. He can move away at any time but will sometimes just hold still and hang out in the towel for a while.

The main thing is to observe the snake and let it teach you what it is comfortable with. When he starts pulling away or makes it obvious he's had enough I'll return him to cage.

I don't think BPs really have the desire to be held. I think they have the capacity to become desensitized to handling and not react in a negative way to it, but I don't believe they have the capacity to really bond with humans or 'enjoy' handling.

I think my garters benefit from non-excessive handling and come as close to 'enjoying' it as any snake can. They have very fast metabolisms compared to most commonly kept snakes and thus are hardwired to have more seeking behavior (because they'd need to go out looking for food more often in the wild) and that desire to seek can be met by occasional handling once they've been desensitized to you and don't view you as a threat. Additionally, they're one of the few snake species that seems to have (admittedly kind of rudimentary) social behavior that doesn't directly revolve around mating, due to their tendency to share hibernaculums and dens in the wild.

That being said, I think all of that interaction is based on conditioning; they associate me with food and warmth, and will therefore seek me out. I don't think they have the capability to concretely think of someone/something that isn't in their immediate environment, and I cease to exist to them the minute I walk out of the room. My only reptile that seems to have a concept of my existence beyond simple conditioning is my turtle; I will often come in to see her standing on her hind legs watching the door. I don't see any reason for her to do that if she doesn't have a vague understanding that I exist outside that door and will eventually walk in and feed her.