Wagging of the tails?

I have 2 snakes that when I try to entice them with f/t mice or rats they wont strike at them but instead will get nose to nose with the dead prey and the tip of their tails shake violently like they think they are rattlers. Has anyone else seen behavior like this? If so what could it mean.

Again they wont eat them from time to time but they act excited or something.

My corn snakes do that when they're excited (or cranky), and will even make a fake rattling sound... not sure if BPs do that, though! :confuzd:

Some of my baby spiders and pastels do that for some reason. Only when they are really young.

I have a king snake that does that. Most of the time he's just grumpy but I guess it could be from excitement too. He does it every time we pull him out of his tank and after we put him back in from a feeding. I chalk it up to him being grumpy. I did read that they do that in the wild as a defense mechanism, it rattles the leaves or something.

Wow, that is interesting. I have not heard of a BP doing that. I also have a northern pine snake, and that's the only snake that I have ever had that pretends to be a rattlesnake at times. But it doesn't do it to prey, just to me when I make it mad.

I'll be watching this one, I'm curious if anyone else has encountered this.

Colubrids will do this at times. Never seen a BP do it. Strange, but very interesting.

Jim Smith

I have never had it happen due to excitement. But Henry will wagg his tail 30 seconds before he poops. Everytime!!

my ball python did the wagging bit too just last week actually he peed that night and he was getting cranky too. I would like to know too.

My big female BP always wagged her tail when she hunted. Like a cat about to pounce. She didn't do it fast, just a slow little back and forth, back and forth, until she hit her mouse. It would stop while she ate, then with the next mouse, back and forth, back and forth.

It was funny to watch, I never knew a snake would do that. I'm not sure if yours is something different, since it sounds more agitated than what mine did.

Gale

I haven't heard of tail-wagging for food before - only mature BPs when they're "in the mood".

My best guess, judging from the nose-to-nose business and no striking, is he was one p*ssed off ball python. He probably had no interest in eating and just saw the rat as a threat. Did you hear any hissing?

Well, I've seen my pastel do this just prior to dropping a load. As far as getting nose to nose. Mine did that with F/T's as well at times. I think they don't scent the way a prekilled does.

only time i have seen the tail wagging in the ball pythons is when a male was introduced into a females cage to breed and she would go around the cage and wag her tail or as Ralph Davis says leaving trails or tracks. Other than that. Never seen it

My 06 Het albino is extremely aggressive. The tip of his tail wiggles like he has a rattle at the end...just before he strikes. That's how I know to leave him be.

Wow! I didnt realize it was that common. I figured they were aggrevated but they didnt strike or eat that day. HMMMM

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Originally Posted by rebel750

Wow! I didnt realize it was that common. I figured they were aggrevated but they didnt strike or eat that day. HMMMM

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this year was the first year id seen the tail wag during breeding. Normally i dont see much of the breeding but ive been lucky to catch a bunch of locks as well as one of my females leaving tracks when the male was introduced to her. :snake: