Have you ever just not bonded with a snake?

I have two bp's that I adore. They're sweet and tame and I look forward to interacting with them. I open up the door to their room and my little yellowbelly girl sticks her head out to see what the noise is, and it's adorable. I can handle both of them with no problem and enjoy it.

A few months ago I got a baby Brazilian Rainbow Boa. She's absolutely gorgeous but I don't really interact with her. I change her water, feed her and clean her enclosure and that's it. I never go in to just hold her. She's so small and she's a little fiesty, though she's never bitten me. I think she sort of scares me a bit, to be honest, whereas I'm totally comfortable with my ball's.

I'm torn between keeping her and selling her to just get another ball python. I don't know what to do.

Brb are very rewarding snakes to own...most snake babys are feisty...I! You have never been tagged honest just let her hit you and you realize it nothing to be concerned about.ive taken hits from my adult balls and that not bad at all..I think once you get the first one out of the way it will change your mindset...just keep working with her and she will get better.

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I know how you feel. I have a few feisty BPs that I have an issue bonding with. It's not that I am afraid of them, just I have other snakes that are in happier spirits that are easier for me to bond with. I have a boa who I do not bond with at all. He is very feisty and I too want to sell him for it but my husband likes his so I can't.

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Originally Posted by frostysBP

Brb are very rewarding snakes to own...most snake babys are feisty...I! You have never been tagged honest just let her hit you and you realize it nothing to be concerned about.ive taken hits from my adult balls and that not bad at all..I think once you get the first one out of the way it will change your mindset...just keep working with her and she will get better.

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I just went in there to visit her and when I went to pick her up, she coiled defensively and hissed and I couldn't pick her up lol. I'm a wuss.

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Originally Posted by BCS

I know how you feel. I have a few feisty BPs that I have an issue bonding with. It's not that I am afraid of them, just I have other snakes that are in happier spirits that are easier for me to bond with. I have a boa who I do not bond with at all. He is very feisty and I too want to sell him for it but my husband likes his so I can't.

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Aww that's too bad. I was very lucky with my bps. Even as baby's they were both super tame. I picked them for that, though. I'm not breeding so I look for tameness in snakes. The brb I got because she was so beautiful lol. I couldn't resist.

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Most snakes will get better with age and handling, some won't. I have several snakes that would like to bond with me every chance they get with typically bloody results if they're successful. They make very nice display animals.

I'd say give her a chance to get some size on her, she may grow on you with a little more maturity. But, if you really don't feel anything for her then it's okay to try to rehome her, sometimes it just doesn't work out and that's okay too.

When you go in grab a paper towel roll rub her on her head and at the same time pick her up from behind with the other hand...when you get her out just sit on the ground and let her start exploring around and hand over hand...see if that works...good luck to you both.

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Honestly I know how you feel. If you can find some of my older posts in the giant pythons section, I had MAJOR issues with a dwarf retic that I picked up. He would tag me half a dozen times before I could even get him out of the enclosure. Even while in my hands he would still lunge at my face and basically any exposed skin. Needless to say we did not bond at all for the first couple months.

I spent time every day holding him and working with him. Even with a glove my hands turned into a bloody mess. Looked like connect the dots from all the bites. Slowly but surely he started to calm down here and there. A month ago I had the first handling session where he struck but didn't bite. Two weeks ago he was able to come out of his enclosure without so much as a strike or a hiss.

I think he will always be a snake that's edgy, but he is 100x better than when I first got him. Point is, if you truly want to bond with an animal it is going to take time on your behalf. There is no shame in saying that a certain snake isn't for you, and selling her. We all have our limits to what makes us comfortable, and you shouldn't have to live with any animal that makes you feel uneasy. But if you want to continue to keep her, and enjoy her, you will need to spend time every day handling her for a while

I have found that a large percentage of BRB babies are super snappy, but most grow out of it with regular handling, and become wonderful adult snakes that are a joy to handle and keep. My advice would be to start keeping a handling log for her. Handle her every day for 10-15 min, and take some brief notes after as to your interaction and how it went. Do this every day for a month, minus after feeding times and during shed of course. I would bet that after 30 days looking back on it, you will see that she is trending much better towards being a better behaved snake.

Last year my BRB female gave me 25 bouncing babies. Two of them were "yolk babies" and these are the only two that didn't take a defensive swipe at me, IMO because they were too weak. The rest later settled down but I had to handle every one of them for just a few minutes every day except for right after feeding day.

Note that they're not being mean or aggressive, to them you are a great big Godzilla predator about to gobble them up, and they are scared. So pick up your BRB, hold it gently for a short time, and if it nips... so what? It's a baby. Put it back only when it's stopped nipping and it will soon learn that biting doesn't make you go away. Right now you're teaching it that nippy/pissy behavior means you leave, which is what it wants. It's doing a good job training you.

That said... my daughter has two common garters and I really want to take the little so-and-so's outside and turn them loose to live happily among all of their other common garter buddies. All three of us would be happier.

Agree with the above. You can totally do this. A bite from a baby BRB is nothing. Serrated teeth from a retic are MUCH worse.

This is normal baby behavior from a Brazilian rainbow boa. :) They do mellow a ton out with age. Mine is just over a year old now, and she's pretty much as tame as my ball python-and I realize that mine might be in the minority, but the only time I ever see aggression from her is during feeding.

Do you have a snake hook? I think the biggest bite risk is actually reaching in and taking them out. Once most snakes are out of their enclosure, they seem to be fine.

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I'd say give her a chance to get some size on her, she may grow on you with a little more maturity. But, if you really don't feel anything for her then it's okay to try to rehome her, sometimes it just doesn't work out and that's okay too

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I think I'll keep her a while longer. She's happy and taken care of right now so I suppose that's all that matters.

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I have found that a large percentage of BRB babies are super snappy, but most grow out of it with regular handling, and become wonderful adult snakes that are a joy to handle and keep. My advice would be to start keeping a handling log for her. Handle her every day for 10-15 min, and take some brief notes after as to your interaction and how it went. Do this every day for a month, minus after feeding times and during shed of course. I would bet that after 30 days looking back on it, you will see that she is trending much better towards being a better behaved snake.

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I'm going to try that :) She's really pissy in her tub but usually once I get her out she's okay. I think I'm just afraid to go in there and get her out lol. I'm really a wussy. Never been bitten before and I really don't want to be! lol

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Note that they're not being mean or aggressive, to them you are a great big Godzilla predator about to gobble them up, and they are scared. So pick up your BRB, hold it gently for a short time, and if it nips... so what? It's a baby. Put it back only when it's stopped nipping and it will soon learn that biting doesn't make you go away. Right now you're teaching it that nippy/pissy behavior means you leave, which is what it wants. It's doing a good job training you.

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Yeah, I think that's the issue. I even sent my sister in there to pick her up since she's not afraid of anything, and even she couldn't pick the snake up! lol But yeah, that's good advice.

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Do you have a snake hook? I think the biggest bite risk is actually reaching in and taking them out. Once most snakes are out of their enclosure, they seem to be fine.

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No, I don't! You know, I think that would make me a lot more confident. I'm okay once I have her out but reaching in there is scary lol. I'm going to pick one up.

Can I ask you something?

Have you ever played with a kitten and had it bite and scratch you?

Because a bite from pretty much any baby snake will be a LOT less than a kitten bite or scratch.

I've had some pretty impressive BP hissers/huffers.

If you think a BRB baby hissing is scary, you should try a 6' female ball python. She sounds like a steam engine. But I'll let you in on a secret, it's ALL bluff.

Same thing with your BRB. Even IF she snapped at you, you'd need a magnifying glass to see where she got you.

I'm going to link you to a great thread about being bitten.

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ighlight=Worst

This will give you some ida of what to expect.

Gale

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Originally Posted by angllady2

Can I ask you something?

Have you ever played with a kitten and had it bite and scratch you?

Because a bite from pretty much any baby snake will be a LOT less than a kitten bite or scratch.

I've had some pretty impressive BP hissers/huffers.

If you think a BRB baby hissing is scary, you should try a 6' female ball python. She sounds like a steam engine. But I'll let you in on a secret, it's ALL bluff.

Same thing with your BRB. Even IF she snapped at you, you'd need a magnifying glass to see where she got you.

I'm going to link you to a great thread about being bitten.

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ighlight=Worst

This will give you some ida of what to expect.

Gale

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Thanks for that. I'm going to get a small snake hook and see if that helps me. She's really okay once she's out, it's just intimidating to actually get her out. I think the hook might be the key.

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No, I don't! You know, I think that would make me a lot more confident. I'm okay once I have her out but reaching in there is scary lol. I'm going to pick one up.

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:) That's what I did when I got my first snake. I was nervous about reaching in, but over time and by using the snake hook, I grew more confident and never have to use it anymore (unless I absolutely need to move them while they're in shed). I think it would really help you as well. Good luck!

I am never really one to give the 'hard knocks' speeches on here. But I do think that getting tagged by a snake definitely comes with the territory of owning one. It is not fun at all, but just part of the game. I think after you have it happen once you will laugh at yourself for how worried you were about it.

Confidence is crucial though. If you flinch, or withdraw your hand when they hiss or act aggressive it will only allow them to think that they can control you with their behavior.

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Originally Posted by JoshSloane

But I do think that getting tagged by a snake definitely comes with the territory of owning one. It is not fun at all, but just part of the game.

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Awe, you know it's fun, sometimes - depends on the animal and situation.

My young male ball pythons favorite past time is biting me. I was a bit nervous at first since I had never been bit by my past snakes and I wasn't sure what to expect from this tiny terror. I don't even feel it it's just startling to watch it happen since they are so fast. Strangley I think it's helped him tame down. When biting and striking me doesn't get him what he wanted, and I would calmly and confidently hold him, and not eat him, he would mellow out and calm down. He's much better now but still young and every once in a while he will throw a tantrum. Naturally I try not to get bit, but he's managed to get me a couple of times. I hope your BRB mellows out for you, which I'm sure with handling, will. They are such beautiful snakes. I hope to own one myself one day.

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Originally Posted by hazzaram

Aww that's too bad. I was very lucky with my bps. Even as baby's they were both super tame. I picked them for that, though. I'm not breeding so I look for tameness in snakes. The brb I got because she was so beautiful lol. I couldn't resist.

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I also keep just pets so temperament is a huge priority. I've had many snakes in the past that I have sold because they were jerks. I want a snake I can more or less pick up and handle when I want (within reason) and not have to worry that it's going to latch onto my arm. More importantly, one that other people can also safely handle, since I use mine at my school with young people.

That being said... a lot of baby snakes are defensive jerks who grow out of it. Grow her up for at least a year before you decide to sell.

I think it's worth pointing out that you don't have to be bitten if you don't want to. There are plenty of venomous keepers that can attest to that. It's just a matter of how far you want to go with your handling techniques and things of the sort.

That being said, you don't have much to worry about. Sounds like a hook is all you need in this particular case :)

Lots of snakes behave the way you are describing while in their enclosure. Ball Pythons have just evolved with a different defense mechanism (balling up) rather than biting.

My Dum was snappy and would strike at any sudden movements. I'd be holding her and my husband would walk by and she'd go at him, haha. She tagged me once but struck at me countless times. My nerves would be up when handling her at the start, then I didn't handle her all that often for a bit, a few minutes here and there and her growing up mellowed her out. My lack of handling didn't contribute to it at all and now she's my most mellow snake, even my boys hold her now. :) I vote you let her grow a bit and see how she goes before selling her too!


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