Striking at my face

[purpleroan]

So my little bp is usually pretty docile. She struck a bit in general when I first got her but seems to have mellowed out as she has gotten comfortable, and she is still only about 6 months old or so. However, sometimes when I'm handling her she'll be wrapped around my hand and I'll hold her up to look at her adorable little face and probably 70% of the time she'll strike at me. Is it unusual that this is the only time she does it? I kind of just assumed its because she's in the air really and doesn't have much of an escape route, so maybe she feels more defensive. It's not really a big deal, it's actually quite humorous and I imagine it'll go away as she gets bigger but its just peculiar to me �� Anybody have a snake that behaves similarly?

[Craiga 01453]

It probably is defensive, and probably has to do with your face giving off more heat.

It might be kinda "cute" now, but I wouldn't want to get tagged in the face, especially as she gets some size on her.

How long are your typical handling sessions? And how often?

[Stewart_Reptiles]

First thing I tell people "NEVER bring a snake up to your face", your head is the hottest part of your body and snake seak to strike at the hottest part whether it's defensive, hungry, stressed or just zero in on that heat.

[bcr229]

First thing I tell people "NEVER bring a snake up to your face", your head is the hottest part of your body and snake seak to strike at the hottest part whether it's defensive, hungry, stressed or just zero in on that heat.

This. Also your snake thinks you're a predator about to eat it since your face is BIG.

Now, it's different if you're holding your snake across your shoulders once it's grown up a bit, and it decides on its own to investigate your face/hair/head, but that's a far cry from you suddenly lifting the snake up to your face.

[Slicercrush]

I agree with what's said above, I definitely wouldn't want a bite on the cheek, nose, or worse. I'm sure we've all done it at least once, bringing our BP up to our face to get a better look, but it's a much safer idea to not continue doing so.

[CALM Pythons]

Some snakes are more defensive than others. Most BP's grow out of it by a couple months.. The ones BP's ive had that are still striking at 6 months are always Nervous Nellys unfortunately. I imagine it is not because your holding him off the ground, nervous BP's are usually worse when put down on a floor where they are even more insecure & feel vulnerable.


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[purpleroan]

Awesome, thanks for so many answers guys!! I actually didn't know the head is the warmest part of your body, interesting. However, duly noted about taking a closer look, I'll be more considerate from here on out. She's great otherwise so I'm not concerned about her being too skittish or defensive during general handling in the long run but I understand now it's not a fantastic idea to hold her at head level. Thanks again!

Also @craigafrenchette it varies, usually 20min or so 3-4 days a week, sometimes more or less depending on my schedule.


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[Craiga 01453]

Also @craigafrenchette it varies, usually 20min or so 3-4 days a week, sometimes more or less depending on my schedule.


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Ok cool, that's not a problem. I asked because they tend to get stressed if out too long. I wouldn't go too much longer than 20 until she's more acclimated. You will learn each other's mannerisms and body language over time and you'll be able to tell when she's ready to go back to her enclosure.