Ball python ate a piece of plastic

[Luvyna]

I was reaching into my BP's enclosure with a glove on my hand to clean up some pee and he bit me. He let go immediately, but he took a piece of my glove with him. I think he thought I was going to feed him because I went downstairs to get the glove and he associates that sound with being fed since his rats are kept in a freezer in the basement, and I feel really stupid for not considering that before reaching in.

Here is the finger of the glove, I think the circular hole at the top is the piece that got stuck to his teeth. It's roughly the size of two sunflower seeds. It's also possible the little triangular hole further down also came off but I didn't see that piece anywhere.



I saw the piece of glove stuck to his teeth when he yawned after he bit me and I could see a little bit of blue sticking out of the corner of his mouth. I opened his mouth with a Q-tip (fuzzy ends were removed) and tried but failed to get it out. By then Noodle was stressing out, so I put him back into his enclosure and tried to Google what to do. When I took him out and checked again, the blue piece was gone, so I think he swallowed it

Is he going to be okay, and does he need to see a vet? Is there any chance he could get impacted or poisoned from this? Are there any bad signs I should look out for? It was a Vulcan latex-free nitrile glove. I feel so bad that this happened, I really should have been more alert to him being in food mode.

[Bogertophis]

Your snake cannot digest this but since it's "the size of 2 sunflower seeds" I think it should pass OK without harming him...maybe you'll see these pieces again-
when he defecates...the blue might stand out a little?

I would however, disagree that " he associates that sound with being fed " since snakes (including yours) have no ears & cannot hear as we do, &
while they can feel some bass notes (so can we) I don't think you could possibly be that noisy when you fetched your gloves. Don't feel too
bad though...snakes are typically thinking about their next meal, whether we are or not, & yours just "reminded you" of this.

Always better (safer) to make your intentions clear to your snakes...I had to be super careful last night when I cleaned cages for my 2 large female Florida rat snakes-
they both recently laid very large double clutches of infertile eggs -neither has ever mated & they do this every year. They've been ravenously hungry & eating
every few days...neither one is skinny, but each is still ready to "take my arm off"- they were SO tense, but I conveyed the right unwelcome message (I'm NOT food!)
& managed to briefly handle them out of & then back into their clean cages without any nips. Silly girls! And btw, any time I walk by their cages, they're
hoping I've got more for them to eat...it's our motion they see, but they don't identify us with vision alone, always remember that. To a snake, motion means prey.

[Craiga 01453]

I would however, disagree that " he associates that sound with being fed " since snakes (including yours) have no ears & cannot hear as we do, &
while they can feel some bass notes (so can we) I don't think you could possibly be that noisy when you fetched your gloves.

Gotta double down on this one. Your snake definitely doesn't associate the sound of latex gloves with feeding time. Tough for an animal with no ears to associate sound with anything...

[Luvyna]

Your snake cannot digest this but since it's "the size of 2 sunflower seeds" I think it should pass OK without harming him...maybe you'll see these pieces again-
when he defecates...the blue might stand out a little?

I would however, disagree that " he associates that sound with being fed " since snakes (including yours) have no ears & cannot hear as we do, &
while they can feel some bass notes (so can we) I don't think you could possibly be that noisy when you fetched your gloves. Don't feel too
bad though...snakes are typically thinking about their next meal, whether we are or not, & yours just "reminded you" of this.

Always better (safer) to make your intentions clear to your snakes...I had to be super careful last night when I cleaned cages for my 2 large female Florida rat snakes-
they both recently laid very large double clutches of infertile eggs -neither has ever mated & they do this every year. They've been ravenously hungry & eating
every few days...neither one is skinny, but each is still ready to "take my arm off"- they were SO tense, but I conveyed the right unwelcome message (I'm NOT food!)
& managed to briefly handle them out of & then back into their clean cages without any nips. Silly girls! And btw, any time I walk by their cages, they're
hoping I've got more for them to eat...it's our motion they see, but they don't identify us with vision alone, always remember that. To a snake, motion means prey.

I'm glad to hear he will most likely pass it, I really hope those little pieces won't stay inside him. It was definitely a good wake up call to be careful in the future How do you communicate to your snakes that you are not about to feed them so you can still reach in to clean and handle, especially when they are very eager, as your rat snakes were?

Gotta double down on this one. Your snake definitely doesn't associate the sound of latex gloves with feeding time. Tough for an animal with no ears to associate sound with anything...

Oh I probably should have phrased the thing about the sound better, what I meant was that he seems to be able to detect people going up and down the basement stairs.

Even though snakes don't have ears, I think he must be able to feel the vibrations. My room is right across from the stairs to the basement, and we have some pretty rickety steps. Before I feed him, I usually go up and down the stairs a few times while thawing the mouse. I think he can recognize the vibrations, because he goes into food mode like clockwork when anyone goes up and down the stairs. My family and I have even tested it many times, Noodle can be sleeping in his cave, and if any of us go down the stairs and back up, his little head immediately pops out of his hide with his neck in an "s" shape. Not sure how he knows, but I believe there is some association there. To make matters worse, before I tried to clean his enclosure last night I had gone up and down the stairs a few times for laundry, which might have made him think it was feeding time.

[wnateg]

How do you communicate to your snakes that you are not about to feed them so you can still reach in to clean and handle, especially when they are very eager, as your rat snakes were?

Boop em with a snake hook

[Bogertophis]

... How do you communicate to your snakes that you are not about to feed them so you can still reach in to clean and handle, especially when they are very eager, as your rat snakes were? ...

These 2 gals are "bottomless pits" since laying all those eggs, so I use a combination approach to tell them I'm not good eating: I give them my scent a few times by
blowing air across my hand thru the screen in their direction -I can see their tongue flicks & reaction but they're still hopeful & if I moved fast they'd be ALL OVER my
motion. I also use a spray of water to their faces...don't think for a moment that this is mean, there are times they will even drink this way like a water fountain, and
it's a great way to redirect them without harm. I also touch their body by hand, as they recognize touch- but again, I pay close attention to their reaction & I can tell
when it's safe to pick them up & put them in a side cage so I can clean their tanks. This year was the goofiest they've ever been...so ramped up despite eating a lot of
food every few days (& digesting just as quickly), silly girls. I'll be happy when they calm down some & get back to normal. They're about 5' long, so they have a long
reach, and they're pretty fast.

Not all snakes respond equally-well to these cues. BPs, for example, are heat-focused...maybe you should put your gloves in the freezer or try holding an ice cube?
When I had a large BCI, she paid little or no attention to my scent...she responded best to touch cues & a water spritz, & I never had one bite from her in all the years.
Most all snakes go after motion first though, & ask questions later...pay attention to your snake, & communicate all that you can...some ppl just hold a roll of paper
towels in front of their snake...that too will make many of them back off...again, because it's a very disappointing meal, lol.

[Bogertophis]

Boop em with a snake hook

Actually, my rat snakes would probably grab & wrap a snake hook...I don't want them hurting their mouths. The BCI I used to have grabbed my hook once...that's just
not pretty. That's why I like using a water spritz...totally harmless, like being in a rainstorm, but very effective. It startles them & changes their focus instantly.

I don't ever "boop" snakes on or near their head...when I use "touch" cues, it's on their body & they associate that with being handled, picked up. IMO, it's too
risky waving a metal hook near a snake's face if they decide to bite it...truly not good for their mouth.

[wnateg]

Actually, my rat snakes would probably grab & wrap a snake hook...I don't want them hurting their mouths. The BCI I used to have grabbed my hook once...that's just
not pretty. That's why I like using a water spritz...totally harmless, like being in a rainstorm, but very effective. It startles them & changes their focus instantly.

I don't ever "boop" snakes on or near their head...when I use "touch" cues, it's on their body & they associate that with being handled, picked up. IMO, it's too
risky waving a metal hook near a snake's face if they decide to bite it...truly not good for their mouth.

Makes sense. Though my etb HATES being misted. She'll totally re-position when the mist starts going. Seems like a strange reaction considering their locality.

And maybe boop was an over simplification, as I didn't actually mean on their head. I was just referring to tap training. I should've been more clear; my bad.

[Bogertophis]

Makes sense. Though my etb HATES being misted. She'll totally re-position when the mist starts going. Seems like a strange reaction considering their locality.

I believe you...so do what works best for whatever you're working with. I don't think snakes are (or should be) a "one size fits all" method. They are vastly different.

[Danger noodles]

X2 every snake owner should have a hook imho! I have a guy that custom makes them since he is a metal worker for like $35. I’ve have a few of them now because they just look cool