handling questions

[beardieguy]

Hi i have had my bp since the end of nov 07.i have handled him every night for 10 minutes exept shed and 2 days after he eats.the first question is whenever i put him away i have a hard time getting him in because he will squeeze my wrist or just start coming out on his own.is this normal?also i kept him out for 15 minutes tonight and just put him away but when he was out he barely moved iwould say he moved for 5 out of the 15 minutes the other time he just layed on my lap or my arms or hands.is he not moving because he is scared?

[MelissaFlipski]

Our BP frequently does not want to go back in and attempts to hold on to us or quickly climb up and escape before we close her tank. It's normal; he just wants to hang out a little more.

Also, the calm behavior when out could be b/c he was cool when you took him out, he just feels calm, etc. Could be a million reasons that are normal. Our snakes have their moods and also react to who is holding them. They tend to "snuggle" with me and go for a "run" with my husband and kids.

Just keep your eye on his behavior to make sure he is OK. If you start to worry, take him to a vet. But IMHO, it sounds normal.

[beardieguy]

cool.he has allways been calm since i had him.that make sense cuz my neighbor wanted to hold him he did try to get back to me the whole time.

[MelissaFlipski]

Yeah, they start to develop a preference for how they are handled, which frequently means a preference for WHO handles them, too.

Enjoy!

[BMorrison]

I agree with Melissa. I'm definitely little Furio's favorite. He follows me around the room from in his tank and if I give him to someone else he frantically tries to get back to me where he promptly explores and then falls asleep wrapped around my hand.

[GirDance]

If you're worried try this... Stare at him for a few minutes here and there while he's in his enclosure and just watch his breathing. If you stare you will be able to get a feel for his rate of breathing.

If he's being still because he's stressed, when you have him out you should be able to notice that his rate of breathing has increased - its a common stress reaction in almost all species of animal including humans, and one of those few times you can actually compare animal behaviour to human behaviour.

[cecil]

i had a snapping turtle that was fiesty as hell when anyone got near him. yet when i would hold him he would relax and just go limp.

i think that they get used to a specific person handling them building a certain amount of trust with them. then when someone foreign holds them they become nervous and feel unsafe.

but i'm sure you know that every animal has its own personality and just like us has good days and bad days. i think that when your snake is squeezing your hand he feels like he's gonna fall. i just set them down in a way that their body touches the floor of their enclosures so they just let go of me instead of me letting go of them.

[Noek]

When I take my snakes out to handle them, if they are calm and rest in my hands not being too squirmy, I feel they are comfortable. If, for whatever reason, they move around a lot, I take this as a sign that they don't want to be out, I just put them back.

[Aonaen]

Helpful thread I always wondered why my BP hardly ever moves when I take him out.

Thanks

[frankykeno]

There's being relaxed and still and there's being tense, guarded and frozen in place still. Just like there's interested exploration of an enclosure and then there's stressed and frantic slithering about.

As you get to know your own snake and develop your ability to observe and see trends, you'll begin to instinctively know what's going on to a reasonable degree. Just be observant, be tuned in and learn to read those subtle and sometimes not so subtle signs the snake is giving you.