Help With an Irritated Snake

[EsotericForest]

I have owned a corn before, and have handled many at the zoo that I worked at for awhile. That being said, they've all been rather friendly and never really even attempted to strike at me. I was in Minnesota the other day and ran across a corn at petsmart who was 75% off. I asked them what the problem was, and the response was he was getting too big, and nobody wanted him because he does tend to strike. More than likely it's because nobody is willing to take the time to work with him, so I've now taken it upon myself to get him over his apparent issues. I'm sure it's just a question of getting him used to being handle regularly...but since this is a new experience to me I thought I would ask everybody here for some helpful suggestions. When I did pick him up at the store, he tagged me a little bit when I tried to pick him up, but once I actually had him in my hands he did better. You could still tell he was nervous, and unsure of the situation, but he didn't continue to attempt striking. Although I do prefer to get nice animals from the start, I figured this guy deserved the chance at a good life, since he really wasn't getting it there. Better for me to end up with him than somebody who doesn't know anything about snakes

Regards,
Joshua

[joepythons]

I have owned a corn before, and have handled many at the zoo that I worked at for awhile. That being said, they've all been rather friendly and never really even attempted to strike at me. I was in Minnesota the other day and ran across a corn at petsmart who was 75% off. I asked them what the problem was, and the response was he was getting too big, and nobody wanted him because he does tend to strike. More than likely it's because nobody is willing to take the time to work with him, so I've now taken it upon myself to get him over his apparent issues. I'm sure it's just a question of getting him used to being handle regularly...but since this is a new experience to me I thought I would ask everybody here for some helpful suggestions. When I did pick him up at the store, he tagged me a little bit when I tried to pick him up, but once I actually had him in my hands he did better. You could still tell he was nervous, and unsure of the situation, but he didn't continue to attempt striking. Although I do prefer to get nice animals from the start, I figured this guy deserved the chance at a good life, since he really wasn't getting it there. Better for me to end up with him than somebody who doesn't know anything about snakes

Regards,
Joshua

Like you said just handle him and be gentle he should calm down after awhile .

[snakeyes]

I have owned a corn before, and have handled many at the zoo that I worked at for awhile. That being said, they've all been rather friendly and never really even attempted to strike at me. I was in Minnesota the other day and ran across a corn at petsmart who was 75% off. I asked them what the problem was, and the response was he was getting too big, and nobody wanted him because he does tend to strike. More than likely it's because nobody is willing to take the time to work with him, so I've now taken it upon myself to get him over his apparent issues. I'm sure it's just a question of getting him used to being handle regularly...but since this is a new experience to me I thought I would ask everybody here for some helpful suggestions. When I did pick him up at the store, he tagged me a little bit when I tried to pick him up, but once I actually had him in my hands he did better. You could still tell he was nervous, and unsure of the situation, but he didn't continue to attempt striking. Although I do prefer to get nice animals from the start, I figured this guy deserved the chance at a good life, since he really wasn't getting it there. Better for me to end up with him than somebody who doesn't know anything about snakes

Regards,
Joshua

that's a nice thing you did. most people wouldn't have wanted to go through the hastle of "befriending" an already half grown snake and getting tagged like 50 times in the process. nice job.

[NYDragon]

I feel your pain. I just took in a four year old male that was barely handled. He can be aggressive and quite squirrely. I'm just handling him a few times a week and I hope that will get him to settle down. So far so good. Let me know how yours is doing.

[Seru1]

I can think of worse ways to spend your time, Good lucky, and if you fail you can still tout you have a corn fiesty enough to be a ratsnake . Seriously though hopefully with enough handling he can calm down.


So maybe I missed it, is he regular or a morph?

[Raptor]

I advise gloves. My female tagged me quite well and ended up leaving a tooth in my finger for about a week (To be fair, she was ging into shed). Wasn't too fun when the tooth started worming its way out from the injury healing. Mine was a breeder and wasn't handled very muchbefore I bought her. So before I get her out of the tank, I get a long pair of feeding tongs and run it down her body to let her know I'm going to handle her. When she stops jumping, I pick her up. This method seems to work well since she hasn't tried to strike at me since.

[EsotericForest]

I appreciate the support, and I'll keep you guys updated on how it's going. I'm leaving him be for a day or so first, so he can get used to his new surroundings. I think he's enjoying being in the 20 gallon long I have him in right now. I imagine he probably likes it a lot better than the 2.5 gallon he was in, at least since July.

So maybe I missed it, is he regular or a morph?

He's a morph...I'm not very good with telling one morph from another though. I should have a picture up soon so everybody can help identify him/her .

[snakecharmer3638]

As already stated..... regular handling should do the trick. I guess you should just be happy that he is not musking on you. I would rather be tagged then pooped on any day.

[EsotericForest]

Alright, so I was in getting a couple photographs in order for you guys to help me identify what morph he is. I picked him up without a single problem...he didn't strike, or even curl up to make the attempt. I held him for a few minutes without a problem, and then slowly let him slither over to my fiance. He did perfectly fine with her as well. So, fingers crossed, maybe this won't be as difficult as I originally thought. I wasn't assume that until things go smoothly a few more times though...never know if it could've been a fluke .

If you want to see the pictures I took, go to the follow link.
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...71#post1284471