My kingsnake has had a problem with attacking himself, which usually happens between the time of passing a bowel movement and when he eats. His grace period is generally after he eats or if he is shedding.

What he will do is attack his tail and not let go, and it is not easy to get him to detach. I generally have to get him off with alcohol. When he does this, he shouldn’t be hungry or ready to eat. I also do not think this is a heat problem because besides the biting, he doesn’t show signs of overheating or trying to escape any source of heat.

He usually bites his tail or around his cloaca. This is what his tail looks like before today, which looks worse in person:



Today, he had attacked himself twice, and the second time he bit a large gash in his tail with a bit of blood. I am afraid that a cut like this won't heal on its own:


I am not sure what to do at this point, for it happens frequently. This cut is the worst he has had so far. I am afraid that he is in pain and I am just letting him continue on this way. In the past, he has nearly strangled himself to death after attacking himself to a point where his neck turned reddish purple. Any advice is welcome and thank you for taking the time to read this post.