Did I say "Adventure"??? (A question for experienced Giant Handlers)

[JLC]

I apologize in advance for this long post. I hope you'll bear with me. It's hard to type, so I'll try to keep it brief...but I guess I'm too fond of talking to do a good job of that.

So...I'm in a situation where I have the responsibility of caring for a ~7.5' Burmese python. http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=100910 I've only been there a very short time and only handled her or been in her enclosure a few times, but each of those times was uneventful. She seems like a very docile snake. Until yesterday...

A little info about her enclosure: It's built up high...the top of it reaches to about my nose when I'm standing beside it. And it's accessed only from above. So I have to stand on a step ladder to get a full view of what's going on inside and to reach in for anything. The enclosure is about as deep as my arm is long...so to reach the bottom (which inevitably needs cleaning!) I have to lean over and into it.

Yesterday, I was doing some spot-cleaning and changing out her water. When I picked up the water bowl, some of the old water sloshed out and made a mess. I set the bowl aside and started to sop up the spill with paper towels. And she nailed me...hard.

My hand closed into a fist the moment she launched, and she got a literal knuckle sandwich. The top of her mouth sank into the back of my hand and her lower jaw went around my fingers to trap my fist in her mouth. Her teeth also snagged on rings I was wearing. I think those rings actually helped to keep her teeth from digging in any farther. She tried to wrap, but I was able to use the back side of the enclosure to block part of her body. She got loops up on either side of my hand and squeezed it like a sandwich, but was not able to encircle my arm....though she tried mightily.

So...I'm standing there on this step ladder, hanging over her enclosure with her full weight dangling by the teeth from my hand. Hurt like a son-of-a...gun! I couldn't lift her out of the enclosure without allowing her to encircle my arm or worse. I was just stuck there for about 10 minutes, until Debbie, the zoo keeper came by. By this time, I'm sweating and trembling something fierce....but keeping my cool, at least. I never panicked or cried or struggled. Just waited patiently because that was all I could do at the moment.

With Debbie's help, we were able to lift her out and get her to the sink. Running water didn't do anything. Tried bending the tail backwards, as I've heard that is supposed to do something...but nada. (Not sure if we were too gentle...I was afraid of hurting her!) So I settled down, with her weight resting in the sink now....to wait. Trying to stay calm and "play dead"...although that's hard to do when she would continue to try and loop a coil completely around my arm. But after another 10 minutes or so, she finally had had enough and let go. Debbie and I both danced backwards rather quickly.

Now, I've got blood pouring off my hand...one scared zoo keeper....and one pissed off Burm on the wrong side of her enclosure. (Debbie's funny...she can work beautifully with big cats and wolves and bears...but is scared of the snake.) I'll cut the story short here....after I cleaned up my hand, it took another 30 minutes or so of careful "encouragement" to get Butterscotch back into her enclosure, safe and sound. I was a little too shook-up, and my hands trembling too badly (not to mention one of them hurting like crazy) to try and attempt to grab her. Gentle re-direction from the end of a broom got her crawling in the right direction...eventually.

So....now my QUESTION:

She's still my responsibility. No one else is willing to mess with her. I won't give up on her. I realize I'm in a little deeper over my head than I'd imagined. But the situation is what it is. I either walk away...or I stick with it and do the best I can with it. Walking away is simply not an option. But my confidence is shaken quite a bit.

For those of you who handle giants regularly.... How did YOU feel when you got your first truly dangerous bite? (Makes my little nips from ball pythons seem extraordinarily insignificant now!) I didn't panic at the time...I kept my head and believe I did as well as anyone could under the circumstances. But...how do I prevent such a thing from happening again? How can I learn how to deal with her confidently?

I do have a snake hook...but have never needed to use one before now. After yesterday, the hook now seems like something that LOOKS easy to use when you watch the experts....but feels awkward and flimsy in my own inexperienced hand.

Lessons Learned:

1. Always make sure Debbie or other capable adult is within hailing distance when messing with Butterscotch in any way. (She's big, but I honestly didn't think she was "that big" quite yet......but....she is!! Oh my goodness, she is! )

2. Always wear heavy-duty gloves when getting Butterscotch out of her enclosure. I realize gloves don't prevent a bite from landing elsewhere...but at least I have a chance of getting some protection between me and a potential bite.

3. Always remove her and secure in a tub before doing ANY cleaning or work inside her enclosure.

I really, really don't want to be afraid of her. I don't want to mess this up. I want to learn from it and move on to become a truly confident snake handler. But how do I do that on my own without recklessly endangering myself?

This has been a hard story to share. In part, the physical discomfort of typing it out....but mostly, the embarrassment of having been caught with my drawers down around my ankles...of having so grievously underestimated her willingness/ability to strike, and at the same time overestimating my own "experience" at handling snakes.