I was at work yesterday and one of my co-workers took the ball pythons out of their cage and took them into the back to feed them. While I was in the back and she was feeding (they actually ate for once, but I might add that later when I looked in the feeding log she had wrote down that she fed one of them 4 pinkies! Ugh!) I just said "Petsmart's way of feeding is so strange to me." She asked me what I meant and I mentioned that I fed in the cage. She then replies, "Oh no, you shouldn't do that. It makes them cage aggressive." I politely told her that no, that is a myth and whether you feed in the cage or outside the cage has no influence on cage aggression. She says, "I have to respectfully disagree." I then told her that I keep ball pythons and that I don't have any snakes that are cage aggressive BECAUSE I feed in the cage. I have one or two that are just cage aggressive anyway (Thriller my pastel, though he is improving a lot, and my corn snake who has been cage aggressive since day 1) She says, "Well then I think you are just lucky then." I told her that many breeders that I have spoken to do not experience cage aggression either even if they feed in the cage.
So I figured I'd take a poll here and see how many people actually experience ANY cage aggression. Please, please, please fill this out the way I write it because I want to compile all the data and possibly print it out to show my co-workers.
Hobbyist or Breeder:
# Snakes in Collection:
How often do you handle your snakes:
In cage/Outside of cage to feed?:
# of snakes with cage aggression:
F/T P/K or Live?:
Tank/Tub: