is tyson pissed or am i over reacting

[tysonsowner]

ok so i got my bp after carrying my buddies around in my hand and pocket for 6 hrs at a party. right so they dont scare me? not sure ive had em for bout a month now and hold him regularly but can someone please ease my mind. when i get him out i pet him wit a hook for awhile and my finger first then put on my long sleeve shirt snd cloth gloves lol and slowly raise em wit the hook and then grab em slowly. heres where it goes down hill. he get in my hand an feels like hes squeezing then my brain starts sayin hes gonna bite me then his head touches me an my brains says it louder then every move he mkes the brain gets louder till i freak out an drop em to my lap. so i have a few questions.

1- what is the striking position cuz hes always his heads always ina s shape when he moves turns ot anything.

2- can he bite through my glove and shirt

3- why dont he just ball up like norml

4- what are the sure fire signs that he is happy

5-is there a trick to not getting worked up

6- an when hes sticks his tongue out is it always hissing or will i hear the hiss

7- hes awsome some an i love em to death i tal to him like hes a dog always wanted one so wont you please give some good advice

thats it for now u should kno hes never bitten me my 7 yr old son or 2 yr old daughter they love em too they helped talk mommy into him

we r new to this put not taking it lightly have done everything by the book and spared no expense with time searching the net for info or cost of all and any supplies that he might or not need.

please no mean comments they are just dumb,help nobody, and just show how insecure and lonely you are to waste time posting on here. an not saying it to someone in person

and by the way i was told tyson and all suplies would be like 150 bucks hahahahahahaha ive got almost 400 in him but i believe if u get a pet u should treat it as if it was your own child (no im not scared 1 of my 3 kids are gonna bite me lol)

[Herp Hugger]

The "S" shape is classic striking pose if the head is elevated. In my experience though, if you're going to get bit it will likely be when you first try to pick him up. Snakes can sense if you are comfortable or not. Pick up the snake with confidence. Try to do it with your hand if you can instead of using a hook. The tongue sticking out is normal and is the snake's way of smelling. If he is hissing, believe me, you'll know. When they hiss you can hear it. It sounds like a tire sprung a leak. If a snake is comfortable, he will sit quietly or will crawl around inquisitively is an effort to explore his surroundings. The squeezing is also normal and is not a sign that he's about to bite.

I just got over a phobic fear of snakes 2 years ago and now I own 15 snakes of 4 different species. The key for me was going slow. The other thing to remember is that a bite from a BP really doesn't hurt all that much. It's no worse than getting a flu shot.

Good luck and feel free to ask lots of questions. The folks here are friendly and want to help.

[JLC]

It's not all that uncommon that a brand new snake owner suddenly starts to feel very nervous about being bit by their new pet. I'll try to answer your questions and set your mind at ease....but mostly, you'll have to work at setting your own mind at ease, because all the talking in the world won't change your personal thought patterns until YOU make a conscious effort to change them. But learning more can certainly help!

1- what is the striking position cuz hes always his heads always ina s shape when he moves turns ot anything.

Snakes are very S'y creatures. It's just the nature of their body. It's how they move. For someone new at reading them, their "strike position" may be difficult to discern because everything they do looks like an "S".

A strike position usually involves a very TENSE snake...they will lift the top 3rd or so of their body and S it up like a spring...and they'll be very still and intently watching whatever it is that got them that tense. Their head may tremble slightly...but otherwise, they'll be very still. OR, they'll start striking at the air, in which case, you won't have to guess at their mood.

2- can he bite through my glove and shirt

Is he still a baby? If so, it's unlikely that you'd feel much of anything through your shirt or gloves, but you might feel a slight stick or scratch. Even without any cloth protection, the bite really isn't much more than a very quick needle-prick. It's far more startling than it is painful.....but often times it happens so fast you don't even have time to be startled.

My first bite was like that (and every BP bite since then)....I'm a person who startles VERY easily and I was always nervous about that first bite...not afraid of the bite itself, but afraid my reflexive reaction might hurt the snake. It happened so fast there wasn't time for even that...just the brain registering a moment after the snake has already pulled away, "Oh wow, he just bit me." No startle-factor at all, and nothing but a faint memory of a tiny pin prick sensation.

A mature ball will obviously have a bigger mouth and bigger teeth and may make it's bite a little more felt than a baby's....but even so, it's almost always just that fast and no more painful than a needle stick.

3- why dont he just ball up like norml

A balled up ball python is a scared and unhappy ball python.

4- what are the sure fire signs that he is happy

When he's exploring his surroundings slowly and deliberately. Or when he just relaxes and chills in your arms without having to be balled up.

5-is there a trick to not getting worked up

A way to not work HIM up? Or a way to not work yourself up into such a nervous nellie? For him...don't move quickly or suddenly around him...and don't mess with his head or allow your hand/fingers to hover or flutter in front of his face. For yourself....ask yourself what's the worst thing that could happen if he DID bite you? A tiny pin prick? A spot of blood? A little startled burst of adrenaline? Is any of that really something to be afraid of?

I realize the nervousness is natural and am not trying to mock it in any way. I'm just trying to give you a productive way to think about it rather than allowing the fear to take over reason.

6- an when hes sticks his tongue out is it always hissing or will i hear the hiss

The tongue flicking is nothing more than them exploring their world. It has NOTHING to do with the hiss. You WILL hear it if he hisses. I've got one ball that hisses every time I open his tub and take him out, but he's never struck or even seemed to threaten to strike. The few times I have been bitten by other snakes, they've never hissed before the bite...they just do it.

So, don't worry about the tongue flicking. That's a GOOD sign. And don't put too much emphasis on a hiss....because more often than not, if they do hiss, it's just "trash-talk" and they are not inclined to use a hiss as a warning preceding a bite the way a dog might growl first.

I hope all this has helped somewhat. Just try to relax and enjoy your pet.

[llovelace]

lol, I told in your last thread MAN-UP!

I hate to wish this on you, but I wish he would bite you and get it over with, then you'll say "I didn't even feel it" or "That didn't hurt at all, like I thought it would", but I do understand your fears, but after the first bite it's all down hill . From what you have written, the snake seems fine, you just need to relax

[jsmorphs2]

Here are some pics of a strike position so you have an idea of what to look for to avoid a bite. Its not a big deal to be bitten. Once it actually happens you'll say to yourself "oh, why was I worried about that?".

This girl has bitten me LOTS of times, lol. Once she almost fell of the rack because she jumped so far to get me. I just laugh at her cause she's so small. She'll eventually grow out of it.


You can see how tense she is and the front few inches of her body are off the ground.




Again, she's tense and very focused on me.




Pre-strike. Her body is so tense its lifted off the ground. And obviously her mouth is open ready to tag me. She DID NOT hiss at all the whole time this photo shoot was going on.




Hope this helps give you an idea of what to look for in body language. However, they don't ALWAYS give you a show before they bite but usually you can see it coming to avoid it.

[tysonsowner]

lol, I told in your last thread MAN-UP!

I hate to wish this on you, but I wish he would bite you and get it over with, then you'll say "I didn't even feel it" or "That didn't hurt at all, like I thought it would", but I do understand your fears, but after the first bite it's all down hill . From what you have written, the snake seems fine, you just need to relax

thanx yea i kno im just being wierd i guess he hasnt done nothing but head butt me (thats when i dropped him thought he bit me but there were no marks i realized aftr the fact i still feel bad about that) he moves around quite often and has eaten every week since i got him, his cage is like the hollywood hills mansion of snake cages lol,hes never balled up unless hes in his hide. humidity and heat is perfect. i was fine untill someone explained to me how they think no emotions at all, just can it eat me and can i eat it makes it hard to trust em and then when i bought him i was told he was captive bred then when i got his first mouse the manager was saying that all there snakes are wild caught an everyone keeps tellin me there crazy when there wild. so much info on such a small animal. my pitbull was so much easier lol

[tysonsowner]

Here are some pics of a strike position so you have an idea of what to look for to avoid a bite. Its not a big deal to be bitten. Once it actually happens you'll say to yourself "oh, why was I worried about that?".

This girl has bitten me LOTS of times, lol. Once she almost fell of the rack because she jumped so far to get me. I just laugh at her cause she's so small. She'll eventually grow out of it.


You can see how tense she is and the front few inches of her body are off the ground.




Again, she's tense and very focused on me.




Pre-strike. Her body is so tense its lifted off the ground. And obviously her mouth is open ready to tag me. She DID NOT hiss at all the whole time this photo shoot was going on.




Hope this helps give you an idea of what to look for in body language. However, they don't ALWAYS give you a show before they bite but usually you can see it coming to avoid it.

WOW thats exactly what he looks ike all the time but hes never bitten me whenever hes still he does just that an flicks his tongue. maybe he isnt as happy as i thought im gonna keep working with him i refuse to just give up.

p.s. ur bp is beautiful great markings mine has like white spots periodicly on him the size of a roller pin tip. but its cool it makes him unique

[DellaF]

I'm new to BP to. I had the same fear at first. He's not gonna hurt you. Take off the body gear and enjoy him. Sometimes mine look like they want to strike but they never do most of the time they just jerk back because they are head shy. Hope it gets better for you.

[jsmorphs2]

WOW thats exactly what he looks ike all the time but hes never bitten me whenever hes still he does just that an flicks his tongue. maybe he isnt as happy as i thought im gonna keep working with him i refuse to just give up.

p.s. ur bp is beautiful great markings mine has like white spots periodicly on him the size of a roller pin tip. but its cool it makes him unique

I'm sure he's happy. They usually don't tongue flick when they are REALLY upset. If he cruses around and is exploring after you get him out and then goes into an S shape with out tensing up, he's probably just resting in that position. You can feel in their body when the tense up and then if they go into a strike positing, keep your hands away from their face. And by tensing up I don't mean constricting your arm a bit to hold on to you, its more like they freeze and some what puff up.

If you're still nervous there is nothing wrong with wearing a pair of leather gloves while handling the snake. It will help you gain confidence and when you are relaxed and confident your snake will be more relaxed and feel safe during handling. IF it does bite it wont go through leather and it will just learn that if it bites you you wont go away.

And thanks . Any pics of your guy ?

[tysonsowner]

not sure how to put them on here but i put some on my profile check em out