Help! My ball wants to eat me! D:

[Skittles1101]

Cage aggression is a myth, made up by the same people who invented "if a snake lays next to you they are sizing you up as food"....you can't honestly believe that do you? People don't tell you it's ideal to feed them inside their enclosure because they feel like it, it's because ball pythons are easily stressed out to begin with, and removing for feeding, putting back right after swallowing can cause stress related symptoms (such as aggression? as well as not eating at all). I have at least 5 that would never eat for me again if I ever tried to remove them for feeding. As for the impaction? They digest bones, what makes you think they can't pass a little reptibark....or whatever you use. My boa has gotten countless mouthfuls of aspen without any kind of impaction. Ball pythons aren't exactly known for having impaction issues. I've had to remove some from his mouth before after a couple days, but that's only to avoid mouth rot, not impaction.

Instances such as "don't house snakes together" you can debunk the "well it hasn't happened to me yet" phrase, as there are countless reasons why it's not ideal for them, but not the cage aggression myth. Here's a lesson on how snakes eat.

There are two types of responses for biting. One, is defensive response, which is the strike and release behavior you are witnessing. The other, is a feeding response, which is obviously what you see when you toss a rat in. Contrary to what most people believe, eye sight is one of the last senses they use. There's a small organ called the Jacobson's organ, which allows them to smell 100x better than we can (cats have it as well). That is the first thing they use, then their heat pits as well as eye sight gives them the rest they need to find the food item (however, blind snakes hunt just fine only using smell). When you reach in, she sees you as a predator, not food. Unless you smell like a rat, you will not get a feeding response bite. It just will not happen, regardless of how many times you have/have not fed in the enclosure, if they don't smell it, it's not there. I'd look up the anatomy of a snake sometime so you can visualize what I'm talking about. I'm against "feeding tubs" because not only are your chances higher of a feeding response bite when reaching in to remove them (rat scent in the air from the rat they just ate), but your also causing added unnecessary stress, as well as chancing regurgitation from handling right after they eat.

Sorry for the novel, but you seem to have gotten some very misguided info from other people and refuse to see it for what it is. Either way, some people do it, and some don't, tomato/tomahto. As far as her behavior, it screams defensive. The options are:
a) she's stressed, for whatever reason. Could be husbandry (how are you reading temps? Some instruments are much less accurate), or could be simply from removing her to eat.
or
b) that's just the kind of snake she is. I have a male orange ghost ball python who's just a jerk....just because he feels like it. Not all ball pythons are cute and cuddly like people assume, it may have just been the luck of the draw and that's her personality.

Either way, reduce the stress, reduce the defensive behavior. Even if it doesn't go away completely, it won't be as extreme. Again, sorry for the novel, I hope she calms down for you. It's never fun having to reach in to change water and have a tooth torpedo coming at you. Good luck