He's already had 2 feedings, third due teusday, and he's been a great feeder till nowOriginally Posted by Crazy4Herps
Well, first of all, congrats on the new baby!
Since hatchling snakes don't have a mother around to protect them, their default is to be defensive; it's a perfectly natural response to some giant animal grabbing at them. With nippy snakes I prefer to use the "tree" approach, staying calm and letting the baby crawl on you without being rough or trying to restrain them, but the truth is that he is going to grow out of it no matter how you choose to handle him.
But since your tiny guy is so new I think it might be in his best interest to hold off on handling for a while longer. Has he eaten yet? I think if you leave him alone until he's had 4 or 5 meals there's a good chance that the nippiness will have mostly dissipated when you next handle him. At this point he is probably afraid of everything, and I think that giving him another few weeks to settle down and be comfortable would allow him to calm down without having the stress of handling intensifying his fear of the world.
But it's your call! Good luck with him, and I hope he settles down for you soon.I had waited till after his second feeding to handle him properly for the first time, and I agree with your advice.
That tree approach sounds abit creepy though! After a while I'll be confident enough to try it, just scared that I'd drop him or something, but it sounds fun xD
Thanks for the feedback!
Reply With Quote