How do you deal with a agressive/snappy/stressed snake? Training them?

[bcr229]

My answer: I keep some form of alcohol in a sprayer (last resort) near by. Most of the time they let go just as quickly as they bite.

I would suggest white vinegar instead as rubbing alcohol can be dangerous if ingested. White vinegar stinks and will sting like alcohol but it won't make your snake sick.

If you meant alcohol like vodka or gin, save that for your own medicinal use to recover.

I'm going through this now with my rescue Burmese python as she's 15 months old and her prior owner physically abused her and scared her every time he picked her up, so she has reason to be very wary of being handled over and above typical baby defensiveness. So far I've done the following:

- Put her in a bag, put her on my lap, and sit in a chair so she gets used to my smell and some movement while in a secure space.

- Put a shirt I wore in the enclosure with her (swap them out every day or so), so something that smells like me is in her hide.

- Hook hook hook hook!

- Never pick her up or come at her from above, always slip the hook under, lift, then get a hand under her when I need to pick her up.

- When she's in-hand she's supported from underneath and never restrained or grabbed; if she wants to run she can run.

- Even if I can't pick her up every day, she gets a light rub with either the hook or my hand for a few seconds twice a day every day when I check her enclosure.

- Watch the lighting and shadows in the room so I'm never backlit while handling her.

She has improved slowly over the past year but there's still a long way to go and I don't expect she'll ever be as chill as many Burmese pythons are. At least she no longer immediately strikes the hook when she's touched with it, but she will still strike out when in-hand at sudden movements and shadows.