Should I take a bite?

[bcr229]

I had a friend over last night that also works with snakes. He asked if her could handle Fluffy. I said sure, but warned him that she always strikes, she always bites., and that I am still working with her to move past this phase. He says "let me see how she does with me". He calmly and confidently took Fluffy from me, and of course, she was a perfect little angel. She crawled on him. She let him touch her head, her neck, and pet her body. I was astonished. This to me is proof of one of two things. Either it is completely and 100% the confidence and calmness of the handler. Or, she's seen me scared, and retics are suppose to have excellent memories, and she remembers that she has and can intimidate me. She's seen me react to a bite. and now she knows how to "handle me".

I wouldn't read too much into her being calm with your friend. Some of it is attitude and snakes are very sensitive to how relaxed or tense we are, but also remember that they are most defensive when being pulled out of their comfort zone (the enclosure) and once out they're a lot more likely to run than strike. Burms are notorious for this; very hissy and flinging coils in the enclosure, puppy dog tame out of it. Had your friend removed her from the enclosure it's very likely she would have struck out at him at the time.

One trick to getting her out easily is to put a washcloth or dish cloth over her head before you pick her up. You can also try slipping her into a bag, where she feels secure, and then just hold the bag in your lap for a while. She will start to associate your scent with warmth and security. I actually use a sleeping bag for my adult retics; they "hide" in it and are usually quite content to stay put for a few minutes while I clean the enclosure. My Burmese also loves it.