Very kind ball python now bite me every time I took him out of cage

[Bogertophis]

I'm glad you said this. I've been noticing this with beeing close to my BP that he does act differently to me when Im closer to him. When I move away from him he backs up also. This is very interesting. Glad you posted this.

It's also very common that you can be holding a snake that's quite "tame" & comfortable with you, but once you put him on the ground, outside (or floor, inside) they react defensively.

Don't take it personally- it's just that the familiar cues (scent & touch) they need to recognize you are no longer within their reach, so they assume the worst: that you're a predator nearby! They suddenly no longer feel safe. To a snake, safety = survival.

If this ever happens to you (many like to give their pets some time "out" to exercise), just remember what's going on & give your snake the scent & touch cues he needs to recognize you. Once you do, it usually doesn't take very long for them to recognize you & calm down, enabling you to pick them up, even when they acted totally hostile just moments before. Nothing has actually changed. I guess this is part of the reason many people don't trust snakes...because they just don't understand where snakes are "coming from".

This phenomenon is one reason that keepers of very large snakes can get in trouble with their loose roaming pets- especially at night, when most would be hunting. It's very dangerous & asking for trouble. A snake on the ground is going to rely on their instincts, because they're still not domestic animals no matter how long we have them & feel comfortable with them. Remember that & always think in terms of safety, especially if you're keeping large boas or pythons.

Most of us are used to pets that recognize us visually- but snakes aren't like that. For best results (& to avoid scaring or startling a snake) you always want to communicate with your pets, & with snakes, that's not going to be visually or audibly (they're mostly deaf)- only with your scent &/or touch can you reassure them. And the more you do this (ie. the less often they're frightened in your presence) the calmer, better pets they become. And the less stressed your snakes are, the better they eat & thrive.

This is true even with snakes you cannot actually handle- ie. venomous. The rattlesnakes I used to keep became very calm (most of them, anyway ) because whenever they became startled (rattling), I'd go over & give them my scent (by blowing air across my hand thru the screen top of their tanks). After briefly flicking their tongues to pick up my scent, it was clear they recognized me & calmed down (stopped rattling & went from a strike coil to a resting coil). Snakes are afraid of the unknown, just like we are. Instead of being upset with me, it was obvious that they were relieved to find out that whatever startled them (like my dog running by, or a door that was accidently slammed) was only "just me", whose presence they were used to & had little fear of. See?