Spot on Lenny

[dakski]

Thank you! The advice is very much appreciated as are your kind words about my snarent fitness


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Thank you for understanding that I am trying to help (and I like to write a lot - see below ). We have all been there. It is exciting to get a new pet. We just want to do our best to care for them and it is fun to interact with them. You are well on your way to being a top notch Snarent, I have no doubt.

It is important to realize that snakes are not domesticated. They are not looking for reassurance from us like, say, a dog would. For a snake like a BP to feel safe, they need to feel that they are not at risk of being eaten by a predator. This means hiding well and a familiar environment. There are instinctual creatures and have no frontal lobe - just a reptilian brain. Therefore the name of the game is to keep a snakes guard down and that takes time.

Many people who are unfamiliar with reptiles think snakes bite all the time. It is what they see on YouTube, etc. I tell people who are curious about my reptiles, the snakes in particular, that they bite for two reasons: Hungry or scared. Period. If you help them feel safe and are respectful, bites are less likely to happen. If they do not think food is coming, they do not bite for that reason. Feliz and Behira (my two biggest boas) are door strikers. When food is possible, they will hit the doors of their enclosure if they see movement. I have drapes up to help prevent this, especially when feeding the other snakes who eat more frequently. They can be ready to nail anything that moves and I can tap them with the hook (something I have conditioned them means they are coming out of the tank and never do when food is coming - hook training) and pick them up and they are fine. They "snap" out of it.

It is about putting yourself where the snake is and not where you would be. It is about understanding the instincts and not anthropomorphizing so much.

Anyway, long way to go here, but the point is, you are doing great. You care and you are willing to listen to what is best for Lenny. That tells me he is going to have a long and happy life.

Keep up the good work and keep us posted on Lenny.