I do not know, as no one knows, actually how smart a snake can become given enough contact with a "humanized" environment. I think personally they have amazing survival skills and that drive to survive, can push them to react in ways they might not have to in the wild. I know from my limited time with our ball pythons that given a pretty much identical set of circumstances, Rionach and Kyna will react quite differently. Why they do this is a mystery to me, however, I quite enjoy the mysteries that come with snake keeping.

For instance, the routine a person has when feeding their snake may well cause a reaction in the snake. Nature means for them to react to their wild prey in certain ways, since they are in captivity and that prey is acting differently (being presented dead on hemostats say) it makes complete sense they would soon learn the routine of that prey and react accordingly. Whether that is true memory or just an automatic adjustment/reaction to the establish routin of their lives, who knows.

I've said it before in another thread...I hope snakes never become "domesticated" per se. I love the feeling that these creatures which carry so much of the wild in them, share our family life. I feel wonderful that they in their way "allow" me contact with them. If I have to move them to clean or something and it is obviously stressing them, it's over as fast as I can do it.

For us, the snakes call all the shots basically when it comes to that interaction, their needs and wellbeing being paramount always over our human need to touch or hold them. So far we're loving having them and they seem to be thriving so it's all good.


~~Jo~~