Holding your snake whether it's a lot or a little isn't an indication of how much "you love them" in my opinion. Sometimes loving a creature is also about knowing it's limits and respecting those limits even when that in turn limits your contact with them. Quite simply, snakes are not puppy dogs and unlike pets of that type do not require human interaction in the ways that long domesticated pack structured mammals do. Some may tolerate it better than others but I believe that in the end, handling is about our desire and need to touch them far more than it is about their requirements.

I'm not saying to not handle your snakes. I'm just always concerned that we respect these unique and beautiful creatures for what they are and what they are not.