velvet wood

Hi, I'm not a regular poster, but I used to read regularly. I currently have
a Mexican Black Kingsnake, an Iguana, and a Bearded Dragon in my house. The
Beardie is my son's and he's done a very good job of caring for him. The iguana
and the snake are mine, and while I've managed to keep up with the iguana's
demanding needs, over the past year I've been very ill, and the snake, having
more f****ving needs, has been who's suffered. I don't mean that he was starved
or left without heat or anything, or that he's unhealthy now... as best I can
tell he's grown very well, and his skin and eyes are shiney and healthy, no
shedding problems or anything. However, he's barely been handled at all, and
because I ended up making the mistake of just dropping his food in and then
using tongs to remove his water dish and 'clean up' (inadequately, I know,
but that I know how to fix) his tank, he's now gone from a very calm, handleable
snake to one that strikes at anything that enters his tank unless his mouth is
already full.

Now that I'm done with physical therapy and able to move around better, I'm
hoping that I can tame him again, and I'd be grateful for any advice on how
best to do so without either traumatizing him or getting myself badly bitten.
He's about 4 1/2 foot long, biggest diameter is the size of an old-fashioned
half dollar coin, and he easily eats two of the 'small' adult frozen mice from
Petco... these run a bit small, compared to most frozen rodents, so are probably
what most of you would consider largish juveniles. So given his size, and the
fact that I'm almost certainly going to get bit in the beginning, how much
damage is he likely to be able to do, do you think? Currently, I've developed
a minor phobia of being bitten, to the point where I'm afraid to handle him
because I might jerk and hurt him accidentally... at his age and size, would
a pair of gloves be adequate to keep him from hurting badly enough that this
could be a problem?

As I said, any advice would be appreciated. When I got him, he was very, very
tame, with a personality that was closer to that of a milksnake than your standard
kingsnake snappishness, but I'm afraid I thoroughly screwed that up by neglecting
him this past year. What can I do to get him back to that point, or is there no
hope of doing so and I should just continue as I'm doing and be glad I can at least
look at the pretty fellow?

Thanks,

Velvet

~rhonda

Best way to tame a snake is by picking it up and dealing with it. He'll
bite, but a snake that size isn't going to leave any nasty damage. A few
pin pricks, a drop of blood. Just reach in there, take the bite and pick
him up. He'll realize fast that you aren't food or a threat. Most phobias
occur because you don't know what the outcome will be. Take that snake
bite and realize that it's not as bad as you think. I've had a bunch of
bites in my day, worst being the larger anaconda. Kingsnakes and
milksnakes don't pack a very powerful bite. Welding gloves will help but
you can't really feel through them. I never liked wearing them, then I got
bitten and it was no big deal after that. Good luck, and be patient.

n jill marsh

I'm sure you can get him back to where he was, though no doubt it will
take a lot of time.

You didn't mention it, but you've stopped feeding him in the tank now,
right? I assume that would be the first step - if you're concerned
about transferring him, use some sort of hook.

After doing that for some time, I would suggest you start handling him
when he's still a bit full and a bit cool - I know that goes against a
lot of general advice, but playing around when he's hungry and active
is probably going to end traumatically for both of you.

I don't have any experience with bites by large snakes or use of
gloves, although I've been bitten several times by my smaller guys,
and I've learned overall that it isn't as bad as you think it is when
it's happening, and sooner or later the snake will let go, so it's
really important not to get upset if it happens, and just do the
annoying trickle of water thing or whatever.

Very best of luck with all of your recoveries.

nj"sfe"m

--
"You always know after you are two. Two is the beginning of the end"

brian henderson

It's going to take a bit to get him to calm down, the first thing you
need to do is realize that feeding him in the enclosure is what caused
the problems to begin with. He now associates anything coming into
the cage as food, meaning that if you stick your hand in there,
you're probably going to get bitten. Snakes really don't have very
good eyesight, they'll strike first, realize they've bitten off more
than they can chew, so to speak, and back off. They mostly just see
movement, if it moves, it's dinner.

You said you have tongs, if you have a snake hook or something else
safe to move the snake, you should start taking the snake out and
feeding it in a pillowcase from this point forward. Break the cycle
of cage=food. After doing this for a little bit, then you should be
able to start handling the snake again, just a little at first, then
as it becomes comfortable with you again, more often. Don't be afraid
of being bitten, like I said, the snake is going to grab, do a
double-take and try to hide, it doesn't know you're not a much larger
predator, but luckily, the snake isn't going to cause much damage, if
it even breaks the skin.

Just take it slow, don't stress the snake and you should be able to
'retame' it if you have patience and aren't afraid to take your
'licks' in the process.

brian henderson

I wouldn't say to handle him when he's full, you'll just get him to
regurgitate his meal. Give him a day or two to at least start
digesting and then it should be fine. If he's really, really hungry,
then certainly, you don't want to give him anything to strike at
unnecessarily, I'd think he'd get more frustrated and stressed at
expending energy and not getting a meal than he would at being
handled.

sagittaria

Make Shay handle him for a while until he's tame again.

You've gotten good advice, and I don't have anything to add. My
daughter's corn snake is in a similar situation, as with everything
she's been doing she hasn't handled it in months. Hopefully she'll get
better about it or else find it a new home. --
---->Sagittaria<----
http://sagittaria.livejournal.com

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