I have a question for all you seasoned herpetoculturalists. I've been reading about California Kingsnake behavior lately, particularly concerning feeding responses and possible agression. My striped Cal has always been really, really sweet. He hardly ever even rattles his tail anymore (maybe once a month), he seems to just enjoy the entertainment of getting to come out of his cage. He's never bit my husband or myself either shortly before feeding or during shedding (although we really don't handel him shortly before shedding). I understand that in keeping snakes one must assume that one is going to get bit at some point in time, but is this something that is probably going to happen a few times even with a captive bread snake? Can a feeding response just randomly trigger while you're handeling the snake even if there's no scent of rodent in the vicinity? I should also mention that Nigel(Cal King) is about one and a half years old. I've heard young kingsnakes particularly hatchling are a bit nippy/unpredictable, but the older the snake is, the more docile he/she is. Has this been your experience? We obtained Nigel this last August. I love this new hobby. I'm constantly looking for a better understanding of these beautiful animals. Thanks for you input!

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