Well, in my experience, retics are the smartest or most aware, however you want to phrase it. I have kept burms, african rocks, boas (red tails and amazon trees), carpets, bloods and retics. When I had my retics, I had a group that I kept together in a spare bedroom that had been totally converted to a large snake habitat with climbing trees, heat lamps and pads, cypress mulch flooring and a large water basin. My favorite of that group was a 13 foot female yellowhead who I raised from a 4 ft juvie. She was especially aware of what was going on in "her" territory and when I would come in the room to check on them, I would always give her a tap with a snake hook to let her know I was there and that I did not have food. Often, once she was "awake" I would simply sit down and watch them. On more than one occasion, she crawled over to me and would "explore" me very gently. Maybe seeing if I had food or maybe seeing if I WAS food? Or maybe just checking me out on her terms and not being handled on my terms. I don't know, but I always got a very calm vibe from her in those situations. Also, whenever I would disturb her, there was rarely any hissing or other aggressive signs, but when I would show her off to friends and family, she and my others would most often show some signs of agitation such as hissing, "S'ing" their heads and generally a higher state of awareness. I take this as recognizing me as a safe and normal part of their environment and other humans as a possible threat. One other story with regards to her was when I made a colossal SFE (Stupid Feeding Error) when she was around 10' long. I was feeding her by hand (I know, I know.....) and she was on an elevated shelf above my head to boot. Long story short is, she missed the rat and got me on the hand (bruised the bone for almost a year!), but immediately let go, sensing I was not the meal. After a quick recovery, I grabbed the tongs and proceeded to finish the feeding properly. Now, that may seem kind of trivial, but on almost every other occasion that I have been bit by a large constrictor, they have bit and wrapped as if I was just another big rat or rabbit. To me, these stories and my overall experiences raising these fascinating snakes for a couple of years, show that retics have a greater awareness and level of recognition than most (all?) other large constrictors, especially when you get to experience them in a much larger environment than the typical snake cage - on their turf so to speak.


Billy

>>Ok, so I asked everyones opinion on what is the gentlest of snakes. Here's part two of my many questions... hehe What do you all believe is the smartest of the "giant" snakes? Why is it that you think your chosen is the smartest? If you have any wonderful stories to back it up, those are MORE than welcome. I love some of the stories I get to read about here. Thank you so much and take care friends!
>>
>>Widj

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