Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Howdi.

i want to get myself a bull snake in the upcoming season, and i have some questions.

1. Are the cape bulls so aggressive as they seem to be? they look really mean and angry all the time.
2. are normal bull snakes easily tamed? all of the bull's i saw here in israel were bitey and nippy.

thanks guys (:

you know, there's a reason why corns are said to be great first pets as far as snakes go. Cause people need to learn how to handle a snake. BUT! That said, there are also corns that are aggressive and will not think twice about tagging you. I've seen one that would bite you again and again, never stopping till you went away!

Now, with what your calling a cape bull, are you sure you don't mean Cape Gopher Snake? I've never heard of a bull refered to in that way myself.

Next, the majority of baby snakes are born with a flight or fight instinct. If they can't get away, they'll fight. It's a survival issue. When your so small, everything else is a potential death threat. And if you can't get away from it, well then why not try your best to scare it away? And baby Pituophis have an edge here cause they can hiss loud enough to make many predators think twice about having a baby snake meal. And they don't want to be bitten.

Now this doesn't mean an adult snake won't hiss of course! But in captivity I notice as they age most snakes calm down. Now notice I said most. There are some lines of bulls that are known for being calm and then there are some that do have an attitude. Ask the breeder when you find a bull you like, what the parents are like and tell him or her what you have in mind and that this is your first bullsnake.

When you do handle your baby bull, try not to just pick him up, have him get upset, and put him down right away. This will just teach him that throwing a fit will get him put down again. Best to do the best you can and handle him till he calms down before setting him back into his cage.

Hope all this helps and that you find what your looking for! Welcome to the world of Pituophis!

its not that i don't have the experience for a bull snake, i currently have a carpet python and a corn, and the carpet python was quite a beast when he was smaller.

and for the breeder thing:
there are no Bull snakes breeders(and maybe 3 gophers breeders) around here, if ill get a bull, it will probably be an import of a CBB Snake from the US or europe, so i cant really ask the breeder.

im asking in general, are bulls known to be aggressive all of there lives?
because i saw some really fiesty adults around here, dont think i ever saw a calm bull aroung here.

With bulls and gophers it often depends on the personality of the snake. The tamest snake I've ever owned is a male cape gopher snake and the most defensive snake ever is his sister! Out of the 7 pits I have only 2 don't handle well. The rest a tame as the tamest corn snake. They can all be little turds fresh out of the egg but most calm down very quickly while a few will never stop hissing and striking. The good news is they rarely bite after being picked up (unless you reach for their heads the wrong way). The bad part about ordering them is you have no idea of the personality you'll be getting so its really up to chance. I would say don't order an adult pair or even yearlings because chances are they haven't been handled a lot. Its best to get them while they're small and tame them just like any other animal. HOpe this helps!

yeah not to beat a dead horse but it really depends on the snake, i had 2 different WC great basin gophers that were really tame to handle but were really hissy pissy in their cages. i currently have siblings cape gopher babies and the female has only rattled once and never hissed while teh male takes forever to stop rattling and hissing and once he is calm in my hands if i squeeze even ever so gently he starts right back up. he has struck a few times but generally it seemed more bluff than i want to bite you, but i didn't hang my hand around long enough to test that.