Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok i am new to both these forums and caring for snakes and my king snake has already tried to EAT me! i have fed her live mice every 5 days since i got her, which wasnt all that long ago... after she struck me i was afraid i might hurt her if i struggle too much so i waited patiently to see if she let go. to my dismay she began constricting and attempted to eat my finger so i carefully began to pry her off me... its day 5 so i was planning on getting her some feeder mice today and also she is begining to shed for the first time since i own her. Im assuming these are the reasons she bite me as i have followed every direction i have read concerning care for these guys, if anyone can help me i would greatly appreciate it. PS what is the risk of infection with snakes because it looked like she got a lot of saliva in the wound...

The bite is a feeding response.
The break in your skin as a result of your kingsnakes teeth is no more dangerous than any other break in skin as far as infection goes. Wash it off and don't worry about it. I've been bitten numerous times and never had an issue.

Try feeding her frozen/thawed mice. She probably will take them, and it is less risky for the snake (live mice can carry parasites and can also bite the snake). Most pet stores sell frozen mice. Just make sure they are thoroughly thawed. If she eats frozen/thawed - you can buy a whole bunch at once and not need to buy any for awhile - as long as you don't mind having frozen rodents in your freezer.

The feeding response you described probably indicates she wants to eat more than you are feeding her.

What is your setup like? Does she have both warm and cool side, and hides on both sides? If she is forced to stay warm, her metabolism will be faster and she will need to eat more. She should be able to choose between warm and cool and still feel secure (IE have a hide).

And one more thing - handle her often.
One of my kings when I got her associated human sent with feeding because that had been the only contact she had had. If a human took her out of her tub, it was to feed her. With handling, she quickly figured out that now human scent didn't mean food was coming.

Use leather gloves if you don't want to be bitten.
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3.6 L. getula californiae - 16 eggs (Cal. King)
1.1 L. getula nigrita (MBK)
1.0 Pantherophis guttatus guttatus (Corn)
0.1 Pituophis catenifer catenifer (Pacific gopher)
3.3 Elgaria multicarinata multicarinata - 14 eggs (Cal. Alligator Lizard)

Wait till it sheds then drop the food in!
Don't handle a adult king snake if you have handled the mice as you may be mistaken for a meal.
You won't get infected from the bite
One last thing, if you are new to snake keeping let me warn you that they are great at escaping so make sure your lid is fool proof. I have lost more then my share, the corn snake in the picture below was gone for a week and found drinking from my leaking faucet

Thanks for the quick response guys, been about 2 hours since she tried to eat me and i went in to check on her and she has shed her full skin and defecated (maybe due to the stress i caused her ) also last time i fed her less mice than before fearing i might be over feeding. (somwhere i heard these guys will over-eat if offered) so 2 mice about the width of her largest section, is this too little? as for her habitat i have read up and done as you say "FunkyRes". in response to "snakebit" I have a friend who owns a small ball python and a 10 foot burmese and he has warned me about these guys being escape artists. I have been bitten before by a wild black rat snake and have witnessed my friend being bitten as well but it was always a quick bite and release, so i have no fear but i was concerned since the snake began to swallow my finger... thanks again

"but it was always a quick bite and release"

That is exactly the difference between a defensive bite and a feeding response. A defensive snake will throw a quick bite and then try to get away. A hungry snake that is in feeding mode will treat your finger like prey. It will bite, hold and try to constrict. Like the others said you may need to up your snake’s meals.

"...and defecated (maybe due to the stress i caused her )...

Snakes will often defecate during or right after shedding.
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Diego

Diego & Tiffany's Zoo:
SNAKES
1.2.0 Corn Snakes (Different morphs)
1.1.0 Hypo Everglades Rat Snakes
1.1.0 Trans-Pecos Rat Snakes
1.1.0 Salt and Pepper Bull Snakes
0.1.0 Amel Pacific Gopher Snake
3.1.0 Sonoran Gopher Snakes
0.1.0 Amel Sonoran Gopher Snake
1.1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnakes
1.0.0 Gray Banded Kingsnake
0.1.1 California Kingsnake
1.1.0 Thayeri Kingsnake
3.2.0 Rosy Boas (Mexican, Temecula, & Mid Baja)
1.1.0 Kenyan Sand Boas
0.1.0 Indonesian Dwarf Pacific Boa
1.1.0 Cape York Spotted Pythons
1.0.0 Ball Python
1.1.0 Western Hognoses
0.0.1 Lyre Snake
0.0.1 Glossy Snake

LIZARDS
2.0.0 Bearded Dragons
0.1.0 Eastern Collared Lizard
1.0.0 African Fat-Tail Gecko
0.1.0 Merauke Blue Tongue Skink
1.4.0 Leopard Geckos
1.0.1 Yellow Niger Uromastyx
1.1.0 Chuckwalla
1.4.0 Banded Gecko
0.0.1 Gold Dust Day Gecko
0.0.5 Sandfish

AMPHIBIANS
1.0.1 Green Tree Frogs
1.0.0 Bubbling Kassina
0.0.1 White's Tree Frog
0.0.2 Gold Frogs
1.0.0 Fire Salamander

Holy crap, Diego, you have a LOT of animals!!!
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0.1 Lampropeltis Getula Floridana
1.0 Elaphe Guttata Slowinskii

I just downsized!!
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Diego

Diego & Tiffany's Zoo:
SNAKES
1.2.0 Corn Snakes (Different morphs)
1.1.0 Hypo Everglades Rat Snakes
1.1.0 Trans-Pecos Rat Snakes
1.1.0 Salt and Pepper Bull Snakes
0.1.0 Amel Pacific Gopher Snake
3.1.0 Sonoran Gopher Snakes
0.1.0 Amel Sonoran Gopher Snake
1.1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnakes
1.0.0 Gray Banded Kingsnake
0.1.1 California Kingsnake
1.1.0 Thayeri Kingsnake
3.2.0 Rosy Boas (Mexican, Temecula, & Mid Baja)
1.1.0 Kenyan Sand Boas
0.1.0 Indonesian Dwarf Pacific Boa
1.1.0 Cape York Spotted Pythons
1.0.0 Ball Python
1.1.0 Western Hognoses
0.0.1 Lyre Snake
0.0.1 Glossy Snake

LIZARDS
2.0.0 Bearded Dragons
0.1.0 Eastern Collared Lizard
1.0.0 African Fat-Tail Gecko
0.1.0 Merauke Blue Tongue Skink
1.4.0 Leopard Geckos
1.0.1 Yellow Niger Uromastyx
1.1.0 Chuckwalla
1.4.0 Banded Gecko
0.0.1 Gold Dust Day Gecko
0.0.5 Sandfish

AMPHIBIANS
1.0.1 Green Tree Frogs
1.0.0 Bubbling Kassina
0.0.1 White's Tree Frog
0.0.2 Gold Frogs
1.0.0 Fire Salamander