Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have 3 young kings I recently required and they are quite snappy when I attempt to handle them. (2 '06s 1 cali and 1 splendida and 1 '07 Cali) Anyone have any tips on settling these guys down a bit to where they could be reasonably handled? Thanks in advance.

Most baby kings are like that.
Some will change as they get bigger and get some length/weight on them. Some never change.
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Mike
KingPin Reptiles Inc.
www.kingpinreptiles.com
^ Updated 11/29

If they bite or musk, don't put them down! This is crucial. They will learn than these defensive mechanisms do nothing to protect them from you. It may takes weeks or months of smelly/bloody hands and/or clothes, but every time you reinforce their "poor" behavior, you set yourself further back.

i agree with the above post...do not set them back in their cages after the bite. also how often are you feeding them? for hatchlings snakes you feed them more than once a week in their very first year and it may help. some of us feed our snakes every 3-4 days offering 1 or 2 pinkies mice depending on size of the snakes.

Do all the things mentioned in the above posts, plus handle them more, they won't see you as a threat and most will chill out in time.

Are you picking them up, grabing them or letting them come to you and in your hands? That could make a difference! Plus feed then no less then twice a week.

Scott D

I've been feeding once a week, and I'm most often picking them up

My call bit me the first time I picked him up out of the deli cup. Then everytime he would bite or knaw alittle,even if he was full. But I keep handling him. Now he is a big baby.
Of course now that I have said that,he will probably tag me next time,,,lol
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My first Florida king has always been mellow, but I handled her a LOT when she was little. Maybe that helped, but she was my first snake and I was and still am fascinated by her.

Then I got a cornsnake who was a little older when I got him and he did NOT like to be handled. He's never bitten me, but he was skiddish. I handled him regularly and within weeks he had mellowed and is now quite enjoyable to handle.

And my third snake, a new Florida king from Bluerosy, I haven't had him for very long but he seems quite mellow also and does not seem to mind being handled. But I plan on handling him regularly like I did with the first, because I like to take them out.

So from my very limited experience, it seems like regular handling (and ample feeding) is a good way to not get bit! But what do I know?
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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

If you have them in small containers, the way to handle them right now is not to reach in and pick them up, but rather pick up the container, and 'pour' them into your hands... you'll have much better luck because they wont feel threatened by the big-beaked hand coming down on them for a snack...

//Todd

Thanks alot everyone, there are some really good ideas I plan to go home and try; like feeding more often, different handling approach, not enforcing negative behavior. So much I've read said they will calm with handling, but didnt give me really any specific tips, much appreciated. Its good to know I'm nto the only one who has had problems with aggressive, or should I say defensive, young colubrids.

My Kisatchie cornsnake (pictured) was kind of aggressive when we got him. And the fact that he did NOT want to be in my hands, made him move around a lot, and that made me nervous so I held him TIGHTER, which in turn made him more uncomfortable, and so on.

Then my wife picked him up and he was much more calm and I realized I was just doing it wrong. She was just letting him crawl from hand to hand, just keeping ahead of him by always having the next hand out there for him to reach for. She never closed a hand around his body at all, but had him much more under control than I did. I multiplied everything I knew about handling a snake tenfold at that point by watching my wife handle Butchie for two minutes.

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1.1 Florida Kingsnake
1.0 Kisatchie Cornsnake

I've noticed with calis that feeding them more/more often tends to help calm down bitey behaviors, and gently sneaking up on them and sliding a finger under their body (for smaller snakes) is an easy way to get them picked up without me getting bit. Snakes don't usually want to bite the branch they're perched on, so replacing their crawling surface with my fingers tends to work the best.

This works reeeeally well for most small, bitey snakes.

~jenny
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