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I got a young pueblan milk around this time last year. Great snake. Eats well and has a great temperament. It has never bitten and has only musked once. I only get a chance to handle it maybe once a week sometimes less. It is a spaz which from what ive seen and read seems pretty typical. My question is. if i concentrate on more frequent handling sessions will the snake calm down over time? Also how frequent should those sessions be. i dont want to stress the snake too much. Do they calm with age? I know they are not known to be as calm and many other species. I am hoping i can tame it a little more so i may see my pet snake once in awhile. As of know maybe once a month i might catch him slithering into his hide or under the aspen at lightning speed the second the light gets turned on in the room lol.

Skittishness in a typical trait with many/most milks, but Pueblans seem to tolerate and adjust to handling better than some. Its also an age thing. A buddy of mine said his pueblan was a royal spaz all the time when younger and he quit consistently handling it for quite awhile. One day out of the blue when the snake was adult, he said he took the snake out its cage and it was and has remained as calm as can be. Of course on the other hand I have a trio of puebs on breeder loan from another friend of mine that are STILL crazy spastic and skittish. They dont bite, but man they move like greased lightning and musk/poop like crazy when removed from their enclosures.

The reason you never see you snake is that it is a secretive and nocturnal animal. Milk snakes, in general, avoid light and prefer to remain hidden. You're not likely to see your pet roaming its cage during daylight hours, no matter how used to you it gets.

That said, there's a good chance that it will grow to tolerate your handling sessions. There's often a drastic change in a milk's temperment toward handling once they reach sub-adulthood (but not always).

-Cole

Get used to it. Pueblans are nuts. Many ssp of milks are nuts as babies. Adults are better, but usually still very active and often still squirmy when held. Awesome snakes Puebs are, but hold-a-bility is not their strong suit. Neat to look at though.
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Mark

Patience and persistence. I've worked, as many oters have here, for many many years and almost all campbelli behave similarly save for the exception (which is infrequent!)

In-between digested meals, make it a habit with consistency to handle the snake inside of a critter-keeper or small tank so it doesn't fall from your hands and sustain injury. Aside from enduring several bites and a seemingly endless supply of musk/fecal matter, over time you will be assured some success. I did tis with every campbelli I've raised and the little bit of consistent effort is worth it in the end if you want to have a manageable, non-spastic adult.

I work mainly with California and Baja-california mountain kings (L. zonata ssp), and I only have one that I failed to try and acclimate over time......she is absolutely obnoxious.......and this is wat I get each and every time I open her cage:

Invest a little time, it'll be worth it.
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Jerry Kruse
www.zonatas.com

And God said, "Let there be zonata subspecies for all to ponder..."

......."whatchoo talkin' 'bout Willis??" look!..LMAO!!

~Doug

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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

love it......
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Jerry Kruse
www.zonatas.com

And God said, "Let there be zonata subspecies for all to ponder..."

.
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

I've been working with Pueblans for quite some time and can tell you that while adults are less skittish than babies, they don't really seem to enjoy being handled. On the other hand, adult Hondurans and Nelson's Milksnakes are as tame as a corn snake and in some cases appear to "like" being handled. There's always exceptions to the "rules," though.

I tend to not recreationally handle baby snakes at all - there's plenty of time for that once they reach 6 to 9 months of age and are accustomed to their surroundings. Baby Hondurans are legendary for thrashing around and biting, but simply by leaving them alone (rather than trying to "break them in" ) results in a calm snake once they approach a year or so in age.

Tim

Third Eye

"Baby Hondurans are legendary for thrashing around and biting, but simply by leaving them alone (rather than trying to "break them in" ) results in a calm snake once they approach a year or so in age"

That is precisely how I deal with them too. I rarely handle any youngsters either except for basic maintenance, etc..

I simply allow them to be what they naturally are, very secretive, shy animals. Most become very manageable as the mature and get some size on them.

It almost always seems that one day(almost like magic) you notice that they are no longer the flighty, nervous animals they once were.

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

I also don't "tame" my snakes. I handle them as little as possible when they're babies. Even so, almost all of mine, including Hondos, Pueblans, Cal kings, morelia, etc. have calmed and been totally handleable as adults. I even use many of them in my reptile presentations for kids. My two female Pueblans are actually pretty tame.
I also have a recent clutch of Hondurans that are NOT skittish! Alot depends on the individual snake.
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http://www.mikefoux.com
http://snakerack.blogspot.com

2.6.2 Hondurans (Normal, amel, hypo, anery, ghost)
1.2.0 Pueblans (Normal, hypo)
0.1.0 Corn Bloodred
0.0.1 GBK Blair's Phase
1.1.0 California King (normal, blue-eyed blond)
0.2.0 Speckled Kings Calcasieu Parish locality
1.1.0 Brooksi Hypo
1.1.0 Goini/Brooks Cross (Blaze and hypo)
1.1.0 San Diego gophers
0.0.1 Texas Rat
0.0.1 Jungle Carpet
0.1.0 Ball, Normal
0.0.1 Sulcata
1.2.1 Leopard Geckos(various morphs)
0.1.0 Wife, Caucasius Mexicana Integrade WC

"I also have a recent clutch of Hondurans that are NOT skittish! Alot depends on the individual snake"

Absolutely!, and I could not agree more Mike. I produce clutches of exceptionally calm Hondos from time to time, as well as clutches of absolute thrashing, musking, biting FREAKS!..LOL!

Like you said, it all boils down to them being individuals, and what they might of inherited from the previous family tree. On rare occasions, some hatch pretty calm right from the start, some will calm down sooner, and mellower than other's might, and some stay pretty darn nervous and flighty the rest of their entire lives. I have some of ALL these types..LOL!

regards, ~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

If you dont 'tame' your snakes then how did your two pueblans become tame? lol sorry. if you wanna pick at terminology. BTW rip gary coleman! i was more of a webster fan (of all of the 1980's black dwarf child actors anyway)

There are plenty of wild adult snakes that I've encountered in the field that were perfectly tame. I'd say this about every glossy snake I've caught, as well as a number of gopher snakes. I don't think anyone was going out into the wild and regularly handling them as babies so that when I caught them they'd be "tame." I reckon some adult snakes are "naturally tame" whether they be captive-bred or wild.

I've noticed that specific clutches of Honduran morphs can also be quite handleable as babies. I'm not sure what's up with that, as most non-morph Hondurans I've produced flipped out whenever they were handled. So I do agree with the post that not all baby Hondurans are spastic.

Tim

Here's a wild Bungee Cord Snake that I saw crossing the road in Arizona. It made no attempt to escape. I am holding it behind the head because I am not sure if this species in venomous.

LOL! I understand and agree. I was well aware of the reputation of pueblans and had no intentions on 'playing' with it or it being a companion. It is the only milk snake ive ever owned out of a ton of others. Even my worst tempered snakes displayed a diminished level of 'flightyness' or defensiveness with age. My question is to long term keepers of this species as to wether they calm with age. Not wether they become as calm as corns or easily handle able. My question comes after one year of observing behavior and seeing no difference lol. thank you for all the input though. In reality having only been crapped on once and never bitten i think i may have a calm one. my biggest concern with the species is its lightning speed!

Yeah, I'd say if you only got crapped on once, and not bitten, you are one step ahead of the game already, and have a relatively easy-going one..LOL!

Also, I always keep a loose(but slightly firm) hold on them when they are small because of their tendency to be little bolts of lightening..LOL!, and can quickly apply enough pressure to keep them from flying off onto the floor. It doesn't hurt to hold them very close to the ground just in case either just in case..LOL!

If they are allowed to just sit in your hand, or on your arm, the next move they see will likely send them blting off like a rocket!..LMAO!

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

I've had very few pueblans that were calm while being handled. Not a great pet snake if you want to interact with the animal that's for sure.
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Mike
KingPin Reptiles
www.kingpinreptiles.com

Been working with campbells a long time. What I think of their behavior will cause me to lose my acct., but then I never "handle" my stuff except for housekeeping or changing substrata.

Mike

....yeah, nothing like getting crapped on every single time you touch a youngster!

I have gotten so darn used to it(but still hate it..LOL!), that when I hold many of my other types of snakes, it is an absolute JOY to behold!..LOL!

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com