snake rage

[turkeypig]

Ok, so i'm back after a long and relaxing four months of not being here. I'm paying more attention to the main ICPS forums, but i decided to pay a visit here again.

So, here's the story. I have a beautiful albino corn snake (i'm a newbie) that i've kept for about seven years now. To keep him small, we limit one fuzzy mouse per week, although he has been getting quite a bit bigger. He was always very calm and never did anything out of the ordinary. Except now.

Recently, when i went in to pick him up to transfer him to his feeding tank, he bit me. I had washed my hands clean before i did that, so there was no foreign scent. He bit my dad to when he picked him up to. He now strikes whenever we try to pick him up now.

Any ideas?

 

[Clue]

Maybe he's a bit more territorial as he ages?

 

[Devon]

Where do you feed him? do you feed him in his terrarium? if you so he might think that whatever goes in there is food now, so you may want to feed him in a different bucket... Also, one fuzzy a week?!?!? That seeems like nothing for a corn snake! Maybe he's just hungry!? Feeding him less will only keep him much much skinnier I think, not shorter. Try feeding him adult mice once a week. That's what I do with mine. Good luck! That's all I can think of... hehe

 

[Frilleon]

I would agree with Devon. Not enought food! You can't feed something small portions of food and not expect it to grow. The snake needs larger meals. If they are full they tend to be less nippy! Also if the only time you handle the snake is when you feed it that could also be the problem.

 

[Clue]

Of course. That'll teach me to post in a topic I don't fully understand.

 

[Devon]

Of course. That'll teach me to post in a topic I don't fully understand.

lol

Also if the only time you handle the snake is when you feed it that could also be the problem.

Oh yeah, that also makes sense, hehe.

 

[turkeypig]

Yes, we are going to feed him larger meals. That was one of my ideas that i forgot to post.

No, we do not feed him in his home tank. We feed him in a separate tank.

Perhaps it's just that he really is a lot hungirer, hence the aggression... how stupid of me.

 

[Frilleon]

How big is he? Corn snakes don't get to large so I would think you will never go larger then a larger rat. Go to where you get the feeders and tell them how large your snake is they can recommend the size of food to get. Feed it and give it a couple of days and then try and handle it. Again if you want it to be use to you handle it as much as you can. Hold it while you watch TV or what ever. Let it get used to you. If you only handling it when you feed it that can be the problem too! Corn snake bits don't hurt that much anyway!

 

[Pyro]

I have had an amel corn for going on 18 years.

Feed frequency should be every 5-7 days. A 7 y.o. corn ought to be on adult mice and you should never have to go beyond that in terms of feeder size. It is extremely rare for a corn to get big enough to take anything larger than a small rat and a small rat is only about 5% bigger than an adult mouse so... Best rule of thumb is to give a feeder that is as big around as the widest point of the snake. I also advocate feeding F/T or P/K, never live.

And stop feeding in a separate tank/tub/bucket. It is an unhealthy practice. You never want to handle a snake for 2 days after it has fed or if it has a visible lump in it from the feeding.


Corn snakes get temperamental as they age, it is just a fact of the species. With regular handling they will mellow out some but they are almost always cage aggressive. Once you get them out of the cage they usually chill. The best ways to avoid being bitten are to:

1) Feed after lights out at night. Keep this up and the snake learns that night = food time so when you open the cage in the day he is less likely to think it is food time

2) Make sure the snake feels secure. Are there multiple hides in the tank? And I do not mean a half log that is open at both end. I mean something like this: http://www.reptilebasics.com/Small-Hide-Box-p-16404.html that is fully closed in so the snake feels all well hidden and secure?

3) Do not act like a predator when getting the snake out. This is a major mistake people make. Go in steady and deliberate, not flighty and grabby and nervous. Touch the snake gently with steady pressure on its body rather than making mad, lunging grasps to get it.

4) More frequent handling for the snake to become familiar with you. I would not handle on the day you feed and, as I said above, the two days after. That still gives you 4 days a week you can be holding him. Start slow, 10 min or so out of the tank. Work up to 30 min over the course of 3-4 months. After that he should be good for extended periods out if needed (though I find it rare for most people to hold a snake longer than 30 min.)


Even doing these things odds are you will still get tagged now and then for the simple reason I stated above; corns are temperamental. And my thought on that is: so what? A hit from a corn is nothing, a few pin pricks a tiny bit of blood. It does not even hurt really.

 

[turkeypig]

It appears that everything seems to be on the right track so far...

Except for the separate feeding tank situation. It appears i should stop.

I will repost when we have new information on the situation, and that should be by Wednesday, or Saturday, or whenever we have enough time to tell whether our new practices are taking effect.

 

[Pyro]

Give it time. Breaking a snake that has gone aggro can take a few months sometimes

 

[Frilleon]

I agree with most of Pyro's advice. I like the feed at night idea! I have used a feeder tank and most people I know whom have snakes use a feeder tank. You are not supposed to handle the snake 2-3 days after feeding but I have never had a problem nor has anyone I know. The only real damage done is stressing the snake out causing it to puke it food up. Then you have to feed it again in a few days! The feeder cage is always a heated debate between people who do and people who don't use it. Do what works best for you. I would try implamenting a few things at a time instead of totally doing everything differently. Another option you have is to make the feeder tank nice enough for the snake to hang in for two days. That way your not changing your current feeding regime to much. Just like Pyro says this will take some time. Your snake will not just turn friendly over night you need to put time and effert into it to get results. In a way it's a lot like growing CP's!

 

[MiguelSR1]

Ok, so i'm back after a long and relaxing four months of not being here. I'm paying more attention to the main ICPS forums, but i decided to pay a visit here again.

So, here's the story. I have a beautiful albino corn snake (i'm a newbie) that i've kept for about seven years now. To keep him small, we limit one fuzzy mouse per week, although he has been getting quite a bit bigger. He was always very calm and never did anything out of the ordinary. Except now.

Recently, when i went in to pick him up to transfer him to his feeding tank, he bit me. I had washed my hands clean before i did that, so there was no foreign scent. He bit my dad to when he picked him up to. He now strikes whenever we try to pick him up now.

Any ideas?

YOu ReALY SHOULD NOT feed him limited amounts of food in order to kkep him small, reptiles are not meant for this. It may cause health problems along the line, a good diet that keeps your snake just satisfied but not overfed u should consider for the sake of your corn's health.

 

[MiguelSR1]

also feed him in a different tank, bucket , or just take him out of hiis regular enclosure when feeding. If u feed him in his everyday enclosure he MAY associate u comming in to his place as feeding, specifically he may see your hand as food when u put your hand in the house for whatever reason, handling, cleaning, maintenance, feeding, which is BAD for your relationship with the snake.