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Do snakes have good memory?
- Thread starter Urban_M86
- Start date
bitsy
Owned by Corns since 1991
Well, accidental escapees are notorious for going back and using the same escape route until it's found and blocked. I think that demonstrates a measure of recall being used.
Corns do become accustomed to their owners, and some show signs of recognising owners from other people when given the choice.
Corns do become accustomed to their owners, and some show signs of recognising owners from other people when given the choice.
The_Thunderer
New member
I've heard that snakes have a memories comparable to a goldfish... I have seen too much consisitencey in them to think that's true, though.
Nanci
Alien Lover
DYK I thought goldfish were sort of smart. They can be taught behaviours, at any rate.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_Iznh9VbsY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_Iznh9VbsY
Cornsnake124
Country boy gone wild
i would say they have a relative memory. They tend to remember feeding habits, escape routes, there owners, etc..etc...etc.... Actually my breeders always come out if i start to play violin music because i think they associate it with me, and they associate me with getting fed.
speirsaaron
New member
my snake recognizes me from other ppl cos she'l be calm if im holding her but for she freaks out with other ppl so i jus guessed its cos she knows me from been the only one to handle her 
PJ@PJCReptiles
New member
Everyone seems to have given you some good pros and cons on your question.
I can say that with my older boas that I have not raised since birth, seem to have memories from their past. "Baby", a 0.1 2002 boa, has seen her original owner twice in the last 3 years. And YES, she does know who he is! Very much so. She will go up to his face, around his hair and seem to "hug" him. The first time they saw each other, he was upset for personal reasons, of which I knew of, and he was about to cry when he left and handed her back to me. She would not go to another person at PetCo that afternoon. Ashley and I had to hold her and she seemed to be hugging back, she just wanted to be where she felt safe. She was clearly upset with the interaction. The second time was not that hard on either of them. But again, she just wanted to be with me and not go back in her home.
I have another boa from a good friend, she has ADHD and OCD. I have her pastel female boa now and when she comes to visit and see her boa, the boa just wants to be with me. She was like that at her house before I got her, she just seems happy with me over her. Can they tell if you run at a higher gear, or afraid, or stressed? I would have to say YES.
As for corns, they know when it is feed day, clean day, and how to get out! Some seem to want out to be with us and others just dont care. So it was a good question!
PJ
I can say that with my older boas that I have not raised since birth, seem to have memories from their past. "Baby", a 0.1 2002 boa, has seen her original owner twice in the last 3 years. And YES, she does know who he is! Very much so. She will go up to his face, around his hair and seem to "hug" him. The first time they saw each other, he was upset for personal reasons, of which I knew of, and he was about to cry when he left and handed her back to me. She would not go to another person at PetCo that afternoon. Ashley and I had to hold her and she seemed to be hugging back, she just wanted to be where she felt safe. She was clearly upset with the interaction. The second time was not that hard on either of them. But again, she just wanted to be with me and not go back in her home.
I have another boa from a good friend, she has ADHD and OCD. I have her pastel female boa now and when she comes to visit and see her boa, the boa just wants to be with me. She was like that at her house before I got her, she just seems happy with me over her. Can they tell if you run at a higher gear, or afraid, or stressed? I would have to say YES.
As for corns, they know when it is feed day, clean day, and how to get out! Some seem to want out to be with us and others just dont care. So it was a good question!
PJ
Spiritwolf
New member
My 2 year old female corn, when she's hungry, recognizes the box that I use when I buy live mice from the petshop for her, the moment I walk in the doorway of that room carrying the box, even though her cage is on the far opposite corner of that room. She immediately goes to the spot in her cage where she knows I will feed her, and starts begging behavior.
If she's hungry and she sees me coming with the gray cream cheese lid that I serve f/t mice on, she goes to the rock in the center of her cage where she knows I will set the lid down, and waits for me to set it down. If she sees me coming with the container that she knows means she will get to go somewhere, she starts an excited bobbing up and down behavior that is different from her begging behavior (and the only times I take her visiting is when she's not shedding, I respect her desire to be left alone when she's going through a shed)
All of my corns consistently relieve themselves by their water container at the opposite end of their cages from their main den boxes. None of the other species I have at this time ever soil their own beds, except for the ball python baby who will "go" anywhere.
When I carry my adult female corn around the house and get to the room where there is a bright multicolored ball hanging from the ceiling that she likes, she immediately looks in the direction of that ball. She loves that ball and when close to it, will spend quite a bit of time looking at the colors.
My baby garter snakes have made several visits to the local petshop and after the first visit or two, they clearly remember the place because they are at ease when they get there and I take their cage in and set it down. Instead of hiding as they do if I set their cage in an unfamiliar place, they come out of their box and start showing off for the petshop visitors who look at them!!!!
The more I observe my snakes and try to understand their behaviors, the more signs of intelligence I see. I still haven't yet figured out how an animal who cannot even blink their eyes or close them manages to definitely have different expressions but if you closely observe your snakes and their different moods, you will find they can convey expressions such as curiosity, excitement, and a "dirty look" that means don't bother me!!!!
If she's hungry and she sees me coming with the gray cream cheese lid that I serve f/t mice on, she goes to the rock in the center of her cage where she knows I will set the lid down, and waits for me to set it down. If she sees me coming with the container that she knows means she will get to go somewhere, she starts an excited bobbing up and down behavior that is different from her begging behavior (and the only times I take her visiting is when she's not shedding, I respect her desire to be left alone when she's going through a shed)
All of my corns consistently relieve themselves by their water container at the opposite end of their cages from their main den boxes. None of the other species I have at this time ever soil their own beds, except for the ball python baby who will "go" anywhere.
When I carry my adult female corn around the house and get to the room where there is a bright multicolored ball hanging from the ceiling that she likes, she immediately looks in the direction of that ball. She loves that ball and when close to it, will spend quite a bit of time looking at the colors.
My baby garter snakes have made several visits to the local petshop and after the first visit or two, they clearly remember the place because they are at ease when they get there and I take their cage in and set it down. Instead of hiding as they do if I set their cage in an unfamiliar place, they come out of their box and start showing off for the petshop visitors who look at them!!!!
The more I observe my snakes and try to understand their behaviors, the more signs of intelligence I see. I still haven't yet figured out how an animal who cannot even blink their eyes or close them manages to definitely have different expressions but if you closely observe your snakes and their different moods, you will find they can convey expressions such as curiosity, excitement, and a "dirty look" that means don't bother me!!!!
The_Thunderer
New member
My VBB uses the "toilet" in the same spot EVERY time... which is convenient cause I only have to spot clean THAT SPOT every time.
Spiritwolf
New member
Cool!!! The more people observe and TELL of their observations of such behaviors in their snakes, the more I think we will find out that snakes aren't nearly as lacking in brainpower as ppl assume they are!!!
Also, the more observations there are of similar or same behaviors seen in our snakes, the stronger the validity of these observations becomes to doubters and skeptics!!!
Also, the more observations there are of similar or same behaviors seen in our snakes, the stronger the validity of these observations becomes to doubters and skeptics!!!
ZzombieSoxX
New member
My snake seems to know that when he goes into the shoebox, he's going to get fed. Lol
carpathian000
New member
I've only had my little corn for about 5 months and I have already noticed that he has definite preferences for people, and remembers them from encounter to encounter.
Having said that, though, he also does some amazingly unintelligent things occasionally, so perhaps he shouldn't join MENSA yet. ;P
Having said that, though, he also does some amazingly unintelligent things occasionally, so perhaps he shouldn't join MENSA yet. ;P
Emily1188
Smells Like a Rat
I've said this before, and I stick by it.
Snakes have very functional implicit memory. However, I see little evidence that they have much episodic memory at all.
So basically, while your snake might learn that it gets fed when in the shoebox, it doesn't have recollections to "the very first time I get fed in the shoebox" or "that one time, when the mouse was black instead of white".
Snakes have very functional implicit memory. However, I see little evidence that they have much episodic memory at all.
So basically, while your snake might learn that it gets fed when in the shoebox, it doesn't have recollections to "the very first time I get fed in the shoebox" or "that one time, when the mouse was black instead of white".
ladyblaze
Snow Queen
my girl is the same way....haha I have a carrying cage for her for when I want to take her out in public before we arrive so that I don't lose her and she just HATES that thing! I put her in it and her pupils dialate and she tries her damndest to get out! it has a second lid on top that pops open(in the bigger lid that pops on) and at some point when I had her in there, I forgot to lock it down - well once she figured this out and got her nose out, I got her back in, locked and closed it, she didn't give up!! she pushed at the corners of that thing numerous times, determined! she knows who I am and gives me the biggest attitude sometimes however if I hand her to my hand she's ALL over him and just adores his attention! I think it's safe to say snakes do have a memory as been stated in previous posts about that kind of thing!
jesserca
I may need snake rehab.
My husband and I always joke about which snakes like us better. For instance our rat snake hates me to no end, but he will be as calm as a corn for my husband. However, our ball python is my baby who has never struck at me once, but he strikes at my husband often.
I like to think the ball python is highly intelligent whereas the rat snake is just a big bully. :laugh: