• Hello!

    Either you have not registered on this site yet, or you are registered but have not logged in. In either case, you will not be able to use the full functionality of this site until you have registered, and then logged in after your registration has been approved.

    Registration is FREE, so please register so you can participate instead of remaining a lurker....

    Please be certain that the location field is correctly filled out when you register. All registrations that appear to be bogus will be rejected. Which means that if your location field does NOT match the actual location of your registration IP address, then your registration will be rejected.

    Sorry about the strictness of this requirement, but it is necessary to block spammers and scammers at the door as much as possible.

Handling baby corn snake

C

chantellemarie

New member
I bought a baby corn snake a week ago and everytime i go in its cage to get it out it raises its head like its going to strike and then goes mental around the cage, do you think ive got a viscouse snake and how do you actualy handle a baby corn snake im literally petrified of picking it up and it bites me please help
 
Its just a baby and is scared. It has no idea who or what you are. It takes hatchlings a while to calm down. Their bites really dont hurt at all its just suprising when it happens. Take it slow and easy with the little guy. You can place one hand on the ground palm up and when it is moving around give it the option to come to you first so it can see you are not going to hurt it. Once you get it on your had you can pull lift up your hand and then just let it crawl from one hand to another for a little while and the put it back and leave it alone for a few hours. Hope this helps.
 
First of all: calm down! Relax--your snake sounds very normal for a baby snake. Your baby snake is afraid that you will eat it, or that something will. They are very flighty because they are so small and can be eaten by so many things. My baby snakes are always trying to run away or hide--which is usual!

My advice is to give your baby time to settle in. Just take him out when it is time to eat and give him a week or so to settle in. Then you can start taking him out for about five min a day to get used to being held. My two babies have gotten more used to being held in the three weeks I've had them.
 
I held him/her when i first got it for an hour, when i hold it its not a problem it doesnt bite (its never bitten me) its geting it out the cage even for dinner, this is my first corn snake ever so im pertified of puting my hand in there my hand starts to shake lol and once when i put my hand in there the snake was on the other side of the tank and it put its head up and started coming towards my hand scarey! so will it get used to my scent or anyone in general (i havnt called it anything yet as i dont know the sex :D) yeah ur answers have helped thanx :)
 
I was almost the same when I got my first corn snake at the pet store. The person at the store wasn't their reptile person, so he told me to grab the snake i wanted and I was a little nervous about squeezing just to catch it.
 
Oh I forgot too mention when getting my snake Cisco home he also hid under the water dish only because it was hollow on the bottom.
 
I was just thinking has anyone ever cupped their hands like when catching a bug to make a possible hide for their snake to slither into to get it out of the vive?
 
If you are nervous about being bit...just wear a pair of latex/vinylgloves (like doctors wear)...
It might sound silly but I had to do that for a full year with our first corn snake (my kids were fine but I was nervous:)).

The best thing to do is be very matter of fact and gentle.
Remember most of the time you are taking the snake out it was probably sleeping and so it is even more confused/scared.

I tend to take the top off the cage,
find the snake in one of the hides,
take the hide off the snake,
wait a few minutes to let the snake figure out what's going on...
then reach in and take him out by the mid belly (not head or tail).

Our '07 boy usually takes about 5-10 minutes to settle down and the girl takes about 5 minutes to settle in...our very first corn settled in with a couple minutes, so each snake is different.

*Remember too that when the snake is going through the shed process he cannot see well/at all so most people leave the snake alone for that week or so until it has shed...that way the snake is less stressed and you are less likely to get bit.

As far as getting used to one person, my opinion (take it or leave it) is they somehow get to know their 'person' and settle in fastest for that person...whether it is because they get to know the scent, or just because that might be the calmest person in the house... that has been our experience:wavey:

Also, although it may seem otherwise at times, snakes do not plot how to get you, they are not mean, they are just reacting out of instinct.

Once he figures out you are not going to eat him he should settle in, and you will too:cheers:
 
The colour of the snake will dull and the eyes will cloud over with a milky-blue look. You should try researching some basic things about your corn snake. It'll help a bunch :)
 
nah the snake doesnt look like that lol ive got a book but just wanted loads of opinions the snakes in my room but im scared 2 turn my bedroom light off :) because the snake hasnt got a light in his cage..
 
Try to keep in mind that he's MUCH more afraid of you than you are of him. You're a big hairy monster with long fingers and can pick him up like he's nothing. He's trying to bluff you to make you think he's this viscious little worm.

I recently read an article about taming snakes and the person suggested that you put a pair of light weight garden gloves in the tank for several days so they become permeated with his scent. After a few days, he realizes the gloves mean him no harm. Carefully put the gloves on and very slowly approach the snake and hold him. Do this several times a week in 15 minute intervals. The next phase is holding him and gently removing the gloves so he becomes used to your scent as well. If by this three week period he still bites you, start over at the beginning and try again. It could take anywhere from 3-6 months to tame a snake.

No I don't know the exact particulars of the article or even where I found it, but I believe he was referring to older snakes or even w/cs, but it made sense at the time and might be something you could try. But keep in mind that you can't train a dog over night, it takes constant work on your part, and snakes don't really train like that either. What you want to hope for is that the snake won't be as frightened about being held as time goes on, but you're the one that will have to do the work.

If you'd like to read the article, I'm sure I could find it, or there may be equally helpful tips using the search of the forum. Just keep in mind that it won't happen overnnight. Best of luck!
 
im definitly going to try that 2morow maybe not a garden glove but some sort of glove so it gets used to my scent thanx for the advice
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top