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head shyness

V

vague123

New member
ive noticed with alot of snakes that havnt been handled alot that they are head shy, being when u move around their head the freak out a little, so far mines calming down alot, even though i;ve only been working with it for 2 days... but do many people find that handling them frequently, but not over doing it obviously, is the best way to get them at least more comfortable with things around them

cheers
 
It's been my experience that most snakes, if not all, do not like their heads nor their tails touched much, if at all, especially the tail! Anything in between is ok, if the snake is relatively calm enough to handle. I don't think that any amount of handling though would tame a snake to head or tail touching, unless it's either a very calm/tame snake or a dead one :laugh:
 
Mine mostly don't care if I touch their heads, but Inez, the baby milksnake, throws herself around violently to avoid it. I respect her wishes.

Nanci
 
This thread is making me wonder if I handle my snakes enough. Mine don't bite but they are skittish and I thought that was normal. Now I'm thinking it's not. I'm paranoid about stressing them out and I'm wondering now if I'm being *too* paranoid. Can someone give me an idea of what a really tame snake is like? Do they actually sit with you and not try to make a run for the border?
 
well, mine is skittish, but its new. my friends is the most calm snake ever... it wraps around your neck, plays with ur necklace and hair... and isnt head shy or tail shy... but this could just be different from snake to snake and have nothing to do with the amount of handling
 
my snake is still TINY, but she is not head or tail shy at all.
i mean, if you bonk her on the head she'll start, but come on, who wouldn't?

I think the lack of tail shyness has to do with her retained tail cap- when I got her she had a tail cap still stuck on- it was really tough to see because there were NO loose edges, I only noticed because her tail was darker than the rest of her, and it was a little stiff.

Every time I held her I had a wet cloth and tried to gently run it along her tail, and finally, after a little soak, said method worked.

Now she uses her tail almost excessively, shes' always curling it around my fingers and using it to steady herself, and I can touch her tail anytime I feel like it it seems. I guess she's just grateful?
lol.

Also, I almost am getting weirded out by how chill she is most of the time. She comes out and just sits in my hand now. The first couple times I got her out, she tried to crawl up may arms almost non-stop. Now, she'll just chill.

Sometimes I'll put some elastics around my sleeves halfway up my forearm
(just to make sure she doesn't go where she's not welcome, and so I can keep track of her),
and she'll go and hide out in my sleeves. Do snakes sleep? I want to say she falls asleep in there, but I'm not sure if that would be technically correct....
 
My corn Smij is totally not tail shy. He will let you do pretty much what you want with his tail - but he is a little head shy..... not much, he just moves his head out of the way if you try to touch it. Only on the top though, he doesn't care at all if i touch him under his chin :)
I consider him to be a "well behaved" snake, as he is a lot calmer than most I have seen! When handling he will normally sit wrapped around my watch for a while, then go for an explore around my lap/chair/shirtsleeves etc until he gets tired, then curl up in my lap, or anywhere else warmish :) He doesn't zoom around the place, just leisurely slithers around.
The more you handle your snake, the more it will get used to you, relax and become less skittish. I think if you handle them regularly when they are young it is a lot easier than trying to tame them down when older......
 
I would only describe one of mine as skittish- Inez. Maizey and Choco are more active- Choco especially. That is why we have so many games that we play. Addy and Zee pretty much chill. Inez either freezes and pretends it's not happening to her, or goes wild. We're working on just moving from one hand to the other like we take for granted in a normal snake. Addy will take off if I set her down outside. I have no idea what Inez would do- I have only let go of her when she was in a tree.

Nanci
 
I currently have 3 snakes, 3 different species, so...this is all FWIW...

My MBK is the calmest, most tamed snake ever. I can rub her chin, turn her head up to look in her eyes, aim her in any direction of travel...she simply doesn't care. When being held, she will often just curl up in my lap or my palm and sit there for a half hour or more before deciding that she needs to move. And when she DOES move, it is very determined and lazy-like. She doesn't ever seem to be in a hurry or afraid. However...she is very tail shy. If I so much as touch the tip of her tail, she will very quickly take all precautions and hide her tail underneath the rest of her body, as well as turn and stare at my fingers, to be sure precisely what it is that is touching her tail. She doesn't strike at me for it, but I can tell she doesn't like it. I respect that.

My corn is a tad tail AND head shy. I can touch her chin without any drama, and I can rub her tail without any drama. But if I try to touch the top of her head or "pinch"(obviously, very lightly...not to hurt) her tail, she will freak out a little bit, and move that body part away from me.

Soleil, the florida king, is rather jumpy about things that move near her head. If I am holding her, and I move my hand too quickly near her face, she will startle, and spring back into the "S" position, but no longer strikes, and settles down quickly. She used to strike if I moved too quickly and startled her, but never actually got me while I was holding her. I think it may have been mostly bluffing. She isn't tail shy, though...
 
SnakeNbake said:
This thread is making me wonder if I handle my snakes enough. Mine don't bite but they are skittish and I thought that was normal. Now I'm thinking it's not. I'm paranoid about stressing them out and I'm wondering now if I'm being *too* paranoid. Can someone give me an idea of what a really tame snake is like? Do they actually sit with you and not try to make a run for the border?
Click to expand...
All snakes are different. All will become accustomed to handling to varying degrees. Some become very calm and almost seem to enjoy handling sessions, and some even seem to crave human interaction. I believe Nanci has one that comes out looking to be held. Others never really settle into handling. They will usually tolerate it, but they may never "enjoy" it.

If your snake is literally trying everything in it's power to get away from you, both in the cage and "in hand", try handling a little more, or for longer periods of time. It is completely normal for snakes to want to "cruise" when you are handling them, however, this movement is different than one which is trying to escape. One which is truly trying to escape is unmistakable in it's intentions. They act like they are trying to "run away". However, if your snake is just exploring, and looking around...it's normal.
 
Thanks for the advice, Chris :)
You know, it's funny how people naturally assume things like I did. I literally didn't know corns were friendly like that. I assumed they would always be skittish. Yay! now I can force my love on them more often. :grin01:
 
In the immortal words of Tony Soprana, "You don't have to love me, but you WILL respect me."

I would say just try handling them a little more foten, or for a little longer at a time. I always gradually increase the lenght of time that my snakes are out, until we are both comfortable with whatever handling sessions I want to have. The only thing I would say is...it is usually best to put them back while they are at their calmest. In this way, you are reinforcing the calm behavior, rather than putting them away when they are "flighty" which, obviously, reinforces this flighty behavior...
 
After finding Pancho had mites, I've treated all the snakes as well as Mr Infected. I've been a tad obsessive about checking under their chins, and found that all the snakes except my bitey ratsnake gave in gracefully to me holding their heads and checking under their chins and around their eyes. Mr Bonney of course bit me for my concern.
 
progress so far!

i handle my corn everyday, with the exception of feeding days and the day after... but it is becoming more comfortable...

alot of the handling isnt all to much of me moving but allowing it to sniff around and get used to my hands etc. now and then i pet its head or rub on its tail... and its excepting it more and more.

sooooon it will be like a long... slender.... puppy dog...
 
Neither one of my snakes are head or tail shy, but Informer is more skittish than Mousetrap - the older and wiser of the two - so if you touch him in anyways, he jumps. haha
 
My female black rat isn't head or tail shy, she doesn't EVER get jumpy or skittish. She's sweet and adorable, but she is in general shy, and likes to hide her head in armpits, sleeves, under pillows, in hair, anywhere she feels that something can't see her, lol. The male black rat is more bold, and lets me on occassion touch his head or rub his chin, but mostly he's too active for me to try, he drapes over my shoulders and his body stays still but his head is EVERYWHERE sniffing and tasting everything. My '06 corns are head shy, not tail shy. I just attribute this to them being small still, and a little skittish. My snow is more head shy than the amel, my amel is getting braver every day. I guess it really varies from snake to snake. But I don't think any snake is going to be ok having their held held down or touched too much. I've never really had an actual reason to actually touch one of my snakes heads. I don't think even a calm snake is going to accept being held by the head though.
 
I got my corn at around 1year old and he was kinda skittish, but basically he gets handled alot and is usually happy to sit around my neck or coil round my wrists - then again other times he can go and make a mad dash for freedom. He was really hed-shy but I just rubbed under his chin every once in a while when I handled him and he's now fine with it - still a little head-shy if you put your hand near his face in his tank, but he's *never* liked his tail being touched, which I guess is jst something to respect.

I know all that has probably been said, but thought that little extra may be a confidence boost :crazy02:
 
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