Training your snake

[TrpnBils]

No...seriously.

All through school, my major interest was in animal behavior. I've trained or been involved in the training of a lot of different animals (although never dogs...I don't have the patience to work with them) and I was wondering if anyone's ever done anything with a snake.

I'm not talking about anything real huge here. Like my last fish that I trained, I just got it to press a target for food whenever I flashed a light at it. Or more recently at the zoo, one of the tortoises was trained to walk to his holding area when he's called. So even something small like that would be cool - I'm just interested to see if anyone's ever tried it.

 

[DAND]

I wouldn't really say I trained them but I've had snakes learn stuff. When I used to keep burms I fed them through a PVC cap I installed on their cages. This way when I was going to clean the cage or the water bowl they didn't think it was feeding time and my hand was the food. Shortly after starting this the snakes would react to the opening of the PVC cap and go up to it and wait for the rat.

 

[sojkas]

(although never dogs...I don't have the patience to work with them)

I've been training a fewdogs (including the one looking at you from my avatar) and I must say you shoundn't train snake if you consired yourself to impatient to work with dogs :grin01:
Teaching 6 month puppy to sit takes usually ~5 sessions 10 minutes each.

 

[TrpnBils]

I've been training a fewdogs (including the one looking at you from my avatar) and I must say you shoundn't train snake if you consired yourself to impatient to work with dogs :grin01:
Teaching 6 month puppy to sit takes usually ~5 sessions 10 minutes each.

I have a bassett hound....not exactly the brightest animal I've ever seen, he's lucky that he remembers how to stand up and walk from one day to the next.

Like I said though, my big interest is in animal behavior, but my experience mostly comes from mammals. I've been working with wildlife for 4 years now, and I can honestly say that it's given me a whole new look at domesticated animals. It's hard to go from work where you see animals full of instincts and are trying their hardest just to survive (what is most likely an injury stemming from humans in some way or another, as 95%+ of the cases are), then to go home and see our dog sleeping on the couch. Or how about going to the vet's office where there will undoubtedly be some kind of little yappy anklebiter dog wearing a sweater. That just doesn't do it for me. And that's the big reason why I've trained things like opossums and a skunk, but never a dog.

 

[rerat]

heh..I read " i trained a tortoise to walk holding his area"...


On topic: My dog's a retard. Everyday 2 seconds after my mom leaves for work, he drops a turd on the living room carpet. Is that training?

 

[sojkas]

Well, old lazy dog is not a young puppy.
Dogs are domesticated and they learned to "read in mans' minds".
They can see slightest signals human beings send. I'm great fan of dogs (next to snakes) and while that can be true, thea domesticated animals are "lazy", but it comes from lack of challenges. If you spend enough time with dog (active, not just watch TV together) you willse that they are really smart animals.

 

[TrpnBils]

domesticated animals are "lazy", but it comes from lack of challenges. If you spend enough time with dog (active, not just watch TV together) you willse that they are really smart animals.

yeah my parents' having to go to work 5 days a week and not being able to take the dog along is probably borderline neglect. We should do something about that.

 

[coyote]

I may be "waxing esoteric" here, but, if an animal can't learn it can't survive. Obviously snakes CAN learn. Obviously so can I. I sometimes wonder if the "endearing" behaviors I see in my animals are strictly proof that THEY have learned, or that I have also been "trained".

 

[MegF.]

Someone on my horse clicker training group said that someone she knew had trained reptiles to do I don't know what. I didn't read the whole thread. Obviously they can't hear a click, but I suppose you could use movement or something for visual stimulus. I know my amel will come up to the cage top and come out when I open the lid and wiggle my finger. Most likely thinks it's a mouse, but he never bites me. So now it's the easiest way to get him out. Just open the lid, wiggle my finger and wait.

 

[TrpnBils]

I was thinking about that too...it'd have to be something visual because I don't think vibrations or anything of that sort would be consistent enough to be worthwhile. Non-mammalian animals have been a little interesting for me as far as training goes. The last thing I clicker trained was an owl, but it was just to get into and out of the carrier, and up on the glove. It's a little different with animals that don't have limbs though...lol. I'm not sure what I would teach a snake even if I knew it was possible.

 

[coyote]

I am pretty sure that my snakes must be responding to vibrations. As soon as I begin at the front of the line opening cages to drop in FT the other snakes down the line already have their heads out and are waiting for me to get to them. Deaf dogs respond to vibration.

Lizards do hear. My iguana can read my tone of voice. Probably because he's been yelled at before. He and I have had many a hissing, huffing conversation. He adjusts the quality, length and volume of his noises in response to mine. Interesting. Especially to the uninitiated who might just happen to "overhear". Some members of my family think I am nuts.

 

[JenC]

lol...some dogs are smart when they want to be..others just dont show it....One of our dogs knows over 40 commands...the other thinks "sit" means "lay down and rollover"..

Our bunny was trained to use the litter box...lol

But it would be pretty awsome to see a trained snake...