Defecating?

[TheMadleper]

Been lurking for awhile, and have found most of my questions in other posts, though i don't see anything on this so i decided i'd post...

My new cornsnake (had it for about two weeks, almost two months old i think). He is still pretty biting and afraid of me, but i know how to handle that thanks to reading the helpful posts on this site. But now i've noticed, whenever i take him out, he goes to the bathroom, usualy on me. Is this common? How can it be averted? Stopped?

Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

[Pach]

My ghost has done that to me! :-puke01: well, once on me and once on my other-half!

I've been told that it's caused by stress cos he hasn't been handled much before I bought him... either that or I've been handling him too long and he can't hold his bowels with all that wriggling between my hands/ fingers (moving the food stuff through his system)! My girl snow is good (ladylike, dumps her poo and shed skin in the same area). I've limited myself 10min of handling per snake per day with a very close eye on their tails!

[alan]

Probably a behavior to get you to release him.
If he has eaten and hasn't pooped keep it pointed somewhere safe when you handle him. Watch for the bulge at the vent.
Even later when he gets used to being handled it might do it. Mine almost always lets it go during handling if it's there.

[Pach]

He had a free reign on my other-halfs lap... until I heard alot of cursing and swearing... :D

OK. I'll keep an eye on the bulge and give him lots of exercise so he's 'regular'! :D

[TheMadleper]

Thanks for all the info, any advice on how to stop it?

[alan]

Nope, if we know she is ready we have three choices:
1.If it is nice out we take her outside for exercise and handling, she'll do it then.
2.Keep her above the tile floor just in case.
3.Forget about her handling and exercise until after she poops.

edit: note that none of these choices mention putting your snake on your bed, I don't know why people do that.

[kcaven]

Mine did that the first few times I held him...thats how he got his name~MoJo. My son thought it was hysterical that he "peed" on me and the first thing he could think of while he was hysterically laughing was the little dog named "MoJo" from the Transformers movie that pees on Optimus Primes leg. Hence...MoJo was named! LMAO

Good news is that he has stopped going on me..maybe he got used to my smell and he knows I wont hurt him?? I also dont hold him after hes eaten until he poops first. That is a good way to lessen the odds for sure.

[doortech9]

Is he flailing his rear around when this happens? He might be muskng.

[Remi]

i have a snow, when I take her out for handling, I put her over a lamp to see if she has anything to pass. If she does, i put her back, if she doesn't, we play.

before i started doing this, she went on the carpet, my bookbag, and my boyfriends freshly bought white tshirt. needless to say, he checks her now too.

[LBoz]

Gee, I feel so left out! :laugh: My boy is very refined. He eats off a dinner plate, takes a sip of water and retreats to his hide. Then after a few days he goes to the furthest corner from his warm hide and releases. I always know right where to find it now. He's a gentleman. :D

[alan]

Then after a few days he goes to the furthest corner from his warm hide and releases

My Cheerio has been doing that too. She doesn't do it every time, but most often it is near the same corner of the cool side. The last one didn't go there, it went right on top of a large plastic fern, nasty.

[Pach]

Gee, I feel so left out! :laugh: My boy is very refined. He eats off a dinner plate, takes a sip of water and retreats to his hide. Then after a few days he goes to the furthest corner from his warm hide and releases. I always know right where to find it now. He's a gentleman. :D
Our snakes are still young... they're still in the nappy stage! :D

[ruraldean]

I'm surprised at how many snakes find a regular spot to do it. Rubes tends to leave a little present in the same corner of her temporary accommodation every time. Only twice has she hit me. I'll swear she was smiling both times.

[TheMadleper]

So do you think my corn will eventually grow out of it? Cause she seems to poop everytime i handle her

[alan]

So do you think my corn will eventually grow out of it? Cause she seems to poop everytime i handle her

An unanswered question, didn't see that.
If your snake is that new to you it's probably still part of his defense behavior, hopefully it will lessen as he gets accustomed to the big creature picking him up.
As to how to get him to calm down, you'll have to read some threads and decide for yourself. I've seen people say they leave them alone for a long time and I've seen others say handle often to acclimate them to it. I think I would go with more often, but I'm not talking from personal experience.
When you search for "attitude" threads make sure you look up Nanci's bloodred, Ruby.

[Tristan]

the first time my boyfriend and i handled our baby corn he pooped right on my boyfriend!!! haha it was gross but we both laughed at it. last time we fed our snake i was playing with it while the pinkies were defrosting and it waited for me to put it down before pooping. what a nice lil snakey... haha i'm sure it was just a coincidence tho :)