I am sick of my Corn Snake

I think that the biggest thing you need to work on with your snake is your own patience with it. It is not a toy! Its a living, breathing creature that is not exactly domesticated like a dog. More like a wild animal that really does rely on its instincts. And right now, it is probably really freaked out by you and is just reacting to those instincts it feels. Once you let it settle in for a week without any handling, then feed it (in a seperate container....really anything will work, a plastic tub, a bucket, a pan, heck even a paper bag, just not in the *viv*) give it a few more days to digest with no handling, then, finally, then you can start to handle it a little bit each day. Wear those rubber gloves if you need too, but eventually you shouldn't need them, hopefully. The more and more gently you handle it and get more confidence the more confidence your snake will have in you as well and will learn that you are not going to eat him. Mine even falls asleep curled up around my arm, even sometimes while I am reading this very forum . So it is possible for your snake to eventually chill out and get used to you, but first you have to wait. Be patient, you've got 15 or so years to enjoy your snake.

Right - what Bobo's Mama said!!!

It may be frustrating to leave your snake alone right now, but a few weeks of patience will pay off in years of happy pet ownership. It's worth the wait!

u sure u handlin it right an it depends on the age of the snake the young ones bite alot

Well I fed my corn today, after a lot of hassle. I'd say I spent an hour trying to get him into a seperate box because I'm afraid to pick him up! I was waiting for ages for him not to be looking for me to grab him, so that he wouldn't get all aggressive! So when I did, he bit me, like 4 times! He even drew blood! Well it wasn't much, but still....

Its weird, like 2 weeks ago he was all fine and dandy, but now its like he hates me! What could bring on this sudden change in attitude? I am now really afraid to pick him up! Its not that the bites hurt, its just the whole shock of a bite. Its like getting a shock off a car. It doesn't really hurt, but your afraid to touch it. I just don't know

It's going to be okay if your patient. Whats happening now is he is scared~ and he can feel that you are not confident (you probably snatching at him trying to avoid the bite right?) YOU and the SNAKE need to build some confidence. Corn snakes are really very mellow~ given a chance.

Try this.

Buy your self a set of kitchen gloves (Latex gloves) or ask your doctor or dentist if you can have a pair of gloves (they keep boxes of them and will probably just give you a pair)

Next time you want to pick the baby up (and you want to pick it up once a day for about 20 min ~ BUT NOT while he is digesting~ give him 48 hours after a feed alone) So next time you pick him up put on the gloves. You'll not feel the little nips anymore, so you don't need to flinch. Try to teach yourself NOT to flinch when you think he is going to tag you. Toss a papertowel over him, and pick up the paper towel snake and all. Don't "Snatch" the snake with two fingers your afraid will be bitten. Your wearing the gloves. Pick up the snake in your whole hand and just cup in in the palm of your hands. Just hold onto him in the palm of your hands until he calms down and stops struggling. Keep doing that until he is confident you don't want to hurt him~ and until you are confident he can't hurt you. THEN try freehandling him with bare hands. Let him crawl between your fingers and get to know you~ if he starts acting "zippy" or stressed again, quickly cup him in the palms of your hands and just hold onto him until he calms down.

Good luck
It won't take long. A couple weeks if your diligent and gentle. Remember not to let him get into that thrashing and "zippy" mode they do just before the defensively bite you.

Here's the problem in a nutshell, I think. If it took an hour for you to get up the nerve to pick him up, imagine the stress the snake was under wondering what you were going to do to him. You need to just grab him without hesitation, trust me, it's the only way. Like I said before, wear gloves if you have to, but just pick the little fella up. It works!

(Edit) Yea! What mbdorfer said 2 minutes ago! You type faster!

Your taking so long to pick him up is probably stressing him out more than you just picking him up! You have to go in without hesitation or he will stress out.

Here's my suggestion. Go to the gas station and buy 2 boxes of Junior Mints, my favorite (yummmm!) Now eat them! Now take the boxes and without messing up the little closer flap on the top, notch a hole big enough for him to climb into. Put one on each side in place of your current hides. 9 times out of 10 he'll be in one of them. Now when you want to hold him, pick up the box, open the flap and gently slide him into your hand. This way HE may see YOU as an extension of HIS environment instead of seeing HIMSELF as an extention of YOUR food chain!

Originally Posted by dwyn127

(Edit) Yea! What mbdorfer said 2 minutes ago! You type faster!

I got the 2 finger "hunt and peck" down pretty good!

Originally Posted by mbdorfer

Here's the problem in a nutshell, I think. If it took an hour for you to get up the nerve to pick him up, imagine the stress the snake was under wondering what you were going to do to him. You need to just grab him without hesitation, trust me, it's the only way. Like I said before, wear gloves if you have to, but just pick the little fella up. It works!

Agreed.

And when you do get him, you said you're grabbing him when he isn't looking. He'll be getting a nasty surprise when you do that and that'll just upset him more ... which is probably why he bit you 4 times when you did finally get him.

Try just putting your hand in the tank and keeping still and leaving it there. Let him come over and check it out and get used to it. It might help.

Main thing though is you gotta not be scared of him. You've been tagged now and realise it isn't exactly agony so surely nothing to be scared of ?

Just gotta persevere with him.

It really sounds like you are not ready for herping, nor does it seem as if you are able to follow the directions the members here gave you.. You might consider giving the snake up to someone who has more expieriance, because it sounds like your friend is stressed, which might be the death of it. I am not trying to be mean, but I think the consideration for the animal is something to really look at.

Regards...