Striking?

I know I may sound like a totally paranoid new snake owner (Which I think I kinda am :P) but I have been handling Seamus for the past 4 days now, every day I take him out of his tank and hold him for about 30 mins-

First, when I go to pick him up around the middle, he hauls butt away from me lol and I never try to put my hand in his face, I always lift him from the back end...

Now when I get him out of the tank, I let him settle for a minute without making much movement, but when he sees my other hand move, he strikes it- He's struck and "bitten" (quoted because I don't feel his teeth yet) me about 4 times every time I've taken him out, then he settles down somewhat...

Is this normal for a baby? He's nearly 2 months old, and super healthy and eats well and has a clean tank and the works- But I didn't know if there was something I was doing wrong, or not doing- I check his eyes to make sure he's not going into shed and look him over to make sure he's not got a sore or anything like that.

Again, I'm new to ever having a snake and I want to make sure he's not scared but I also need to be able to handle him when he gets bigger, because his teeth will grow and if he keeps striking like that, it's eventually going to hurt me, which I know is inevitable at times, but I don't want him to strike and bite me EVERY time I get him out.

Any suggestions of course are always welcome, you guys are the best!

He's scared, that's all. And it's very common for a snake to feel like the hand holding him is inanimate, and the other hand is an enemy.

What I would do is when you go to get him out, don't chase him around his viv. Find him and scoop him out in a clump, like a handful of spaghetti, and then hold him in your closed hand, cuddled to your chest. Hold him like that so he feels covered and secure. Then just go sit and watch TV- don't pay attention to him, let him just get used to you holding him safely.

It is very common for babies to strike, especially when you get them out. I've only had two snakes, ever, out of hundreds, who kept biting into adulthood. He will grow out of it when he learns that you aren't going to harm him.

Originally Posted by Nanci

He's scared, that's all. And it's very common for a snake to feel like the hand holding him is inanimate, and the other hand is an enemy.

What I would do is when you go to get him out, don't chase him around his viv. Find him and scoop him out in a clump, like a handful of spaghetti, and then hold him in your closed hand, cuddled to your chest. Hold him like that so he feels covered and secure. Then just go sit and watch TV- don't pay attention to him, let him just get used to you holding him safely.

It is very common for babies to strike, especially when you get them out. I've only had two snakes, ever, out of hundreds, who kept biting into adulthood. He will grow out of it when he learns that you aren't going to harm him.

I totally agree. Once you are holding him near your chest and learns your smell he will start realizing you are not as scary as he thought!

Thank you, I will definitely work on this- I've tried to cup him in my hands before, but he flies outta there lol I will continue to do that and go watch Netflix!
Thank you ladies!

I also find that if you catch them snoozing, you have a minute to pick them up before they start running scared, which avoids the panic sometimes. If you wait until he's already out exploring before trying to catch him, he's much more likely to get completely worked up and take much longer to catch, and then to calm down. It's worked really well for me with my more shy babies to make sure I'm catching them before they wake up.

Once in a while I have a whole clutch hatch of panicky petes. I just bring my hand down flat atop them, and slide my other hand under. Not that you can feel them, but most baby defensive strikes miss anyway! Like Nanci said, even with minimal handling, most corns are pretty docile as adults. My ratio has been a lot worse than 2 per hundred adults that will bite defensively, but is probably still in the single digits. It just takes repetition for them to learn that you aren't a predator. Very, very rare is the young corn that will actually hold its ground or approach and strike, and even these animals can be tamed.

I didn't mean my adults never bite- they may- but I've had two snakes who were guaranteed to bite as many times as possible every time they were handled. Hallie and Robbie are their proud owners now! Ruby and Suri.

I even had a sunkissed bloodred hatchling from Carol, named Spazztastic. I thought she might be better behaved if she has a nice name, like Mille Fleur. I handled her faithfully, frequently, and she continued to bite and musk and flail and generally behave badly, into her first year. At her peak of poor behavior, she would strike at my hand if I touched the screen top of her viv. And then one day- without an intermediate period- she was sweet as pie.

That's neat. I've had some I thought were going to be handfuls turn out to be perfectly mellow after they hit their second or third year. I have a poss het scaleless male from this year that might be the meanest corn I have ever seen. He will come out of his hide to bite me when I change water or spot clean. He will eventually calm down when I force him to come out, but he bites and struggles until exhaustion first. It's almost as if he's not terrified, either, he just wants to be left alone. I'll have to get a video. (To the OP, this is very unusual behavior)

Yeah, I see what you guys mean!
I'm just so worried he hates me and that he'll never want to be handled lol he just seems so upset and I try really hard to stay still and not move too much, I don't want to keep scaring him... But I know he's young, and I have to give him time.

Tomorrow is feeding day, so maybe he'll be happier with a full belly =)

He definitely doesn't hate you. He is afraid you want to eat him. Do you feed him outside his viv? I do a thing with my babies, to teach them to associate me with food (good things). When I am getting ready to feed, I tap lightly on their bins. After a few times, they learn to come out to look, because then I take them out for feeding, which rewards them for coming out. It then saves me from having to go looking for them. It's funny how quickly some of them learn this!