A Newbie Snake Handling Question

[sarcare]

So I've had my snake for about a week, and I just picked her up yesterday to hold her for the first time. I was going to wait, but grew impatient.
Anyway, the first time out of the viv was good--she spends her time in the big hide, a hollow half log. I tipped it out and picked her up, she is a calm snake when being held. Wandering around my hands and occasionally pausing to rest. I put her back in and she burrowed under the aspen mulch for a while and then went and hid in the log hide.
But, tonight I went to get her out after work and she FREAKED her tail and head when up, and I swore she was going to bite. She didn't as I kept my hand still, but when I tried to get closer she RAN into the other hide. When I tried to get her from that hide, she again tried to run. When I got a hold of part of her she begun to fling herself about trying to get free. I can only imagine how stressed she was because I felt like crying about stressing her out.
When I finally got her entirely out, she was the same calm and relaxed snake she has been since I first handled her a week ago.

So...long story for simple question revealing my utter newbieness about snakes...What is the appropriate way to pick up a snake out of a hide? Or ought I to wait until the snake comes out on its own? How does one approach a snake without freaking it out?

 

[Stregone]

Do it quick but smoothly. The snake is asking itself "Is that a predator?" when you reach in there. Don't give it enough time to come up with an answer. Don't be rough, but don't hesitate or dilly dally around chasing it.

Try not to reach at it from above, because that makes you look like a predator, come in from the side. Once you get it out they usually realize they aren't about to be eaten and calm down, as you have noticed.

If its in a hide, I just lift it up and give the snake a moment or two to notice me. Then I just reach in and grab it. If she doesn't react I touch her about halfway down her body to wake her up first.

 

[sarcare]

Thanks for answering what is probably a silly question--I'm just worried about doing the wrong thing with my snake. I don't have a ton of experience with them, and the snakes I'd handled before had not been so skittish.

Tomorrow is feeding time, my very first--she is supposed to have two pinkies as per the store. How can I make this experience less stressful on both of us? I have a separate feeding container and I bought some pinkies and some feeding tongs. Is it best to place the food in first and then the snake, or place the snake and then bring in the food? And how long to wait before moving the snake back to the viv?

Many thinks for any help!

 

[Cegninedorf]

Tomorrow is feeding time, my very first--she is supposed to have two pinkies as per the store. How can I make this experience less stressful on both of us? I have a separate feeding container and I bought some pinkies and some feeding tongs. Is it best to place the food in first and then the snake, or place the snake and then bring in the food? And how long to wait before moving the snake back to the viv?

To know that you've got the right size food item for your snake, it should be 1-1.5x in size/diameter when compared to the diameter of the snake's midsection. Have you checked The Munson Plan (just do a search for it here, and you'll find it!)? That also gives you a nice guideline when you go by the snake's weight (in grams) -- it's helpful to invest in a digital scale for that. However, if you don't have one, then just eyeball it: try feeding your snake the two pinkies. If there isn't a visible lump right away, then you know that for the *next* feeding, go with something a little bigger, like a small fuzzy. If there is a lump, then wait: do you still see one after 24 hours? Granted, your snake will hide after feeding, but is the snake up & about after 24 hours with no sign of a visible lump? Then you may also want to consider bumping up a size to a small fuzzy.

Since this is your first feeding, I'd recommend playing it safe & sticking with 2 pinkies & seeing how it goes. The general rule of thumb is to also leave your snake completely alone for 48 (some even go for 72) hours post-feeding, to allow for proper digestion & to prevent regurgitation.

When I feed, I place the snake in the container, and then with the tongs, lower the mouse into the container. The snake may surprise you, though: it may lunge to strike at the mouse! I'll admit: it still startles me to see my snakes do it! It's fast & amazing to see! So, just let go of the mouse & cover the lid. On the other hand, your snake could seem as if it cares less & cowers in the corner; in that case, I'd recommend placing the mouse in the container, covering with the lid, and for my picky snakes, I place a dishcloth over the container to give the snake a greater sense of security. For one of my complete divas, I also have to dim the lights & have the room be quiet. (I also used to have to *wash* his mice too, with dish soap!) For my slow-eaters, I check on them after about 15-20 mins to see how they're doing; some need a couple of mins, others need an hour -- or I've even heard of all night! Either way, see how it goes...and when done, then I just open the lid & place the snake with the container into the tank again. I did that until I felt more comfortable lifting the snake out -- I still do that with a couple of snakes (hatchlings & one seriously feisty diva that I have).

The snake may refuse its food, which isn't terribly uncommon, and it's not a big deal. Some people re-freeze the mice, but I don't: into the trash they go. The snake just goes back into its tank, and you can try feeding again in a couple of days.

I hope that that helped! :cheers:

 

[sarcare]

Thank you SO much--my snake will appreciate the help too. I have a food scale--would that work to weigh the snake (that seems like a stupid question but I'm not sure)?

It will be very hard to see if the snake has digested, he likes to hide a lot--right now all I can see is a teeny white nose peeking out of the smaller hide, and if I move closer even it will disappear. I think she is trying to work up the courage to sneak out to the other hide. But she is almost never out and about when I am there to observe, so I'll just give her a good while in between feeding and trying again to handle them!

 

[Cegninedorf]

Thank you SO much--my snake will appreciate the help too. I have a food scale--would that work to weigh the snake (that seems like a stupid question but I'm not sure)?

It will be very hard to see if the snake has digested, he likes to hide a lot--right now all I can see is a teeny white nose peeking out of the smaller hide, and if I move closer even it will disappear. I think she is trying to work up the courage to sneak out to the other hide. But she is almost never out and about when I am there to observe, so I'll just give her a good while in between feeding and trying again to handle them!

A food scale is fine; I used one initially -- it was just one of those regular small food scales that you can get in the store & you have to adjust the scale with the little dial...anyway, I found that my measurements were a bit off when I finally switched to digital (I got a basic digital scale off of ebay for $19!), but not too bad. I just like to keep track of my snakes' weights so I can track their growth (at least, in that respect) & compare it to their prey size (which The Munson Plan references...some people really like The Plan, some aren't in favor of it; read through the thread on it...it's very much a guideline, not a hard & fast rule ).

When they're hatchlings, yes, they hide -- a lot. But, some of my snakes have now gotten used to their feeding schedule that I just know when they're ready. I do have a schedule for them, though. However, for my hatchlings, I generally feed every 4-5 days. For 2 pinkies, 5 days would be just fine, even if the little guy stays hidden the entire time. Obviously, the larger the prey, the greater the amount of time allowed for digesting. One of my hatchlings had his 2 pinkies on Sun, and although he's not slated to be fed again until Thursday, he's already out & about, exploring -- and pooping. You may actually see your snake out -- because he'll be coming out to take care of business! And, while he's in his feeding container, that gives you a chance to sift through his tank for poo & so forth... Works out great!

Any other questions, feel free... I was in your shoes only 2 years ago, and I still feel like a complete newbie to all of this!

 

[sarcare]

I fed Rosie today--she ate like a pro, I was the only nervous one that didn't think that the little legs would make it down. The only problem is that I'm not sure if she got enough food. I weighed her on the food scale, which isn't very precise at such low weights, but I think she is about 25g or so. According to the Munson plan she is almost ready for fuzzies. I have pictures, but from what I've read there ought to have been a larger food bump.

I'm going to see how well and fast she digests this meal and consider moving her up to fuzzies soon. She is such a good eater! Though she kept prowling the feeding container to look for more after she had gobbled the two pinks, when I put her back in the viv she went back to the big hide where she spends most of her time. I'll post pictures when I find my camera cord.

 

[Nanci]

They do prowl around and look for food after they've been fed. Mine will typically be out most of that evening, but the next day, they're gone, digesting.

 

[sarcare]

I got pictures of my little rosie girl. You'll see she is just a typical amel, but she seems healthy and happy. I have before and after feeding pics too, so maybe some can advise as to if it looks like she's got enough food bump?

and in the feeding container after eating

 

[Cegninedorf]

It depends...did you buy a lot of pinkies? If you have a few left, then finish what you have & then go out and get fuzzies (although, she looks as though she could do well by fuzzies already)...

Nice photos!

 

[doortech9]

Nice snake. Glad to see she eats well

 

[Coty]

I switched from 2 pinkies to 1 fuzzy and I think it was a little bit too big (my amel is 24 grams as of last weighing). From the stool it looked like there was a fair amount of undigested skin (even though I did cut the fuzzy along the spine after thawing). I switched back to 2 pinkies for this last feeding (I actually cut them in half because I was concerned that it could have been a digestion issue) though I am going to see if I can find peach fuzzies at the pet store. If possible, I would try to use peach fuzzies first (before the white fuzzies that are a tad bit bigger).
It is a bit of a shame, because my corn went after the fuzzy w/ a vengeance, constricting for the first time since I have had him and it was kind of cool to see (I don't really try to provoke a response w/ the pinkies, I just put them in my sterilite container used for feeding and put my corn's hide in with him inside).

I don't mean to contradict anyone, that was just what this thread brought to mind.

 

[sarcare]

Thanks for the comments, she is an adorable snake. I will have her on pinkies until I'm out--I think a couple more feedings. I may up the frequency from once a week to once every five days to deal with the smaller food size.

 

[sarcare]

Ok, instead of starting a new thread, I'll bump my own with a related question!
Today I'm trying her on her first fuzzy, and it is taking SO long for her to get it down, I'm worried it is too big. She kept trying to figure out how to grab the fuzzie, then she kept thrashing around trying to get at a good angle to get it to go down once she found the head. Even now she is moving around with the fuzzie still partially outside of her mouth. It hasn't been more then ten or so min, but I'm worried I moved up to fast.
I still have not been able to get a more reliable scale, but the measurement I do have said 25g. Which according to the munson plan says she can handle fuzzies. She is still pretty short for that weight, but she seems proportionate for her length, without any "hips." I'll have to post a pic if she gets the mouse down, maybe someone can tell me if it looks too big a buldge, and what I can do!

Ok, I'm such a newbie, but I don't want to hurt my snake!