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GJ acting aggressive..

Brizzle

Brizzle

Craziness
My jungle corn, GJ, has been very aggressive lately. When I touch him, he'll get into a strike position. He used to be a very calm snake. I just had my boyfriend help me take him out so I can clean his cage. We let GJ slither out a bit, and then my boyfriend tried to pick him up. GJ freaked out and turned around and bit him, well not really bit. Ernie pulled away too fast and got scraped by GJ's teeth. So my question is..Why would GJ be acting aggressive all of a sudden? Could it be because it's breeding season?
Also, GJ went back in the cage after Ernie pulled away, and started rubbing his face on the glass. Could he have hurt himself after trying to bite Ernie? Since Ernie had pulled his hand away?
I'm really tried of GJ acting this way. I hate it that he's aggressive all of a sudden.
Any advice or opinions would be great. Thanks.
 
Couple things...

Yes, breeding season could cause more aggressive than normal behavior in adult males.

Yes, he could very well have hurt his teeth when he pulled away. Lot's of times, teeth will be ripped out when this happens.

The best advice I can give you is to be confident with him, and NOT allow him to go back into his hide or viv when he bites. It will only reinforce the biting response as a means to being put back. If you don't have the confidence to handle him, use a pair of light gloves. This will alow you to handle him with confidence, which *should* lower the bite response.

Aggressiveness is a King characteristic. They aren't always as docile as corns, though they usually settle down quite nicely. When my kings get "bitey", I let them have their fun...now...while they are relatively small, but I never give in to them. They need to learn that biting me will not stop me from holding them, carrying them, cleaning their cages...whatever. They simply need to learn that it doesn't matter, and eventually, they will stop(hopefully).

GJ is a gorgeous snake. If he ever gets to be "too much" for you...let me know. I'll come get him...;).
 
Okay..Dumb question time.
If his teeth or something got pulled out, do they grow back? Do I need to worry at all by that? He actually just ate fine for me..For I fed him while I cleaned the cage. So everything is probably fine.
Hehe, I mentioned the gloves to my boyfriend. Being a guy..His reply was "Screw that..I'll just bite GJ back". Haha. I'll buy the gloves for me. Good idea. I'm just not used to an aggressive snake. It's just kind of freaky at first. Just like when I started working in animal grooming..Now I'm used to a dog snapping at me and breaking skin. Doesn't scare me much anymore. And I thought GJ had the personality of a corn. Hopefully he'll calm down and be the mellow guy I thought he was.
And I was just talking about getting rid of GJ for the aggressiveness. But when anyone mentions taking a pet of mine, I'm like..Nooo..I could never get rid of 'em. ;)
 
You mentioned he was rubbing his head along his enclosure wall? Is he getting ready to shed, by any chance?

Could explain his aggressive behavior, too. Probably a stupid suggestion, as I'm sure you know when your snake is getting ready to shed, hehe.

As for the teeth, don't worry over-much if your b/f pulled one of 'em out. As long as you're feeding f/t, there's really very little need for the teeth anyway. As far as I know, they're typically retaining teeth, used to hold squirming prey in their mouth as they swallow it.

With f/t, there's not a lot of squirming going on... :)
 
I bet no teeth were damaged. Even if they were, they grow back. Was he really nice before? Is he getting less attention than he used to? I guess I'd just continue with frequent gentle handling.

Nanci
 
He's not getting ready to shed. I haven't seen him in blue or anything. And yeah, he eats f/t.
Although I do see him sometimes rub his head on things. He especially loves my boyfriends facial hair. He'll go crazy rubbing his head on that. It's pretty funny/cute.

He was really nice before. The attention has been getting less for his aggressiveness and that's probably not helping the situation.. But he was just an overall really laid back snake. Now he's a ^$#^#$.
 
Two questions:

How old is he, and for how long has his aggression been increasing?
 
Brizzle said:
He's not getting ready to shed. I haven't seen him in blue or anything. And yeah, he eats f/t.
Although I do see him sometimes rub his head on things. He especially loves my boyfriends facial hair. He'll go crazy rubbing his head on that. It's pretty funny/cute.

He was really nice before. The attention has been getting less for his aggressiveness and that's probably not helping the situation.. But he was just an overall really laid back snake. Now he's a ^$#^#$.
Click to expand...

Did you change anything recently? As in...are there any new vibrations, constant noises, etc.? This will sometimes cause them to change their attitude.

Also, have you changed hand soap recently? Or perfume? Or shampoo? Perhaps it's a smell he dislikes and doesn't recognize; causing him to react defensively because of it...
 
The pet store I bought him from said he was about 4-5. Someone who didn't want him anymore took him there and he was for sale at the pet store for a year they said. His aggression has been getting worse over the past month or so.

Nothing recently has changed. Everything is the same.
It has been warmer lately. But that's it. I've had to turn his heat lamp off.
 
Hmm, well...Hopefully it's just a phase he's in and that he'll snap out of it.

I've run out of ideas, sorry. :(
 
4-5 years old and increasing over the past month...sounds like a mature male that's aggressively looking for love.

I would try the gloves, just to give you and your b/f the confidence to handle him properly and without being anxious. They can sense your anxiety, just like a dog, and can respond to it, so if you're feeling nervous, you may be increasing his aggression by making HIM nervous. The gloves will help relieve any anxiety you might be having, which *should* lower HIS anxiety by allowing you to handle him comfortably and confidently.

Just try not to put him down when/if he bites you. Trust me...I know how hard that can be(the gloves will help). Putting him down only reinfoces his biting/aggression by rewarding the activity. My male Cali King has bitten me 6 or 7 times in the week that I've had him, and they are right around the same age...(but I think my Cali just has feeding issues...he's a rescue...)
 
Yeah, I'm not 100% he's a male though. I just hope he is since I have a thing with liking male animals more than females. The petsore didn't know his sex and I don't want to try sexing him by myself. I should have mentioned that already. But yeah, would females act the same way around this time?
 
just dont be scared of him let him bite but don't pull away then he'll learn it doesnt bother you and he wont do it anymore
 
Bl1nd said:
just dont be scared of him let him bite but don't pull away then he'll learn it doesnt bother you and he wont do it anymore
Click to expand...
...You hope. My male Cali King bites me all the time. Very slow and "non-=aggressive" about it...he just likes to grab hold and chew on me for a while. And yes...I always wash my hands before feeding him, and I NEVER have the scent of rodent or snake on my hands...he just likes to bite me for some reason. I let him get away weith it because he is such an incredible animal.

Oh, and FWIW...he is around 3' 8" long and weighs about 310grams currently...It hurts a little bit when he gets to chewing and trying to swallow my fingers...
 
tyflier said:
Oh, and FWIW...he is around 3' 8" long and weighs about 310grams currently...It hurts a little bit when he gets to chewing and trying to swallow my fingers...
Click to expand...

:eek1: Owie. Snakes are lucky they're pretty..Otherwise I'd hate them. My guys are lucky I still like them.
 
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