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Help with taming my corn snake?

abidante_diabero

abidante_diabero

New member
I haven't held my corn snake for a wile, and every time I got to handle him he tries to bite me. Can anyone tell me how to tame him?
 
Well, make sure your husbandry is correct. Are the temps 70-73F on the cool end and 80-83F on the hot end? Does you snake have hides that he can use on both sides? How old is the snake? Younger snakes naturally may be nippy, and it is just a matter of being patient. Definitely inspect your husbandry to make sure he has comfortable temps and can move from the hot hide to the cool side and has many good hides he can use so that he does not feel vulnerable. Also, is he hungry? are you feeding him an appropriate sized meal once a week? Sometimes they strike out of hunger (usually if it is hunger they hold on, if it is fear they strike and let go).

So, barring any environmental/husbandry issues, if it is simply a case of it hasn't been handled, all you really can do is handle it more often, letting it know that you won't place it back in the tank until it has calmed down.

USE GLOVES (soft cotton ones).

There is no shame in using gloves to pick up a frightened snake. You will want to make sure that when he strikes you do not flinch, and wearing gloves is the best way. You will want to scoop him up, do not come at him from above, as this will scare him more. This isn't aggression, it is simply him defending himself against something big and scary. So come at his body from the sides and scoop. Do not stop if he bites, just continue until you have picked him up, then hold him until he calms down, and once he calms down, put him back. Handle him for a few minutes every day (barring 48 hours after feeding). As he gets to know that you will not harm him, you can start taking off the gloves while you hold him, then eventually just scoop him up without gloves at all!

I have a young Okeetee that used to plot my death every night and always was striking me when I went to pick him up, and the glove method really worked. Now he doesn't get frightened and allows himself to be picked up and held.

I wish you the best of luck!
 
I tried holding him with the gloves, an he didn't bite me! Yay!:rofl:

I'm not sure what the temp. is on the sides. I have a heater on one side of the tank. I did get new bedding that is thicker and may be harder for heat to get through. He really only bit me 2 or 3 times, but it scared me really bad. He's a year old.
 
You are really going to need to get a digital thermometer with a probe. and stick it in the hottest part of the tank under the bedding to make sure the temps aren't too high (over around 84). If they are getting too high near the heather, you can control it via thermostat or rheostat (search for these, you'll get lots of threads). What type of heater are you using? If you are using an under tank heat pad, those can get very hot! It may be making him antsy that he cannot find a good temperature for his warm side (or cool side if the cool side is too cool or too hot). Definitely get a thermometer with a probe and check out your temps! That could be the whole source of the problem...you never know.

I'm very glad he let you hold him with gloves. This will increase your confidence with him, and it will really help him be less afraid when you hold him.
 
Sounds like you don't have a thermometer. If you are using an under tank heater it can get VERY HOT VERY QUICKLY. I strongly suggest getting a thermometer to check the temps and a thermostat to regulate them to exactly what you want.

Good luck with your little guy! :)
 
Too hot temps can makes snakes agitated. I 2nd (or 3rd?) getting a thermometer. It is a 200% absolutely required piece of equipment.
 
There is a thread on here from about a year ago on how to build a rheostat. I loved the thread and have since built quite a few. It costs me between 5 and 6 dollars to build them and if you buy the components in balk the individual price drops a lot.

Here's the link: http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19168&referrerid=9497

and a digital thermometer with probe will run between 15 and 30 on avg but can be higher. It is handy to have for sure as they are far more accurate than the sticker thermometer or clock face style.

I personally have a stick on therm at the top of the cool side of my setups and a probe digital for under the bedding on my UTH's.

this combined with a rheostat is an easy way to controll temps.
 
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