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Irishmiddie22

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Today is the 7th day I've had my corn, she is still very young...about a month old...I was just trying to pick her up to put her in a bin to feed, and she does not want to be picked up at all....she squirms all over the place then goes under her aspen...every time I go to pick her up she slithers like her life depends on it (which I'm guessing she thinks it does)...do I keep attempting to pick her up, or leave her alone??
 
fragile neonates

I would advise that you just take it slow if she is spastic. Especially if she is a baby, you don't want to accidentally drop her or drop her and have her find one of those small holes in walls cornsnakes are so good at finding. When I was 11 or so I dropped a squiggly cornsnake in a pet store. I felt terrible. They said I would have to pay for it if any injuries were to show up in the next few days. Even without much handling cornsnakes are usually docile animals.
 
She'll gradually calm down as she gets used to you. At the moment, she thinks you're a big pink monster that wants to eat her!

They usually wriggle most when first picked up, then calm down as they realise that nothing bad will happen. Give it a few weeks/months and you'll see a real change. Seven days is still in the "settling in" period.
 
All the babies I have right now squirm like their lives depend on it when i first pick them up. They usually calm down after about 30 seconds or less though. If you are worried about dropping her, just sit on the floor with the door closed (to prevent other pets from coming in). Like Nanci said, you have to hold her tight enough so that she doesn't fall, obviously you want to still allow her to move though.
 
The first few weeks I had me new corn, it hated to be picked up. It would get very agitated (even to the point of 'rattling' his tail and trying to strike at my fingers -- so cute).

If you can just get in there and pick it up, it may calm down a bit. If it tries to 'run', just keep looping your hands. Eventually it'll calm down and slow down. Let it sniff at you. The more you handle it, the more comfortable it will become. Now, mine will occasionally back away a bit when it sees me coming for it, but it generally just waits to be picked up.

A firm hold isn't terrible. Just don't over do it -- you don't want to squeeze/crush/damage anything, but a firm hand is acceptable.
 
I really like the way thrullz worded it. When you pick it up, just go right for it. If you chase it around the tank a bit, it makes it worse and worse. I grab my boy about 1/3-1/2 way up from the tip of the tail. He freaks out a bit sometimes but i maintain a light hold on him so he can't move at full speed and just keep bringing my hands under him (while still keeping a "wrap" on him).
Generally he is calm within 30 seconds and cruises my hands for as long as I let him. I sat with him on the bed the other night and let him curl up and "hide" under my leg. It seemed to startle him a bit when I was ready to pick him up again so you just have to be prepared for that sort of thing. The more comfortable you are, the better they are!
 
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