i have an albino cornsnake thats about 20 in. long and the size of a dime in the middle. any time i try to pick him up or touch him he strikes at my hand. his mouth is small so he cant hurt me. i still would like to find a way to get him to be more docile and allow me to play with him and hold him. any tips would be greatly appreciated.
Yeah, I'd probably wait 48hrs after feeding before handling. That won't affect his attitude, but it will help prevent regurgitation As far as being snippy, many corns are like that when they're young. Make sure you wash your hands real good before you handle him, so that there's no strange scents (rodents, other reptiles, just general hand smell), and just handle him regularly. Make him learn that you're not going to hurt him. I've got a young female blizzard that's like that right now. She's an absolute nutcase. She has been since I got her in March. She's mellowed down a little bit, once she's actually in my hands (she used to bite all the time while I was holding her, she doesn't any more), now she's just a little snippy while I'm taking her out, but once she's in my hands she doesn't try to bite any more. Sometimes it can take some work, and while even an adult corn snake's bite isn't that bad either, it's better to get it out of them now at an early age. You could also try putting the cage somewhere that he has access to viewing humans in a low-traffic situation - such as by the PC if you spend a lot of time on the computer, or in the living room if you spend a lot of time in front of the TV. This will get him used to seeing you regularly in a non-threatening manner.
i keep him in my bed room because i go up there a lot because i have to take care of my 3 leos, my corn, the wax worms, mealworms, small crix, large crix. he sees me plenty but is usually hiding in his cave. i think that my cat was bothering him because i usually leave my door open and he walks around and gets on top of the cages but now im not letting him in and i'm hoping that will help. well keep your fingers crossed.
ohh and in response to raziel he's about 6-9 months old and yes he's always been like that. he's been with me for about 4 and half months and has always been agressive. my dad said he will try to help me. he's just gonna let balboa bite him and then pick him up. if we do this enough i think he might let us hold him easier.
Yes, given that cats of various shapes & sizes are natural predators to many other species, it's probably a pretty good bet that the cat was scaring the hell out of the snake - especially if it's jumping on top of its cage.
Well the bite shouldnt hurt...shouldnt it only feel like velcro...like i said my cousin(justins) ghost corn has never bitten him or me or anyone...but shouldnt hurt the bite.
ya so i haven't been allowing my cat or my dog in my room because im startin to get reptiles and supplies coverin every wall.
lol...your lucky my parents dont want me getting lots of reptiles my cousin though has 3 dif kinds. But anyway most i think ill get is three leos in total im planning on askin for a normal facce after i pass grd 8
I used to work in a petstore when I was in highschool, (it was the only animal job I could get.) But I was in charge of the reptile room in the store, (a job no body else wanted, and I happily accepted.) But a few of the corn snakes that we had had a tendency to bite too when it came time for me to clean their enclosures or something. But as some of the people have already advised you, I found that if I washed my hands really well they were less inclined to bite me. After they got used to me, they knew the antibacterial handsoap smell wasn't a threat, where as it probably seemed like it when the were smelling all of the other animals I cared for. Now that I think of it, I should have been required to do this anyway to keep any diseases that an animal had from spreading to the others. But such are the rules of a petstore I guess. -Cristine
yay balboa let me hold him 2 days in a row without him striking at me. i tryed all the advice and it worked. yesterday i held him for 45 min. with 3 other people around and he didn't care.
biting corn hi, i have an axminster corn(corn/king snake hybrid) that also likes to have a go when i try to handle her. heres a couple of tips that i picked up that you could try, im gonna give them a go myself. try feeding the snake in a seperate box, i have a plastic box 1.5 feet x2 feet x 8inches with small holes drilled in the top for this purpose. also try wearing an old tshirt for a couple of days and then putting it in the enclosure with it, this way he can get used to your scent and hopefully will not see you as a threat when you try to handle him
well those are both good ideas but balboa has calmed down alot and will let me go and pick him up as long as i come in from underneath him and not from above.
just takes time for him to get used to his new surroundings. Once he does he won't mind you at all. corns are always jumpy when first bought, but once they're used to you they will be the most docile snake you will ever come across. thats why they're probly the best snake for begginers and children. Hey! Jhoss22! you stold that name off of survivor, Rupert caught that Common Boa Constrictor and named it balboa after the famous explorer... You NAME STEALER!!!!!!!...lol..
