Problem child

[shawrey]

If anyone has some tips on how to handle a snappy 18 month old Bredli it would be greatly appreciated, just went to remove him from his enclosure and he tryed to tag me two or three times. He hasnt been handled to much lately and has always been a bit skitish since he was a hatchy but never shown this level of behavoir. I have a 18 month old female from the same clutch and she is much more docile. Any tips on changeing his behavoir would help.

 

[pythrulz]

There are a lot of things to consider if your bredlis geting more aggro and need some more information like where its housed if its in high traffic area if you just use a hook to get him/her out ive had aggro snakes keep them in a dimly lit area let them come out when there ready

 

[mysnakesau]

Handling him obviously stresses him so try not to disturb him too often. But if you do handle him, I suggest branches that you can remove. That way when you get him out, you're lifting the branch out that he is on rather than having to push him around too much.

But speaking of the devils, I have 4 bredlis, have had all since babies. 2 are now three yrs old, 2 are yearlings. All snappy youngsters but my two older ones seem to be quietening down while the yearlings are still skitish and snappy. A trait I have heard that is rather common with bredli - snappy babies turn into placid adults, hopefully...lol

 

[Wallypod]

yeah my two are a bit snappy lol, my female wants to bite my face off every time i walk past her enclosure. Imo handling the snake is a way of getting them to mellow out just little bits at a time. but as mysnakesau said bredli are snappy little buggers when younger.

 

[Snakelove]

When he tags you, do you put him back straight away?

 

[shawrey]

No he has never got hold of me, none of my animals ever have "yet", the puzzling bit is from about 3 weeks old he has never even tried to bite. And yes he did go back into his enclosure. He fed last night so i will give him a couple of days before I try again.

 

[1stprincess]

i handle mine very often and also agree that this will settle them over time. start in a quiet time and place

 

[zuesowns]

I have had my bredli since 5 - 6 months old, haven't been tagged yet. he also was never handled before that (only during cleaning). IMO, the more handling the better, I try and handle him every day for a period of time but also leave him when he's shedding and 48 hours after a meal. he has tagged my bro once while he was shedding. not me yet.

at first if he tapped his nose against my hand or something touched his neck he would S back but i've slowly introduced me touching his neck and under chin and touching his nose, now he is fine with it. seems to be very placid, just what I wanted.

 

[mozi]

probably will settle in time I had a pretty bitey bredli as a hatchy that would snap at the slightest movement. He never wanted to be handled. I didn't handle him much and with time he has grown out of the biting to become a pretty placid snake despite me not being the best snake handler in the world. He would also give a feeding response every time I touched him but that has stopped too. Maybe time will tell.

 

[FAY]

Handling him obviously stresses him so try not to disturb him too often. But if you do handle him, I suggest branches that you can remove. That way when you get him out, you're lifting the branch out that he is on rather than having to push him around too much.

But speaking of the devils, I have 4 bredlis, have had all since babies. 2 are now three yrs old, 2 are yearlings. All snappy youngsters but my two older ones seem to be quietening down while the yearlings are still skitish and snappy. A trait I have heard that is rather common with bredli - snappy babies turn into placid adults, hopefully...lol

hahahaha I have 6 Bredli. I have one that is psycho!
Doubt that will ever change.
All the rest are pussycats compared to this one.

 

[JAS101]

my 2 bredli are ok , there not bitey. they are 18 months old , and iv only had them for 6 weeks.

 

[andysnakes]

if it dosnt want to be handled, dont handle it ! i dont understand why people want to handle there snakes all the time. I m sure they prefer to be left alone , if i feel the need to play with a pet, i have 2 dogs that are more than happy to play.

 

[andysnakes]

can i ask all you people ,why are all you all so dead keen on changing a snappy snake into a handlable snake. every time i read about this topic i just think poor snake, it just wants to be left alone but no the owner cannot help themselve's and just keeps on trying to change it into a lap cat. A reptiles mission in life is to eat, breed and survive, not be be handled, played with, and walked around with by humans. they dont show affection ( but i know alot of you think they do) they are wild predators at heart, go rub your hands on a rat and then go pick up your snake ( and guess what happens next) i know if i handle some dog food and then pat my dogs they are not going to try and eat me. reptiles are more than happy to be left alone if they could be. just my 2 cents worth

 

[shawrey]

Im sure you understand that animals do sometimes have to be removed from there enclosures, such as cleaning, maintenance to there enclosures etc. If you read my original post you would see i had a globe to change wich involves removing the glass and cage around it. I dont keep my animals for ego reasons, and i would like to have a settled animal for such reasons as it would be easier on both the python and myself.

 

[D3pro]

1+ shawrey, it's best for both the python and the keeper if the python is tame.
Dealing with a 2.5 meter aggressive python is not fun.
Also, an aggressive snake can end up hurting it's self.

I hope it tames for you mate.
If it's anything like my bredli's, it will calm right down when out in the sun.
good luck lol

 

[andysnakes]

Im sure you understand that animals do sometimes have to be removed from there enclosures, such as cleaning, maintenance to there enclosures etc. If you read my original post you would see i had a globe to change wich involves removing the glass and cage around it. I dont keep my animals for ego reasons, and i would like to have a settled animal for such reasons as it would be easier on both the python and myself.

I understand that, but i cant see how it is easier on the animal if it just plain dosnt want to be touched and it may never settle down no matter how much you handle it, the majority of my snakes will bite, but i have no problem removing them from the cage and placing them in a plastic tub until the cage is cleaned, they can bite and carry on all they want. afterwards they go back in there cage and everything is back to normal, that is the most handling they get. I cant see how having a placid animal is any better health wise than having a bitey animal, if the owner is worried about a few nips reptiles are not the best ( so called pet) for them. So depro. tell me how is handling a cranky snake to make it tame better for the animal in the long run? just because a reptile is snappy does not mean it is stressed, it just may mean it is a wild animal that dosnt like human interaction and i dont blame them, if a huge set of hands was coming at me i would bite you aswell.

 

[D3pro]

Well I guess in my situation I like my snakes to be calm in all aspects of captivity. A tame snake and a cranky snake might be both healthy, I agree.... but at the end of the day, when it comes to routine cleaning and so on... which snake will be put through more stress? the one that is oblivious to handling? or the one that is scared out of it's skin every time you walk by? Not to mention the accidents that happen when a snake bites, an owner might be caught by surprise, they pull their arm and snake teeth start falling.

It's all a matter of preference and I too don't handle my snakes as much as I used too. I do handle new ones until their used to my presence but that's about it.
That's why I never get bitten, all my snakes are used to humans.

 

[shawrey]

Thanks guys for all your advice and opinions, i think if i study and understand the animal with a little patience he will settle, cheers!

 

[andysnakes]

D3PRO, No worries each to there own i guess

 

[Chris1]

can i ask all you people ,why are all you all so dead keen on changing a snappy snake into a handlable snake. every time i read about this topic i just think poor snake, it just wants to be left alone but no the owner cannot help themselve's and just keeps on trying to change it into a lap cat. A reptiles mission in life is to eat, breed and survive, not be be handled, played with, and walked around with by humans. they dont show affection ( but i know alot of you think they do) they are wild predators at heart, go rub your hands on a rat and then go pick up your snake ( and guess what happens next) i know if i handle some dog food and then pat my dogs they are not going to try and eat me. reptiles are more than happy to be left alone if they could be. just my 2 cents worth

in that case you must be agaist keeping snakes in small boxes too.
can i ask why other people handling their snakes bothers you so much?
i can guarantee you if i got a dog i wouldnt have time for it, and since i find dogs kinda annoying it would be neglected, hence i have animals that dont need constant attention.

would you be happy if i got a dog to neglect?

i had a dog when i was younger, and once when he wouldnt eat his dinner i knelt down and pretended to eat from his plate to show him how it was done, he ran over and bit me on the face, was that a dog or a furry snake?

i calm my snakes down so they dont hurt themsleves smacking into the glass when i walk into the room, also so i can give them time in the aviary wihtout getting hammered, and so i can take them out and feed them without geting hammered, and so they can have a cruise around the house at night if theyre in the mood. Also so once there 8-10 foot im not scared and have to get rid of them, theyre pets for life to me, not a passing fad.

believe it or not, they do like to come out for a cruise at night once they accept humans, but step one is to make them feel comfortable coming out of their 'box'.
i believe i can offer a calm snake a better quality of life than one that has a permanently sore nose and missing teeth cos i havent made the effort to introduce myself as a carer rather than a big scary monster,....

i think poor snake when i see them shoved into small click clacks so they can be bred yearly without taking up space, but hey, hteyre not my snakes and its not my buisness, people will do what they do.