Spotted just tagged me. just a quick question..

[Lucas2471]

Hi guys. just moved the little spotted hatchy into the new click clack.

whilst doing this he tagged me and coiled around my fingers. didnt let go for about 2 mins and constricted when i moved my fingers.


i just read on another site that:

• If a snake bites and lets go its defensive.

• If it bites, hangs on and coils around you... that its hungry?

is this a load? or some truth to it?

now the little bloke is only young and hasn't had his first feed with me as of yet.

is he just young and doesnt know what to do? or is he trying to source his next feed? aka my index finger.

 

[maddog-1979]

sounds like he's just hungry. if it's defensive they will recoil, or even just head butt without opening their mouths

 

[Lucas2471]

I'm still trying to let him settle in and i really don't want to bother him. should i try feed him tomorrow or Friday and see if he eats? or should I wait till Tuesday as this will be 1 week?

 

[RSPcrazy]

When they hold on and coil like that, it's a feeding response, if you have only just got it, I would still wait out a week for it to get used to it's new environment, because even though it may eat now, if it stresses to much from all the changes, it could regurgitate and damage it's internals (I have had young snakes die from this).

Also if it holds onto you like that again, you can get it off very quickly by holding it's head under a running tap, it works very well.

 

[bluewater]

Everyone is different, I personally tho always try to feed fairly promptly, if they don't take it no worries, if they do I feel a lot better knowing they're comfortable in their new surroundings.
So I vote feed now (or tomorrow)

 

[Lucas2471]

Getting him off was ok. I unwrapped him tail first then he let go once i got to his head.

Might have to remember the water thing.

 

[Fantazmic]

Just feed him poor thing is hungry !!!!!!

 

[Fuscus]

Sometimes a defensive bite can turn into a feeding bite. There is not much room in their skulls for brain cells.
And my preference is to not disturb a new snake for at least a week.

 

[Joshpython]

Haha. The same thing happened to my wife. We just bought a spotted hatchling, took it home. it was his feed night and she was holding him. He wraped around her fingers and then latched On to her. She freaked out. We then went and put her hand (and his head) under the tap. After about 10 seconds he let go. I still offer him a pinky mouse later that night and he took it. I put it down to new surroundings and hunger. He has never bitten since. He's a good little fella. So don't worry about it mate.

 

[Ginsleftleg]

Sounds to me it is hungry. It wont hurt to try. just don"t keep checking on it. Put the food in and check on it the next day.

 

[RSPcrazy]

I still recommend waiting out the week. I have sold a lot of snakes to a lot of beginners and it really agitates me when they think "it must be hungry, so I'll feed it" even though I have told them repeatedly "don't feed it in the first week of settling into it's new environment", then I get a call from them having a crack at me, because it regurgitated and died, even though I told them "DON'T feed it or even look at it, for the first week". This isn't just 1 or 2 people. This season I have had about 6 people call me back telling me it regurgitated and died in the first week.

I'm not saying it WILL die if you feed it, I'm saying it goes through a lot more stress, trying to get used to it's new environment in the first week and there's a higher possibility of it regurgitating from stress, damaging it's internals (because of how small it is) and dying.

Snakes can go months without food (I have had a snake go 1 year refusing to eat, untill it finally started eating again), so waiting 1 week is not going to hurt it.

 

[grimbeny]

I still recommend waiting out the week. I have sold a lot of snakes to a lot of beginners and it really agitates me when they think "it must be hungry, so I'll feed it" even though I have told them repeatedly "don't feed it in the first week of settling into it's new environment", then I get a call from them having a crack at me, because it regurgitated and died, even though I told them "DON'T feed it or even look at it, for the first week". This isn't just 1 or 2 people. This season I have had about 6 people call me back telling me it regurgitated and died in the first week.

Im not trying to stir trouble, but if this has happened to 6 people in a year then it probably is more likely that there is a problem with the snakes or how they have been raised. If a snake reguritates a meal out of stress, it shouldnt kill the animal...

 

[Spider178]

My Woma does exactly the same when she is hungry. She held on once for nearly half an hour, tried running water and still wouldn't let go. Ended up just had to wait until she realised that I was a bit big to eat.

 

[RSPcrazy]

Im not trying to stir trouble, but if this has happened to 6 people in a year then it probably is more likely that there is a problem with the snakes or how they have been raised. If a snake reguritates a meal out of stress, it shouldnt kill the animal...

Majority of the time, a normal snake regurgitating won't kill it, but these were hatchling childrens & spotted pythons, very small snakes compared to there food (pinkie mice at the time), a small snake regurgitating a large meal (for them), can damage there internals, causing death.

The only hatchlings that died while in my care (this season), were 2 that regurgitated (they died the next day) and 3 that where problem feeders (refused every meal). The only people that called me back, telling me the snake had died (about 6 of them) where all first time snake owners and people that fed the snake 1-2 days after getting them from me (even though I told them not to). The hatchlings that I kept, are all healthy and eating like champs, I also hear from some others that bought some from me (just to keep me updated on how the snakes are going or ask some more questions) and they tell me there all going grate and good eaters.
So if there was a problem with my snakes, then why where the only snakes that died (out of my care), ones from people that didn't listen to what I said and fed them anyway?

I do see where you're coming from though and I did consider there might have been a problem, but there was to much of a pattern in the ones that died, for it to be a problem with the snakes.