Anthropomorphic Herps

[CamdeJong]

Hey hey.
Today I took a few of my snakes who were due for defecation out to the yard and let them do their business and one of them did something very odd. My het for albino darwin Theia (close to 3 yrs) hasn't seen a great deal of grass as her outside time is usually spent in fruit trees and it seemed to freak her out a little bit. I was crouched down and as soon as I put her down she swung around and crawled back up my hand and arm and coiled firmly around my neck. A bit perplexed I took her off and put her back down. I took a few steps back and she made her way quickly over and crawled up my leg. My great aunt, from whom I rent a room up here, commented that she was "scared and wanted to stay with daddy" =) which I couldn't exactly deny.

This brought to mind another event, with my big coastal Bree (9 years 2.6m). While cleaning her enclosure I put her in the yard, under the supervision of my 17 year old brother who isn't much of a snake person but is comfortable enough with her to keep an eye on her. It was a big job (2 XL rats worth) and I sprayed down the whole enclosure which took me around 20 minutes. Bree was about 6m away from the snake room, but within around 10 minutes Abe followed her across the yard, through dad's vehicle andfarm paraphernalia (without stopping to look at anything) and into the snake room where she curled straight up inside the hollow log that is her hide.

And now I'll come to my question fairly bluntly: what odd experiences have you had with your snakes that lead you to anthropomorphise them? I'm specifically interested in snakes here because with monitors and dragons the list I've seen is endless. And should I add that I study herpetology and I realise it's probably all a product of instinct and blah blah blah self defense routine? Well I suppose I just did. Anyway, STORIES:

 

[CamdeJong]

I definitely believe reptiles recognise individual people by smell. At the park I would have trouble cleaning the new EB's enclosure as she would bounce off the walls as I opened the glass, but the boss, who'd looked after her while she was quarantined, would never have a problem.

 

[Cockney_Red]

I think its cos your snakes love you, and only you

 

[saximus]

I love that you admit it's anthropomorphising and don't try to justify it. Not many people see that kind of behaviour and think so rationally about it.
My Jungle hates everyone but me and he loves wrapping himself around my dreads. I can't work out if it's my smell or just the way I handle him...or just that he knows his dad and loves me

 

[Jonno from ERD]

I definitely believe reptiles recognise individual people by smell. At the park I would have trouble cleaning the new EB's enclosure as she would bounce off the walls as I opened the glass, but the boss, who'd looked after her while she was quarantined, would never have a problem.

This is all to do with skill and understanding rather than emotion. Anybody with a decent understanding of elapid handling could do the same thing. Bryan Fry and I were having this conversation last week...he had previously worked with an individual who had trouble handling their elapids, but Bryan had no difficulty. I have had the same thing happen several times - people selling elapids because they are too flighty, only for them to be perfectly calm when I pick them up.

Snakes are totally instinctual - learn what their triggers are and you can make even the most difficult to handle snakes turn into a puppy dog.

 

[Radar]

I have an adult prossie that finds his way to me whenever I put him out in the yard, even from 15 to 20 meters away, a maccie that puts himself back into his tub constantly from across the living room, even when there is plenty of stuff (tank stands, bean bags, general house stuff) to hide under between him and his tub, and a big port mac that does the same. It's actually pretty annoying....I have to remove them from their tubs 3 or 4 times in the cleaning process so I can actually complete it....

 

[CamdeJong]

This is all to do with skill and understanding rather than emotion. Anybody with a decent understanding of elapid handling could do the same thing. Bryan Fry and I were having this conversation last week...he had previously worked with an individual who had trouble handling their elapids, but Bryan had no difficulty. I have had the same thing happen several times - people selling elapids because they are too flighty, only for them to be perfectly calm when I pick them up.

Snakes are totally instinctual - learn what their triggers are and you can make even the most difficult to handle snakes turn into a puppy dog.

I agree that they're instinctual - the reaction I got from this snake the first few times occured before I'd put a limb inside the enclosure. I'd put her in the bin no worries but she was extremely flighty. The boss had the same trouble for the first few days, of course, it was after some time of him working with her that she was put on display and I interacted with her. And I would argue that I do have a decent understanding of elapid handling. I'd be intrigued to see someone handle an Eastern Brown - which in this case was a wild speciman passed on by QPWS - for the first time without having the snake react at all adversely.

 

[Jonno from ERD]

G'day mate,

Here's a photo for you Freshly caught 5 seconds prior to this photo being taken, no hook used, calmly placed into a small bag with not even the slightest defensive reaction.

Also...I can see how our conversation here could be viewed as a little argumentitive - that's not my intention at all, just exchanging experiences and information.

Cheers

 

[CamdeJong]

Well I'll be. And you can achieve the same thing with a wild EB in an enclosure? Admittedly I've only been working with reptiles since I was 16 - 4 years yesterday - but I've never seen that achieved with a brown. Save for Ian, of course, he's brilliant...but I am hell impressed. I aim to achieve that kind of understanding as well. And sorry if I came across the wrong way mate.

Cheers

 

[Miss_Stripey]

hahah i dont think snakes like the feeling of grass. Mine all were like ewww on the fisrt trip to the loo outside. The woma acted like a bandy bandy so there was less of him touching the lawn. The BHP however worked out where inside was. Now if he goes on the lawn he finds his own way home straight after. (makes me feel safer i wont loose him one day) And the other night was weird he was taken upstairs (theres another house) to meet Some visitors. He has roamed the house downstairs quite often and after that visit i put him back on the floor for a play and he immeditaly found the stairs and began climbing! He has never tried the stairs before when ive let him out and ive only walked up the stairs with him once and sure with their bad vision you wouldnt think he would realise where he was being taken? Hes 3 this year and it happened a week ago now im worried he will wonder off on me some day.

My Bfs blue tongue lizard hates me it doesnt like being held and wont eat for me so i cant look after it when hes away. However its an angel to him and eats out of his hand nicely. Its also nice to me in his presence get us alone and everything changes.

 

[sookie]

Of course snakes have the people they love more that others.my jungle is my angel and she picked me.....went to get a caramel coastal (who just wanted to bite me) and the dealer kinda suggested if i wasn't scared of a bite of two maybe i would like to have a go at a jungle.She has never snapped or hissed in anger,but she always comes straight up to my face to sniff my breath and then she is totally relaxed and cruises around me and in the kitchen.She tolerates the other people in the house,but don't like going to them.And if i make her she spends all her time trying to get back to her mummy.