Biting - A Learned behavior

[Jim Smith]

I usually feed my snakes (Hondos) in separate feeding tubs which has worked very well so far. More recently I was given a beautiful young adult female Extreme Hypo who is very skittish and does not like to be handled, at all. Just moving her to the feeding tub seemed to stress her out so much that she would often refuse to eat. I tried feeding her in her cage and it seemed like a great solution. She ate well and struck at the F/T mice with vigor. I still handle her occasionally, just not as often as my other snakes. Now however, she has taken up the habit of striking whenever I open the cage. At first I thought it was a feeding response, but this morning she bit me twice while the mouse was on the floor of the cage. There is no question that she bit what she intended to. It seems that she has learned the behavior of biting anything or anyone that enters her domain. The bites are nothing, but the behavior is not something that I want to foster. Any thoughts or recommendations on how I can change my feeding practices to eliminate her biting and still get her to eat? Thanks for any assistance you can provide.

[MDT]

hook train by using a small cage hook?

[KORBIN5895]

Punch her in the face.

[MDT]

There is always that ;)
Either should work fine!

[EL Ziggy]

I would go with a snake hook as well. Sometimes they can be a bit cage defensive. Does she usually calm down once she's out of her enclosure?

[Starbuck]

I agree, snake hook.

However, you may wish to try operand conditioning in tandem-while this can be hard to do in an animal that eats only once a week, it can be done with some success depending on the animals temperament. When you open the cage to feed her, if she is in a defensive, striking position, replace the top and walk away without feeding. Come back an hour later and try again. Do not reward the strike behavior by dropping food into the tank. Only place food in the tank when she is calm and not acting aggressive. Use the hook to facilitate handling, let her know that defensive behavior does not get her rewarded with being left alone or being fed (dont hook and feed on the same day however). If she is acting hissy, you can use the hook to gently maneuver her in the tank, and eventually out into your hands. The important part is that every handling experience be positive (no tight grasping, short and sweet, and try not to handle her to the point of wild thrashing and escape behavior.)

The idea of behavioral modification in snakes is still new, but I've been to several conferences lately indicating that it can be done, and seen venomous animals trained to shift into transport containers or physical exam tubes at zoos etc, so it can be done- again the extent is dependant on the individual animal. Good luck

[Mikoh4792]

I wouldn't think too deeply about this topic. Biting anything that enters it's cage is most likely not a learned behavior. It's just a snake being defensive. You're just a foreign object getting close to it, some snakes won't mind, others will.

I keep many of my animals the same way and I have some that are completely docile, and others that want to bite my face off. Same husbandry techniques, different snakes.

They all get fed in their enclosure by the way and I've never gotten a food response bite(except for my cali king...but they always want to eat anyways).

[kelzerman]

Punch her in the face.

Lol. This made me laugh.

[BIGT FROM F.B.]

My BRB didn't eat right away today in his feeding bin. The mouse just irritated him. I opened it up to get the mouse out for later. Rianman was attempting to climb out while I was trying to get the mouse out. This was the result. My own fault, but I had rather this happen than my dog to get him when he dropped to the floor.

[Mikoh4792]

Why don't you just feed inside the enclosure? It's less stressful for the snake.

[BIGT FROM F.B.]

I've heard he could swallow some of the bedding and/or get some stuck in his mouth causing mouth rot. Any truth to this??

[Mikoh4792]

Well that could be a risk, but with proper conditions the snake should be able to pass substrate just fine. Snakes in the wild eat substrate all the time(dirt, twigs, leaves...etc). If it were such a high risk, most snakes in nature would get mouth rot.

[Sublimeballs]

Punch her in the face.

Hahaha, awesome.

As others have suggested feed in the cage it's less stressful. I doubt it's a learned behavior; just a snake being a snake. Hook training has done wonders for me (i wouldnt dare put my hand in my jamps cage without a quick tap from a hook), give it a try.

[Terranaut]

I usually feed my snakes (Hondos) in separate feeding tubs which has worked very well so far. More recently I was given a beautiful young adult female Extreme Hypo who is very skittish and does not like to be handled, at all. Just moving her to the feeding tub seemed to stress her out so much that she would often refuse to eat. I tried feeding her in her cage and it seemed like a great solution. She ate well and struck at the F/T mice with vigor. I still handle her occasionally, just not as often as my other snakes. Now however, she has taken up the habit of striking whenever I open the cage. At first I thought it was a feeding response, but this morning she bit me twice while the mouse was on the floor of the cage. There is no question that she bit what she intended to. It seems that she has learned the behavior of biting anything or anyone that enters her domain. The bites are nothing, but the behavior is not something that I want to foster. Any thoughts or recommendations on how I can change my feeding practices to eliminate her biting and still get her to eat? Thanks for any assistance you can provide.

So there was prey present when this happened? You seriously wonder why you got bit? If the scent of prey is in the air most snakes will strike at anything that moves. I will not put my hand near my snake from the time I pull the prey out of the freezer until a couple days after feeding.....so I don't get bit.