switched to rats

[jossh27]

so a few weeks ago I made a post about my otherwise very "friendly" or docile king snake biting me. Most of you who replied said it seemed like feeding response rather than aggression. since the bite i started feeding her two adult mice weekly, rather than bi-weekly... shes still comes off aggressive and watches me when ever i open her door of her cage and if i attempt to pick her up she goes into attack mode so i have to use a stick to keep her away when i change her water or spot clean. anyways i was asked to keep you posted about her feeding and heres the update - she took her first "weaning" rat today without hesitation. i'm told the rats i bought were small weaning rats and they look just a big bigger than the adult mice i usually buy from big als in kitchener.

should i be giving her two weaning rats weekly or just one?

[EL Ziggy]

Too bad she's still snappy Josh. I remember you said your temps and humidity were on point. You might just have a hellian on your hands :). Let's hope not though. Most of my rat weaners are 35-40g each. They're about the same size or just a tad larger than a jumbo mouse. Your king can handle 2 of those every 7-10 days. My kings are a little smaller than yours and that's about the size of their meals.

[jossh27]

Sounds good!!

I don't understand why she would just randomly go "snakey" kinda sucks i can't handle her with ease anymore

[EL Ziggy]

Well don't let her behavior coerce you into not handling her. Does she usually calm down once she's out of her enclosure? Sometimes we have to condition them to accept handling. My male bull snake was a little hissy/bitey when he arrived. I'll admit, I was a little intimidated by a 42g snake :). My inner alpha kicked in and I knew we had to establish an understanding. Strength must be both gentle and firm. So, I put on a rubber glove and quickly swooped him up from underneath. He hissed and struck a few times but calmed down after only a couple of minutes. Then I took off the glove, held him for a few minutes, and returned him to his tub. After several of these short, gentle, consistent handling sessions and a few hearty meals we became bff's :). It's all good now. Remember, she's only a kingsnake. You're the alpha. ;)

[jossh27]

I'm not too sure if shes any better outside of her enclosure i haven't really handled her directly. I use a stick and have used a oven mitt as a heat block lol

[EL Ziggy]

I'm not too sure if shes any better outside of her enclosure i haven't really handled her directly. I use a stick and have used a oven mitt as a heat block lol

Sounds like you have to decide if she's going to be a pet you can handle or a display animal only. If you leave the choice to her she'll probably choose to be left alone :). Once she realizes she can't keep you away with all that defensive behavior she"ll most likely calm down. Ditch the stick and the mitt. Pick her up (with a glove if you must) quickly and confidently. Let her hiss, thrash, and strike about for a minute or two. She'll quickly give up and realize her resistance is futile and that you're not going to eat her. Hold her for a few minutes and put her back in her enclosure. After a few rounds of this she'll be putty in your hands. :):)

[jossh27]

thanks zigg! ill get her back to her normal self again. once i get her out she seems to calm down a lot... maybe shes just getting cage defensive?

[EL Ziggy]

That's a good sign that she calms down once you get her out Josh. Like you said maybe she's just getting a bit cage defensive. With those larger meals and more handling I'm sure you'll get her back in line. Keep us posted bud!