play time?

[marylyn101]

what are your play time hours for your snakes. my friend only looks at hers when it is feeding time. *wench*. i pplay with mine on different days. i got 7 kings

[BrandonVeenstra]

Since I feed mine on saturdays.. And.. Yes I enjoy watching the eating :P. I'll take him out often during the week. If you were to ask me this 2 years ago.. I would have had him on my chest running around watching TV :P.. now its different

[ohh_kristina]

I don't have a "play time". I usually just handle them when I see them out and about in their enclosures. Usually they stay in their hides and such until 3 or 4 days after eating, so I handle once a week, but sometimes twice a week for Riley (one of my rescue ball pythons). Marley (my newest rescue ball python) doesn't take well to being handled a lot, so I will only handle her once every few weeks. It's pretty much different for each snake, I guess.

[Linds]

I don't have play time... and I'm sure my snakes appreciate it. The only time my snakes are handled is for general maintenance or taking pictures. Occassionally they come out if someone is interested, and if I have a snake I wish to acclimate to handling a bit then I may choose to bug regularily until it becomes a bit more handleable.... the acclimation period is the most stressful for the animal, but I feel it helps both parties in the long run. Easier for me to work with, and when it comes to cleaning and care, the snake will not be completely worked up every time I don't handle my snakes for my own pleasure.

[Katt]

I don't handle my snakes for my own pleasure.

Oh man! That's boring! The pleasure of having snakes is seeing them and holding them!

[Invictus]

I think that people who don't handle their snakes often are doing the SNAKES a great disservice. I have a few adults that were never handled. And when it's cleaning time and we open the top of their rubbermaid, they FREAK OUT, and that simply cannot be good for them. Conversely, the corns I got as adults were handled their whole lives, and if you open the top of their rubbermaids, they will literally come right to you. (I love them for that... one of our corns, Trinity, will actually look you right in the eye, crawl out of the tank and slide right up onto your shoulder.) Now you CANNOT tell me that this is the reaction of a snake that is stressed out by your presence!

I think it's better to stress them a little bit when they are young and get them to the point where they know that you are neither predator nor prey. You're that big warm thing. That big warm thing that gives it exercise. That big warm thing that occasionally dangles real food in its face.

The exception I'm personally giving to this rule is ball pythons. I believe they should be handled minimally in order to maintain their feeding habits, because they are just WAY too shy.

Handle those snakes, people! They will eventually get far less stressed out if you do!

[Linds]

Originally posted by Katt
Oh man! That's boring! The pleasure of having snakes is seeing them and holding them!

I get to see them in their homes whenever I please (lol and even if I didn't want to I don't have much a choice...they are all around the perimeter and up the middle of my bedroom ), and I get to interact with them whenever I clean them. Large snakes get to stretch out and get excercise during cleaning time and photo time as well since they need to be able to completely stretch their length as well do from time to time. I just don't take them out for the sake of taking them out.

[Ace]

I'm like Kristina, and only get them out to hold when they're out roaming. I don't like taking them out of their hides. Some of them wind up being held more than others because they always seem to be out and about, while others usually only get held during feeding time. My one Calking will come out of his hide if I knock on the side of his tank. He's always been my fall back if none of the others are out roaming .