Snakes can make wonderful pets. However, it can be difficult to get them used to your presence and being handled. Here are some simple steps to start taming your snake.
Steps
Step 1. Before you can get close to any snake, you first need to be sure of three things:
- The snake is not poisonous.
- The snake isn't big enough to overwhelm you. Only a professional or someone with a lot of experience handling them should have to deal with large snakes.
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The snake ate recently. A hungry snake is an angry snake. Feed it a day or two before trying to handle it.
Be careful not to take it immediately after eating (see the "Warnings" section)
Step 2. Approach the snake with confidence
Just like with cats and dogs, snakes can sense when you are tense or agitated. This, in turn, will make them tense or agitated. If you are calm and in control, they will be too.
Step 3. First show the back of your fist to the snake
It is more difficult for the snake to bite this area. As she sniffs at you (moving her tongue quickly), slowly and gently reach for the main part of her body and lift her up. If it attacks you, don't drop it and don't panic. Keep lifting it calmly and firmly.
Step 4. Let the snake move around and on your hands, being careful not to squeeze it and not to let it move too freely
Once the snake realizes that you are not going to harm it, it will slowly relax and start exploring you instead of trying to escape.
Step 5. Do it as frequently as possible
To keep your snake happy, offer him water and food regularly and provide him with a shaded area and an infrared lamp. The healthier the snake is, the happier it will be and the easier it will be to handle it. Over time and with a little effort, she'll learn to quickly recognize your scent and trust you.
Advice
- Snakes perceive fear / hesitation. Rest assured, be sure of yourself and don't make sudden movements when you go to take it out of the terrarium.
- Feed the snake weekly by offering it suitable and appropriately sized food. Some snakes prefer mice, others prefer fish. Know what your snake should eat.
- Handling it half an hour a day and ensuring it has a balanced diet and adequate temperature and humidity of the environment should keep it happy and healthy.
- Some snakes tolerate being handled, others will never get used to it. When the snake is aggressive, while handling it, try to confuse it with a nebulizer bottle, it will serve to distract and calm it. Hold the snake in the hand you have the most strength and the spray bottle in the other.
- Turn off the infrared lamp one hour before handling the snake. If the snake is cold, it will be calmer and easier to handle.
- Do not give up. Some snakes are easier to handle than others. ALL snakes can be tamed.
Warnings
- Don't kill him just because he bit you. If you don't want the snake, find someone to entrust it to. Never release a captive-bred snake into the wild.
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Be careful not to catch the snake immediately after its meal; if it feels threatened, it will regurgitate its prey as a natural defense mechanism to be able to move faster.
If this happens, do not attempt to handle the snake, as it will be more prone to attack you
- Do not allow others to handle an untamed snake. If he bites them, the responsibility is yours.
- Don't try to handle a snake that's bigger than you or poisonous. Only experts or those with a lot of experience can do it.
- Don't take a wild snake as a pet, unless you have specific permission and know what you are doing.
