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Naturally tame snakes?

4K views 80 replies 36 participants last post by  Banford1 
#1 ·
I have been keeping various snakes for a number of years now and i am going in and out of work and school so i dont have the time that i want to spend with each of my animals(hope that makes sense).
So some of my snakes have become slightly more aggressive that i ant mainly just viv defensive, but i will work on stopping this, but it seems that all of my royals that i have ever kept have never really hissed or bitten me. But i wanted new snake to add to the collection but one mabye more intresting than another royal but with the same temprement.

So i wanted to know what are some other examples of naturally tamer snakes and is there such thing, as my first snake was a corn and it was so aggressive i sold it on as thats not what i wanted to start with. But then everyone says corns are the best starter??

So let me know what you guys have seen and what snakes you think are naturally tamer.
 
#3 ·
i hade a pueblan a couple years back and the thing just crapped everwhere and wormed around throwing itself and i ended up never handling because of it. Shame about kings as i think they are stunning just very very hungry most of the time
 
#4 ·
um.. naturally tame snakes.
well, there aren't any ?!

their instinct is to defend themselves from large things.. ie us

but the most tame to start, i would say corns and if you get a good one, kings
 
#6 ·
Bit confused by your post. You don't have enough time for the snakes you have but want to add another one? Or maybe I'm reading it wrong.

Lack of handling shouldn't make your snakes viv defensive. I rarely handle any of mine but they are still fine when I do.

Maybe, as you suggested, you need to spend time with the ones you have, working out what could be causing the aggression issues and trying to calm them all down a bit before getting anymore.
 
#7 ·
Bit confused by your post. You don't have enough time for the snakes you have but want to add another one? Or maybe I'm reading it wrong.

Lack of handling shouldn't make your snakes viv defensive. I rarely handle any of mine but they are still fine when I do.

Maybe, as you suggested, you need to spend time with the ones you have, working out what could be causing the aggression issues and trying to calm them all down a bit before getting anymore.
i know exactly what you mean i was worried it would come across wrong, its that i used to spend about 1-2 hours a day just handling for all my reptiles but lately i dont have time to do so, all animals are in perfect condition i would never not take care of them all, i just prefer snakes that i can pick up anytime without the slightest hiss or flinching
when i say viv defensive i mean one or two will often hiss at me when i first open the cage and then stop as soon as i
take them out.

think this thread has been misunderstood, obviously snakes are not naturally tame thats common sense but i wanted some species that are considered to be generally more tame.
 
#11 ·
Think im gonna give up on this thread, dont think its being understood how i wanted it too
 
#28 ·
You started the thread to ask if there are any snakes that are considered more relaxed than others, so that if you can't spend lots of time with it, it won't get viv defensive or twitchy when you do handle it.

Is that right?

If so, you've overlooked something fairly important about snakes in general. They don't want to be handled. They don't benefit from it, and while some snakes will tolerate it, no snakes "enjoy" it. Technically, if you're short on time to handle them, you should have happier, calmer snakes. Snakes that are handled daily or weekly tend to be more flighty and nervous, as their natural behavioural instinct is to hide away from danger, only coming out to hunt. By constantly getting them out of the one place they feel secure, you're reversing that instinct.

Now, a lot of owners can't accept that - to some people a snake is the equivalent of a cat or dog in that it's just a pet, but looks cooler. If you're one of those people that's fine - you'll just have nervous snakes. If you want another one, but haven't got "time" for your current collection, you're sort of doing things wrong. Although snakes don't need "time" to be petted and played with, if you're unhappy about the current situation, getting yet another snake will only make it worse.

My advice would be to either:

A) accept that snakes don't necessarily want to be handled, and therefore get as many as you want, and you'll find that some are viv defensive and twitchy and some aren't (you can't do this by species - one corn snake will have a completely different temperament to another - I have a corn that absolutely will not tolerate handling and will bite and strike, and another that is fine with it)

or

B) Treat snakes as pets, and continue the belief that they need time to be handled and petted like a dog, and therefore downsize your collection instead of adding more, so that you can spend more time with a single animal instead of being forced to rush around lots of them.
 
#12 ·
just rewrite it so we can all understand exactly what you mean and can advise as neccesary
 
#14 ·
No matter what species people recommend you are always going to get individuals that are a bit jumpy or a grump. Best thing to do is pick a species you like and see what their temperament is like before buying. Or just accept some flinch and hiss and that's all it is.
 
#16 ·
Have a proper think about things mate! Sounds to me like you already have enough snakes for the time you have available to spend with them.

Snakes are very addictive and if you are not careful, you can end up with a collection that is too large to enjoy.

Why did you get your first snake? Was it because you love snakes? Find them interesting and fun to handle? These are the reasons I got my first snake, but over time I ended up with far too many, most of them in rubs which made watching them difficult, so I decided to downsize.

Now I only have two, both in display enclosures. I have time to spend with them and they are great pets.

I'm not saying anything against keeping large numbers of snakes, this is just my experience and what works best for me.
 
#18 ·
I've got a cali king that never flinches, hisses or bites - and always wants to come out. My Coastal Carpet is lively, but never strikes or hisses. I have a bci that is soppy tame - and my burm is also very trustworthy. From these experiences, I'd thoroughly recommend all of these - but I know they're not always like this.

My little viperine is the worst of the lot. She huffs and strikes, then musks you. Never bites, though.
 
#20 ·
Mt cali King is also fab tame, she comes towards me in the RUB when I stick my hand in because she's right nosy, when I first got her people kept telling me kings are aggressive and what not I was surprised at how well she behaved.


She's great, unless you have the sent of other snakes on your hand, she's decided that you taste nice then (well she has the last few months). :whistling2:
 
#32 ·
i think expecting a bite is the best way not to get bit.
you don't get over cocky (i suppose) and they don't get the chance :d
 
#26 ·
Think I know what you mean. I think a rosy boa is the best choice as they are known for being docile, apparently even in the wild you can just go and pick one up with little problem. My rosy boa has never shown any signs of defensiveness/aggression at all and is very laid back except when it's feeding time. I've rarely heard of a nasty one, most people say theirs is very docile as well.
 
#27 ·
Wanted to add this. It's not like you are expecting to find a snake that doesn't bite at all ever (some people are acting like you are). It makes sense that someone would want a snake that doesn't try to eat their face off every time they interact with it. Sorry people aren't lightening up on you.
 
#34 ·
wtf is toe jam?
 
#35 ·
You will never get a "tame" snake, some tolerate handling better than others. Corn snakes are hit and miss, most are fine but in my case mine is snappy and doesn't like to be handled full stop, even if I go to change her water, she goes for my hand but corn snakes don't have fangs so it doesn't hurt, just makes you jump.

If you are nervous about getting bit and drawing blood then stay away from snakes that have fangs such a as ball pythons, my ball python bit my mother because she made the mistake of putting her hand in after holding a rat and left a pretty nasty bite.

I think its a chance you take when it comes to owning ANY reptile whether are not they tolerate you are they do not, if they do then awesome and if they don't, well you'll have to accept that's just how they are.
 
#37 ·
stay away from snakes that have fangs such a as ball pythons
Pythons don't have "fangs" per se, and ball pythons have almost identical teeth to corn snakes.
 
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