Nice snake.
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Carpet pythons will typically calm down with age and handling. Typically. Some will always be a handful to handle. When thatâs the case, over time, youâll learn itâs boundaries and youâll figure out how to handle it with some degree of calm. That one is still fairly young so it should calm down.
Handling defensive snakes (and knowing when not to) is a skill that takes development. Donât give it a target by holding your hand or any other part of your body in itâs strike range. If you approach it with your hand, do it from above and slightly behind the head or up below the chin. Move as slow as you can force yourself to until you know each other.
Iâll take some pictures of my carpets tomorrow
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So if he ate he can be handled 2 days after eating even though I got him 2 days ago (he ate yesterday). Or should I still wait 2 weeks until handling.
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So can handle him tomorrow even though he ate yesterday
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Still wait 2 weeks without feeding, handling, or disturbing. Whatâs done is done but restart the 2 week clock.
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As has been noted numerous times, you need to leave this animal alone to settle in:
Do not handle it
Do not keep opening the doors to poke around the cage looking for it
Do not rearrange the decor
The animal is under stress and needs time to settle in and recover. The more you continue to mess with it, the more it begins to associate you as being the main source of its stress and the greater the likelihood it remains defensive toward you.
We all understand the urge to want to hold a new animal. But as their care-takers/keepers, our main goal should be doing what is best for them, not satisfying our own whims.
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Okay but what about more stuff so he can climb.
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Not until after 2 weeks. NO DISTURBANCES!
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Okay but still I have a heat gun to check the temperature in the enclosure.
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If you majorly change the decor it wouldnât be a bad idea to wait another short time before feeding or handling (~5 days). Checking the temperature should be fine as long as itâs a quick reading and you donât open the door or prod.
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Okay because I want to add pvc pipes so he can climb more and my branch should me higher so when could I add more climbing stuff. And could I feed him this Sunday.
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You should not have to do this daily, or even weekly. I might temp gun my enclosures once a quarter to ensure they are maintaining temps
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So how often do I do it?
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You canât feed him until 2 weeks from now. So no, you canât. Snakes will be fine without food, you could likely not feed him for a month and heâd be fine.
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I know I had a garter snake who escaped for a month and had no food.
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Oh and I found the garter snake that escaped
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I know we are throwing a ton of info at you, so I just want to do a quick recap for clarity.
Its great you want to add enrichment in the form of climbing pipes, but for now, let them get used to the current setup for 2 weeks since you last disturbed them. It will let them build confidence.
After those 2 weeks you can add new decor, i would add the decor first, then give them food, so that the 5 day wait to leave them be doesnt seem so bad, as the 3 day wait after feeding is already mixed in.
After those 5 days, they should have gotten used to their enclosure, and have digested their last meal enough to be handled without the risk of regurgitating it.
Try to keep body parts out of striking range, and if you feel it necessary use gloves or a snake hook to remove them. A snake hook is an extremely useful tool, alot of defensiveness is related to them being in their enclosure, and once removed, bringing your hand under them while watching for hostile body language is far easier than trying to grab a snake with its back against the wall so to speak.
Body language is EXTREMELY important. You can tell what their intent is, and what their intended target is. Flighty is better than bitey. Freedom of movement will calm them down, so if they are trying to move and you handle them in such a way they feel unrestrained, it will be a good experience.
Do not put them back just because they strike or bite you. You will teach them that they will be released if they do this. Wait until they calm down and break focus from you this may take 10-15 minutes, or it could happen within 30 seconds. Depends on the snake.
Once they start moving and stop staring, you are making progress. Hold for 5 - 10 minutes after this. After you are done, put your hand in their enclosure and let them go to their hide. They may now be confident enough to try climbing out despite you being right there, and you may need to rangle them back in. This confidence is a good sign.
Take it slow, and increase handling frequency as their confidence and trust grows.
Follow this and you should have a perfectly tame adult when the time comes. Each snake is an individual, that is why i say âshouldâ.
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Everything V says above is good but this right here bears repeating.
I would also strongly advocate looking up Lori Torriniâs videos on YouTube, she has a TON of information on working with snakes and getting the more reluctant ones to calm down.
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What about snake discovery.
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