Jasonisgolden
05-25-2008, 03:33 AM
I have a couple of granites that were basically unmanageable snakes. One of them is a 7 1/2 foot albino granite and the other is a 2 1/2 foot granite het green/albino. Both of them have real issues with being handled.
Sam and Thereasa snake sat while I was deployed this winter. Sam got Cheese(the 7 1/2 foot albino granite) to the point where he could take him out and hold him but he would hiss and spray. I have pretty much come to terms with the fact that his is just a vocal burm. He likes to talk and let you know he is there and sometimes that he is upset.
The 2 1/2 footer has a sister that is a very nice little girl. She has no problems with being handled and does not need to be hooked. The little male on the other hand has to be hooked and once he is out he hisses, sprays and strikes.
I got the idea one day that maybe for lack of a better term, they act like cornered dogs. I was thinking that because they were in a cage and they knew they had no where to go except through me, thats what they tried to do. I started with the cheese, working with him everytime I was in the snake room. At first i had to hook him to take him out. Once he was out he was very vocal and jumpy and if you touched him he would spray. Since the room is closed off from the rest of the house I would let him roam while I cleaned his cage or just took him out in general. After a just a couple of days of him being out and realizing that he could turn and run from me if he felt threatened he started to let me pick him up without striking or hissing.
I am working with the little male now and I am trying to figure out if this really works.
If it does, it may take cleaning some spray off your carpet with listerine a couple of times but eventually your burm will be able to be handled. It will probably be hissy like mine and many others but at least you can take them out and interact with them instead of having a living decoration.
You might as well give this a try anyway. Even if they dont completely come around the extra handling wont hurt. Oh, if they are really aggressive, dont forget to use hooks to start. If you dont have one talk with Brad (the snake Guru) or visit his site, Thesnakeguru.com. You can have them custom made, everything from the way the handle is carved and painted to the the size and shape of the hook itself. I had the idea to have mine carved like scales and painted like the patterns of 2 of my snakes and he took it to a whole other level.
Sam and Thereasa snake sat while I was deployed this winter. Sam got Cheese(the 7 1/2 foot albino granite) to the point where he could take him out and hold him but he would hiss and spray. I have pretty much come to terms with the fact that his is just a vocal burm. He likes to talk and let you know he is there and sometimes that he is upset.
The 2 1/2 footer has a sister that is a very nice little girl. She has no problems with being handled and does not need to be hooked. The little male on the other hand has to be hooked and once he is out he hisses, sprays and strikes.
I got the idea one day that maybe for lack of a better term, they act like cornered dogs. I was thinking that because they were in a cage and they knew they had no where to go except through me, thats what they tried to do. I started with the cheese, working with him everytime I was in the snake room. At first i had to hook him to take him out. Once he was out he was very vocal and jumpy and if you touched him he would spray. Since the room is closed off from the rest of the house I would let him roam while I cleaned his cage or just took him out in general. After a just a couple of days of him being out and realizing that he could turn and run from me if he felt threatened he started to let me pick him up without striking or hissing.
I am working with the little male now and I am trying to figure out if this really works.
If it does, it may take cleaning some spray off your carpet with listerine a couple of times but eventually your burm will be able to be handled. It will probably be hissy like mine and many others but at least you can take them out and interact with them instead of having a living decoration.
You might as well give this a try anyway. Even if they dont completely come around the extra handling wont hurt. Oh, if they are really aggressive, dont forget to use hooks to start. If you dont have one talk with Brad (the snake Guru) or visit his site, Thesnakeguru.com. You can have them custom made, everything from the way the handle is carved and painted to the the size and shape of the hook itself. I had the idea to have mine carved like scales and painted like the patterns of 2 of my snakes and he took it to a whole other level.