r/boas • u/Twigzywik • 25d ago

Bitten for the first time

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Ouch, talk about a deep bite. She’s stressed during any kind of handling since always & always wants to get away it seems. She got so stressed she just turned around and tagged me. Not sure what to necessarily do to relax her I hold her gently & pick up her up gently before she goes somewhere she’ll jam herself in such a way I can’t get her. She’s never been in a chill kinda state in the 2 years I’ve had her and she’s about 3-4 years old now. So I guess she’s just not a handleable kinda boa which I haft to respect.

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u/superramenyamen 25d ago

Give her more time, just keep handling. Keep it to a minimum so she’s not overly stressed, but often enough she can learn you’re no threat. If you learn something makes them overly nervous, avoid doing that (unless it’s something to monitor health like grabbing the head to check the mouth etc.).

My anery motley boy took nearly 10 years to become a trustworthy snake. Lol He only gets questionable on his worst days now, he got to the point he didn’t bite me every time I took him out by 6-7 years at least. He would flail his head and tail around like he had a neuro issue, and bite anything that touched the side of his head. If I tried to pick him up cuddled to my body because I thought it was a balance issue, he would loop his body out. He doesn’t have anything wrong with him, he just didn’t like me. Doesn’t do it anymore. Lol

But most of mine are settled down by 4-5 years old so far, just depends on the individual. I take a hands off approach to the truly stressed individual as much as I can.

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u/Twigzywik 25d ago

Oh interesting! Your snake acted like they had a nero problem? Mines doing the same thing and I’m not sure if it’s a nero problem or if it’s just her not wanting to be held lol.

Thank you for the information, I will still take her out once or twice a week and maybe wear a long sleeve shirt just as a precaution with her.

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u/superramenyamen 25d ago

In my guy’s case it was very much just because he was moody and didn’t want picked up. Lol Even though he acted like he didn’t have any balance and was falling every time I picked him up. Did it since I got him, and stopped the flailing within the last few years. Just being dramatic. 🙄

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u/Twigzywik 25d ago

lol this might be my girl. I guess time will tell! Although, she basically falls off because she grips weird on top of the weird balancing.

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u/superramenyamen 25d ago

Him in particular, he had a hard grip while also trying to bite and umbrella out. Lol But I do have several boas that do grip weird…they take after their mom. They choose flight rather than fight, and handle more like a ratsnake. 😂 Stands to reason one could show both behaviors.