taming a cal king

[halfwaynowhere]

So I just came home with a male california king snake, roughly 7 years old. He's gorgeous, but fiesty as hell! My other king is as calm as can be, although she does poo on me every time I take her out... When I went to transfer him from the pillowcase to his tub, he musked me, and I've never been musked before... Boy does that stink! Anyways, I do educational presentations with kids, and really like california kings because they are a native snake, and I like to be able to show the kids something they might see in the wild, and show them they are harmless. So that is my ultimate goal with this guy, as my other girl is near the end of her lifespan, so I don't expect to have her around to do too many presentations... But he's fiesty, and I'd like to avoid future musking incidents if at all possible... Any suggestions?

 

[Will Hunting]

So I just came home with a male california king snake, roughly 7 years old. He's gorgeous, but fiesty as hell! My other king is as calm as can be, although she does poo on me every time I take her out... When I went to transfer him from the pillowcase to his tub, he musked me, and I've never been musked before... Boy does that stink! Anyways, I do educational presentations with kids, and really like california kings because they are a native snake, and I like to be able to show the kids something they might see in the wild, and show them they are harmless. So that is my ultimate goal with this guy, as my other girl is near the end of her lifespan, so I don't expect to have her around to do too many presentations... But he's fiesty, and I'd like to avoid future musking incidents if at all possible... Any suggestions?

Best course of action is to just continue to gently handle him until he's used to it. My California Kingsnake did the same things...though, in my youth, I just got tired of being crapped on and laughed at everytime I showed him to my friends...=p

 

[davidbarber1]

Try removing the snake from it's enclosure with a small snake stick and then place it in your hand. This works great for snakes that bite. When I capture snakes in the wild, I always use a snake stick. I have been bit and musked quite often just using my hands. Snake sticks work. Try it.

David