As it’s owner, I’m pretty shocked she didn’t read that snakes body language at all. Clearly the snake was in ‘food mode’. I would guess the snake is accustomed to being fed in its enclosure and assumed it was going through the routine of ‘door open, food offered’, and mistook her hand for food. This is made worse by the fact that, as you pointed out, mice are in the same room as the snake, confounding the mistake.
I have a corn snake that behaves in this manner as she’s overly enthusiastically greedy, but I know how to communicate to her that there is no food. If I want to pick her up I’ve trained her by associating being petted with the snake hook with being picked up straight after. She knows then that it’s not feeding time but she’s being moved. Sanitising your hands can also prevent bites as they don’t like the smell. I also have them associate a certain tapping on their enclosure with food, this tapping gets them to come to me which makes it easier to check on and access them. Training can really help the snake understand what’s going on and is a great tool for reducing stress. I’ve had a few anxious snakes that have become friendly through training.
When my snake has got me in the past (which is very rare) I find the quickest way to get her to let go is a tiny dab of hand sanitiser near her mouth as it tastes disgusting to them. The other option that I find works with corns is to simply stay very still and wait for them to let go when they realise their mistake (although wouldn’t advise this for such a big snake as in the video as the situation is more urgent). I’ve only been bitten when I’ve not paid enough attention to their body language and they’re due a feed (once I was stupid enough to pet a rabbit and not wash my hands before picking snake up).
When it comes to biting out of fear, most snakes are bite aversive and use it only as a last resort. They will usually give a visual cue for you to back off first in the form of S-shape posturing and tail rattling. If that doesn’t work they’ll escalate their warning by striking the air or what’s called ‘symbolic striking’, which involves striking with a closed mouth as a warning to indicate they are very afraid and will attack if pushed further. My most anxious snake used to strike me with closed mouth when he was particularly anxious (basically head butting me during moves for clean-out if I startled him) but never actually bit me. Working with him on his anxieties over the years, he’s now a friendly inquisitive boy and would be difficult to get him to strike now (as it was only done out of fear, not aggression).
Moving back to the video, I definitely agree that a front-loading enclosure would be far more appropriate than a top-loading enclosure for both practicality and to reduce stress induced by coming in at an angle of perceived attack. I much prefer wooden vivariums to glass as they hold heat better and are lighter so are more practical to be made in larger custom sizes. I’d definitely have this snake in a much larger enclosure and agree that its environmental conditions likely haven’t been adequately met. Stuck shed is definitely not an ideal situation and is not usually a good sign. There’s a lot of reflection on the glass but looks like the enclosure is completely barren with no hides/ humidity hide, nothing for the snake to interact with, no form of enrichment at all.
Regarding wildlife and the pet trade, I personally disagree with the capture of wild animals for trading as pets, luckily, the reptiles commonly sold as pets are usually Captive Bred (CB), and often have been for many many generations. However, Wild Caught (WC) individuals do exist, although are often not recommended as they usually experience higher levels of stress than their CB counterparts, can carry diseases and parasites and consequently often don’t live as long. There are some exceptions to raising WC animals (such as for conservation purposes) but I'm generally against it for the pet trade. CB reptiles should not be released into the wild for a number of reasons. For instance, they may possess genetics that can be ultimately detrimental to wild populations, can lack appropriate behaviours for survival as they are unaccustomed to wild living, or are released in an entirely inappropriate environment which can either kill the individual outright or the individual thrives and becomes invasive. I do feel there needs to be greater education on this matter as well as on the care of reptiles in general. It can be damaging if people hold the perception that snakes are emotionless, instinctive, soulless creatures as they are actually full of personality, can be very inquisitive and frustratingly smart when it comes to figuring out how to open their enclosures. For anyone getting a reptile I always recommend checking local rescues first or researching reputable breeders who take appropriate care of their animals. They are thinking, feeling creatures and deserve the best care possible like any other animal.
Just realised how long my post has gotten, hope I haven't gotten too off-track, I'm just a bit passionate about these animals lol.
