Quote Originally Posted by Varanus View Post
My little checkered boys have never tried to bite me, and hopefully they'll stay so well-behaved even full grown (they're about fourteen inches long or so now). Maybe its because when I feed them I pick them out from their hide and it takes them a bit to wake up and realize the scent of food is around (though they normally grab something in less than thirty seconds).

I also wash my hands of dirt and worm slime before picking them up, and when feeding frozen food I thaw it in the feeding container so some time has past since I handled the food and when I pick up the garters.

Anyway, it is interesting how widespread "weak" venom is among the non-dangerous snakes. It makes sense though for the many species that have to overpower fairly large prey without the benefit of constriction to have enough of a venom to weaken if not kill the prey.

You're taking all the fun out of feeding time.