Not urgent- a question about hissing

[kyleontheweb]

Hi! My BCI so far makes no attempt to bite, and usually seems to enjoy handling. I have noticed that sometimes she will hiss while I am holding her, often if part of her body starts to fall from my shoulders, or if I feel her start to fall and move to catch her, that will provoke the hissing. Others times she will just hiss a little while I am holding her for no apparent reason. She still does not seem like she is going to bite, and hasn't, but I am wondering if I should be afraid that she might?

Do boas usually just hiss if there are not upset, or is it only something they do when upset? Should I keep handling her if she only hisses a little, or should I immediately put her back upon hearing any hissing?

Thanks for any input.

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~Kyle
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	Boa Constrictor Imperator Boa Constrictor (Boa constrictor imperator). Most common is the Colombian Boa.

[Bry]

I assume you haven't had her for long. She probably doesn't trust you not to drop her just yet. Give her some time, and handle her regularly. She'll eventually learn that you're not going to let her fall.

Bry
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[SteveP]

She might be 'testing' to see if you'll put her down if she hisses. Sometimes snakes will bluff with a hiss, or bite, to be left alone. Even if she were to bite, I'd avoid putting her down immediately thereafter, otherwise she'll have gotten the response she wants. If you put her down even after she hisses then she'll know she can buffalo you. Try to maintain solid points of contact while holding her, yet avoid a restraining grip. As Bry alluded to, she may not feel comfortable quite yet if she's slipped a time or two, and not sure what your reactions will be. Time, and regular handling, should establish that trust. [img]modules/Forum/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

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[Ed_r]

Also depends on what you mean by hissing, Is it an "I'm upset" long loud hiss? Or is it short quiet puffs? My male when I handle him makes short puffs, i take that as a "hey this is cool" kind of excited but nicely excited puffing. Basically a louder than normal exhale.
Could be she is going to shed, or could it be he recently ate?
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[trinitywolf]

Hey Kyle. I know that just b/c you are a newbie on this site, it does not mean you are new to keeping reptiles, but I am going on that presumption so I'm just trying to cover all the bases.
If you have not had large boids they sometimes exhale (it can be rather loud) and I have heard people mistake this for hissing. Of course, if you have owned or been around large boids much you know that a giant snake hissing is not something you can possibly mistake! [img]modules/Forum/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]
I have some boas that hiss and don't bite, have never bitten and may never bite. Then there are some in my collection that warn you about half a second before they bite the crap out of you. LOL There are variations from one end of that scale to the other. I don't think you should put the boa up immediatly but you may want to do so reasonably soon after that (5 mins?).
I agree with Bry...she will eventually learn to trust you, however, it's also important to remember that she is a wild animal and no matter how much you trust her, she always will be.

I hope this helps!
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[kyleontheweb]

Thanks for all the fine replies! This helps a lot.
In regard to the volume of the hiss, I would not say it is an unmistakably weeweeed off hiss, it is somewhat quiet, and perhaps could be a normal perhaps even contented sound. I will just continue holding her and establishing a relationship with her unless she seems to definitely be angry. Someone asked about shedding and eating, to which the answer is that she has not eaten recently, it is about time to feed her though, and she shows no signs of getting ready to shed, but that is a possibility.

With regard to the last reply, I am not at all new to herps, but to boas I am new, yes. The first boid I had before this one is my ball python, who never really makes much sound. I was not aware that boas would make any hissing noises as just a normal thing, which is why I came to all of you experienced keepers. Looks like I came to the right place.

Thanks very much
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~Kyle
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[kyleontheweb]

LOL that editing is funny. I did not mean to upset anyone by trying to put that in there, and I didn't realize there would be filtering for that particular word.

I will reprhase:

It was not a particularly unmistakably angry and upset hiss.

~Kyle
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[trinitywolf]

Hey Kyle! The curse filter is pretty funny, but we try to keep it clean around here. There are many underage people that visit this site. What really upsets us is when peolpe m@sk word$ by using ch@r@cte*$ to defeat the curse filter. [img]modules/Forum/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

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[LdyDrgn]

Yeah, I don't think it is hissing you are hearing, but her exhaling. The muscles are so large and heavy that as the larger boas and pythons really start to put on weight, they compress the lung a bit. If she was hissing at you, you would definitely know it. [img]modules/Forum/images/smiles/icon_wink.gif[/img]
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[djnzlab]

HI,
WHen I drag my Guyana female out of the cage she's over 6 ft she will groan loudly in protest by exhaling loudly .
WHen she pulls herself up on my shoulder to reposition her self she will actually grins a bit mouth open, scares the poo out of people that don't know how gentle and calm she is.
I call it her working grin with really large bodied boids they seem to exhale when they plan to move or reposition a bit. She has one trick that alerts me she's not on the move she raps her tail over my shoulder and puts the tip under my arm and gives me little taps of reasurement, snakes can do really suprising things considiring they are pretty much reflex eaters in nature. My guyana female is the only boa I own that has done this so far. she's going to be four this year around Nov the older snakes seem to have more personality, its probably due to learning to trust the owner and having enough size to feel confidient their OK. your OK

Doug

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[kyleontheweb]

Thanks! And a very pretty snake you have there.

:-}
~Kyle
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[llama]

Hey Kyle,
I hope to get over to Dayton sometime to see your new pet...
If you want to there is a video file at Ozy reptiles. (yahoo group) That shows a large burmese feeding. You can hear and see a rather exasperated sigh when the rabbit goes down. Check and see if this is about the sound you hear.
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[kyleontheweb]

Thanks Llama :-}
I didn't know your were on here.
Maybe I'll see you in Dayton sometime,
or in your neck of the woods.

~Kyle
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[eddie]

Welcome aboard Kyle!

Hehe, you can thank me for the weewee word on the filter!
I thought it would be a funny way to show just how weeweeed o