Most people who acquire a reptile hope to enjoy its company, not just through a window into an enclosure, but on their lap, on their shoulder, or in their hand. Even breeders and other hobbyists who aren’t searching for a companion still need to handle their animals to make sure they’re healthy or move them to a new location for enclosure cleaning. Unfortunately, not all reptiles are friendly from the get-go—and that can mean some nasty bites.
Biting might happen because your reptile is scared, hungry, territorial—the list goes on. However, you don’t need to simply accept that your scaly friend will be a biter forever. In fact, you might only be allowing the behavior to worsen if you don’t address it early. Here are some tips for how to deal with a bitey reptile so that both you and your animal can enjoy a more relaxed encounter.
Positive Reinforcement
Animals can be conditioned over time to understand actions that are desirable—or undesirable—based on their consequences. For reptiles that like to bite, providing positive outcomes when they are doing something other than biting is a great way to redirect them to more favorable behaviors.
For instance, suppose that your tegu loves to chase and bite your shoes as you walk. Consider walking through the room and doing nothing when the tegu charges. Then, when the tegu loses interest and begins to walk away, toss a small piece of chicken to them. This reinforces that they receive a reward (their positive reinforcement) when they are calm, but nothing happens when they bite.
Negative Reinforcement (It Isn’t What You Think)
Most people believe that negative reinforcement means doing something that an animal doesn’t like in order to discourage them from doing a certain behavior in the future. (This is called positive punishment instead.) In reality, negative reinforcement does no such thing! It is not useful to slap your ball python away when they strike, and owners increase the chance of injury (to both parties) by doing so.
Instead, negative reinforcement means removing something the animal doesn’t like in order to discourage them from responding in a negative way. For example, imagine that a boa constrictor can smell the family dog on their owner’s T-shirt, and this makes the boa nervous of a predator nearby. As a result, they strike at the owner in self-defense. Negative reinforcement can mean changing into a freshly washed shirt (removing the problematic one) to discourage the snake from striking.
Target Training
For reptiles that become especially bitey during feeding time, target training is a powerful tool. Almost anything can be used as a target! While many people choose a small ball on a stick (and there are target sticks specifically made for this purpose), anything from a colorful plate to a plastic bottle can be a target.
To begin, introduce the target to the animal. If they come to investigate, that’s great! Once they touch their nose to the target, provide a high-value treat. Then, move the target. Anytime the reptile touches the target (without biting), reward and repeat. Over time, the animal will understand that food only arrives when they touch the target—not when they lunge at you to get it.
Target training is great for more than just turning down the bite response. It can also be used to request an animal to move (into a crate, away from the enclosure for cleaning, etc.).
Choice-Based Handling
In many cases, a reptile will bite if they feel threatened or uncomfortable. This is not an attack—it is a warning as a means to communicate. Owners who do not need to handle the reptile for urgent purposes can skip simply grabbing the reptile and instead opt for choice-based handling.
This principle can take a lot of time, but it creates a stronger bond of trust between a reptile and its owner. For instance, imagine that you were housing a monitor lizard that begins biting every time you attempt to handle them. Open the enclosure door and sit next to it. If the monitor comes to investigate, simply let them. Do not attempt to handle; let the monitor explore and come and go as they please. You are giving the reptile a choice about whether it wants to engage with you.
Over time, the monitor will understand that you are not a threat. By offering the animal a choice about being handled, you can engage with them in a non-threatening way, which discourages biting over time. From there, you can begin gently touching the monitor, working your way up to lifting and holding them while still respecting their choice to allow you to do so. Animals trained this way over a long period of time often transition from seeing the owner as a threat to seeing them as exciting enrichment.
Burnout
For small reptiles with a minimal chance of causing physical injury with a bite, the burnout method can be useful. This option can work for leopard geckos, bearded dragons, and other small animals that offer multiple bites in quick succession. Simply allow the animal to bite. Do not react, and do not pull away. Eventually, the reptile will get bored and stop. At this point, provide a treat.
Most animals quickly learn that biting accomplishes nothing, and so they stop biting. However, this method is not as effective on snakes, whose instinctual coiling reaction can make the encounter seem like a successful hunt even if they are not able to consume anything.
Breaking the Association
When a reptile bites during mealtime, it’s often because they become overzealous in their excitement for food. To help mitigate this response, owners can break the association between their presence and feeding time. Keep visits to the enclosure varied—sometimes stop by just to wave or make gentle movements in front of the animal, and then other times, open the door and then close it again. Rummage around in the habitat without adding or removing anything.
Over time, the reptile will begin to understand that the owner’s presence does not necessarily mean that it's time for food. This is especially applicable with reptiles that have a high prey drive, such as monitor lizards and snakes with heat-sensing pits.
Reptile bites happen—it’s just part of the hobby. Whether you accidentally startle your scaly friend or are struggling with an intense feeding response, the steps you take next can shape your animal’s understanding of how its bite can be used as a tool. Be sure to take the time to learn from your pet so that you can foster a safe, relaxed relationship that is free from painful bite wounds!