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Reptile personalities!

Posted By:

Sylvias

Alright I did not get nearly enough responses to choose from in my blog so I'm posting this here based on the observation that more people comment on questions than on blogs. SO! The question is... Do you think reptiles have personality and can you provide some experiences to support your thoughts. The reason I am asking this is because I am writing a paper for my Psych class on reptiles and personality... I already have my academic sources but I thought it would be interesting to include the voices and thoughts of people in the hobby who work daily with these animals. So have it! :D Reptiles....personality....


Points:	100
Topics:	General Health
Tags:	Behavior, Psychology
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Member Comment

11/12/2009 3:26:19 PM

JohnJohn

I'm not an expert in Psychology. I'm not even sure exactly what a definition of "personality" would read like. But, from what I do know, I would say that I think reptiles have a certain level of personality. I would go so far as to say that lizards have more of a personality than snakes. Of the various lizard species I've kept, I've noticed very individualized behavior patterns. For example, with my collared lizards, one of my females is very curious and often comes to the edge of her enclosure to "check me out". After a year of doing this on a regular basis, she seems to actually recognize me. She often cocks her head in funny ways and sometimes hops around like she's excited. My male collared also has a lot of individuality in his behavior, but very different from the female. He often rushes at me like he's warning me to stay out of his territory. However, when I put my hand inside the enclosure, he hops right onto my hand and slowly crawls up my arm. When he does this, he often will look at me. He looks right in my eye. There is definitely a recognition there.

I think some of my snakes have what I would consider some level of personality, but not as much as the lizards. The one exception their is a big Burmese python that I love dearly. He, without a doubt, has some level of personality. He has moods. Usually he's in a good mood, but sometimes he has a bad day. Most of the time he loves people and loves to have attention. If there are people in the room, he will move his way to that part of the room as if he actually wants to be with people. I have no doubt that this guy has personality.

Member Comment

11/12/2009 4:08:04 PM

masterfulpoopsie

They all act different...Ive got shy ones, shy feeders, amazing feeders, assholes, the ones that just to skimp paying the check and shit on the table, Over all Ive got quite a few, each one acts different, and each one responds different, Id say each animals personality is different.

Member Comment

11/12/2009 8:09:56 PM

little_windmill829

Okay, I have my two ball pythons and I personally think they have all the personality in the world. However, what I interpret as personality, my boyfriend interprets as them 'just being snakes.' For example, when I moved Ophelia into her big tank, she discovered the fountain in the corner and stuck her head under the stream of water, came out and looked at me, stuck her head back under the water, looked at me again, and did that like 3 or 4 times before she went back into her hide. (cutest thing ever!) Once she fell off one of her branches in her tank, and I SWEAR she looked embarassed. Tora knows me and when he wants to be out of his tank, he just won't let me put him back in. He'll wrap around my arm and won't let go. I think it's sweet. But, again, my boyfriend just thinks I am the crazy reptile lady, and maybe I am, but I think they have a LOT of personality. =)

Member Comment

11/12/2009 8:53:04 PM

iashia

my RTB's have the most personality out of all of my snakes. My big one shakayloh, when she wants out, she goes to the corner farthest away from her hide, faces me, and extends upwards about half the tank and rests against the glass, idk y she does it, but she does. when i take her out, no matter where i put her on my body or on the floor, she goes right back to me, and up around my neck and on top of my head. when i start to move, she always, without fail, sticks her damn tail in my ear (idk if thats a personality thing, but she does it, lol)

when shes just chillin in her cage, and i come home, within 2 minutes shes out of her hide and watching me walk around. shes an incredibly observant snake.

lol, ive seen snakes look 'embarrassed' too. durring feeding, one of my little ball pythons went to strike at a f/t mouse, and forgot to open his mouth, so he just hit it, and sat there and stared at me for like 10 minutes, like he was waiting for me to leave so wouldnt embarass himself again (lol)

my little rtb always wants to be on the bridge of my nose or under my chin, she always is extending to get on my face, its weird.

Member Comment

11/13/2009 6:57:06 AM

DeguSowce

It seems to me that lizards tend to have more personality than snakes. My frilly (frilled dragon) would crawl right up on my chest and I would rub under his frill. He wouldn't let anyone else do it but me. However when it came to feeding, he would only take food from my husband's hands. If I handed him a cricket he would back away and stare at me. He definitely seemed to recognize different people and prefered some over others. Neither my husband or I could ever get him to display his frill for company but if my mother reached for him he'd give her a good hiss. I thnk my husband favored him a little more just because of that.

My mali uromastyx also seems to recognize different people. With her its more like.. there's the guy that brings the food and everyone else. She's usually not real happy about any hands in her cage but she seems to know not to bite (or tail whip) the hand that feeds her.

Out of my 11 balls I don't notice all that much going on upstairs but I also don't spend as much time with them as I do the legged creatures.=)

Member Comment

11/13/2009 11:53:13 AM

torn_treasure

My friend has a Brazilian Rainbow and that snake is the laziest eater, she's not generally a lethargic animal, actually is the most snippy of her animals, has struck at numerous people but never at her food. She will only be fed in her enclosure and will only eat it off of a plate. And she seems to just sashay up to it, and without and kind of speed to killing instinct she will simply open her mouth place in on the mouse and proceed to eat.

It's one of the weirdest things. All of my snakes go for the mouse like it's live and then subsequently try to constrict it to death, especially my BP Sehrah.

Katarzyna - she's the annoyed one, she doesn't like to explore, she doesn't even really seem to enjoy being out of her hide and when I do take her out, she's kind of like "oh, this again...."
Sehrah - she's my shy one, which is common for BP, once out and comfortable she loves to explore
Amadeus - he's my explorer, my ostentatious one, and would, if I let him, stay out ALL the time, it's always a struggle to get him to go back in the tank
Naggirah - he's my little douche bag, he's sweet enough and has never bit any of us but I think that's b/c of our ability to dodge, basically he likes to b**ch and moan but once he's out he doesn't want to go back

Member Comment

11/13/2009 4:59:01 PM

Sony Raju

id like to think each and every animal i own has a distinct personality. while they are all snakes, and in that regard they have certian traits they are known for. BUT when i come in the room, or a stranger, the personalities are quite distinct. i can pretty much stick my hand in any cage and i wont get any sort of negative behavior out of them, unless they are in shed. but a stranger, well if they decide to do the same, chances are, they are going to get bit. i do think some snake species have more of personalities as well. but then again, what do i know?!:)

Member Comment

11/13/2009 5:07:21 PM

little_windmill829

What types do you think typically have more personality?

Accepted Answer

11/13/2009 10:59:22 PM

gfx

Each of my animals has a set of fairly predictable behaviors, but is this what makes up a personality? The cave rats are very fast, very active and always ready to strike a defensive pose and lash out. I can count on them to behave this way. Do they do it because they hate me or are they naturally active and defensive? A few of my chondros are somewhat active in the daytime and I tend to take them out of their enclosures more than the others. They have never offered to bite and as long as their bodies are fully supported, they are relaxed and tend to move about exercising. Does this make them animals who like me to take them out and play with them or do they simply take advantage of the opportunity for exploration and exercise when it comes up? If I tried to take them out after dark, one would likely bite me, but the other lets me take him out after dark. Does this have meaning? Does one turn into a grump after dark? No, he's just got a good appetite and the other is a very poor feeder who never strike at his food. If a set of predictable behaviors is all that's necessary for a personality, then yes, they all have personalities. If personality requires emotion, I'm not sure I can say they do. Of course this does not stop me from allowing my imagination to enhance the "personalities" of each individual...it's just more fun that way!

Member Comment

11/13/2009 11:25:11 PM

DeguSowce

Great post, gfx! I was thinking the same but too lazy to type it out. I'm 99.5% sure there is no emotion in my reptiles. I go to Texas for a week+ twice a year and when I get home, the cat is all over me, the rabbit follows me around and the dog freaks out. The reptiles on the other hand don't give a crap as long as the timers go off and they get their food. I like to think that they missed me and appreciated the $200 I spent on the pet sitter.

Member Comment

11/13/2009 11:35:27 PM

aaron

Damn Julie, that WAS a great post.

Member Comment

11/14/2009 12:17:07 AM

Morticias Mojo

I agree with Julie and would have posted something similar but she stated it wonderfully. I see personality coming from a range of different emotions, but also from a variety of choices. Personality involves reaction but also a thinking response. How one individual thinks and reacts, distinguishes them from another, thus their own individuality or peronality comes into play. Add to that the varied emotion with the reactions and it intensifies the unique personalities. I believe my snake recognizes me and responds via conditioned responses and primal nature. As a human I can place them with a personality because it helps identify with them easier. I could say that Mojo is a sweet snake, but to me, it translates to his needs being fulfilled, not being abused, or my being careless.
My dog has more 'personality' to me than Mojo... but I've supplied an environment and conditioning that allows him to 'think' and make more choices. Though perhaps it isn't even about a certain species but a state of being.. the more primal; no personality vs more tame; greater personality. Just my 2 cents worth.

Author Comment

11/14/2009 2:29:23 PM

Sylvias

To clear up some questions... This was the definition we were given in class so it's the definition I am using "Personality- unique pattern of thinking, emotion and behavior". There are some aspects of animals that are provoked simply by the nature to stay alive. However, do the animals we work with every day show particular behaviors? Actions unique to the individual and not the species, that would make them have a personality?

Member Comment

11/14/2009 3:18:41 PM

rosesreptiles

I've noticed that my 1 bearded dragon will actually run to the front of his cage and claw at it to get my attention when I come into the room. I think he's learned that he's spoiled and I will take him out and hold him for a while when he does it!

Member Comment

11/14/2009 10:54:11 PM

iatro

ha, gfx took the words out of my mouth, pretty much.
people like to anthropomorphise animals - any and all of them. to be fair, I sometimes wonder how much real "personality" (i.e. emotionally-driven behaviours and actions) popularly "intelligent" pet animals have - creatures like dogs, cats, parrots, guinea pigs... for example, you can litterbox train a ferret, but aren't you just capitalizing on the animal's natural preference to defecate in one area?

I do believe that reptiles in general are more instinct-driven than mammals or psittacines. I'm also pretty sure that, again in general, lizards are more intelligent than reptiles. by intelligence here I don't mean to imply lizards=smart & snakes=stupid, but rather that snakes act more on instinct and that lizards may have more capacity for learning.
also as gfx said, it <i>is</i> fun to anthropomorphize critters, though. :]

Nagini (false water cobra) doesn't calm down for anyone holding her except me, and the more I handle her (such as daily) the calmer she seems to be about it. I say that it is because she likes me better than anyone, and that she gets upset when I don't play with her every day! but it's probably just that she is most familiar (and thus calmest) with my scent, and that daily handling reinforces "this smell won't hurt you" in her mind.

... I believe that it is also far easier to interpret feelings - or even just anthropomorphize - almost every pets except herps and inverts. mammals are very easy - in addition to body language they have extremely expressive faces; a happy cat will close its eyes and make pleased noises - an upset horse will lay its ears back and bare its teeth, as well as kick or bite. birds, at least the "intelligent" birds like parrots, are a bit more difficult but still have expressive body language - pinning pupils, feathers that may puff up or lay flat, a wide range of natural & imitated noises.
many herp species have their own body languages, yes, but it's more difficult to learn & interpret - it's alien to us mammalian humans. and they don't seem to have as wide a range. they also have fixed facial expressions - there's no ears to raise or lower, no lips to curl back, no eye brows... I might think that my Western Hognose looks pissed all the time due to his heavy brows, but he is probably fairly content most of the time! I think snakes especially are "hard to read" as their body language is probably compromised what with the whole lack of legs, and lidless eyes.

... in summary: I'm split on this issue, personally. I like to assign personalities, preferences and unique traits to the animals I keep, but at the same time I understand they might be nothing more than instinctual responses and familiarity with certain places and smells.

Member Comment

11/15/2009 11:50:03 AM

Damiens daddy ken

I do definetlt beleive reptiles have personallity.I've had a variety of different snakes throughout the years and even within the certain breeds i've seen differences my ball pythons for example most have been calm but i had one that was so agresive you couldn't go anywhere near her without getting bit,as a matter of fact she would go out of her way to bite you.And i used to have a sulcutta totoise that if his food or water was getting low hee would bang his shell against the front or side of his enclosure to get your attention and he wouldn't stop until you gave him what he wanted.

Member Comment

11/19/2009 9:33:06 PM

flboy21283

iatro i could not of said it better myself. Bravo! I too must take the Melissa Kaplan route in this discussion. I do firmly believe there are some learned behaviors among reptiles, considering reptiles DO have grey matter in their brain which allows them to retain some degree of memory, and learned behavior. At the same time, their tiny little brains are dedicated to touch, smell, and taste, and their stress levels control how they react based on those senses. Someone handling an animal all the time on a regular basis might not get that "fear" or "aggression" shown from the same animal handled by another person because its' senses tell it that this particular smell, taste, touch, sight is not going to harm it. Behavior becomes learned when the variables are limited to one at a time, and the behavior can be repeated again and again with the results being the same each time.

Member Comment

12/7/2009 7:51:43 AM

PythonHouse

I have a GTP "Wat" who has a very special affinity with me. She gets jealous and shows agressive behaviour if she sees me with another snake. She loves being the center of attention, as long as she is with me, she goes everywhere with me including shopping, dining, travelling and nights out - most people in Phuket know Wat (which means Temple in Thai). She loves dancing to music and shows a lot of affection with kisses and rubs, comes upstairs to find me and will sleep on my shoulder at night.

The one special thing with Wat is she tells me things like she is hot, thirsty, hungry etc - the thought is instantly in my head. People (including my husband) thought I was crazy UNTIL, I was in Singapore (Wat is in Thailand) and all of a sudden I felt physically ill, my heart was pounding and a feeling of dread came over me. Wat instantly sprang to mind and when my friends saw me they were very concerned and asked "what's wrong". I replied that there was something terribly wrong with Wat. All day I had this feeling and it persisted overnight and the next morning I flew back to Thailand. On the way home from the airport I told my husband that I really thought that Wat was dead and was trying to prepare myself for the worst.

On arriving home, I ran to check her house and found her safe and sound inside, with about 100 lbs of "stuff" - bags, blocks of wood, Kevin's toolbox - on the top of her enclosure.

It turns out that when my staff came on the Saturday morning to feed the other animals and check the snakes, they found that Wat had escaped. Hours of searching and following the "trail of destruction" and they couldnt find her. They rang a friend on Sunday morning who came to help look and they found her behind the exhaust vent above the stove in the kitchen. She was hissing and striking (unusual response from her) at Mike, but was coaxed out with "Her Stick". She was probably being harrassed by our cats and dogs (they have a very healthy respect for snakes, but will follow them around and hit their tails), so she has gone up and hidden.

Wat put all her feelings straight to me, I felt helpless as I was in another country at the time - it was one of the worst days of my life. But, this story has a happy ending, Wat is still my precious girl and is very healthy and happy. Everyone now believes that Wat can communicate with me telepathically. Has anyone else had a similar experience???

Member Comment

12/7/2009 10:48:35 PM

WilfJamesLaS

I have a couple different kinds of boa's and pythons including a 12 foot burmese.Each definetly does have its own personalities.The burm hates perfume and women.But he always will come to me and sit for hours just being petted and loved.I have also a 2 year old red-tail boa who refuses food until u take her out then the next day she will eat lol she likes being out that much!

Member Comment

12/8/2009 1:26:31 AM

torn_treasure

You should also take into account that our pet reptiles are vastly different from those in the wild. You must remember the things that shape a personality are circumstance, experience and interaction. You have taken the animal, caged it where tempuratures are controlled, supplied it with food and housed it by itself for the most part. They do not have to worry about the changing seasons, there will be no yearly food shortage due to drought (example) and they don't have to defend their territory against predators. Also (unless you feed live) they have probably never had to fight for their life. So it is just something to take into consideration before you decide whether your caged critters have personalities or not....

Member Comment

4/15/2013 10:30:08 PM

Love@firstbite

All my snakes have their own personalities....some a bit nicer than others but equally loveable lol :)

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