help whith corn snake

[Stacykins]

Please share pictures if and when you can

 

[elsfieldchickens]

this is the snake im getting

 

[itspebbl]

Beautiful!!

 

[OldGuy43]

In my experience feeding a snake red blooded mammals makes them more aggressive. I recommend poultry or fish.

 

[elsfieldchickens]

Thank you i will keep that inmind

 

[Stacykins]

In my experience feeding a snake red blooded mammals makes them more aggressive. I recommend poultry or fish.

I know many a herper and have kept herps (including snakes) myself and have never heard of this. To me it sounds like myth, or there are other circumstances at work. Perhaps you've happened to acquire animals who are more aggressive in general? Rodents are more readily available than quail (for such small snake) or fish, which make them a better food choice for most. Given that most snake keepers feed mice or rats to their animals, I'd figure it would be a big issue for them all if it were true...

 

[elsfieldchickens]

Also she is 5ft would she be ok in a 3ft vivarium?
She also has not been handled in a year so how would i go about holding her.
Sorry for so many questions im new to corn snakes

 

[elsfieldchickens]

Ps she is normal coloured

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I know many a herper and have kept herps (including snakes) myself and have never heard of this. To me it sounds like myth, or there are other circumstances at work. Perhaps you've happened to acquire animals who are more aggressive in general? Rodents are more readily available than quail (for such small snake) or fish, which make them a better food choice for most. Given that most snake keepers feed mice or rats to their animals, I'd figure it would be a big issue for them all if it were true...

X2.

I think the best thing for snakes and other reptiles is the closest thing you can get to what they would eat in the wild. If they are rodent eaters, then they should eat rodents.
If they are bird eaters or amphibian eaters, so be it.

 

[StruckBy]

Also she is 5ft would she be ok in a 3ft vivarium?
She also has not been handled in a year so how would i go about holding her.
Sorry for so many questions im new to corn snakes

GO SLOW with the handling! Corn snakes are typically very easy going but even the calmest snake is going to be a little nervous after that amount of time. Cutting & pasting below something I had typed up for a guy that was having problems with an aggressive snake...pretty much applies to ones that are just un-handled as well. (yes, I'm a total herp geek. You do not want to know what my high count on reptiles was!)

• No strong scents in the room or worn by the handler (this includes air fresheners, perfume/cologne, pretty much any product sold by Bath & Body Works or similar, and if handler is a smoker scrub the crap out of yourself with unscented soap & wear clean clothes when you handle). Just like people, some snakes tolerate odors better than others but considering how keen their sense of smell/taste is it's not surprising that some of them REALLY get ****** about it. I had a bullsnake I used to use for school programs it so was so gentle, but there was one gal I worked with she would start hissing at from a good 10 feet away. Only person she ever bit. Turned out to be the gal's perfume.
• No loud music/vibrations. Don't set your snake tank on the stereo, in the workout room, where it will get bumped lot, on the fridge that vibrates, etc.
• Move very very slowly. The last snake I was given because he was too aggressive for the owners to even clean his tank, it sometimes took me 10-15 min to get him out at first. Start with laying your hand on top of the screen and letting your scent drift down for a few minutes until he relaxes. To stop the reflex of jerking your hand back if he does strike & breaking teeth (not to mention causing more skin damage to you), you can wear leather gloves. If you're confident enough, it is better to slowly ease your hand down into the tank, work it under, and lift rather than coming from above. If you move too fast, s/he'll strike so GO SLOW. You're trying to avoid appearing like a predator coming to snag him for lunch. If your snake is too large to pick up easily with one hand, start with stroking slowly with something like a snake hook (I use a trash-grabber thing just because I have one)

• Try to handle at least once a day for a few weeks. If you can, I try to keep the new ones out with me for an hour or more at a time so they get used to it.
• The more you try to confine the head & neck, the more they panic & try to escape/bite. The letting them go hand over hand and re-directing from below (not above where a predator comes from!) is much less stressful for them.

And I want to say....good for you for not feeding live! I have converted more rescue snakes than I can count whose owner's swore up & down it couldn't be done. It is dangerous for your snake, inhumane to the prey, and frequently makes for a more aggressive snake in my experience. Your corn snake should be fine on mice....2 to 3 per week in the summer, less in the winter. I just watch to see when my snakes start hunting in their tanks and then feed them. Pretty much all of them seem to cut back in the winter. You could feed day old chicks as a treat but not as the sole food source. Mice bought from reputable suppliers (like rodentpro.com) are gut-loaded so more nutritious. Oh, if you are having trouble finding frozen mice/rats in your area, you can order them online. Quite a few places sell them vacuum packed and they last for months in your freezer that way. kingsnake.com has a good list of suppliers. When I've needed to order more than I can use in a reasonable amount of time, I've sold them on craigslist for a nice profit since there are always people looking for feeders and it was still cheaper than buying them at Petco or similar.