Care Sheets
Caring correctly for your snake is important to maintain its health and well being. Below is information on how to care for your snake. These are not instructions, merely a guideline and you should fully research as many sources as possible before purchasing a snake. (Scroll down for more species). Corn Snake Common Name: Corn Snake Things to consider before purchasing your first Corn Snake: Can you afford all the equipment necessary to keep your pet happy? Have you done your research on Corn Snakes and their care?
With the odd exception, Corn Snakes are calm, docile, placid snakes that are hardy and thrive very well in captivity. Due to their temperament Corn Snakes are a recommended first snake to keep as they are relatively easy to care for and they also do not outgrow their welcome in the way that some Boas and Pythons can. Corn snakes do make a good choice for beginners since they are easy to handle and care for. However, they are also favorites with experienced keepers due to the vast array of beautiful colours and patterns selective breeding has produced. Handling: Corn Snakes are quite active snakes and will appreciate time outside the vivarium to exercise. Care should be taken to avoid dropping your Corn Snake whilst handling, so support your Corn Snake at all times. Approximately 10-15 minutes 3-4 times a week is a suitable amount of time for handling your Corn Snake, but this may vary depending on the particular snake. Some Corn Snakes will appreciate more time outside the vivarium, while others may shy away from regular handling.
Corn Snakes are relatively easy to care for, as they defecate rarely, so with regular spot cleaning a full vivarium clean out should only be necessary every 3-5 weeks. When you clean out the housing, disinfect the cage furniture and the inside of the vivarium with a weak disinfectant solution or a reptile safe product. In general, if a disinfectant is safe to use for disinfecting baby bottles, then it is weak enough to use with snakes. Completely dry the contents before replacing in the vivarium with fresh substrate. For hygiene reasons it is advised to use seperate towels and cleaning cloths for your snakes.
Popping is usually done on hatchling corns and Probing on older specimens. Both techniques should only be carried out by an experienced snake keeper or herptologist, as your Corn Snake can be hurt if the procedure is not done properly. Kingsnake
Common name: Kingsnake Scientific name: Lampropeltis getula Kingsnakes in my opinion are one of the easiest snakes to care for. They need a temperature that can be obtained quite easily and a low humidity that doesn’t have to be watched carefully . They don’t grow too large and are not very aggressive. They are known to be nocturnal species but I have personally seen all of my kings awake and very active during the day time and evening especially in the summer. They can be a very fast snake when young but with regular handling will soon calm down and slow down a lot more. Kingsnakes can be very food oriented though so if not fed they will strike at you and once offering food they will want more. They are a non venomous snake which isn’t easily startled and will make a great pet. Description There are many subspecies in the king family from the Californian kings to the Mexican black kings. They all vary in length but generally will grow 4-5ft and sometimes 6ft or more. Some of the smaller subspecies such as the variable and the Grey banded will grow between 3 - 4ft. Kings are a slender bodied snake that even in each subspecies can come in many patterns. In captivity a king snake can live for between 10 and 20 years, the oldest being recorded at 23. They are terrestrial snakes who will climb slightly given the opportunity. Difficulty I see kings as a great starter snake. They are fairly calm snakes who are active during the day so can be watched and enjoyed. Although kings can be great escape artists so even the smallest gap must be taped off or covered to prevent a missing snake. Kingsnakes are also a very hardy snake that can withstand slight changes. They are also known for being great feeders so you won’t have to worry too much about them not eating. Housing Hatchling king snakes up to about 6 months will happily live in an enclosure of about 1 ft long x 10 in wide x 8 in high. They will need at least 2 hides on the warm side and 1 on the cool side and I like to add another hide to the middle so there isn’t too much open ground. A water bowl that they can fit nicely in on the cool side is also a must in any snake enclosure. I keep all hatchlings on paper towel for at least 2 months and even older snakes I buy I keep on paper towel for 2 weeks. This is to make sure they do not have any problems or have brought any parasites into the house such as mites. As the king snake grows it is advisable to buy a larger home for them as they grow bigger. Kingsnakes will grow rapidly in the first 3 years and will grow from 6 inches at birth to between 3 and 4 ft so making sure they have a home to fit into is important. Preferably a 3ft viv is to be used as this should last them a long time if not all their life. Adequate hides should be placed in the viv like in a hatchlings home and a large water bowl for them to fit into.. I also have a branch added to each viv as they seem to use them a lot in the evening and will climb up and down it for quite a while. Other décor can be added to the viv such as plants and rocks to make the viv more aesthetically pleasing to the eye and give the snake more places to explore and hide behind. Substrate is the owners decision but do not use saw dust or sand as the dust from this can cause respitory infections. Also cedar woods and other woods are bad for snakes so be careful which substrate to use. I use beech chips as they are pleasing to the eye and king snakes like to burrow and they can do this in fine beech chips. Other options are aspen and newspaper. Not pleasing to the eye but very easy to clean. Heating and Lighting King snakes do not need any artificial lighting but I use a low level UVB bulb in most of the vivs for day time viewing. It has no benefits for the snakes but does create a artificial day time and makes viewing the snakes easier. Heating for kings depends on size of the snake and the viv. For kings up to 2 years old I use a heat mat. This should cover 1/3rd of the viv and no more than that. This should be run off a mat stat to control the temperature. The heat mat should be placed under the viv if plastic or glass and if wood should be placed inside the viv but under a protective mat of some kind to not burn the snakes belly. | use a cork tile taped down as these are cheap and readily available. Adult kings I use a ceramic bulb protected by a bulb guard so that the snake cannot get burnt. This is kept on a stat to control the temperatures as these can get very hot. That should be on the far side of the viv so that there is a decent temperature gradient in the viv. Kingsnakes do like quite a high temperature on the warm side of between 85 - 88 o f with a cool end of 75 - 80 o f. At night time the temperatures can be dropped by a few degrees but it doesn’t need to be done. Feeding As mentioned before king snakes are fantastic feeders. But the downside is they will go into a feeding frenzy after eating their meal. Do not offer more food to the king as they will eat until they die. Some hatchlings may be reluctant to feed at first and if so use a product called lizard maker to kick start their feeding. Their diet in the wild would be lizards so the scenting can produce good results. A hatchling should be able to start on 1 pinky mouse and as they grow older the food amount should be increased. The best way is to feed in 3s. For example you will start on 1 pinky and then onto 2 and then onto 3 as they grow and the lump inside from the mouse decreases. They should then be moved onto larger food which would be fuzzies. This is again taken up to 3 before moving onto the next size food. A full grown adult should easily be able to take a rat weaner possibly 2. Kings are very fast feeders and will strike at the food and some will coil around and constrict the food. If they don’t it is nothing to worry about and they are just more gentle feeders. Royal Python (Python Regius) Background Information Royal Pythons (also known as ball pythons) are shy pythons averaging in size at around 4-5 feet. They are quite stocky snakes and belong to the boidae family. They are native to Africa, more precisely the Western areas, and will usually be found in rodent burrows and such like. Royal pythons, like most snakes, are a nocturnal species meaning they are more likely to be found awake at night time. They are terrestrial meaning that most of their time is spent on the ground or even underground, although if provided with low, sturdy branches, they can often be found climbing in captivity. Royal pythons can sometimes have problems feeding but I personally believe they make a perfect first snake. Lifespan A royal python’s life span in captivity is usually around the 25 year mark, although the oldest recorded captive specimen was 48 years old. Housing Royal pythons will be reluctant to feed if their set up isn’t absolutely spot on, so it is extremely important that you ensure the enclosure and temperature is perfect before bringing your royal home. There is much debate among hobbyists as to what the “perfect” environment for a royal python is. Some keepers prefer to house their royals in tubs whilst others prefer vivariums. They prefer smaller enclosures due to their shy nature and a “cramped” environment would suit most royals well. They should ideally be housed singularly as royals are solitary animals and will not befriend others. Hatchling royal pythons should be kept in a smaller enclosure than adults. A 9 litre Really Useful Box will do perfectly for a young royal, gradually increasing the size as the python grows. It is down to your own personal judgement as to when to move the snake up an enclosure size, when the length of the royal exceeds the length of 2 sides of the box, it is safe to say the snake requires a larger box. An adult royal python would be happy in a 50 litre Really Useful Box, although it is recommended by some to provide a 3 foot by 2 foot by 2 foot vivarium, it really is personal preference. A tub will be easier to clean out and is more convenient as the environment can be kept sterile. However, a vivarum can be a fantastic home for a royal and can be made to look very attractive indeed. No special lighting is required for royal pythons due to the fact that they are nocturnal. A royal python’s enclosure should be heated to around 88*F at the warmer end and around 80*F at the cooler end. A night time temperature drop of a few degrees is recommended. These temperatures can be achieved by a number of methods, if using a plastic storage box (such as a Really Useful Box) then a heat mat is the most efficient way of heating the enclosure. If a vivarium is being used, then either a redlight buld or a ceramic heating element are the best ways of heating, however, both should be guarded to minimise the risk of burns to the snake. Whichever method of heating you choose, they should all be attached to a thermostat, to prevent the temperature becoming too high. Humidity for royal pythons should be around 50-60%, and a little higher whilst shedding. Temperature and humidity is best measured with a good quality digital thermometer/hygrometer. Due to royal pythons being shy and secretive snakes, it is strongly recommended that many hiding places are provided for them. These can either be commercially bought caves designed for reptiles, or anything which you can find around the house, but remember to clean the said object thoroughly beforehand. Many substrates are accepted for royal pythons, wood chips (not pine or cedar, it is toxic to reptiles), aspen, newspaper and paper towel are just some of the substrates used by hobbyists today. Food Royal pythons are carnivorous reptiles and so feed solely on other animals, usually rodents. A hatchling royal python would be best fed on fuzzy mice, gradually increasing the prey size as the snake grows. As a general rule, the snake should be fed a prey item no wider then 1.5x that of the snakes widest point on it’s body. Rats are more nutritional and so it is best to encourage to get your royal to feed on rats at an early stage as possible, probably moving from fuzzy mice onto rat pups. Frozen thawed rodents are best fed to your royal as live prey items can cause injury to your snake. They are also readily available cheaply from pet shops and online suppliers. A royal pythons food should be warmed up slightly (after defrosting totally) before being offered to the snake. This is because they have heat pits on their face which sense the heat off animals, thus telling them what is food and what isn’t. So if the food is warmed up beforehand, the snake will be more inclined to eat the prey item. Royal pythons are renowned for being “fussy feeders”. This should not really pose a problem to the keeper unless the snake starts to lose weight rapidly, they can go for months on end without food. If your royal starts to lose weight and it is vital that s/he gets some food into it’s system then there are many methods which could be explored to aid your snake to feed. These include braining, scenting with gerbil, scenting with chick, left in a small space with prey item overnight, frozen thawed mouse, frozen thawed rat, frozen thawed gerbil, frozen thawed hamster, frozen thawed chick, live mouse, live rat, live gerbil, live hamster, live chick and assist/force feeding. Force feeding should only be done by an experienced hobbyist and should only be used as a last resort as it can be stressful for the snake and can also damage the snake if done wrong. Do not handle your royal until about 48 hours after feeding as this can lead to regurgitation and the snake could also be in “feeding mode”, and attempt to bite you. Handling To handle a royal python, simply pick the snake up around its middle and allow it to wrap itself around your hand. There isn’t really much to say as regards to handling royal pythons, try not to scare your snake by making fast movements whilst handling. Royal pythons are generally gentle, docile snakes, meaning they are easy to handle as they aren’t likely to be skittish and flighty. Shedding A young royal python will shed it’s skin around once a month. As the snake matures, sheds will gradually become less regular. When in shed, a royal pythons eyes will turn a cloudy blue and their colouring will become dull and washed out. After a few days the appearance of the snake will go back to normal and then a few days later the snake will shed it’s skin. A royal may not feed during a shed so if this is the case then do not be alarmed. Humidity should be raised slightly during shedding and a moist hide should be provided with either damp sphagnum moss or paper towel inside. Also, a rough surface would be much appreciated by the royal to aid in the removal of the old skin. A royal python should shed in one whole piece, or thereabouts. Sometimes however, eye caps can be retained during a shed (they shed the skin over their eyes). If this happened, I would recommend placing your royal in a damp pillowcase for a couple of hours, after this time the eye caps should have removed themselves from the snake. After a shed a royal python should look bright and “fresh”. Health A royal python should not really get ill as such if kept in the correct conditions and new arrivals are quarantined for an appropriate amount of time. Mites can be a problem though, with any snake. However, there are many commercially available products to prevent/kill mites if this problem should arise. If you suspect your royal to be unwell at all you should seek veterinary advice. Cleaning Cleaning should take place around every week-fortnight, Although regular spot cleans are a must. However, royals have extremely slow metabolisms, so you will be cleaning out clean substrate sometimes, but it is always best to keep the substrate fresh. |