# Corn Snake Excitement!



## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

I've got everything I need for a corn snake coming in the mail now, and I just have to wait for my local breeder to get eggs :3 Once her babies are ready to go, we'll go to the city to pick up the snake and the frozen mice  I've already got the tank and the thermostat. I'll use this thread as a log of sorts until I get my snake.

If you have cornsnakes, post pictures!


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

i don't have a corn snake but i have a western hognose and a ball python  the python isn't fully mine though  but my brother has an ADORABLE female ghost corn snake, she is soo cute!!!! pics:
























we named her "Entity" :3 she is around 2 feet or so, we think she is a year old by now


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

Awesome pictures betta lover! She's so cute! I'm excited to get mine right as a baby :3

Anyone got more?


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

found more, the albino ran away and was found dead, the red-ish brown one ran away and never found. and the full brown was my older brother gave to my little brother, then my little brother traded him/her in for the ghost corn.
fully brown "Cocoa":
















































and the albino "Ruby":








































i didn't find any of the red/brown corn, but his/her name was "Camo" (i did not take these photo's, there my brothers off of FB)


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## lvandert (Feb 23, 2012)

This is Ekans Circuit Breaker Whiskey. Ekans for short


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

he/she is cute ) she looks like some kind of caramel morph


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## copperarabian (Apr 27, 2011)

I used to have a ball python, I had him for 12 years. Recently I gave him to a friend who loves ball pythons and has a lot of experience with snakes.


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## BettaGirl290 (Jul 29, 2010)

I want a corn snake SO BADLY TT-TT I'm saving up for my mom's b-day present which is an oven baked tarantula, (i would've given her a live one but her b-day is in May) Anywho my mom loves spiders, and i love spiders,bettas,crabs,dogs,cats,birds, and pretty much the whole animal kingdom ^ _~


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

so does mine (besides spiders XP) 
i had a baby ball python called "huntress" she passed away from stomach deformation :'( miss my baby girl:
















now i have a western hognose named "Pursey" my beautiful boy:
















then my brother has a baby pinstripe girl, we bought her as a boy, mistakenly has a girl. we named her "Scythe" :
















then the my favorite ball python of my brothers is a normal girl named "Melissa::








here is a brutal pic:








she is adorable X3








and here is the new one, he is an adult boy named "Durgo" he is a pastel:








he has green eyes :3 and here is a sizing him to a small vanilla coffee bottle:


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## TheJadeBetta (Mar 31, 2010)

Here is my full grown female normal Corn Snake, Nessy. I got her from a girl, who had her for about 4 to 5 years. She is a darling and does great with anybody. I actually took her to a special school with kids, who are disabled, learning disabilities, mental disabilities, and that sort of thing.

But she has been in a mood and hasn't been eating normally. Probably that time for love and such. I am also thinking she full on infertile eggs.


I have a Hypo Female Corn Snake named Sunshine. I will try to get pictures of her soon. I lost all my pictures due to computer problems.


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

oo pretty )


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## RayneForhest (Apr 22, 2011)

Those are rediculously gorgeous! I have always wanted a hog nosed snake.


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

thanks  i've waited to get a hognose for 3 months (i considered it long if you don't have good patience XP) he is still stubborn to eat, where going to try to feed him toad scented mice, maybe it could work.


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## Bombalurina (Oct 10, 2011)

I would love a snake (cornsnakes are so pretty!) but I don't think I could bear to feed them mice or rats...are there alternatives?


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## lvandert (Feb 23, 2012)

well the younger ones can eat crickets but here we can buy dead mice you keep in the freezer and then thaw as you need them. I've head too many stories of the mouse attacking the snake and then the snake getting sick. I currently have a little box with 5 pinky mice in it, in my freezer


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

Yeah, feeding frozen then thawed mice/rats is best, and I would personally never go another route.


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## pittipuppylove (Feb 23, 2012)

Early congrats on getting a new baby! I had a little normal phase guy/gal (too young to sex) that unfortunately excaped from his tank and was found by the cats. Thus leading to my advice to make absolutely POSITIVE that there is no way out of that cage! Snakes in general are notorious for their Houdini-like abilities, and corn babies are tiny enough to squeeze through itsy-bitsy openings that will leave you wondering how the heck they did it. I'd hate to see anybody go through the heartbreak my sister and I did when we lost little Blair.

Bomb - they make awesome pets! It is difficult to adjust to feeding rodents if you're not used to it. There's not really a good alternative to rodents (or other species of animals in some other species) - there are some products out there that claim to mimic real food, but they're typically like hot dogs for snakes (as in ground up whole rodent in a sausage casing). The problem with this is that they typically have a high fat content and are therefore bad for the snake.

On a lighter note, here're some of my kids:
Pearl, the Argentine Boa Constrictor, who was neglected and went through five or six homes in the first seven or so years of her life before I took her in:








Amaya, who we sadly had to rehome (by the way, she did have a larger soaking bowl, she just prefered, for whatever reason, to wedge herself into the little tiny bowl):








And then there's Peaches the normal ball python who is uber camera shy, so there's no picture for her


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

i would suggest to feed frozen mice because feeding live is a bit more pricey, and it is hard to take them off of it. also some snakes won't eat crickets like garter, green florida (it is florida right?), etc corns, milks, kings, hognose, etc won't eat crickets. probably hognoses but am not sure.
also do you guys have any idea how to make ball pythons eat frozen mice? our normal "May" and our pinstripe "Scythe" we found out they eat live o-o okay am listing our snakes so you don't get confused:

Pursey - male western hognose (Adult) might be het albino
Durgo - male pastel ball python (Adult)
Melissa- female normal ball python (1 year, still young?)
May- female normal ball python, little brothers (young)
Scythe- not sure of gender, pinstripe ball python (same age like melissa)
Entity- female ghost corn snake (same age like melissa)
Ghost- female cali king snake (young)

i have Pursey only. durgo is a family snake. melissa, scythe, and ghost are my older brothers. Entity and May are my little brothers.


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## pittipuppylove (Feb 23, 2012)

I agree with feeding f/t, and it's generally safer than feeding live. I'm not saying it's impossible to be safe while feeding live, just more difficult. 
As wierd as it sounds, it can be easiest to get a snake to take f/t in steps. Try going from having a live rat there to get the snake interested in feeding, but take the live away before the snake strikes and replace it with a fresh kill (you may have to wiggle it around to aid in tricking the snake into thinking its live. After this works for a few weeks, don't introduce a live rat and just start with the fresh kill. Again, after a few weeks of being successful with this, do what you did with the live and fresh kill, but use fresh kill and f/t. A f/t rat also needs to be thoroughly thawed all the way through and as close to a live body temp as is possible. Be persistent, durring transitionary periods, if the snake doesn't eat, wait untill your next scheduled feeding and try the same thing again - it will not hurt a healthy, sub-adult and older snake to go a week (or more, within reason) without food. In my experience, they will eat if hungry enough under the right circumstances.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

Thank you pittipuppylove, that's very helpful information, if I should get a snake in future from kijiji or something rather than a breeder. That's so good to know, the steps to wean them off  If we had a snake section, that should be a sticky! You're awesome 

Also, I could never stomach feeding live. I have a dwarf hamster, and feeding live would be a bit too close to home anyways... even if there weren't risks.


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## pittipuppylove (Feb 23, 2012)

No problem! 
And no worries, no way I could feed live either!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

pittipuppylove said:


> I agree with feeding f/t, and it's generally safer than feeding live. I'm not saying it's impossible to be safe while feeding live, just more difficult.
> As wierd as it sounds, it can be easiest to get a snake to take f/t in steps. Try going from having a live rat there to get the snake interested in feeding, but take the live away before the snake strikes and replace it with a fresh kill (you may have to wiggle it around to aid in tricking the snake into thinking its live. After this works for a few weeks, don't introduce a live rat and just start with the fresh kill. Again, after a few weeks of being successful with this, do what you did with the live and fresh kill, but use fresh kill and f/t. A f/t rat also needs to be thoroughly thawed all the way through and as close to a live body temp as is possible. Be persistent, durring transitionary periods, if the snake doesn't eat, wait untill your next scheduled feeding and try the same thing again - it will not hurt a healthy, sub-adult and older snake to go a week (or more, within reason) without food. In my experience, they will eat if hungry enough under the right circumstances.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


How long to accomplish this?
We fed live once after a month long fast (I was worried), and now mine won't go back. I wanna try this, but I'd have nothing to do with a live rat after baiting the snake. xD


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

thanks, am going to tell my brother an dad, they want to do a little snake business -_- so i had to give up betta breeding


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

Olympia said:


> How long to accomplish this?
> We fed live once after a month long fast (I was worried), and now mine won't go back. I wanna try this, but I'd have nothing to do with a live rat after baiting the snake. xD


 
Well, you have to step down the ladder a few weeks at a time it seems, so I would imagine a few months.


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## pittipuppylove (Feb 23, 2012)

Olympia said:


> How long to accomplish this?


To be totally honest, I don't know an exact figure. I've never actually had to use this method (all of my kids have thankfully been fairly easy eaters), but I know a bunch of herp keepers who have and still do. It can vary from snake to snake since they're all individuals, but from what I understand, wait untill the snake is very comfortable with the step you're on before moving on to the next.

As for what to do with the live rat, I can think of two ideas off the top of my head: 
1) Pretty brutal and I'm sure I couldn't do it myself, but I'm pretty sure you could take the live rat, instigate the feeding response, then quickly remove the rat and humanely kill it either via CO2 chamber if you're fancy, by disconnecting the spinal column, or by providing a swift blow to the head. CO2 is safe because it leaves no harmful chemicals in the body - lethal injections/overdoses/ect. will pass on the toxins to the snake and are therefore EXTREMELY dangerous. 
2) See if wherever you get the live rat from will either loan you out a feeder rat or let you buy it and then return it for a refund later.

I should also mention that there are tons of other methods to get picky eaters to eat. Some snakes take f/t once it's been dipped in chicken broth, others can be triggered into a feeding response by "braining" it (opening the skull to expose the brain), the list goes on and on. A great resource is reptileforums.com - it's a lot like this site in that there's a ton of extremely helpful, experienced keepers who are more than happy to answer questions.


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

*Sigh* I wish my breeder could hurry up and get eggs  Other breeders in the US are starting to. I've already been waiting so long... My supplies will even be here tuesday  I still have to take the overflow box off the tank since the previous owner was a DIY-er. Haha! And seal up the holes from other plumbing he did. Anyone got more pics to distract me? Pics of their setups? I need ideas! xD


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## pittipuppylove (Feb 23, 2012)

Ain't the waiting game awesome? Atleast it'll give you time to make sure you're absolutely, positively, without a shadow of a doubt ready  And seal up those holes REALLY well - or your little guy or gal will decide to pull a jail break and go exploring!

Hm... Here's a pic of my boa's cage right after my dad built it. It's 6'Lx4'Hx2'D and has two doors with three latches each. Since then we've added more for her to climb on, added some more hides, added another heat element at the top to give us more flexability with the lighting (ie 2 ceramic heat emitters/1 day bulb; 1 CHE, 1 red/night light, 1 day light; ect), drilled a small hole in the floor to run the cord of a large heat mat attatched to a ceramic tile through, replaced the screens on the left door with glass to help keep in heat and humidity, and replaced the water bowl with a smaller, deeper one that she seems to like better.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

I love how part of the boa constrictor's scientific name is just "boa constrictor" xD
I would love a hogg island boa one day. They are so adorable.


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## finnfinnfriend (Feb 3, 2012)

Are cornsnakes really that small?


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

finnfinnfriend said:


> Are cornsnakes really that small?


Meh, they can get big too. I think they average at 4feet.


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## lvandert (Feb 23, 2012)

Yeah they start out tiny (like 1 foot and no fatter than your finger) and grow to 4 ft


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

they are not thick really, around 4-6 feet or so, rarley they tend to get bigger from the scale. but i got an awesome pic of durgo now since i got my SD card to work, fancy pix:
































you could see his gorgeous green eyes here:








my dad plans to get another pair of pastels, male and female. they should be already adults. and we prob kit (sorry if i spelled it wrong) yesterday, and we probed the pinstripe it appeared to be male. so there going to work with the pinstripe to probably to get him to spawn next or this year.


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

My supplies are here! (The heat mat, hides, screen lid, ect.) I just have to wait to pick it up. It'll be a big box I bet (try saying that three times fast! XD) so it's not going to be fun carrying it all the way home since our little suv is dead xP I'll post pics when I get the stuff!


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

haha
do you have the tank/cage? or it's coming by shipping?


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

I wish I could get big tanks by shipping! Haha, I already got the tank, I'll take pics of that too.  I use it as a hamster runabout. After we take off the stupid overflow box, I'm going to give the tank another good clean to get the hamster smell out.


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

is the corn your getting a adult, juvenile, hatchling? am just curious


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

A hatchling, I'll be getting it as soon as it eats pretty much  I reserved a Normal female, since that was cheapest, but if something around the same price catches my eye I'll get it ^^ Today, I sadly could not make it to the post office to pick up the package, as the weather was too bad. The package woulda been soaked, and I cant imagine how fun it would be carrying a possibly 4 foot long package in the wind and rain all the way home, LOL! The screen lid is 48 x 13 inches which is why I say 4 feet. I WILL upload pictures of the tank tonight though!


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## pittipuppylove (Feb 23, 2012)

Hm... I hope you're not too set on that gender. Babies can be tricky to sex even to the most experienced herpers. With the cage, I wouldn't recommend something that big for awhile for a few different reasons. A hatchling can get stressed in a big cage, and stressed herps are less likely to eat. Large cages make it hard for tiny hatchlings to find hides, water, ect., also causing stress. Depending on what substrate you choose, it can be darn near impossible to find a hatchling in a smaller enclosure, let alone a big one - it's like finding a needle in a haystack!

I'd recommend using a ten gallon, large/XL Critter Keeper, or rubbermaid shoebox untill the little guy gets a bit bigger.

And just a tip - ask to see your baby eat before you take her home (or maybe a day or two before so her stomach can settle a bit after the meal before you move her) and ask how many meals she's been offered/taken and what they were. The more info you can get, the better - good breeders keep logs on almost everything they do with their animals. If you can get a copy of the record for the baby you take home, do it - this info can be extremely helpful in getting hatchlings to eat.


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

Naw, not too set on the gender. However, I cannot afford to buy two set-ups. I intend to _stuff_ the tank with hides though, and I'll add an extra water dish, so don't worry. I'm going to use Aspen shavings, as I use it for my hamster anyways so it's more worth it for me to get the big bags.  I don't mind having to fish him out, that's why I want a normal and not a snow, LOL! Orange is easier to see!

I definitely will make sure to ask for it's feeding info. 



pittipuppylove said:


> Hm... I hope you're not too set on that gender. Babies can be tricky to sex even to the most experienced herpers. With the cage, I wouldn't recommend something that big for awhile for a few different reasons. A hatchling can get stressed in a big cage, and stressed herps are less likely to eat. Large cages make it hard for tiny hatchlings to find hides, water, ect., also causing stress. Depending on what substrate you choose, it can be darn near impossible to find a hatchling in a smaller enclosure, let alone a big one - it's like finding a needle in a haystack!
> 
> I'd recommend using a ten gallon, large/XL Critter Keeper, or rubbermaid shoebox untill the little guy gets a bit bigger.
> 
> And just a tip - ask to see your baby eat before you take her home (or maybe a day or two before so her stomach can settle a bit after the meal before you move her) and ask how many meals she's been offered/taken and what they were. The more info you can get, the better - good breeders keep logs on almost everything they do with their animals. If you can get a copy of the record for the baby you take home, do it - this info can be extremely helpful in getting hatchlings to eat.


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

PICTURE TIME OF THE TANK! And my thermostat, LOL!


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## pittipuppylove (Feb 23, 2012)

Cool! Looks good 
Let me know how the thermostat works out for you? I've been considering getting one set up for my kids


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## bettafish15 (Oct 3, 2010)

Sure  It was recommended to me on the cornsnake forum by pretty much all the members  I can't wait to try it! It went on sale on Amazon if you'd like to see some reviews for yourself, 
http://www.amazon.com/Hydrofarm-MTP...ZG3S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1333565733&sr=8-1

But, do you mean that you don't use a thermostat now? Do your temps never get too high or low? 



pittipuppylove said:


> Cool! Looks good
> Let me know how the thermostat works out for you? I've been considering getting one set up for my kids


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

i was just watching one of the cutest things ever, my hognose was on my desk awhile i was typing and he cuddles up next to one of my 1 gals which is was Zero's tank, it was so cute. Pursey (my snake) sat there and Zero was just sitting there next to him staring at him.
there doing it again! haha


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## pittipuppylove (Feb 23, 2012)

Bettafish - Awesome! I don't have one right now, but they do have timers to turn the lights on and off at the same time every day. I've always been pretty anal retentive about checking my temps and I've never kept species that are very picky about fairly minor temp changes (especially since the overall temps in my house stay pretty stable). I pretty much have it down to a seasonal sciance, though. Once the weather starts to go cold for the season, it's time to switch out all the enclosures to larger heat bulbs - one reason I have three light shrouds on the boa enclosure is because if I do it right, I can just unplug one of the heat emitters durring the warm seasons and the temps will be perfect. That and the snakes are pretty good at telling me if they're not comfortable - if they stop eating (and they aren't going into shed or have another reason not to eat) one of the first things I try is up the heat a bit, or if they spend most of the time on one side of the enclosure, it's time to adjust the temps. But with me at college most of the time now, and I obviously can't take all the kids with me to my dorm (though it'd be fun to freak out the boy's floor below me  ), I've been strongly considering a thermostat both for my peace of mind and so my parents/little sister don't have to check on the temps as much.

Bettalover - Awww... Hoggies are just adorable in anything they do, in my humble oppinion


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

he is very hyper and shy, though he is very friendly. he didn't have any hesitation when my 5 year old cousin was holding pursey, and thanks
also, one of our normals "May" passed away :'( rest in peace little girl. and my brothern (older) traded his king snake for a spider ball python female, i'll take pics later.


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## betta lover1507 (Aug 6, 2011)

here are pics of our new spider female "Weba" and Zero my VT boy:
































and here was the king snake, the night when they traded her:























\she was a bit mean, tried to eat our kingsnake, and nipped one of our ball pythons


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