Corn Snake

Fal · #1 (**permalink**) 19th January 2010, 00:53

Hey folks,

So, new year, new things happening - I'm planning on moving in with my Fiance in 3-6months and so, sadly, will be leaving my Beardie and Leo behind with my bro. They're settled at the family home, he looks after them more than half the time as i'm never there, we got them together etc etc and I just can't bear to take either away from him, although I had originally planned to take the Leo as my Fiance loves it lol (she likes the Beardie too, but not as much as the slinky leo lol). Since i'm taking neither though, we had decided (more me, but she's fine with reptiles as long as I look after them) to get another Leo, however, since my current one (and beardie) won't be far away anyway, i thought 'hmmm... i've always wanted a corn snake, what a good chance,' and, to my total surprise and delight, my Fiance said, 'yeah ok, if you want, as long as you clean it out, feed it etc.. I think they're cute.'

WOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOO!!!!

Now, as ever, I always like to do a load of research before I get anything like this, because I want everything to be as right as possible for my little reptile family

so... after reading care sheets like mad as usual, and, as usual finding lots of contradicting advice and differs of oppinion on all sorts involved with keeping a Corn, here's what I've got so far just in my head (please add to, disagree with etc.. and generally help me if at all possible, becuase I trust your judgements and experiences - those of you who have/have had Corns before)

Enclosure: Young Corns should be kept in a small faunarium/tub (is this ok with a heat mat then? Due to it being plastic?), because they don't like large spaces/feel threatened.

Handling: Not for the first week, let them settle, then gradually let them get used to it. Then be careful when shedding and don't handle 48hrs after feeding.

Hides: At least two, one at the warm and one at the cool end of the tank.

Heat: heat mat or lamp with guard for a warm end and cool end - I see it as mid 80'sF warm end and room temp cool end (easiest way to do it, then they choose where they want to be). With a matstat or dimmer for lamp. Can you use heat mat once in a wooden viv (if I go for that over a tank), I can't see how? Or does it have to be a heat lamp/Ceramic?

Light: No UVB necessary but white light to simulate day/night if insufficient room right to do so, or if you want to view your viv better.

Water: Bowl big enough for them to curl up in when shedding and to drink from, so fresh water every day and keep in the cool end to keep humidity down.

Substrate: Aspen or Wood Chips (Not Pine/Ceder etc..).. any more? Don't want paper, well maybe kitchen roll until first poop, then I can see if healthy etc...

Decor: Fake plants/log/stone etc.. something to climb on - making it more interesting for the corn and moi

Feeding: 1 pinky every 5-6 days until juve, then move up in size with the snake until adult, then feed every 7-10 days. (I've read care sheets saying one mouse per feeding, others saying two per feeding from baby corn up to adult??).

..Anywhoo.. sorry for the essay folks, but that stuff up there is what's in my head, without looking things up! Please feel free to give me your own experiences/oppinions/advice etc... I would greatly appreciate it

It's nice to hear from people I know have/have had corns who I see and have chatted to on here many times, so I can trust your judgements.

Oh yeah, and I heard to record sheds/feedings/weights etc...

thanks lots folks and I look forward to your replies - please feel free to post any pics of your setups, especially for young corns as thats where I see the most contradictions on the net - what to keep them in when young!

Thanks again,
Jon

daermon1000 · #2 (**permalink**) 19th January 2010, 08:44

What you have written looks good so far,

Heat mats in a wooden viv are fine just drill a hole in the back for the wire to go out through and another in the middle for the probe to come in through for the stat and use electrical tape to tape the mat to the base of the viv at one end.

Substrate, I always kept an bred mine on orchid bark chip because corn snakes in the wild come from both dry areas and swamps ie northern Florida through southern Carolina and much further afield, so I like to have the option of spraying them when the are coming up to a shed.

Feeding, I only ever feed one correctly sized pray item every five days or so as a wild snake I believe would hunt, eat then take 3 days digesting the meal then hunt again so 5 days seems appropriate to me, am sure other will have different opinions.

Every thing else you have put looks ok except the part about the small faunarium to start with, this as come about through retailers selling little starter kits so they can sell you a larger one when it grows, no vivarium you could buy and house you baby snake in could possibly be as large as northern Florida and they dont get nervous there do they?

Only my observations from keeping my 6 adult corns and breeding them for about 5 or 6 years, am sure other will disagree as peeps always have different opinions on corn snake care.

John

Jon Carre · #3 (**permalink**) 19th January 2010, 12:16

You and John pretty much have it covered. I was going to make the exact same point about space, that always seemed ludicrous to me, and if you take two seconds to think about it, like John says, they don't feel threatened in the wild, and how much more space do they need.
I do have one or two things. I don't like heat bulbs with snakes, even with covers, you'd be surprised what a corn snake can open/move/detach with their belly muscles! It's just personal preference, but if your snake figures a way of getting into a light guard it's not going to be pretty.
Handling when shedding - I never have a problem with this and regularly help my snakes shed if they are having problems, some of mine don't shed a whole skin but in sections. Bathe them in luke warm water and gently rub the areas where the skin hasn't shed, DON'T peel it off though, if it isn't quite ready you can damage the new skin. It will beobvious when you do it where you can and can't help. Also with shedding, after a snake has finished shedding check the eyecaps and the tip of the tail. These are the two places that may not have shed properly after a full shed. Eyecaps normally come off easy but sometimes get stuck, again just bathe them in luke warm water and gently rub the cap with your thumb. Check the tip of the tail as sometimes a snake will appear to have shed properly but missed the very tip. If this isn't rectified it can lead to restriction of the bloodflow to the tip of their tail and they may lose it, not detrimental to the snake, but I'm sure we would all prefer our snakes 100% intact.
I use chipsi for substrate but it's all down to personal choice. I wouldn't use soil, but wood chips, orchid bark, chipsi etc. are all fine.
We feed all of our snakes once a week, with an appropriate sized mouse. Make sure it is an appropriate size though, you'll be surprised at what they can take. I recently boarded a snake, almost fully grown, and the owner was feeding a fluff once a week because he wasn't sure it could take anything larger! We fed it a large the first feed and it took it no problem, would probably have taken a jumbo. One mouse per feed is a good general rule, but when they are babies and they get a bit bigger we start feeding two pinkies, purely because they need the extra food (a snake will refuse a mouse if it is not hungry/ready to eat) and can't handle a fluff at that age.
One more thing to mention. I know you are starting with just one (so did we, now we have 11) but if you did get anymore they may need to be housed seperately. Females tend to be alright if they are introduced to females, and males can be alright if introduced to other males at a young age, but adult males tend to be rather protective of their area. You may get a dominance issue if you try to introduce an adult male into another adult male's viv. This can lead to problems feeding etc.

Good luck with it, they are beautiful and diverse snakes, and so handleable.

Fal · #4 (**permalink**) 22nd January 2010, 21:11

Thanks guys, appreciate the advice!!

Glad I have most of it down ok, and also glad I can use heat mats in a wooden viv - I dislike lamps, obviously we us lights/lamps etc.. for our beardie, and they're a pain, much prefer the mat we use for our leo, so much easier and tidier looking/hidden.
Could you elaborate on the mat in a wooden viv please (sorry to be dim), does it go in the viv then? Under the substrate without anything inbetween the two? Worried about the snake burrowing down onto it directly.

Also, it does make sense about the size of the viv not mattering due to them living in large spaces in the wild, but I wasn't sure due to the fact that they are captive bred, whether or not that was why - but I can and do totally believe the 'stores getting you to buy a bigger viv,' theory - makes sense. However, would you put a hatchling corn in a full sized viv then? Maybe with plenty of hides, or what? How do you guys normally start off with a lil'un? Would be cool to see photos of your set ups if you get the chance at any point.

Sorry to be a pain, just like to make sure I have everything down to a T before getting any lil critter.

Cheers again guys!
Jon

Jon Carre · #5 (**permalink**) 22nd January 2010, 21:31

Yeah the heat mat goes inside the viv under the substrate. The snake can bury down and sit on it if he/she wants, it will thermoregulate and won't burn itself. I would tape it to the bottom though, to stop the snake getting underneath, as this has been known to cause problems on rare occasions.
As for viv size it's up to you. The snake will be fine in a full size viv as long as you have enough hides and foliage for it. The downsize to a larger viv and a smaller snake is that it will be harder for you to find, and it's more work cleaning a larger viv. You should be able to spot clean any snake without having to empty the entire viv each time though, so this may not be a problem. It's really up to you and how you want to play it. Bear in mind that a fully grown corn will only need a 3' viv, so not huge. Rule of thumb on viv size for snakes by the way, just for anybody who is interested. If the snake can extend itself along one length, a width, and the second length then it is too big for the viv, if it can't then the viv is fine.

Fal · #6 (**permalink**) 22nd January 2010, 22:32

Ahh.. good rule to know!

Thanks from one Jonathan to another!

Appreciate the help and soo pleased I will be able to use a mat and matstat over bulbs!

Fal · #7 (**permalink**) 22nd January 2010, 22:41

Oh one more thing, I like the thought of using wood chips over aspen as it looks more natural, and the orchid bark you use looks even better, but I hear it holds moisture well and keeps humidity high and could also have mites? Do you 'cook' it before use regarding the mites Jon, and what about the humidity, it should be kept to normal room humidity for corns shouldn't it, or so I have read?

Cheers again - I'll reward you with piccies when we get our new family member in a couple months time (at most if I have my way lol)

Jon

Fal · #8 (**permalink**) 22nd January 2010, 22:54

Just re-read John's post about orchid bark so forget that question lol

Fal · #9 (**permalink**) 5th February 2010, 23:54

WOOOHOOO!!!

Collected our Corn Snake yesterday, she's gorgeous! 8 months old, strike feeding and constricting. Just giving her a week without handling to settle in. I'll post some pics when I can!

Squishy · #10 (**permalink**) 5th February 2010, 23:56

Awesome mate!!! is she a morph or is she just normal?

I got a fire corn about a weeek and a half ago, going out tomorrow to hopefully get a royal python

Mark