josh.barron asked:
I want an easy to care for pet snake, that doesn’t grow more than two or three feet. It has to be docile, and I would rather not have one that needs a regulated humidity and needs to be fed more than once or twice a week. What species is best for me?
Oh and I forgot to mention that I would like to have one that I could get out and handle sometimes, so therefor one easy to catch, does not freak out or bite… ball pythons are easy to handle right?
I want an easy to care for pet snake, that doesn’t grow more than two or three feet. It has to be docile, and I would rather not have one that needs a regulated humidity and needs to be fed more than once or twice a week. What species is best for me?
Oh and I forgot to mention that I would like to have one that I could get out and handle sometimes, so therefor one easy to catch, does not freak out or bite… ball pythons are easy to handle right?
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{ 27 comments… read them below or add one }
Catch a grass snake or a garder snake, the’re nice
a bold python a baby one tho
a dead one…j/k
black snake (rat)
BOA CONSTRICTOR!
I would either get a cornsnake or a milk snake… but since you want small a milk snake would be good.
Good Luck Pickin’ A Snake!
~ Tiger By The Tail
Stick with your trouser snake if you don’t want to put the effort in to caring for a real live animal.
a snake that needs minimal care in terms of picky temperature and humidity settings would be a garter snake or a floridian species like a water snake (not to be confused with the venomous mocassin obviously) which is a subtropical species.
aattler snake put one in your bed and jump for joy!! makes a great alarm clocvk just too one in your bed, if your tired the next morning with one in your bed you dont half too worry about getting up for work the rattler will take care of you try one in your bed so kool!!
An Asp makes an ideal poisonous pet I think Cleopatra had one as a pet, for a short period of time…..
JUST KIDDING — Try a Ball Python they make cool pets and are pretty even tempered.
I am guessing a gardener snake, non poisonous, and friendly.
Why be a pu***? Get the rattle snake and be a real man
Black mamba
Although it will get maybe a couple feet larger than you are looking for, my first recommendation would be a ball python. They are my personal favorites. Second would be perhaps some kind of king snake. They are much smaller when fully grown both in length and diameter, but some of them can be a little twitchy.
Hope that helps!
i my self have a snake its a king cobra my uncle works in a zoo so he allowed me to care for a baby cobra i started out with a garden snake they are small and fum the eat mainly bugs and they have no piosin glands making them safe and fun
a ball python. they are easy to care for and they only eat about once a week. and they are really cool.
although corn snakes get bigger than 3 ft. they are the easiest snake to keep. they only need to be fed once a week when they’re babies and after about 8 months you can feed them once every 2 weeks…and they are really nice and come in almost every color…garter snakes are pretty easy to take care of too, but they have to be fed live fish every other day…and ball pythons are pretty good first snakes but are very finicky eaters and can get sick easily and alot of them have shedding problems
Garter snake or corn snake.
if you want a snake that is easy to take care get a gardener snake they are not hurtful and you can feed him some snake food you can find snake food at pets stores like petland or weluvpets or petsmart just like your local pets store thats all i know bye
The CORRECT answer is, a garter snake. (Note the correct spelling, folks…it’s not a “gardener” snake.) They are non-aggressive, non-poisonous, non-constricting, and grow to about 3 ft. max. They are also easy to feed…my buddy’s son has one, and feeds him feeder goldfish, the kind you can buy for 10 cents each at a pet store. Keep a fishbowl around with a few of them in it, fish one out and put it in a shallow water dish in the snake’s terrarium. The swimming/ splashing action will draw the snake’s attention immediately, and then…it’s sushi time! A small to average sized fish every 2-3 three days or so is plenty. Get smaller fish, obviously, if the snake is still young or else he might have problems catching/ swallowing them. Otherwise, it’s a fairly low-maintenance pet… just make sure he doesn’t get too cold…a cheap plug-in “hot rock” should do the trick. Go to your local pet shop and they will tell you all you need to know about heat and lighting.
Hope this info helped.
I grew up in Wyoming where bull snakes and rattle snakes were abundant–I wouldn’t recommend those. I would recommend a corn snake. My biology teacher in high school had one and it was nice. It was docile and even tempered. It was easy to care for as well. The best advise I can give you is to call your local pet store that carries snakes and ask them . Tell them about your family structure (i.e. if you have small children at home, etc…), what you are looking for, and they can give you recommendations. Good Luck.
I have to say a corn snake. they are easy to care for, very docile and get calmer as they get older. a baby is about 7 to 8 inches. they can get as long as 4 to maybe 5 feet at the very most. But that will take about 5 years to get that big. they can live 15 or more years if they stay healthy and are taken care of properly. they have very nice temperments and seem to like being handled and played with. you dont want a snake that u cant take out and play with because it will freak out everytime u touch it. unfortunately the smaller snakes like garters, ribbon, and green snakes ALL freak out like this and are very fast…thus hard to handle and enjoy. plus, the smaller snakes excrete a smelly substance to scare away preditors. they do this sometimes when u try to pick them up and enjoy them. dont let the eventual size of an adult corn snake frighten u away. they get more relaxed and calmer as they get older and are handled more often.
yea ball pythons are pretty easy to handle if you handle them daily, but they get a little bigger than 2, 3 feet and you shouldn’t feed any snake more than once a week if you do its called power feeding i think it causes the snake to get bigger faster and usually if you power feed the snake dies with in a couple years. Also I believe most snakes need a regulated humidity and temperature but its not to hard to keep it regulated you just go to the pet store and buy two theremometers and a hygrometer.do some research before you go out and buy a snake, by the way
sounds like the only reason you want a snake is to watch it eat and if thats the only reason you shouldn’t get a snake.
A Corn Snake can make an excellent choice as a pet snake. small size, even temper, and general ease of care make this snake a logical choice for both beginners and experienced keepers alike.
I
A native of the South east United States, the Corn Snake is full grown at approximately three to five feet in length. A thin, lithe animal the Corn snake is highly adaptable in the wild, hunting both on the ground and in the trees.
Choosing Your New Corn Snake
Today virtually all Corn snakes available in pet shops were born and bred in captivity. There is an immense amount of interest in breeding this snake by both professionals and amateurs alike.
Captive born and bred babies are by far a better option for several reasons. Generally captive born babies are produced by individual hobbyists, or breeders and then resold to the pet stores or are available for resale by the breeder themselves at pet shows. This is by far the best way to support not only your local pet store or reptile show, but also is much more “eco-friendly”
Baby Corn snakes that are born in captivity are generally much less likely to contain parasites, illnesses etc. Captive born snakes are almost always healthier, and adjusted to feeding on pre-killed food items than a wild caught animal.
You may be able to communicate directly with the breeder himself and gain reasonable insight into the color pattern, temperament and adult size of the parents that produced the animal. Breeders and pet shops in your area are also much more likely to stand behind an animal that is captive born vs. a wild caught specimen.
As is the case with purchasing any new pet common sense should prevail in choosing a baby. Clear, bright eyes, no nasal discharge, no obvious signs of parasites etc. are obvious things to look for. Asking the seller about a guarantee is always a good idea, but be reasonable on this subject. Once the baby leaves the care of the seller they have no control over what conditions the animal is kept in.
Housing
It is always a good idea to have your new pet’s enclosure setup and established before your new animal arrives home. While this snake does not require highly a specialized environment there are certainly some basic criteria that must be met for the overall health and well being of your new pet snake.
Each of our homes are different, the ambient air temperature, location of the enclosure and other factors may require a day or two for you to ensure the temperature and humidity factors are stable before bringing your new Corn snake home. Always try to determine the temperature of the enclosure both during the day and night to ensure the enclosure is not too hot or too cold.
The ideal day time temperature range for your snake is 82-88 degrees. An enclosure should have a basking spot, or warm end that is a higher temperature than the rest of the enclosure. This will allow your snake to move (thermo regulate) from a warm area to cooler a one. Nighttime temperatures should not be allowed to drop below 70 degrees.
Humidity is not as large a concern for this species as with others, but you should try to maintain the relative humidity higher than the normal humidity found in most homes. The proper humidity is a larger factor in allowing the animal to shed it’s skin properly than it is any other health issue. A large water bowl that the snake can soak in will significantly aid in both maintaining the humidity and providing a bathing spot for the snake.
Adult Corn Snakes are generally comfortable in a 55 gallon aquarium. Although larger enclosures are acceptable.
Corn Snake Diet
Corn snakes feed primarily on rodents such as mice, and rats. The vast majority of snakes will gladly consume pre-killed rodents. The Corn Snake is less likely to be a seasonal feeder than some of the other pet snake species. The most critical component of feeding any pet snake is to ensure the environment is correct and free from excessive stress. While the Corn Snake may be a bit more forgiving of it’s environment than tropical snakes it is still important to attempt to make the animal as comfortable as possible.
If your snake refuses to feed review all of the housing and husbandry practices to ensure the snake has adequate temperatures and humidity requirements. Also make every effort not stress the animal prior to feeding by handling etc.
It is highly recommended that you kill the rodents prior to feeding any snake. Rodents posses very strong jaws and sharp teeth. A misplaced strike by a snake can result in the rodent having it’s mouth free to bite the snake during constriction. This will not only result in open wounds that are subject to infection, but can result in serious injury to the skeletal structure of the snake. Death is not an uncommon result of a snake who is bitten in the spine or other critical area by the rodent. On occasion a snake may need some encouragement to eat a prey item that is not moving about on it’s own. We typically trick the snake into eating it’s first few meals by simulating movement of the rodent by simply dangling the food item in front of the snakes face. Be careful not to be be too aggressive in dangling the food item as this may intimidate a young Corn Snake.
One major benefit to purchasing pre-killed mice, or buying live mice and killing them your self is the storage of frozen rodents. Rodents can be store in zip lock bags and stored for months. This convenience allows you to purchase many months of feeder rodents at a time. In many cases your cost of feeding your animal will go down as the quantity of rodents purchased will allow you to take advantage of savings.
Corn Snakes take four or five days to digest a meal and prefer to do this in a dark, warm place, i.e. “hide-box”. Water should be provided in a large heavy bowl, so that the Corn Snake has plenty of room to soak. Try to utilize as heavy a container as possible to avoid the possibility the snake may tip the container over.
Reproduction
Many owners of Corn Snakes eventually wish to breed this wonderful pet snake. Undoubtedly one of the easiest of snakes to breed, the Corn snake has very few specific needs that need to be met prior to successfully producing a clutch of eggs.
Many of the North American Colubrids, which the Corn Snake is a member of, benefit from a cooling period in the winter months. This cooling period helps to simulate the normal winter hibernation that many of our snakes here in the United States experience each year. The simulated cooling period can last up to eight weeks and generally consists of temperatures in the 50 degree range. Care should be taken to ensure that your animal is very healthy and well fed prior to attempting to hibernate the snake. A source of water should be provided and the animal should be checked on no less than every 3 or 4 days to ensure the hibernation is going normally. It is very important to ensure your snake has fully digested it’s last meal prior to entering hibernation.
Once you begin to bring your snake out of hibernation the temperatures can be gradually increased to the normal exhibit temperatures. Begin to feed the snake when the temperatures have returned to normal. The introduction of a mate can occur once you are sure that your snake has fully recovered from hibernation.
Mating occurs almost immediately and can last for up to one week. Males will repeatedly mate with the female during this period of time. The adults can be left together if you choose to or they can be separated at this point for ease of feeding etc.
Corn Snakes, Garter Snakes (not Gardener or Garder snake), Milksnakes, Kingsnakes, Ball Python. Those are the most common snakes as pets.
Brazillian Rainbow Boa, Children’s Python, Stimson Python, Rosy Boa.
Oh their is such a large list of great snakes. Just need to do some google searching and see which one fits you.
Ball pyhtons grow up to 4+ feet so thats a no go. Your only option would be Garter snakes. It really doesn’t sound like you should have a snake. Snakes aren’t meant to be handled regularly unless for cleaning and feeding. Snakes aren’t easy to take care of if something is wrong. Snakes really aren’t for the experience. You need to do a lot of research before you should even think about buying a snake. The last thing I want to hear is you release your snake cause the pet store won’t take it back. Pet stores don’t give full credit for returned animals.
garter snake
a grass snake