here is the actual link..........
http://forums.kingsnake.com/view.php?id=688028,688028

here is the post.........


Posted by: draybar at Sun Jan 16 19:03:44 2005

since this falls under husbandry I thought I would put this at the begining of this forum.
Hopefully it will provide a little information right off the bat, so to speak.

COHABITATION
I thought I would post MY OPINION

I feel it is best to keep snakes separate.
I know a lot of people keep multiple snakes together without problems and it can obviously be done without dangers to the snakes. I just feel that for new people in the hobby the possible drawbacks need to be expressed.
When a person gets the experience and knowledge of their individual snakes and wants to try cohabitation that is up to them. They just need to be carefull and able to read the subtle signs of their snakes.
There can be definite drawbacks.
If one snake becomes sick there is a very good likelihood the other/others will get sick as well.
It may also take a while (usually too long) to determine which one is the sick one.
If one regurgitates its food you won't know which one unless you happen to get lucky and see it.
If one has a problem stool you won't know which one. Once again one may have a problem but by the time you figure out which one the other/others could end up with the same problem.
Although this is only a slight possibility, it is still a possibility and has been know to happen, one snake could eat the other. The smell of a prey item could trigger one snake to eat the other.
Like I said, this doesn't happen often but it has happened and is a possibility.
Another possibility is unwanted pregnancy. A female might get pregnant and you may not have the knowledge, desire or ability to incubate the eggs properly and raise the babies. With babies comes the responsibility of caring for them until you can find them a home.
A lot of people rationalize by saying "I will just put two males or two females together". That can work but mistakes can easily be made, especially with hatchlings. You could easily end up with a male and female.
There is also a chance of a female breeding too young or too small and becoming eggbound. Although not common it is a possibility and can happen.
With multiple snakes in an enclosure you stand the chance of loosing all of them if you happen to leave a top secured improperly or there happens to be a place they can escape through. Instead of losing one you could loose two or more depending on how many you decide to place together.
One or both of the snakes could be stressed by the presence of the other. Stress can cause a drop in appetite and lead to other health problems as well.
People will put multiple snakes in an enclosure and ask why one isn't eating.
When they are told it is probably due to stress caused by the other snake, the response is almost always "they like each other, they are always under the same hide together". Well this probably just means that hide or area of the tank has the optimum conditions they are looking for.
Snakes do not LIKE each other or ENJOY each other’s company.
There is no capacity for snakes to "like" or "enjoy".

I have kept multiple snakes together without problems but have made a choice to keep them separate. There is no clear argument on why you SHOULD keep them together but there are clear arguments as to why you SHOULD NOT.
So, in my opinion, although people do it successfully I just don't think it is worth the risk.
If you decide to keep multiple snakes together watch closely for any signs of appetite loss, regurgitation or any kind of personality change. These could all be signs of stress.
You would also want to feed them in separate containers and give them an hour or so to allow the smell of they prey item to dissipate, before putting them back together.
My 2 cents
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Corn snakes and rat snakes..No one can have just one.
"resistance is futile"
Jimmy (draybar)

Draybars Snakes

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