it depends on the quality of babies you start with. captive hatched babies, from a wild caught female, can be a nightmare to work with. we have had perhaps 10-120% success in getting those animals to feed and do well.



for actual u.s. captive bred babies, the success rate should be much higher. but again, it depends on the source. some breeders sell them after the first shed, and leave all the work (and heartache) to you. at PE, we don't sell the babies until they are well established, and typically feeding on thawed pinks. it makes a world of difference to have a well started baby.



as for handling, they will never be one of the "hey, i love to be held" snakes. they are more for visual enjoyment, for the intermediate or advanced hobbyists, a keeper that doesn't need a lot of interaction to get enjoyment from the animals. that said, they are a TERRIFIC snake, one of my favorites, and highly recommended.



basic care can be found on our site. we have bred Mandarins successfully for many years now, and i think they are a very underrated snake : )
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robyn@proexotics.com



Pro Exotics Reptiles

[ Hide Replies ]

• Mandarins... - phiber_optikx, Sat Sep 24 23:41:29 2005
• RE: Mandarins... - Kayvon, Sun Sep 25 12:47:38 2005
• RE: Mandarins... - robyn@ProExotics, Wed Oct 5 18:04:27 2005