Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm trying get an idea of what the average adult size for these guys is..

My adults are all in the neighborhood of 4ft. - mostly just shy of that.
To me, they seem small.. Considering that I have an '05 N.C. locale blk rat that's already pushing towards 3 ft.

thanks gang.

byron.d

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"Life without risk is to merely exist."

Please don't take this personally, Sighthunter. I'm just using your post as a rider for my frustration.

Whenever all you all answer a question like this one about the size of a rat snake, could y'all also mention how many big black rats you have in your collection, so I could get a sense of your knowledge? I don't know if you all are telling me the truth, or just blowing smoke up my asp.

I have 17, ranging from 1998 hatch date to 2005, and not one of them is over four and a half feet. My biggest may top out at four, but I've never measured her.

(Sorry, I've had a few run-ins with a few "Know-It-Alls" lately.)

Are they related or from the same locale?
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0.1 Snow Corn "Hope"
1.0 Ball Python "Wilson" (Castaway)
1. Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Chunk" (Goonies)
.1 Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Peaches"
0.0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Onyx"

I only have five of them. My two girls are probably about 1.5 m long. My smallest girl is still growing rapidly. My biggest male is over 2 m now, and my black x yellow male is fast approaching that.
Genes and husbandry are key. Both those males were shy and kinda crappy eaters before I got them, and that big male was acting as though he had been mistreated at some point in his life (he was a trade for a trade for a trade for a trade....) and as soon as they calmed down in my home, they started eating and eating and eating, but not getting fat (where the genes come in)

Byron
4ft is average...I seen 6 footers... btw most big snakes have yrs on them ...I prefer 3 to 5 fts for breeding anything over 5 5.5 seems to lose that vigor come breeding season.

Later Dre'

5- 5.5 foot..ooops!!!!!!!!!!!

How long will a Black Rat Snake get? That depends on a lot of things. Snakes don't stop growing. As they get older, they get longer. They just start to grow more slowly. How well they are fed has something to do with it. There is also genetic potential. It also has a lot to do with the genes.

But snakes in many ways are like people. Some people are very tall while others are short, but there is such a thing as average height for a man or woman.

Now apply that concept to your snakes. The longest Black Rat found was 101 inches (8.4 ft.). They seem to average between 4 and six feet.

Just in case you want to know, I have five Black Rats at this time (the legal limit in my state).

>>How long will a Black Rat Snake get? That depends on a lot of things. Snakes don't stop growing. As they get older, they get longer. They just start to grow more slowly. How well they are fed has something to do with it. There is also genetic potential. It also has a lot to do with the genes.
>>
>>But snakes in many ways are like people. Some people are very tall while others are short, but there is such a thing as average height for a man or woman.
>>
>>Now apply that concept to your snakes. The longest Black Rat found was 101 inches (8.4 ft.). They seem to average between 4 and six feet.
>>
>>Just in case you want to know, I have five Black Rats at this time (the legal limit in my state).
>>
>>

Nice looking BR. It has a nice deep dark color. Is it male or female? How old is it? Is it captive born or wild caught.
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Like I said; I`m Gonna Getcha Good!

That was one of a pair of York Co. Black Rats that were rescued and given to me as a friend. They are male and female; both are over 4 feet. I have had them cooling since late December and they will be back in their warm tanks this weekend. I hope to get some eggs from them this year. They are both very nice and very black.

I have Black Rats from Va, N.C., Pa., and N.Y. All but the N.C. were rescue snakes. I have a soft spot in my heart for Black Rats, but just don't tell anyone.

Rick

Va. Black Rat

I've kept dozens of Black Ratsnakes, normal specimens as well as plenty of the mutant variants, during the past 5 years. What I've seen is that adult size is quite variable in Black Ratsnakes. On average Black rats grow up to 1,5 - 1,8 meters, sometimes up to 2,0 meters but that's about it. Males average about a feet longer than females, but this too seems to vary a lot. Factors such as (geographic) origin, food intake, and genetics determine growthrate and therefore adult size.

Some of the mutant variants average significantly smaller than normal (wild colour) specimens. Inbreeding may have something to do with this. One of many reasons why I moved away from the leucistic Texas / Black Rats. I have seen that whitesided Black Rats too tend to average about a feet shorter than normal Black Rats. Of all the whitesided Black Rats I've seen during the years, there was only one specimen good enough to meet my standards, the rest was (sorry guys) rubbish. This one male specimen, born august 2004, is now 1,3 meters long and still growing very fast. Next year I'm gonna breed it to my melanistic female Black Rat, also a damn fine specimen. If it wasn't for this one specimen, I would have cancelled my whitesided Black Ratsnake program.

>>I'm trying get an idea of what the average adult size for these guys is..
>>
>>My adults are all in the neighborhood of 4ft. - mostly just shy of that.
>>To me, they seem small.. Considering that I have an '05 N.C. locale blk rat that's already pushing towards 3 ft.
>>
>>thanks gang.
>>
>>byron.d

An 05 nearing three feet? Black rats general hatch in Aug. and Sept. that would make the snake 7 months old max. Almost 3 feet at that age seems to be streching things a bit IMHO.
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Like I said; I`m Gonna Getcha Good!

Good catch [boss] forman..I can't believe i missed that one !!!!!!!

an F1 that hatched out in July... he is nearly a foot longer than his two sisters that I got with him as a trio. I know his size is not the norm at all, even though the parent stock is over 6 feet. this guy is a giant for his age. I'll try to get you a photo this coming weekend.

byron.d

A 3' 05 seems a little large but not impossible. Both of my 05's are around 30" They were born in early July. Want pictures? I don't have one of them from today but a few weeks old won't hurt.


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0.1 Snow Corn "Hope"
1.0 Ball Python "Wilson" (Castaway)
1. Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Chunk" (Goonies)
.1 Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Peaches"
0.0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Onyx"

to prove my point I took some new pictures. Peaches is in shed so she would NOT sit still. These aren't glamour shots but they should prove my point well enough.



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0.1 Snow Corn "Hope"
1.0 Ball Python "Wilson" (Castaway)
1. Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Chunk" (Goonies)
.1 Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Peaches"
0.0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Onyx"

>>to prove my point I took some new pictures. Peaches is in shed so she would NOT sit still. These aren't glamour shots but they should prove my point well enough.
>>
>>
>>
>>-----
>>0.1 Snow Corn "Hope"
>>1.0 Ball Python "Wilson" (Castaway)
>>1. Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Chunk" (Goonies)
>>.1 Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Peaches"
>>0.0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Onyx"

Nice looking snake. You said it was born in July so that does give it around another month`s growth. (8 months) Still from the pics I don`t think the snakes is any nearing 3 ft. Just stick a yard stick on the bed with the snake and see the diffence. I am by no means claiming it`s absolutely impossible. I should know because I have a wild caught 05 black rat that hatched around the first week in Sept. and this snake is truly 2 feet long easily. It `s as thick as your thump and eats every Friday like clock work three large pinkies. It is active alert and tame as any store bought snake I have ever had.
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Like I said; I`m Gonna Getcha Good!

The snakes are not 3'. I was trying to show it is not impossible to have large 05 babies. the first pic is Peaches. She looks smaller because I was farther away. She is 26" The second 2 are of Chunk her brother. He is 30".
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0.1 Snow Corn "Hope"
1.0 Ball Python "Wilson" (Castaway)
1. Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Chunk" (Goonies)
.1 Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Peaches"
0.0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Onyx"

Hey Man,

Where'd you get such a big dollar bill?

That is a normal 6" dollar.
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0.1 Snow Corn "Hope"
1.0 Ball Python "Wilson" (Castaway)
1. Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Chunk" (Goonies)
.1 Orange Albino Black Ratsnake "Peaches"
0.0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Onyx"