Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ethical dilemma.

There is an absolutly stunning mandarin ratsnake neonate for sale at the local breeder and I believe one of the first captive bred in this country. From what I know of them, they are a snake that requires high maintenance and are very sensitive to husbandry mishaps.

I'd even be concerned with me caring for one from what I've heard of them (I'm a novice, not a beginner and I passed up on the little beauty for that reason).

Recently, a total beginner friend who has never owned a snake before has decided he's going to make an offer on the snake because it's so stunning. I am concerned about what I've heard about this breed's care requirements and its future happiness if the offer is accepted...

My question, is this breed of snake suitable for a flat beginner? If not, would you step in with your concerns? What kind of problems would he run into and how bad could things get for this beautiful snake?
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1.0 Eastern Kingsnake, Chain (Mars)
0.1 Gray Banded Kingsnake (Thanatos)

I wouldn't say that they are an optimal species for a beginner. If captive bred they do well as long as several things are done properly. They need to stay on the cool side. I keep mine low down in the room with no heat where it's in the low to mid 70's depending on the time of year. Feed smaller meals (mice) for their size than you would for most species and dont power feed. About one small meal a week for young and less often for adults. They are very secretive and love to burrow so something like aspen bedding works well with hides. They need it on the humid side but not wet. When hatchlings I keep a container with moist spagnum moss in their drawer for them to get in and a large water bowl. As adults I just keep a over size water bowl in their drawer to keep up the humidity. I always keep them in containers with not too much air movement, usually small holes for air transfer which keeps up the humidity. One more thing is that they do best if left alone most of the time. They are not a good species for a pet snake or one you might take out for a while every day. I have several of them and they all do well FOR ME if cared for like this and are truly a beautiful and interesting species. Good Luck. Randy Whittington

I agree with everything Randy said. I don't think that this species is much fun for the beginner. The mandarin ratsnake is a shy and secretive species. It will spend most of it's life hidden under rocks or burrowed in the ground. If you want to give this species the appropiate setup in captivity, you should provide it with a sufficiently thick layer of substrate to burrow in. The snake will spend most of it's time burrowed in the substrate (it will actually dig tunnels in the substrate), only coming out of hiding for a very short period at dusk and in the evening (mostly at dawn, but sometimes also very late at night). So basically, you don't get to see the snake that much! It's not uncommon that I will not get to see my mandarin ratsnake for a whole one to two weeks in a row! All this time the snake than happens to center it's periods of daily activity during the time that I'm asleep: late at night and very early in the morning. At to this secretive lifestyle the fact that this species (especially the hatchlings) doesn't really like to be handled (hatchlings can be squirmish) and it seems to me that there's not much fun in keeping this species for the beginner.

Just my two cents.

Bert

NM.

There are plenty of stunning corns, rats, kings, milks, and gopher snakes to choose from that are relatively cheap that he will most likely have less head aches and more fun caring for.
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-J.Hill

I 100% agree with everything that has been posted in response already. However, I will also mention that I have on two occassions sold Mandarins to "beginner" snake people. They both were intelligent, practical people that were aware of the requirements of the animal that they were purchasing. Neither had kept more than one species before Mandarins, and both have had great success with them. The only reason they chose mandarins was their instant attraction to the color/beauty of the species. They each knew that I was only a phone call or e-mail away, and have used me as a resource a few times. The reason I mention this is to demonstrate that it can work, given that the individual is fully aware of the husbandry needs and secretive nature of mandarins.

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"Patriotism is supporting your country all of the time and the government when it deserves it." - Mark Twain

That's essentially what I thought, though I was given the understanding that they are very sensitive to environment changes as well and go off their food quite easily. I was told this by the breeder when I was in there picking up a humidity chamber for my Eastern. The snake has been there for several months already and they keep asking me when I can afford it everytime I'm in there to pick up food or to ask questions about the breeds they have.

Not to be slanderous, but unless he changes quite a bit from what I remember he's not overly motivated when it comes to pet keeping, hence my concerns...

From what you've all said, it's not as bad as I originally thought and I will keep my nose out of it unless the snake becomes unhappy or difficult to care for. Thank you very much for your input.

If it does, I've always got spare room for a new baby.
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1.0 Eastern Kingsnake, Chain (Mars)
0.1 Gray Banded Kingsnake (Thanatos)