Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Okay, so apparently I'm going to be the proud owner of two new cornsnakes. A friend of mine has had them for a couple of years now, but his landlord is insisting that he get rid of them. He offered them to me first, since he knows my love of snakes.

I believe they have only ever been fed live mice, so I will probably be posting questions on getting them to eat f/t. It's getting rather crowded here in the house, so I might end up setting up my horse barn as a reptile room (I live in the panhandle of Florida, so temperatures are just about perfect) and I may need advice on that.

Fortunately, I've already read up on cornsnakes, so I should be prepared for most of their care.

Another question though, they're not like kingsnakes, right? If I get a big enough tank, I could keep them both together? I don't know if he has had them probed, but he calls them both males. One of my first acts of business will be to take them to a vet just to assess their health.

The first one:

And the second one:

His pictures. I'll take better ones when I have them here. They've each been kept in ten gallon tanks for as long as he's owned them. I think the corns are a little big for ten gallons, but I'd like to hear what you guys think.
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Holly

0.1 Lavender California Kingsnake (Lizzie Borden) (missing )
1.0 Florida Kingsnake (Eddie Gein)
1.0 Bearded Dragon (Charley Manson)
1.0 Orange Marmalade Cat (Oliver)
1.0 Black Cat (Shadowfax)
1.0 Egyptian Arabian (Bagan) (Deceased )
1.0 Tennessee Walking Horse (Durango)

2.0 Toddlers (Justice & Trevor)

Wow! Congrats, Holly!

Holly,.....I don't really recommend that ANY snakes be housed together for various reasons, no matter what species they are. The main one is that if something goes wrong with one, the other could also come down with whatever the ailing one had. Second, if you see a regurge, you can't be sure which one did it either as regurges usually happen 2 to 3 days after a meal, so sometimes you wouldn't see a noticeable lump in the other if it was fed a small to moderate sized prey item. That's not saying they can't live well together, because they can and do. I've housed two together for several years many years ago. One thing you definitely have to be careful of is feeding, don't feed them together, because if one gets done before the other, it will likely go over to the other and start consuming the mouse in the other's mouth AND whatever follows, meaning the other snake too! I fed mine in the same cage, but I was VERY aware what was going on, and distracted the other and thwarted any problems before they ever happened.

All this being said, if you really feel the need to house them together, just be careful, and keep these things in mind.

Oh,...and no, they won't cannibalize each other like kings are noted for doing on occasion!..LOL!

Good luck with your new acquisitions!

~Doug

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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

While you're at the vet, have him double check the sexes of both,...this might be the reason the other so-called "female" isn't eating(mating season), it could very well end up being a male,....this is just a possibility, and I'm sure you would want to know absolutely what sexes you have.

~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

where I mentioned "so-called female", and "not eating"!,....I was thinking of another post I responded too,....D'oh!,....sorry, it's late..LOL!

but you still might want to get them probed while they're there anyway, just so you know,....who knows, you could end up with a breeding pair!,...wouldn't that be cool?

~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Yeah, that's what I was thinking. ^_^ I definitely want to have them probed, to be certain. I also want to make sure they are in good health. This guy has the best intentions, but I don't know for certain that he has taken the best care of them. If I remember correctly, the last time I was over at his place and saw them, one still had a shed, several mouse pelts, and dirty substrate in his tank. I don't think he had a hide in either tank, as well.

He's including the 10 gallon tanks with the corns, but I'll probably put them in holding tanks, scrub down the ones he brings them in, and give them a better set-up.

Our temperatures outside these days are 58 degrees for a low and 85 or so for a high. If I house them in the barn for a bit, will those temperature gradients be okay? I don't have any control over the temperature in the barn, aside from adding a UTH.
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Holly

0.1 Lavender California Kingsnake (Lizzie Borden) (missing )
1.0 Florida Kingsnake (Eddie Gein)
1.0 Bearded Dragon (Charley Manson)
1.0 Orange Marmalade Cat (Oliver)
1.0 Black Cat (Shadowfax)
1.0 Egyptian Arabian (Bagan) (Deceased )
1.0 Tennessee Walking Horse (Durango)

2.0 Toddlers (Justice & Trevor)

since you aske

COHABITATION
A FEW THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

I feel it is best to keep snakes separate.
I know a lot of people can and do keep multiple snakes together without problems. I just feel the possible drawbacks need to be expressed.
When a person gets the experience and knowledge of each individual snake in his care, and wants to try co-habitation, it is up to them. They just need to be careful and observant enough to see and understand the subtle signs of stress in their snakes.
There can be definite drawbacks in co-habitation.
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 and 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. Cannibalism can and does occur with corn snakes. The smell of a prey item could trigger one snake to eat the other. Or simple hunger accompanied by a ready food source could do the same. Although uncommon, it has happened and is a possibility.
Another possibility is unwanted pregnancy. A female may become gravid and you may not have the knowledge, desire or ability to incubate the eggs, care for the hatchlings and find homes for them. With hatchlings comes added responsibility.
A lot of people rationalize by saying, "I will just put two males or two females together". That can work but mistakes can 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 egg-bound. Although uncommon, it is a possibility and can happen.
With multiple snakes in the same enclosure you could easily loose them all if there happens to be an avenue of escape. Instead of losing one you could loose two or more depending on how many you decide to place together.
With multiple snakes in an enclosure, one or all of them could be stressed by the presence of the others. Stress can cause a drop in appetite and 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 the same "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 are NO good arguments as to why you SHOULD keep them together but there ARE several good 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, shedding problems, regurgitation or “personality” changes. These could all be signs of stress.
You would also want to feed them in separate containers and give them an hour or so 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 Johnson
(Draybar)
Draybars Snakes

_____

Understood. After Doug's message, I didn't figure I'd keep them in the same tank, but thanks for posting, maybe another "Corn Noobie" will gain some insight from it.

I doubt they have ever been together for any length of time. If I put them together at all, it might only be for the short length of time it takes me to clean one cage and then the other. I'm thinking of using Rubbermaid sweater boxes for them, instead of aquariums. Suggestions on what gallon/quart size I should get for adult corns?
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Holly

0.1 Lavender California Kingsnake (Lizzie Borden) (missing )
1.0 Florida Kingsnake (Eddie Gein)
1.0 Bearded Dragon (Charley Manson)
1.0 Orange Marmalade Cat (Oliver)
1.0 Black Cat (Shadowfax)
1.0 Egyptian Arabian (Bagan) (Deceased )
1.0 Tennessee Walking Horse (Durango)

2.0 Toddlers (Justice & Trevor)

For those who follow my reptile-naming theme... I have names for these two already.

The previous owner called them "Captain Spaulding" and "Doc"...

However, to fit in with my usual theme, they will now be known as:

Lyle and Erik Menendez

^_^
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Holly

0.1 Lavender California Kingsnake (Lizzie Borden) (missing )
1.0 Florida Kingsnake (Eddie Gein)
1.0 Bearded Dragon (Charley Manson)
1.0 Orange Marmalade Cat (Oliver)
1.0 Black Cat (Shadowfax)
1.0 Egyptian Arabian (Bagan) (Deceased )
1.0 Tennessee Walking Horse (Durango)

2.0 Toddlers (Justice & Trevor)

I knew they would have to be named after a murdering duo!..LOL!

I still say if you ever get a "clown" morph Ball Python, John Wayne Gacey would be an extremely appropriate name!...the most notorious clown murderer ever known!

~Doug

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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Hmm... There aren't any other snakes currently with a "clown" morph? I'm just not all that fond of ball pythons. They're just not as beautiful as kings, corns, milks, etc, to me.
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Holly

0.1 Lavender California Kingsnake (Lizzie Borden) (missing )
1.0 Florida Kingsnake (Eddie Gein)
1.0 Bearded Dragon (Charley Manson)
1.0 Orange Marmalade Cat (Oliver)
1.0 Black Cat (Shadowfax)
1.0 Egyptian Arabian (Bagan) (Deceased )
1.0 Tennessee Walking Horse (Durango)

2.0 Toddlers (Justice & Trevor)

many of the people that own/breed them, don't really think they are any prettier than a lot of other snakes out in the hobby either,...they just think they can make huge bucks on some of the insanely expensive morphs, which if you ask many of them isn't the case either!..LOL!

For an animal(or anything for that matter) to be worth anything at all, you have to have a market for it, and of course someone to buy it. When the market becomes flooded, they sell at a "snails pace" if at all, and the price has to plummet.

Personally, I've never had a desire to own one, I guess it's just like the old saying goes,...."to each his own".

~Doug

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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

I would LOVE a ball pied but can't imagine spending that much. I told my husband I'll wait a few years until there are a ton of them from breeders trying for all white and then get one.
I don't think at this point I have any desire to breed.
I am over 40 and at one time bred large parrots for 20 plus years but then developed "bird keepers lung" basically asthma. Having to get out of it broke my heart and plus I started to get a little OCD over what/where they were placed. Before I was done my sales contract was over 4 typed pages long!!!! LOL

I have a pair of balls (HA!), but they're normals. (I've never worked that into a conversation before). My daughter would love a pied, but I can't spend that much for a snake. I think corns are more colorful and have more 'personality'.