Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just wanted to make certain, before I feed the critters tomorrow. I've been really sick this week, fever and pains, but I want to make sure that nothing I can catch (such as a cold or flu) is contagious to my snakes or the bearded dragon. I had heard this before, that human illnesses are not communicable to herps, but I just wanted to be certain.

Thanks for any input.

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Holly

0.1 Lavender California Kingsnake (Lizzie Borden) (missing )
1.0 Florida Kingsnake (Eddie Gein)
0.0.2 Cornsnakes (Lyle & Erik Menendez)
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)

No,.....your little herps will be fine, and can't catch a cold or flu from you.

Hope you feel better soon!

~Doug

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

I second what Doug said!!
I actually had a cold last weekend and fed all my snakes sick Monday. Wasn't fun as I really wanted AND needed to lay down all day!! ha ha!!!

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Genesis 1:1

looks like he/she wants to give you a big kiss.

Is that a Texas rat or Black rat? I've always thought the hatchling lucy Texas rats look strange, with their disproportionally large heads. But the adults look so fantastic.

I'm this close to getting a ratsnake. Any suggestions?
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Mark

Yeah,.......she's ready to nail ANYTHING that moves in front of her,.....including my lips if I was stupid enough to get them too close!..LOL!

My male has a bigger head in proportion to his body, as you mentioned they sometimes do.

I'm not so sure I'd recommend a Texas Rat, unless you're willing to get "tagged" quite often, as BOTH of mine are pretty darn "ZAPPY"!. But then again, if I held them more often, they might calm down substantially, but who knows.

I'm sure just as in all snakes, there will be individuals that are fairly placid and manageable, but I don't see much of that with mine at all. How you see her in the photo I posted, is how she is 24/7..LOL!

There are LOTS of other Ratsnakes to choose from in the hobby today, so if you want a generally easy-going type, you might not want a Texas, unless of course you handle some first and happen to be lucky enough to run into some calmer individuals. Either that, or are willing to take your bites and gradually tame some down.

As a very generalized rule, the Black Rats would probably tend to be a little less nippy, but I'm sure a percentage of those individuals can be real "devils" as well.....oh well, I guess everything has it's price..LOL!

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

Doug,
I've actually been thinking about getting a leucistic texas rat. I've never shopped for specific color morphs in snakes before and am seeing a number of the leucistic rats advertised as having "bug eyes". These snakes tend to be cheaper so I'm left to assume it might be a defect or something. Would you mind explaining to me what this means?
Thanks

Yes,...the so-called "Bug-eyed" trait is a defective gene that is displayed quite often in leucistic Texas Rats. It's also a defect that can "pop up" from time to time in otherwise "normal" looking leucistics too. Many other mutations in snakes can also have some less desireable traits that go along with the mutant gene, but they often aren't "visually" expressed, so people aren't really aware of them at all, i.e. spinal kinks, lethargy, and other internal problems that can't be seen.

The "bug-eyed" trait can also be expressed from time to time in forms ranging from fairly mild, moderate, to morbidly grotesque. Even if you have two non-bug-eyed leucistic Texas Rat breeder animals, there can still be the possibility of producing a few "bug-eyed" offspring from time to time, just not quite as often as you would otherwise, it's just a trait that seems to sort of "float" around, and can be expressed here and there.

best regards, ~Doug

here's a pic of a fairly mild version

and a pic of a severe case of "bug-eye",...it looks like it's eyes are going to explode out of its head!

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

When I stated that the "bug-eyed" trait can pop up now and then in "normal" leucistics from time to time,...I meant in the offspring of two non bug-eyed animals,..not that the trait can gradually overcome a good looking specimen!..LOL!

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

Thanks, I pictured something like that but just wasn't sure.

None of my animals have ever caught anything from me, save for a slight bit of insanity. I hope you feel better, Holly.

Thanks. It took a LOT of rest, but I'm mostly over the cold now. I fed all the boys this weekend, each of them ate, except for my brownish corn, he was opaque. As soon as his full shed comes off, I'll have two mice thawed for him. ^_^
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Holly

0.1 Lavender California Kingsnake (Lizzie Borden) (missing )
1.0 Florida Kingsnake (Eddie Gein)
0.0.2 Cornsnakes (Lyle & Erik Menendez)
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)