Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I've always housed my kings separately but I just read the article on Gray bands in reptiles magazine which said two can be housed together (?).
I worry about one making a meal of the other as my male is slightly larger than the female.
Anyone have any thoughts on this?
Mike.

Great Question!!!!

Ok... Let me first say that it is not my intent to offend any readers or authors...

The articles in Reptiles Magazine can sometimes be generic in delivery or scope to appeal to a wider audience.

Truth is... Alterna are best kept in seperate cages. The cages are easier to clean and feed. Now, lots of breeders will put the snakes together for long periods of time during breeding.

Notice in the article that it says something like "They readily eat pinkies and mice". This is also not 100 percent true. These snakes can be picky feeders. Some require lizards or scenting to feed.

The articles in magazines are great because they bring focus to the animals and increase exposure. The down side is the articles may simplify the care and maintenance of the animal.

Best Wishes,

Steven X

I agree with Steve 100% and I thought the exact same thing when i read the article.. Nice to see some Alterna noise.. but, very generic info.

Hope everyone is doing well!

~ Mike Russo

Yeah, I think the article is dead wrong on feeding - I have four animals that don't eat pinkies, period. In fact, I have a theory that they become friends

I've never had a problem with alterna housed together. with neonates I've found better feeding response if I keep the clutch together for the first feeding.
This year, out of necessity, I brumated 12 together in a 2X6' cage, no problems. They got their first feeding of the season in that cage, no problems.

That's an interesting first feeding strategy - was the first meal lizards or pinkies? Scented or unscented?

I don't know if it is still there, but the Philly zoo used to have a nice alterna exhibit in their reptiles house. There were 6-8 alterna in there ranging in size from subadult to adult. They were removed and fed in separate containers. I was told there were never any problems with the animals living together.

This year, we kept a pair of knobs together most of the year in a shift enclosure. They were separated into their shifts to feed. We had no problems. When they were seperated they tried like mad to get to each other. We just opened the shift gate and they would always be found in the same side together.

If anyone is in the Philly area, I would like to know if the alterna exhibit is still there. They were locality animals from the wild caught founder stock that the curator or asst. curator? collected.

Tom Anderson