Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I feel like such a bad snake owner. My baird's rat snake has only shed twice in the 6 months I've had her. Everything I've read suggests rat snakes shed approximately every 6-8 weeks. She's only about 7 months old so she should still be shedding often. She's growing really well. She's about 6 inches longer than she was when I got her and double the weight. I feed her once a week on small fuzzies. I keep her at similar temperatures to a corn snake and 50% humidity. (I've been told it's right but for those of you with more experience I'd like to know.)

She's my first snake and I'd really like to do the right things for her.

Here's a photo. I'm thinking she's a Mexican because her neck saddles are a really nice olive color. She looks better in person.

I would expect your snake is in great hands. In my experiance the shed rate is very much related to how much food I am giving my animals. I feed young and female snakes twice a week a good sized meal and they shed about every 4-8 weeks or so. However some of my older breeder males I will only feed once a week or ten days and they go much longer between sheds. If your snake is shedding in one piece and is eating well you are doing something right. I would expect snakes in the wild go much longer between meals and as a result do not shed as often as those in captivity. How often are you feeding your snake?

Sorry I just noticed you mentioned you feed one fuzzy a week. That is a good schedule. I often feed mine more often only because I am impatient and want to get size on them quickly or for breeding reasons. A suspect a fuzzy twice a week would increase the shed rate of your snake.

when the snake defecates, clean it out and feed it again, rat snakes can grow amazingly fast, that does appear to be Mexican, distinct gray head and it is yellowing up fast, probably a male? You are doing an adequate job but you could do better, it's not about getting the snake up to size, it's about feeding it when it is hungry. maybe you could rotate the schedule you now use and feed it twice one week, once the next, or feed it every 4-5 days. Watch for the poop and you'll know when.

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Todd Hughes

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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

Thank you, I think I'll change it to every 4-5 days and I'll also watch out for when she poops and change according to that. For some reason it didn't strike me that poop = fully digested meal = now hungry snake.

This is definitely one of those things where you can read about something til you're blue in the face but it doesn't match having experience or being able to ask an experienced person.

Astourna, My name is Todd Hughes, what's yours? Your response was exemplary, and quite refreshing! Thank you, you'll find lots of help if you ask for it here, and lots of other stuff, lol! learn to wade through the stuff and you will have done well. Doug is a ratmaniac and has tons of experience, I just have some bairdi and know what is working for me. Where'd you get her and are you sure it is female? what line is it from? San Antonio or dallas/Ft. Worth Zoo line? maybe from Dusty? Inquiring minds want to know! I had some problems with full term dead in the egg and kinked babies from my line, but they are gonna get a new blood infusion from a new line maybe in 2011. Scroll back to Aug. of this year and lasts' to see what was up. That's gonna be a screamer if it is a female, she's coloring up quicker than mine did!

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Todd Hughes

My name is Karyn. I was just being honest in my reply. At first I was actually scared to post here. I'm not sure why. I think I'm used to smaller forums, but now that I've gotten over that hurdle I'm excited about all the info available here.

I have a bit of information on her background but not much. It's actually kinda sketchy with some discrepancies and I'd rather pm you so I don't accidentally make someone look bad. If you tell me how to send you a private message on here I'll give you all the info I have.

No question that you got yourself a nice snake there. Hope ya keep us posted as she develops.

click on my name and let the pm begin!
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Todd Hughes

"poop = fully digested meal = now hungry snake"

Looks like good math but if we apply the transitive and commutative properties in our analysis we should be allowed to posit that now hungry snake = poop...rather disappointing really.

Darn. No wonder I had to take algebra twice.

Forgot to mention she was popped as female at the show I got her. From what you said it makes me wonder if male baird's are different from the females?

Growth rates vary in snakes - even snakes from the same clutch feeding on the same size food at the same intervals.
Shedding rates vary too. I wouldn't worry about that rate of shedding.
If your snake is eating and appears healthy, I wouldn't try to put it on a schedule on what it "should" be doing.

Tim

Third Eye

>>I feel like such a bad snake owner. My baird's rat snake has only shed twice in the 6 months I've had her. Everything I've read suggests rat snakes shed approximately every 6-8 weeks. She's only about 7 months old so she should still be shedding often. She's growing really well. She's about 6 inches longer than she was when I got her and double the weight. I feed her once a week on small fuzzies. I keep her at similar temperatures to a corn snake and 50% humidity. (I've been told it's right but for those of you with more experience I'd like to know.)
>>
>>She's my first snake and I'd really like to do the right things for her.
>>
>>Here's a photo. I'm thinking she's a Mexican because her neck saddles are a really nice olive color. She looks better in person.
>>
>>

I wouldn't worry about the rate of shed as long as it is shedding and eating.
Let the size of the bulge when feeding be your guide as to when to increase meal size, not the rat of sheds.
When the meal you are providining fails to leave a noticeable bulge move up in size. The sheds will come as it grows at it's own rate.
I am going to go against the others though and lean towards Texas. I've had a few start out like that.
But, as usual, I could be wrong

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Corn snakes and rat snakes..No one can have just one.
"Resistance is futile"
Jimmy Johnson
(Draybar)
Draybars Snakes

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should read rate of sheds not rat of sheds
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Corn snakes and rat snakes..No one can have just one.
"Resistance is futile"
Jimmy Johnson
(Draybar)
Draybars Snakes

_____

>>should read providing not providining
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Corn snakes and rat snakes..No one can have just one.
"Resistance is futile"
Jimmy Johnson
(Draybar)
Draybars Snakes

_____

Haha, Jimmy I gotta take your answer to heart as well, you got me into these! I don't have any at the moment that have shown this turn, but I'm raising this year's batch of Davis Mt. babies so we will see if this happens with this locale. Hey mister, I got two silver females ready to go next year with no gunmetal male, lol! I do have the Davis Mt. boy, I'd like to see what ya' got in a silver and red male though.

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Todd Hughes