Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi all,

I'm new to milk snakes since I've been a turtle guy all my life, but I've found them quite easy to take care of. They're simply marvelous to look at.

My question is, how much does a normal Nelson's, Sinaloan, Pueblan, etc go for? I got my Nelson baby for $40 and would like to know whether there is a price difference between the various species, subspecies, etc. I would like to buy another one for a similar price if possible.

Thanks!

Johnny

Welcome! Milks are great, there are so many varieties and all do well in captivity.

I'd think you could find nice babies of any of those types in that same price range. You said "normals" and didn't mention hondurans, but if you get into those you'll find some of the prices can be considerably more.

One suggestion. If you think there's even the remotest chance you might like to breed snakes some day, consider getting a mate of the same subspecies as yours. If you're not sure how to sex 'em--it's a little different than in turtles--you can get the tips you need here on the forum.

Enjoy!

terry

Again, you asked only about normals. But yours is a nelsoni and people have been breeding amelanistics (albinos) of those for years. It's entirely possible yours could be het for (carrying) the amel gene. So if you do opt to get a nelsoni mate for yours, consider spending a few extra bucks to get a het/amel. IF yours is het too, one fourth of the babies would be amels, and that's fun. If you don't get any amel babies (out of a good sized clutch or a couple clutches) then yours is probably not het. In that case, all your babies would look normal but half would be het amel, though you wouldn't be able to tell which ones by looking.

By the way, for everyone here: One of the few north and central american colubrids on display at the Cincinnati Zoo is an adult amel nelsoni.

Exactly what rtdunham has said in both his posts.

You should be able to pick up a Nelsons or Pueblan in the price range you mention with no problem...probably pay more for shipping if you buy them on line as a matter of fact... other milks, such as good examples of Sinaloans or Hondos will go for around three times what you mention. The same holds true for the all too often overlooked North American milk snakes

If you live in an area where reptile expos are fairly common do your shopping there... not only will you save on shipping but many vendors towards the end of the expo are willing to drop their prices a bit.

Gerry