Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Does anyone know the usual adult size for one of these snakes? Mine (Casper) is two years old and over four feet long already. He is nice and thick not thin like a lot of corns I have seen. He eats two adult mice every 7-9 days like clock work. How old do these snakes get before they stop growing? He handle wells when I have him and has never bitten me but will coil and strike if others people approach to quickly. Thanks.

To answer some of your questions, first, snakes keep growing throughout their lives. The speed of growth slows with age. You can expect a snake between four and six feet, but some do get up to sever feet. This snake is most likely a Texas Rat Snake and not a Black Rat Snake, but since it lacks coloring, there is no way to say for sure.

Sounds like you have a nice healthy snake. How about posting a photo for us.

I have web tv so I will see if I can get my sister in-law to take a pic with her camera and sent it to me then I can post a link. Thanks for answering my questions. What is the difference between a normal black rat snake and a Texas rat snake? I have seen many Texas rat snakes just as back as the ones we have here in WV. in the pet stores. I know the last scientific name is different and Texas rat snakes are said to have attitude and will bite at the drop of a hat. My snake was a little jumpy when I first got him a year ago when he was a little guy. As he has gotten a year older and A LOT bigger (the biggest one year growth jump of any snake I have ever had) he has clamed greatly. Thanks.

Normal black rats can be mostly black or may retain a fair amount of their pattern as they mature. Texas rats will retain the juvenile "saddles" and pattern into adulthood. On average, the texas rat will have a much stronger pattern as an adult, while the black rat may have little or none. To complicate matters, the two do produce natural intergrades where their ranges overlap, which may explain the existence of some pretty darn black looking "texas" rats.
Both are great animals. The texas has the bad reputation, but as you have discovered many if not most of them will mellow out with proper handling. Mine sure did. She was a terror as a hatchling, but now is a sweetie. My 7 year old handles her with complete confidence. Enjoy. Duffy

Keep in mind that with snakes, there are three basic factors that determine how fast they grow. The first is nutrition. The better you feed them, the faster they grow. Second is age. As they get older their rate of growth naturally slows. Finally, there is their genetic potential. The larger snakes will maintain a high growth rate longer. It sounds like you are feeding your snake well.

Duffy gave you a great answer to your last question. The only thing that I can ad is that Black Rats are on average a little longer. Blacks, Yellows, Texas, Grays and Everglades Rats are all subspecies of P. obsoleta. If you do a scale count on them, they are all the same.

Thank you both for your replies and for the infromation. Do either one of you know at what age is this snake considered an adult?

Most can start to reproduce by age three. It depends a lot on how well you feed them. Do you have a male or a female?

Due to the tail structure long and tapping (he has a lot of tail after the anual plate) I believe he is a male. Maybe I should be a little more specific in my question; I what age should he reach his max growth lenght, 3 years, 4 years? Thanks again for answering my post.