Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi I'm looking for Tentacle Snakes (Erpeton tentaculum) I have not been able to find any so if anybody knows any sources please let me know
Thanks Josh

Let me know too!!!!
I think the best thing to do is have your money ready and start contacting importers and let them know you're looking for them. Not many of them come in every year. I think spring and summer are probably the best times to be looking.
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"The serpent crams itself with animal life that is often warm and vibrant, to prolong an existence in which we detect no joy and no emotion. It reveals the depth to which evolution can sink when it takes the downward path and strips animals to the irreducible minimum able to perpetuate a predatory life in its naked horror."
Alexander Skutch

Josh,

Before you get any Tentacled Snakes, make sure you search this forum and the watersnake forum for posts on these snakes and Achrocordus.

Both Achrochordus and Erpeton frequently die in captivity of a mysterious skin ailment. It seems keepers either get it and can't get rid of it and the snakes die, or they never get it all, so they can't say what it is that prevents it.

I would search for Achrochordus, Erpeton, Tentacled, etc. to find the most relevant discussions. Great snakes, but if you get the white spot disease, they will die. And noone has ever been able to tell me conclusively what it is and how to avoid it.
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Chris Harrison

Can't tell you what the disease is, but I can tell you what to do to prevent it. I have had a tentacled snake for a few years and I know another who has a colony. We keep our snakes in acid water. Drift wood isin the tank so there are tannins present. For some reason they thrive in dirty water. I never even clean the filter, I just let it run.

The only problems arose when the water was too clean or alkaline. When the water was restored to it's previous condition the pimples disappeared.

Recently, I was at the Memphis Zoo where they have a very nice colony. They use the same "acid dirty" keeping method sucessfully. They also mentioned a drug that is effective against the pimple disease. I don't remember it off the top of my head so Email them and they will supply the name.

Frank
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"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

I thank you all for the info but does anyone know were I can find them

Thanks Josh

:::
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Chris Harrison

That is interesting. Where I tried to keep them, the pH of the water was almost 8 so that may have contributed to the problem. I would love to get another pair and try again. I will have to try monitoring the pH of the water more carefully and see if I have more luck. They were certainly neat beasts.
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Chris Harrison

The Columbus zoo has a nice colony of them (with a Cerebus in there to boot), and they told us that they keep the pH around 6. They use crushed aspirin to attain this, but I don't think it matters how you do it, as long as the pH is low. This seems to be a pretty important consideration for aquatic animals that are used to acidic environments, matamata turtles have similar problems if kept at the wrong pH.
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"The serpent crams itself with animal life that is often warm and vibrant, to prolong an existence in which we detect no joy and no emotion. It reveals the depth to which evolution can sink when it takes the downward path and strips animals to the irreducible minimum able to perpetuate a predatory life in its naked horror."
Alexander Skutch