Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Do rat snakes like to climb? I've found some driftwood, if I sterlize it and put it in the tank, will he enjoy thatto climb on? Or is it going to be just a waste of tank space?

Oh, they like to climb, all right, some species more than others. But then again, it also depends on how they were raised if they're CBB. I bought a large arboreal cage for an albino black rat, put some climbing branches in there, and all he did was curl up on the floor. His former owner kept him in a sweaterbox. I put him into a large polycarbonate sweaterbox and he's happy as a lark in aspic in there. I've also had Glades rats that wouldn't stay off their branches. I guess the only way to find out is try it, but the odds are that he'll like climging.

SWEEEEET Amel blk rat !!!!!!!!!!

Most rat snakes love to climb in the wild. They are known to raid bird nests as high up as 25 feet in a tree! As the post before stated it depends on the snake. My yellow rat snake LOVED to climb when I first to him. Now all he seems to do is hide in the aspen subtrate I have. It could be I changed his drift wood tree to a larger fake tree? Who knows hahaha.. I might switch back to some real wood and see if he comes out more.

A good way to sterilize that drift wood is to bake it in the oven for about 20-25 mins at 275 degrees. Mites/ticks can't take those temps. and those are really the only things you need to worry about.A vinegar/water solution followed by a good rinsing works well also as the acid in the vinegar will kill just about anything.