Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am interested in Taiwan, Blue, Mandarin, Chinese, or (north american)Everglades rats. Can anyone tell me which of these (or possible other asian ratsnakes) that are easily found captive and which is the least aggressive. Or with these, does it rely on captive/wild caught? Also any reputable breeders.
I'm new to the site, so THANKS in advance!!

FBT

Of the bunch the "Everglades" is perhaps the most easily obtained. However. most if not all of the species tou mention can be obtained with little difficulty.

Since you are new to this, first I would suggest you check KINGSNAKE CLASSIEDS. Also I am certain there are breeders that would be pleased to direct you towards what they have available.

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

Thanks for the reply.
Do you (or anyone else) have first hand experience with any of the Asian rats? I have a Texas rat snake now. He is a little over two years and the most docile, friendly snake I’ve been in contact with. I can’t wait to add a beauty or two!

i have a couple of taiwan beautys and they are great snakes ,but they are a little bit jumpy at times,they grow super fast,they eat like crazy,and they are beautiful snakes,but like i said they are jumpy snakes and flighty at times,there are a lot of american ratsnakes that make excelent pets...good luck

I've kept blue beauties, cave rats, and Mandarin rats. Of the three, I think the blues would make the best "pet" snake, although I still think they are better for display than interaction. I have also heard that Taiwan beauties tolerate handling much better than some of the other Asian rats. If you want a species that is not easily stressed and is great for handling, I'd go with an American species (Great Plains, Everglades, etc), or a Japanese rat snake.
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Ronda Van Winkle
Northwest Herpetoculture

If you are wanting to get into Asian Rats I can reccommend Russian Rat Snakes (elaphe schrencki) as a good first choice! They are very docile snakes and extremely curious/nosey... I think they have great personalities and are not too hard to keep!

My yearling male Boris:

And 2 hatchling girlies Gallianna and Anastacia

Chez
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2.4.2 Corn Snakes
1.0 Grey Rat Snake
1.2 Russian Rat Snakes
1.1 Paraguayan Rainbow Boas

Coming Soon: 1.1 Royal Pythons, 1.0 Kaufiau Island Boas and 0.1.1 Corns

Thanks
I hadnt looked into them very much, I'll have to do that. Are they easily found captive bred?

-FBT

Many Asian ratsnakes make good pets, are extremely hardy, and handle very well. The Chinese twin-spotted ratsnake makes a great pet. Not many breeders deal with them, however, so they aren't very well known. This is a gravid female that we call the blonde phase, and there's a number of other color variations....

Other great pets are the various Steppes ratsnakes, Russian ratsnakes, Mandarin ratsnakes, and several ssps. of stripe-tailed ratsnakes. Corn snakes and Great Plains ratsnakes are some of the greatest pet snakes in the world, of course. There are many breeders that specialize in most of these species.

I'll add a link to my photo gallery, in case you want to look at some more photos.

Ratsnake Haven Gallery

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Ratsnake Haven: South Korean Dione's ratsnake, bimaculata phases, mandarina locales, calico and hypo taeniura, Western and Southern Plains ratsnakes

I have a Texas Rat now, just about 2 yrs. I'm planning on breeding the Asian rats I get. I'm waiting to make a decision on which ones, I want to make sure, (since this will be my first breeding project) I choose carefully. From what I have read, mandarins are not as easy for a novice, is this true? Actually, I have read horror stories for just about each snake I have looked into! I really am taken with the Beauty rats. Taiwan and Blue are what I am leaning towards right now. Any advice would be great!
Thanks alot!!!!

F B T

Mandarins can be a challenge compared to North American rat snakes. They're more timid and retiring, prefering to be left alone. If you want an interactive snake- go with Taiwans! Of all the species of rat snakes I've kept (at least 25 by now) Taiwans are the most interested in their surroundings. Now it may just be because mine is always looking for a handout, but he's always watching what's going on outside of the cage. Not actively trying to escape, just watching. He will occasionally thump the glass when he's hungry and something moves, but once he's out of the cage he's got one coil around my arm and the rest of his body extended exploring. The only downsides that I can see to Taiwans are- can eat you out of house and home (crazy feeding response- use tongs!)and require a large cage because of their activity level. My Taiwan is my display snake (out of 16 current total) because he's most able to deal with being looked at constantly. I love my Mandarins and Leopards but if you've got the space for a couple of Taiwans, I'd start with them. They grow fast and breed readily. Some breeders don't even brumate their Taiwans.
Lora

Lora he is beautiful!
I am very excited about this and have done little else; I spend most of my time reading and reading and reading about beauty/asian rats as well as looking for a breeder.
My preference is to get yearlings.

Thanks everyone for the replies!
Miya

I keep quite a few species of asian rats. I currently have mandarins, coxi, ridleyi, diones, taiwan beauties, blue beauties, climacaphora, and russians. Of all of these, I have to say that for handling, nothing beats the Russian rats. I have worked with captive babies, wild caught long term captives, and fresh imports and have never been struck at in agression. They also have a lot going for them in the husbandry department. They are great feeders, don't get quite as large as the blue beauties, and do perfect at room temp with moderate humidity. I also haven't had any trouble breeding them, so you may be able to consider them a future breeding project.
Hope this helps.

Bryan

Here is a pic of an adult Russian Rat Snake. There are babies for sale in the classifieds. I think these are some of the prettiest Asian rats in the world. They are also about as tame as a snake gets.

I have added them to my list!!
Are they easily found Captive Bred??
THANKS!

>>I have a Texas Rat now, just about 2 yrs. I'm planning on breeding the Asian rats I get. I'm waiting to make a decision on which ones, I want to make sure, (since this will be my first breeding project) I choose carefully. From what I have read, mandarins are not as easy for a novice, is this true? Actually, I have read horror stories for just about each snake I have looked into! I really am taken with the Beauty rats. Taiwan and Blue are what I am leaning towards right now. Any advice would be great!
>>Thanks alot!!!!
>>
>>F B T

Both species, mandarina and taeniura, are great species. A little knowledge of mandarina makes it an easy species to care for, a little harder to breed, mostly because they mature slowly. Taeniura is pretty easy, especially the Chinese beauty. The blues and Taiwan beauties come from further south and get much larger, maybe making them a little more difficult to handle.

TC