Reptile & Amphibian Forums

k so im housing 2 corns in a 55 gallon tank...one has been in there for about a week, and the other i put in lastnite..she seemed kind of scared would this be from just going from a 20 gallong to a 55 so she has to get used to the space and size? ive put them together before..just for a few nights to see what they would do..and no trouble there is a bit of size difference but they seem to like eachother.

so do u think the one seeming kind of scared at first was because she just has to get used to the size of everything?

i have a few of her hides in there as well..like her coconut that she somehow manages to fit into still lol and she loves it dearly so i couldnt not put it in...the other one wont fit in there lol.
and another question..with feeding is 15 minutes enough to calm down and go out of feed mode? so they wont attack eachother? thanks for the help in advance..

P.S for all the people that are gonna be mad im housing corns together...lots of people do it, i read they are social snakes and i would like to try it so if ur just going to say bad things dont bother replying

If you don't mind losing one of your snakes, go for it. Sometimes it will work. Make sure you take them out at feeding time and feed in a different container.
Good Luck!

np

In the event one is aggressive towards the other, it may think of it as dinnner and attempt to eat the psasive one. This depends on the realtive size of the smaller one - if it is noticable smaller, then, yes it may be dinner for the larger one. Another possibility is the stree on one may do it in - not eat, not thrive, waste away - that sort of thing.

If the two are reatively the same size and one gets devoured, then the possibility of loosing both is real. The meal is too big to absorb and if it can't regurge, it dies too. This has been noted with hatchlings to yearlings so this may or may not aply to yours - no note of the age....
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1.2 Albino Nelsoni Milksnakes
0.1 Snow Corn
0.4 Sunglow Corns
1.1 Albino Motley Corns
3.1.1 Albino Corns
bunch.bunch Bearded Dragons
2.6 Albino Leopord Geckos
2.0 Pictus Geckos
1 great wife
2 great boys
0.2 dogs (they're great too!!)

im not sure how old they are..the length isnt noticeable..the thickness is a bit...i dont think there will be problems..and if there is, it is my fault for exparimenting with it...i would hate to lose or both of my babies i checked on them after i read i may lose one and found them burrowed underneath the aspen...together and when i brought them out they stayed together in my hand...the only thing i worry about is slithers eating cornfed after her meal, slithers is the bigger one but she is usuallly full after i feed her, im more worried about cornfed trying something on slithers and then getting eaten because of it...but im gonna try some things that somebody suggested to me and i hope all goes well..

im not worried about diseases as i have never had problems with that and when i bring new snakes into the collection they have a 3 month quarantine period in a seperate part of my house until im sure there is nothing wrong with them..

im pretty sure its a male female group..male being younger, or its 2 females i will find out for sure this week...
just a question...has anybody who always says its bad and not to house corns together ever actually tried? my boss at my store, breeds corn snakes and said he does it as well

Chuck,
I housed two of my corns together from the time they were hatchlings until the female dropped her first clutch of eggs. 1. Be sure to feed both of them outside of the enclosure in separate feeding containers.

2. Before putting them back into their enclosure, wait 10-15 minutes, and wipe each snake down with a wet paper towel. This way there is no food scent on their bodies.

The only problem I had was my female's feeding response. Even after washing & waiting, she would pursue the male and a couple of times bit him. Finally I made a divider out of foam board. I'd put it in and wait until she was settled in on the belly heat. Then I'd remove it and she had no problem when he slid over to share it with her.

Hope this helps.
regards,
althea

np

>>P.S for all the people that are gonna be mad im housing corns together...lots of people do it, i read they are social snakes and i would like to try it so if ur just going to say bad things dont bother replying

lots of people drink and drive too.
doesn't mean its the right thing to do.
you answered your own question.
You put the two snakes together one is stressed.
Separate them and the one will not be stressed.
They are not social animals.
You have actually asked about this before and we gave you our opinions on the subject.
If you are planning to go against what what we have already told you and do not want to hear the possible problems of cohabitation then why ask?
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Remember, My posts are MY opinion only!
Jimmy (draybar)

no u misunderstood my questions draybar...she isnt stressed, she possibly was a bit stressed when i put her in there from going from a 20 long tank to a huuge 55 gallon...she had to adjust to the space..i dont mind hearing the problems i just dont want people to bash me because im trying something they dont agree with... i know most of the possible problems that can happen ...and yes i did post a message before about this same topic..now that i am ready to do it i figured i would ask again...i introduced these snakes several times before and ...draybar you are the kind of person i was talking about with the bashing lol dont post anything if its going to be negative...u know nothing about my snakes, each has there own personallitys and if they are not social snakes why does it say it in every book and almost every where i have read? that it is safe to house one or more snakes together?

.......If you are doing something that might be harmful to your snakes, we should keep our collective mouths shut because that would be "saying something negative" or maybe even "bashing you"
.....OK....I guess I will not respond then. Bon Chance Duffy

He doesn't bash people and he doesn't usually get an attitude with people. He was only trying to help you and give you his opinion, which by the way, is the same as almost everyone else on this forum. As far as keeping them together, you will do what you want, but if they are a male and female and do breed to early you may be asking for more problems down the road. Such as losing your female due to egg binding etc.. This was already adressed, so I won't say more. I just feel that since you did ask, you must not be sure, so maybe you should take some of the advice from people with more experience.

Just my .02
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Paula
17 Corns,6 Ratsnakes, 1 Ball Python, 1 Hognose(for now)

Snake Addict
"Always Learning"

>>Thanks Sparda,
I appreciate the support. I have been known to be a little abbrasive at times but I do my best to help when I can.
Jimmy

>>Do what you will.
You may not have any problems at all, so good luck.
You may need to be a little more diligant in record keeping just in case there is some kind of a problem, though.
And yes a lot of people have kept corns or rat snakes together
without problems.
But, there can be problems. Just be carefull.
now, as far as "bashing". I could have been a lot harsher then I was. You must remember one thing. I don't know you so my concern goes more towards the snakes then you.
Just out of curiosity, though.
Could you give a list of all this books and sites that say corns are sociable and do well when housed together.
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Remember, My posts are MY opinion only!
Jimmy (draybar)

OK, here we go...I have kept snakes for 22 years...started keeping them long before all these opinions were available. There have been times when I have kept two snakes of the same species together and they have done just fine together. I just made sure I quarantined the new snake before introducing, made sure the cage was big enough for both of them, fed them separately, and made sure the species were compatible in size and species. Of course, nobody would put a king or milk in with another snake. Snakes "recognize" the native kingsnake from their area and get very stressed out. Also, I wouldn't put a hatchling in with a yearling or adult regardless of species. Sure, the little snake gets very stressed in that situation.

As far as corns and rat snakes go...I've housed them together a number of times without ever encountering any problems as long as I fed them separately. About the rat snakes being "social" creatures...how many times have you lifted artificical cover to find more than one rat snake underneath? It has happened to me at least six times this year alone. In the higher elevations, rat snakes den together, along with copperheads and timber rattlesnakes. They lack the ability to care for one another or develop relationships, but they certainly do not mind being in the presence of other members of their own species.

I would recommend that you find out the sex of your two snakes though. That could be trouble if your female becomes gravid before she is physically mature. Otherwise, I don't see a problem with housing them together. In fact, I have an '01 Black Rat Snake and an '01 Yellow Rat Snake in a 55 gallon tank together right now. Both are near 6', both are males, and both have lived together since they were hatchlings without a single incident.