Reptile & Amphibian Forums

1 Corn Snake - Obviously.

20 or 30 gallon aquarium or solid mesh vivarium.

Under the tank heating pad, 20 or 30 gallon depending on tank size.

Bedding, Cypress mulch that hasn't been treated with pesticides. or some other soil/mulch mixture ...

Two hiding locations on hot and cool side of the tank, prefereably rock or drift wood.

heavy deep water bowl, sturdy to prevent tipping and deep enough to allow submersion.

Two thermostats at substrate level and one humidity thermometer.

Some kind of back-drop in background that resembles wooded land, not the desert and not a jungle.

Some sort of limb or root structore for climbing, again, can be driftwood ...

Plants, probably fake.

Food situation:

www.rodentpro.com ... ease of use, low prices all things considered, but with shipping might equal to same as live bait ... Also not looking forward to thawing a dead mouse on the kitchen counter

Other possibility ...

One plastic 5 buck ventilated terrarium

cheap bedding.

some form of dish, maybe even tuna fish container filled with gut loaded pellets..

water bottle

perhaps a running wheel.

approx. 5 mice a month ...

although carries the risk of parasites and even bacterial infection that could spread to all mice and in turn, the snake ...

Bottum line, www.rodentpro.com is safer than fresh bait, more convenient than fresh bait. But the fresh bait may be slightly more "fun" in terms of adding another aspect to owning the corn ...

Any opinions or suggestions? does this sound pretty good? And yes i plan on killing the mice before hand if i decide to go with "fresh" mice

I would not go with an all mesh aquarium because I fear it not being strong enough and possibility of nose rub.

You need 2 thermometers that measure the surface temps and one hygrometer to measure humidity. Don't buy the analog stick on kinds - they're unreliable and don't allow you to measure the surface temps. Get a digital with probes (some even come with a hygrometer built in). Then place the probes under the substrate (since you are using a loose substrate) so that you measure the temps your corn would feel should it decide to burrow down a bit. Also put something (like a sheet of newspaper) under the loose substrate so your snake does not have direct contact with the heating pad - just to be safe should the heating pad spike or something. You should also get a thermostat and hook up to the heating pad as an extra safety measure - a lot of the heating pads tend to get too hot and need this extra device.

Where do you live? While rodentpro.com is highly respected, the cost is too high for me once you had shipping. Call around to petstores in your area and see if they sell frozen mice. Also, check for reptile shows in your area - there's often a vendor selling frozen mice. Even if it's a bit of a drive, if you consider that they sell in bulk this means you won't have to go that often the cost may work out - plus it's an excuse to go to a reptile show. Also check for local herp societies, they may be able to hook you up with someone who sells f/t. F/T is much safer - the freezing kills parasites and a frozen/thawed mouse can't hurt your snake. I've seen too many pics of snakes injured from rodents - no matter if you watch the feeding closely or not you'll only be intervening after something has happened.

Do you know when or where you're going to get your corn? Do you have your sites set on a certain color?

You are already off to a good start by asking questions and getting prepared before getting your snake. Good job and can't wait to see pics!

Oh yeah, and you don't want to thaw the mice on your kitchen counter. To be safe you should keep all your reptile stuff away from the kitchen. The night before feeding I just put all the frozen mice I plan to feed out in a bowl w/ lid and sit it in the fridge (from the freezer of course). Then the next day when I get home I sit the bowl out in my herp room with the lid off so it can get to room temp while I check the mail, walk and feed the dog, etc. Then they're all ready and I feed out. I do let it warm up a bit by sitting on the top of a lamp fixture first.

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1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa "Gimli"
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0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"

0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer
"Kira"

Thank you for replying, I live in new york pretty close to PA in Chemung county. I don't think there are any reptile shows anywhere in this chunk of new york... I never really thought about calling some of the pet stores to see if they sell frozen mice, I will look into that ... I am planning on just getting an okeetee corn, i had originaly wanted a blizzard corn, but i am ordering from a breeder in florida and the shipping to my door alone will be 40 some bucks, not including the cost of the snake itself, so I figure I might as well try to keep my costs down by buying a cheaper breed. I Also read somewhere that okeetee grow generaly to be the largest of the other corns, which made me smile.

I do have one other question though, I want to buy an adolescent, would a 30 gallon be too large? I have read on multiple sites that large tanks can stress out a sub-adult .. ? And I'll definately get more pictures than anyone cares to see as soon as i get him.

oh! One more question, again. It's better to feed them outside of their tank right? well if that is the case and i feed him in a deep bucket or some such, how long after eating do i have to wait to put him back into his tank? i ask this because i know you aren't supposed to handle them after eating for threat of regurgitating ...

If i could find some sort of comprehensive breeder list i could probably end up finding one closer to me :|

As far as your check list goes, I'm guessing that you really want the cage to look asthetically pleasing. If so, the choices for husbandry epquipment are fine, but if I were you, I'd just keep it simple. You'll save a ton of money this way too.

I personally would switch to just papertowels as substrate, use old plastic food containers (from margerine, cool whip, etc.) as hide boxes and not bother with the branch, backdrop, or the plants. But that's just me. I'd rather save money for more snakes rather than spend it on what I consider to be just "useless stuff that looks pretty".

If you do decide to go ahead with the more natural set-up, and you use some sort of loose substrate, you should feed outside of the cage so you don't have to worry about the snake swallowing substrate. As long as the snake has got the mouse completely into it's stomach, it's safe to move it back to it's cage.

A 20 gallon long is enough room for an adult. It wouldn't necessarily be too big for a young snake, but some snakes are more shy than others. I'd only worry about it being too big if he fails to thrive in it.

I love rodentpro, but I also have 6 snakes and a friend who has 4 snakes and we go in on orders together. If you have a vacuum sealer and plenty of room in your freezer, you could go ahead and order a bunch of mice from rodentpro. If vacuum sealed, the mice should last you up to 3 years, or so I've heard (I've only kept mine for up to 1.5 years). But if you are only going to buy 1 bag of mice, it's probably cheaper to either breed your own or try to find a breeder closer to you that sells mice.

I'm not sure where Chemung County is compaired to these, but there is going to be the NARBC show in Philadelphia, PA in November, the White Plains, NY show, as well as the Hamburg, PA show. Check the Events link (above) for more info.
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alstiver@hotmail.com

1.0 2001 Coral snow cornsnake
0.1 2002 Pastel Ghost poss Het Amelanistic cornsnake
1.1 2002 Bloodred cornsnakes
0.1 1998 Het Hypo, Het Caramel cornsnake
1.0 2000 Hypo Het Caramel cornsnake
0.0.13 2004 Eggs (potentially normals, hypos, caramels, and ambers)

I appreciate your information Amanda, but I certainly don't mind spending money on the snakes environment seeing as how i have a full time job with very few bills to pay and no real hobbies aside from riding my bike. And i certainly am not interested in buying more than one snake (though maybe a gecko somewhere down the road). I might buy a 10 and a 30 gallon tank and simply keep him in the 10 until he has grown a bit. Thank you for your input, and i have just emailed the western new york herp society to see if they can give me any information on some breeders close to here ( i previously had no idea that there was a local herp society ) ... Thanks again for your input ... Jormungard will be nicely taken care of as soon as i find him/her

I'm like you - I prefer to make my setups nice displays and will shell out a few extra bucks as well. What kind of gecko are you thinking of? that's an interesting name you have picked out - does it mean something?
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1.0 Ball Python "Aragorn"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa "Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa "Frodo"
0.1 Rough-Scale Sand Boa "Arwen"
0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"

0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer
"Kira"

Probably just a leopard gecko or two, i really like the jungle phase patterns. but not until i get my hands wet with the snake and can maintain him easily as i gain confidence ... and Jormungard ( or Jormundgard as it is sometimes spelled ) was a mythical beast in Norse mythology. It was a snake so large that it's coils encompassed the earth. It's name means the Midgard Serpent. In legend, in the destruction of the univers, Thor and Jormungard battle each other and kill each other. I've always enjoyed norse mythology, and thought it would be a fitting name for my not-so-gigantic friend.

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Check Out My Albums

1.0 Ball Python "Aragorn"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa "Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa "Frodo"
0.1 Rough-Scale Sand Boa "Arwen"
0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"

0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer
"Kira"

are any of those herp shows near you?
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Check Out My Albums

1.0 Ball Python "Aragorn"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa "Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa "Frodo"
0.1 Rough-Scale Sand Boa "Arwen"
0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"

0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer
"Kira"

That size might not be too large - might want to add extra hides and stuff. I'd start on paper towels first so you can better monitor feces etc - of course I keep all mine on paper towel while in quarantine until they are eating well, have shed and get a clear visit and fecal test from the vet. Then I switch them to their more permanent substrate.

Don't know exactly where your location is, but click on the events tab above and you'll get a listing of shows across the country. Theirs a show in Hamburg, PA that I know of - heard it's pretty good.

Here's some reputable corn breeders - don't know if they'll be any cheaper, but may be closer to you and may even be at the shows near you. Like I said, consider what you will save in shipping for frozen mice and shipping for the snake compared to the gas and admission price to a show.

www.cornutopia.com/

www.cornsnakes.net/

www.cherryvillereptiles.com/

home.earthlink.net/~tspuckler/

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Check Out My Albums

1.0 Ball Python "Aragorn"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa "Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa "Frodo"
0.1 Rough-Scale Sand Boa "Arwen"
0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"

0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer
"Kira"

what exactly do you mean by quarantine? basicaly keeping it in a bare bones enviornment to see if it is healthy and what not before moving into it's main enclosure?

Quarantine is a setup placed in a seperate room from other herps in a kind of bare bones setup (main thing to me is using the paper towel for feces monitoring before changing to the substrate I plan to use and moving into it's permanent cage in my herp room). It's a time to watch your herp and monitor it's health. If you don't have any other herps doing this in a separate room is not needed and I would just use the paper towels at first. Easier to get a fecal sample off of paper towels than loose substrate to me.
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Check Out My Albums

1.0 Ball Python "Aragorn"
1.0 Kenyan Sand Boa "Gimli"
1.0 Saharan Sand Boa "Frodo"
0.1 Rough-Scale Sand Boa "Arwen"
0.1 California Kingsnake "Gentoo"
1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake "Indigo"
1.0 Snow Corn snake "Chile"

0.1 Australian Cattle Dog/Pointer
"Kira"

Welcome to the world of corn snakes. To be honest you will get hooked so prepare for more...you can not have just one. Whether its another corn or different kind of snake

I just wanted to give my 2 cents worth. I have 2 corns. Both housed in their own 20 gallon long tanks. Each have UTH's with light (on same side as UTH) on timer so they can have a night time.

Couple of hiding places, paper towel rolls work great for babies. Then I have some small boxes too. I wanted to keep cost down so didn't want to buy expensive hides. I use reptile bark. Have never had a problem with the stuff. Also have a fake plant in each tank. Both my snakes seem very happy.

I have the stick on temp gauges. I don't worry about humidity except at shedding times. Then I will mist their tanks a bit. They always have great sheds.

I don't worry about temp control thing on the UTH. Once you put newspaper over the area of the heater then your substrate it's not that hot. Although there are snakes that will burrow under anything so obviously that would be a problem. But mine never do.

I bought some pretty back ground at Petsmart for $10-12 dollars. The most obvious piece of equipment is a SECURE lid. I have the screen lids with the clamps. I keep half covered with seran wrap to help keep heat/humidity in.

All my snakes eat f/t with no problem. The idea of feeding live, which is not safe, or having to kill a mouse does not appeal to me at all. I just thaw the meal night before, set out to get room temp next morning, then feed. They all take it that way. When my corns were little I fed them in a small container. It will not hurt them to gentle pick them up and place them back into their enclosure. Now that mine are over year old they eat in their tanks.

Corns are the easiest snake to start with. I hope you enjoy yours as much as I have mine. "The Corn Snake Manuel" is a great book to have on hand if you haven't gotten it already. And everyone on these forums have great advise.

Thanks alot for your input. More information is always good.