Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I may get a yearling gopher snake soon, and I was wondering about the best way to "encourage" optimum growth. Would keeping the snake "awake" all winter and using that time for growth be an option?
Anyone on here have a good "feeding plan / schedule" ?

Do any of you have any picts of BIG gophers that you could post?

Thanks in advance

Brasco

Power feeding and not cooling animals only causes problems. You might end up with a large snake, but you will not have it very long. Both of this will lead to serious health issues. It is not just bad to the animal, it is simply cruel and unfair. Animals should be feed a regular size meal every week and cooled in the winter.

If you want a large pit, save some money and give Shannon Brown an email. He has a bloodline that gets HUGE on a regular basis.

My 2 Cents

thanks for the advice! How can I contact Shannon Brown?
Is that Shannon from Avid?

Click on the link to go to Shannon's site!

http://www.kingsnake.com/highsierra/

Messed up on the other link . . .here you go!
High Sierra Reps

Every time I see a snake held like that I have to repress the urge to run up and support it correctly...it looks like it would be extremely painful to have all your weight supported by just the tip of your tail. Ouch!!

I agree with the powerfeedig advice. But, why would you put a snake through the stress of burmation unless it's going to breed or it's not eating and losing weight? I keep my pits warm in the winter, although the temps do drop a little, but they do fine. Just wondering what the theory behind cooling a healthy animal.

My experience on this subjust does not come from Pituophis, but mostly True RedTail Boas and other herps.

Reptiles love to eat and grow. Part of this strong feeding response is due to the fact the in the wild, if they do not put on enough weight before winter, they will die. So you have a snake that is gaining extra weight. They store this for winter. When they do not have winter, they continually put on addition weight and it is never lost.

Muscle tone is key to the health of animals, I have noticed much better muscle tone in animals that are properly cycled. It keeps them fit and in shape. The winter "stress" is a way of life to wild snakes.

I cool all of my snakes, from yearlings up. I do not care if the snake is breeding or not. It helps them grow properly. Many breeders of true redtails boas consider it a must do.

When breeding panther chameleons, if you do not cool the females after egg laying, they will start producing another clutch, dispite their body not being able to handle it.

Sorry for the rant. I am not saying there is a right or wrong way. It is more a theory in the proper husbandry of animals. I have learned over the years this is key. A snake that is not cooled is feeding for an additional 2-3(plus) months out of the year, a normal specimen would not. I have noticed healthier animals in the long run.

Also, you do not have to cool as dramatically if you are not breeding. They key is to slow their matabolism, get them off feed, and let them rest up.

Hope this answers your question

I'm with you on this point. Pituophis, like most other North American colubrids, do NOT need to be brumated for proper care. There is some WEAK evidence that brumation can extend the overall maximum life of your pet (but you lose 3 months per year of handling time, so do you actually gain time with the animal as a pet?), but brumation is NOT 100% safe. Some animals die during or right after brumation for one reason or another. If you do NOT want to breed the snake, my best suggestion is to NOT overwinter it unless the animals does something that forces it one you (e.g., stops feeding, etc.).

I doubt if brumation helps keep obesity down since snakes typically lose less than 2% of their body weight during brumation IF you do it correctly and it is healthy! Matter of fact, many of mine never lost and measurable body mass at all. I've even heard of some gaining water weight over brumation and being heavier AFTER brumatioon than before....lol.

Long story short, if you can keep the husbandry conditions right during the winter, I wouldn't encourage you to overwinter it if the snake behaves normally during the winter UNLESS you want the snake to breed or you just need the rest period off from feeding, etc. Brumation is safe if done correctly, but not 100% safe, and it may not be safe at all if you do it incorrectly.

Want a large Pituophis? Do like Kemper suggested and contact Shannon Brown or find you a line of large Norther Pinesnakes. Shannons may not be the results of STRICTLKY genetics, but it'll give you a GREAT shot and ending up with a larger than normal one, anyway! ..and I want to also state that I'm against power feeding. It isn't good for your pet in the long run at all!
KJ

This is my cb'2001 female San Diego Gopher. She is around four feet and still growing.

sorry about the repeat of prvious pic.

np

thank you very much!

Hope you find the Gopher you are looking for, I am sure. There are so many varietys and lots of great breeders out there. Keep us posted.

This is my cb'2001 female San Diego Gopher. She is around four feet and still growing.

Here is a picture of the sonoran I got from Gopher at Greegs reptile basment,Breed by Jason from Envy reptiles.This male is almost 5 ft and what a gentil and beautiful snake

Another shot

This is my female with the big male.I got her 2 1/2yrs ago as a baby and she is getting large also.No power feeding just normale care.These two breed this year and only porduced 3 large large eggs can;t wait to see what comes out of them,P-RAT

no post

Which one sandiego or sonoran is suppose to get bigger.P-RAT

love those Sonorans. I wish I had a better camera. Your pics are a lot more clear than mine are. I had a Sonoran that was the same age as my San Diego, he was a lot bigger. I wonder how big he is now. I've read that the Sonorans do get larger, but I think Jason or Gregg can give us a better idea.

of which grow larger usually, the San Diego or Sonorans. I only have adult Sonorans, but the one female is 3 years old and about 5 1/2 feet, maybe a little more now. Sorry i couldn't be of more help, KJ and/or Terry P. probably know which ones generally grow larger.

Have a good weekend,
Gregg F.