Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i have a female black mexican king and an albino banded california king (male). i want to eventually put the two together. and want to know if that's a good idea. i've talked to a breeder who houses the same kind of kings together with no problems. but only after they are a couple years old. the same breeder told me my two snakes will be fine together once they're grown. and one breeder that said never. i know there are always exceptions. but if they're close in size and well feed should they be safe together after a period of time or are they automatically going to eat each other? any help would be appreciated. thanx

I wouldn't do it for a few reasons. 1 why chance losing one of your snakes as a meal. 2 If one gets sick theres a great chance the will be too = 2 vet bills. 3 they are kings and they do and will eat other snakes even other kings. Are they wc or captive bred eithor or there from different areas so they will be foreign to each other scents. Yes i notice a different odor on my kings. This is my opinion and how i keep mine , the reasons above and cause they can and will be cannabalistic is enough for me. Also why do you want to house them togeather? If its the cost for a cage then check garage sells you can get descent aquariums for about 10 to 20 bucks just a thought. Paul

i already have everything to keep them seperate. it would just save space to keep them together. plus i just like the ideabut not if the outcome is the death of one snake.

It could mean death or it couldn't but i just ( like 5 minutes ago) Had an episode. I was trying to photograph my lavender phase florida and he musked me. After i was done with him i didn't wash my hands good enough just a quick rinse and dry then i took out my cali and he tried to eat my hand right off the bat. I took him out with the hand that didn't get musked but once i switched hands to get the camera he chomped down. I tried to get a pic of it but my digital cammera sucks , we'll i hate it . In fact i haven't found a digital camera i like yet lol. Paul

The local reptile shop (radical reptiles| stanton, cali) just bred a 3 year old female mex black king with an 7-8 year old cali male albino banded. Exact same thing!! They should be hatching anyday now. I kept a close eye on them because I have a male albino banded cali king so Im thinking about trying the same mix. Anyways to your question though, they kept them together for a month and not 1 problem came up. I think youre right though it just depends on the circumstances. I wouldnt reccomend it, but you know your snakes and the facts about snakes so.....GOOD LUCK ON YOUR DECISION.
PS...sorry I couldnt really help but when they hatch ill try and get a pic to post so you can see what they get, if you want.

thanks a lot. i think i'm gonna wait a couple years and slowly introduce them. with out leaving them unattended. and go from there. and i was planning on breeding so if you can get pics of the hatchlings that would be awesome.

No. Not. Never.

Even if they seem fine for weeks, months, or even years, one day the instinct will take over in the right moment - especially if you feed in their terrarium like I do.

It is their NATURE to be snake eaters; and they are very solitary creatures. Keep them togther and almost certainly one day you will look to find only one LARGER snake in the terrrium.

They are usually the most aggressive feeders. It will likely eat the other.