Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a WC yellow rat that happened to be "grazing" in my mouse bins, and that is how I caught her (I have caught several others this way too - but I had my mom release them onto her property so they would not get back into my mouse room.) I was wondering what most of you do with WC ratsnakes, if I decided to keep this one (it's younger than the previous captures and seems relatively calm.) Do you usually take them to a vet for a fecal and deworming or do you just deworm them "just in case" and only go to the vet if the snake appears ill?

Also, this snake has a "greenish" tint to her skin. I was wondering if this usually goes away when the snake matures? I have never kept a yellow ratsnake before, in spite of them being so easy to catch I have always just passed them on to other property owners for the sake of my mice. I have kept cornsnakes for years, and I know that their colors can change too. I have seen some color/pattern variation in yellow rats as babies and adults, but have never personally watched one mature. What do you think I should expect as far as color change in what appears to be a yearling ratsnake?

thanks,
charlene

Charlene, do you raise mice outdoors, and are they uncovered? Also, I'm not sure your ratsnake is a yellow. Maybe it's an intergrade, or "greenish" ratsnake.

It's been quite a long time since I've acclimated a w/c snake, but I do know that in the Southern States, the chances of your snake having some kind of parasite, and/or a disease, is pretty high. I would always quarantine, treat the holding tank for mites, and probably treat for worms, or take the snake to a good vet.

The color change in your snake might be minimal, or it could change a lot depending on which snake is in your area. We could tell more if we knew where you lived, in general. My guess is there would be some change as it matured, if it is a yellow rat. Luck,

Terry

no, my mice have their own room - a halfbath converted into a mouse room. My mice have always been kept in or very near my bedroom, and I have always had a problem with yellow ratsnakes finding their way into my home and into the mouse room - no matter where I live!

I live in north central florida. This snake has no saddles at all, it has distinct olive-brown stripes and a greenish-yellow color. It's about a yearling size.

thanks, charlene

Because it is WC I would definitley recommend a fecal exam and deworming. You probably already know this but keep him quarantined from your other critters for a couple months just in case. As for the color here is a pic of my adult yellow ratsnake if it helps. Hope the one that you caught has a better attitude then this guy...he thinks he's a cobra lol.

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0.0.1 Green Water Dragon
1.0.0 Tokay Gecko
1.1.1 Bearded Dragons
0.1.0 Columbian Red-tailed Boa
1.0.0 Yellow Ratsnake
0.0.1 California Kingsnake
0.0.1 Black and White Tegu
0.0.1 Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula
1.0.0 Evil Budgie