Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi all,

I'm considering purchasing a leucistic Texas ratsnake in the near future, but I've been having trouble locating information specific to the species. So here's a few questions:

First, how large do adults typically get (male and female)? I have an unused enclosure that is 30" x 12" x 18", and I'm wondering what I could house in it.

Secondly, what does their feeding and maintenance schedule look like? I'm more familiar with the boids, which have a much lower metabolism. Will I need to feed every few days, weekly, etc.? How often can I expect to be cleaning out the cage?

And finally, what about musking? Is this a common occurence in an otherwise-tame snake?

Thanks a lot for any replies!!

There are plenty of care sheets out there for P. obsoletus ssp. They all get to be about six feet long, but most adults are between four and five feet. Most of us feed ours once a week. And your 20 gallon long aquarium will work just fine for the first three to five years. A 29 gallon high would be better because they like to climb.
Care Sheet

Thanks so much for the reply! I really appreciate it. Actually, the aquarium I have *is* a 29 high - the 20 gallon aquariums are only 12" high (mine is 18" high).

Which are larger, males or females? I know that female boids are usually larger, but I've heard stories of the contrary in regards to colubrids.

Thanks again for replying!!

eh... roughly the same size for males and females. Please note he said for the first 3-5 years only that tank wil be sufficent. Not for their whole lifetime. Personally.. I'd say closer to 3 years, not 5.

They will musk, rattle tails, etc... depends on the snake. If you want an EXTREMLY docile snake, get a leucistic black rat. They look the same just about, but they usually run close to $200 for a quality bred animal.

A texas leucistic should run around $50... but I like the personality of a texas rat. I have a licorice stick black rat (white sided), and she is very docile. Almost boring. My texas bairdis will rattle their tails at me... their personality is awesome!

You won't be dissapointed!
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-Chris

The reason mainstream thought is thought of as a stream is because it's so shallow. -George Carlin

A fool doesn't learn. A smart man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others. Which one are you?

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N. American Rat/Corn snake care sheet I wrote

Current snakes:
0.1 Licorice Stick Black Rat (Lola)
1.0 Black Rat (Frankie)
1.1 Texas Bairds (Jose and Rosa)
0.1 Blue Beauty (Brunhilde)
1.0 Green Tree Python (Claudius)... coming soon