Ron,
The Russians make great pets and are quite hardy, but they do have some drawbacks, as do most snakes.
Your right, most folks don't brumate babies, but Russian ratsnakes come from an area that has very long, cold winters. Often the babies want to hibernate whether you want them to or not. I don't know what happened to your baby snake, but I'll tell you what I usually do anyway.
I usually brumate my babies for four to eight weeks at a temp higher than what the adults are at, usually around 60*F. This gets them oriented and through the roughest months of the year...most of Jan and Feb. It all depends where you live too. It also hardens them up a little, so the first time they brumate at cold temps, it doesn't harm them.
I've seen Russians brumate up to seven months as an adult. Under the right conditions, as in the wild, they will survive that. Temps need to be near 45-50*F, and snakes need to be monitored for weight loss and dehydration. Because they are adapted to long winters, Russians are a little difficult in the cooler months. I always had a hard time getting mine to eat normally in the fall. You might get your young ones through the first and second winter w/o much brumation, but after that you'll probably have to brumate.
As a result of long brumations, Russians can take longer to mature. I never bred mine until they were in their fourth year and they were still growing until five year olds.
I don't know if your snake had any problem involving brumation. Maybe there was some kind of feeding problem. Maybe its cage got too cold or it was drafty. Let us know if you need any more help.
Terry
