Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My friend has a scarlet kingsnake. He told me he mostly hides way more than his Ca king. He has had it a couple of months .
I love the look of these little colorful snakes. Thinking of getting one for a 10 gallon tank set up.
My questions are-
Are they more secretive than most kings or is his an exception (its wild caught not captive bred)?
Is it okay to feed pinkies if you dont have access to lizards?
Thanks.

Hi,
Most scarlet kings are very secretive and don't take kindly to handling. They are more of a snake for observation than playing with. There are always exceptions. I have raised a few from hatching and a few other people on this forum have also. The young are very small and usually will only start on lizards.
Some can be started on mouse tails. Cal kings make better pets.
Buddy

Okay thanks my friends is very secretive and he never handles it but it hides all the time.
To bad great looking but guess not what I am looking for. CA kings get to big for me. I am 5ft 2 inches and dont want anything bigger than me lol.
I like snakes in the 2 to 3 foot range but with color that dont hide much and not hard to feed.
In other words I like what doesnt exist lol.

You might try a morph of the western hognose snake. They usually eat mice and don't get very big. They also calm down with a little bit of handling. Buddy.

Cal kings usualy get between 4 and 5 feet so its still not as big as you. Theres also Rosey boas they stay about 3 foot and will eat mice redily, Corns get about 5 foot there another good mice eater , You also have the good old fashioned garter snake bit there usualy spazes and like fish , Mexican black kings are another good choice. Something to remeber a 5 foot king won't be as much mass as a 5 foot boa constrictor if that is whats worrying you. Theres many choices out there you just have to look around see what you like and study up on them and ask questions about them. Hope this helps and gives you some ideas Paul

Try a Mexican milk snake. A little secretive, very mellow, 2-3', and pretty colors as in the scarlet king.
Todd