Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi,

I have jouvenile Yellow Rat and an Albino Everglades Rat. The yellow is a bit older.

Since these guys like to climb, instead of two tanks I was thinking of stacking two high, making a tall enclosure with lots of climbing branches.

There will be basking lights on top and a heat mat below the substrate. Dimensions will be 24" x 24" x 38" high.

Of course animals will be fed separately.

Do Rats live together well? Any other issues of concern?

Kind thanks in advance,

Leon

If you read down this first page i'm sure you will find at least 2 threads addressing this exact topic. the answer is ALWAYS no. Rat snakes are not good cage mates, and especially not in such a small enclosure. How long would you say they are, by the way?

the older one will make the smaller one threatened, and could possibly eat it. then you fall into the general things... if you see runny stools then you dont know which snake to treat, one snake gets a mite/parasite the other does also... double vet bills all around. also you have the problem of breeding if they're opposite sex, and even before they're really old enough. this could leave your female egg bound/dead.

ugh...do a SEARCH!
-----
Chondros and colubrids... my 2 favorite types of snakes!

"Life is hard. Life is harder if you're stupid." - John Wayne

Jimmy "Draybar" has posted a very good answer to this same question quite a few times. You might want to read what he has said.

Again, don't keep them together. Rat Snakes don't have or need friends!

This is my basic response to the question on the corn snake forum.
I think it fits quite well for all of the North American rat snakes

COHABITATION
MY OPINION

Everyone makes their own decisions but I just thought I would offer this piece of advise, information or whatever you would like to call it.

I feel it is best to keep snakes separate.
I know a lot of people keep multiple snakes together without problems and it can obviously be done without being detrimental to the snakes. I just feel the possible drawbacks need to be expressed.
When a person gets the experience and knowledge of their individual snakes and wants to try cohabitation, that is up to them. They just need to be careful and able to read the subtle signs of their snakes.
There can be definite drawbacks.
If one snake becomes sick there is a very good likelihood the other/others will get sick as well.
It may also take a while (usually too long) to determine which one is the sick one.
If one regurgitates its food you won't know which one unless you happen to get lucky and see it.
If one has a problem stool you won't know which one. Once again one may have a problem but by the time you figure out which one the other/others could end up with the same problem.
Although this is only a slight possibility, it is still a possibility and has been know to happen, one snake could eat the other. The smell of a prey item could trigger one snake to eat the other. Or simple hunger accompanied by a ready food source.
Although uncommon, it has happened and is a possibility.
Another possibility is unwanted pregnancy. A female might get pregnant and you may not have the knowledge, desire or ability to incubate the eggs or raise the hatchlings. With hatchlings comes the responsibility to raise them or find them homes.
A lot of people rationalize by saying, "I will just put two males or two females together". That can work but mistakes can easily be made, especially with hatchlings. You could easily end up with a male and female.
There is also a chance of a female breeding too young or too small and becoming eggbound. Although uncommon, it IS a possibility and can happen.
With multiple snakes in an enclosure you stand the chance of loosing all of them if there happens to be an avenue of escape. Instead of losing one you could loose two or more depending on how many you decide to place together.
One or both of the snakes could be stressed by the presence of the other. Stress can cause a drop in appetite and lead to other health problems as well.
People will put multiple snakes in an enclosure and ask why one isn't eating.
When they are told it is probably due to stress caused by the other snake, the response is almost always the same "they like each other, they are always under the same hide together". Well this probably just means "that" hide or area of the tank has the optimum conditions they are looking for.
Snakes do not LIKE each other or ENJOY each other’s company.
There is no capacity for snakes to "like" or "enjoy".
I have kept multiple snakes together without problems but have made a choice to keep them separate. There is NO clear argument on why you SHOULD keep them together but there ARE clear arguments as to why you SHOULD NOT.
So, in my opinion, although people do it successfully I just don't think it is worth the risk.
If you decide to keep multiple snakes together, watch closely for any signs of appetite loss, regurgitation or any kind of "personality" change. These could all be signs of stress.
You would also want to feed them in separate containers and give them an hour or so before putting them back together.
My 2 cents
-----
Corn snakes and rat snakes..No one can have just one.
"resistance is futile"
Jimmy (draybar)

Draybars Snakes