Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I think I am being messed with. I have a Black Rat Snake and a Dekays brown snake in my 7th grade science class. Very small, dead baby (looks like dekays) snakes keep ending up in my enclosure. I saved both of my snakes from a shovel weilding janitor. I am wondering if he is messing with me or do these snakes have live born young. The snake is about 8 inches long and has never looked gravid or pregnant or whatever you call it. She eats a worm a week but has a very short lived bulge after that. Am I being played or am I a poor snake keeper not to notice eggs or an expecting mother? Thanks for any constructive remarks.
ps. I have had this snake since november with no others to contact it.

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Jason

Brown snakes have live young, so your snake is probably having babies. If you're checking your snakes daily, you should be able to find the babies before they die. If you're already doing this, your female may be giving birth to stillborn young.

-Alice

Hi,

DeKay's snakes give birth to live young. The babies most likely dehydrated, or, if left unnoticed for too long, which is quite understandable if you weren't expecting a birth, could not find food. How many have you found? If this is continuous, you may be able to make preparations for more births. That is exciting, yet unfortunate, and I hope that if there are any more babies, they grow up to be some nice DeKay's.

Happy Herping.
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DAVE

1.0 Western green toad
1.1 green treefrogs
1.0 Florida blue garter snake
1.1 Oriental fire-bellied toads
1.0 American bullfrog
0.1 Spanish ribbed newt
0.0.1 Eastern ribbon snake
1.1 red-cheeked mud turtles
0.1 Dubia day gecko
1.0 Sonoran gopher snake
0.1 rough green snakes
1.1 giant African black millipedes
1.0 Okeetee corn snake
0.1 Albino African clawed frog
1.0 Kenyan sand boa
0.0.1 Argentine flame-bellied toadlet
0.0.1 African bullfrog
1.0 yellow * Everglades rat snake intergrade
1.1 Western hognose snakes
1.2 fire salamanders
1.1 scarlet kingsnakes
0.0.1 Argentine horned frog
1.1 Southern ringneck snakes
0.0.2 Western hooknose snakes
0.0.1 Florida brown snake
0.1.1 Northern brown snakes
0.0.2 Western/ Midwestern worm snake intergrades

I check daily and I'm sure that at least a handfull of my 110 students would have noticed. I think she has had them at night. The bodies are very emaciated and have substrate stuck too them. I'm pretty sure that it is probably not a hoax. There have only been two. This seems a small amount for a snake to have. Thanks for your imput.

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Jason