Why corns?
Corn snakes have an excellent and well deserved reputation as perfect beginners snakes. They are docile, easily tamed, good feeders and breeders, and come in a wide array of colours and patterns, known as morphs. Adults can reach anywhere in the region of 3-6 feet in length, though stay slender, so are easy for keepers of all ages to interact with- children with adult supervision of course! Buying a snake is a big commitment, as they can live well in excess of 20 years, so choose carefully, and above all else, do your research. Having decided to get a corn snake, what next?
Private breeder or shop bought snake?
I would always advise buying your snake from a private breeder or keeper rather than a shop. Now, there are plenty of great shops out there, but prices are much higher and the information you receive about the snake sometimes isn't great. Private breeders often provide full records with young or hatchling corns, which will provide a good starting block for you to work from. Shop bought animals can also suffer from mites, which are irritating and hard to get rid of, whereas private breeders, with much less turnover of stock, don't have this problem very often.
What age?
The age of your corn snake can be an important factor in determining how well it will fit into your life. Older snakes, from a year up, are generally quieter/slower to handle and more established in their feeding habits. Adults may also have been bred from, so the sex can be guaranteed. Hatchlings are very quick and can be nippy- bites don't hurt, but can be startling in their speed. Expect to pay more for an adult, especially a proven breeder or female, and less for a young hatchling. Of course, part of the fun of owning any pet is watching your animal grow and develop, and for this reason, young snakes are a more popular choice.
Male or female?
In my opinion, there is very little difference when it comes to gender with corn snakes. Females sometimes get a little bigger, in order to lay eggs, but there is no real difference in nature, agression, size, ease of handling or feeding habits. During the summer months, some males may go off their food due to the breeding season, and this may worry some keepers, but as long as your snake is of a healthy size and weight it's normally nothing to worry about. Females can produce slugs (infertile eggs) even though they have never been near a male, and this can sometimes cause complications which are costly and stressful to fix. However, in some morphs the sex of the snake can affect the colour- for example, lavenders. Do your research and speak to other keepers/breeders if you think this might affect your decision.
Obviously, if you want to try your hand at breeding then you will need one of each sex!
Housing your snake.
Having found your perfect snake, the next thing you need to do is set up its enclosure. Resist the temptation to buy the snake and its home at the same time- temperatures can take a while to get stable and the fluctuations whilst setting up can cause stress.
Young snakes do best in tubs or RUB's (Really Useful Boxes)- small hatchlings can be housed in plastic takeaway containers or tubs with tightly fitted lids. RUB's can have gaps around the edge that small snakes can squeeze out of, so bear this in mind when buying. Vivariums are suitable for sub-adult or adult animals, but young or small snakes have been known to squeeze through the gap between the glass sliding doors. Some snakes also feel stressed in big enclosures and may go off their feeds- this can be lessened by providing plenty of cover.
If your vivarium has vents in the back, ensure these are pushed in from the inside of the viv, so your snake cannot push them back out- seal them in with a hot glue gun or aquarium sealant and leave at least 48 hours for the fumes to dissipate. A door lock or rubber wedge is advisable for glass vivarium doors also- this will help prevent escapes!
Having chosen your snakes house you now need to heat it. There are 4 main options-
- Heat mats, which go underneath a faun/tub/RUB and inside a wooden vivarium. Should only take up 1/3rd to 1/2 the floorspace.
- Heat bulbs, which provide overhead heat. Ceramics are best as they do not give off light which may disturb your snake. MUST have a guard. Vivariums only.
- Reptile radiators. Pricey but very effective and don't stick out as much as a bulb and guard. Radiators must also be guarded. Vivariums only.
- Heat cabling, most often used in racking systems for multiple snakes.
I personally use heat mats in my wooden vivs and heat cabling for my rack systems.
Please note- ALL HEAT SOURCES MUST BE ATTACHED TO A THERMOSTAT OR SERIOUS INJURY AND DEATH, AS WELL AS HOUSE FIRES, MAY OCCUR.
The type of thermostat you need may vary depending on which heat source you go for. Mats are fine with a simple On/Off stat, whereas bulbs require a dimmer stat, and cable is best with a pulse stat. For extra accuracy, mats can be used in conjunction with a pulse stat, but I have never had an issue with an On/Off once set up properly.
Monitor your temperatures with a good quality digital thermometer and/or an infra-red heat gun for spot checks. Don't trust the plastic dial thermometers you often get in starter kits- they are notoriously inaccurate.
Both the thermostat and thermometer probes must be correctly positioned to avoid over/under heating of your reptiles enclosure. For mats and cable, place the probes where the snake is likely to be lying, and either weigh them down, glue them down with a hot glue gun, or seal them down with aquarium sealant. When using sealant or glue, always allow time for the fumes to dissipate before introducing your snake. When using a bulb or radiator, which provide ambient air heat, the probes should be slightly off the floor- a few inches will do. Again, secure probes well.
Temperatures for corns should be around 27-30c in the warm end- room temperature for the cool end is usually fine, as long as you don't live in a barn.
The word substrate just means the floor covering for the enclosure. It can be as cheap and simple as newspaper or kitchen towel, or as "posh" as live grass and leaf litter. Obviously live substrates are hard to maintain and can lead to the introduction of parasites. For hatchlings and youngsters, paper towel is often most convenient, whereas with adults I would recommend Lignocel (what I use) aspen, Megazorb, Hemcore or a similar product which allows tunneling- corns love to burrow. Do not use substrates with pine or cedar in them, as these can be harmful to snakes.
Provide at least one hide in each end big enough for your snake to totally fit into. Many snakes like to feel squeezed into their hides though, so don't go over board on providing spacious ones. Cereal boxes, yogurt pots, flower pots, specialist reptile caves and toilet roll tubes can all be used very effectively.
Plastic plants are far easier to look after than live ones, and can be removed for cleaning whenever you like. Dunelm Mill have a very good range of fake plants, which are a lot cheaper than reptile brands.
A water bowl big enough for your snake to soak in is nice, although not essential, and obviously this depends on the size of the enclosure. Ceramic or glass dishes from somewhere like Tesco are perfect, heavy enough not to get tipped over but easy to clean, and best of all, very reasonably priced. I have found that reptile brand water bowls develop a slimy scum after just a few days, and discolour easily.
Collecting your new snake and introducing it to your home.
Once your snakes home is set up and the temperatures are stable then you can collect your snake- exciting! Many breeders will provide a tub for young snakes to travel in, though adults may need one provided by the buyer due to the size and cost. Always make sure your travelling tub is totally secure- I have had a snake escaped from a Sellotaped up box before into my car, which didn't reappear for 3 weeks; not fun! Drive carefully and make sure your snake isn't flung around in its tub- it is always a good idea to take a friend who can hold the snake on their lap on the way home. Most snakes will be fine without heating for journeys from around most of the UK (most of mine have travelled either to or from Scotland at some point).
Once home, introduce your new snake to its home. Either place it in yourself, or if you are nervous (or the snake is!) then take the lid off the tub and place it into the enclosure so it can come out in its own time. If the snake is looking particularly skittish or jumpy then it's advisable to remove the lid of the travelling tub whilst it's inside the enclosure, just in case.
Once inside, shut the doors or put the lid on, and then try to leave the snake alone to settle in. 7 days is great, but of course the choice is yours. Your snake needs to get used to the new smells and size of it's home, and this can unsettle them slightly to begin with. Some keepers have had success with the "Sock Trick", whereupon a worn sock (not too worn....) is placed inside the enclosure with the snake so the snake can become used to your scent. Personally I have never used this trick, but I can't see that it could do any harm, unless you have really stinky feet, so it is worth a go if you want a nice calm snake. Keep pets and children away from the snakes home so it isn't disturbed without need, and change the water every other day.
Feeding your snake.
After the 7 days is up, I like to then immediately try feeding any new snake. Hopefully your breeder or shop will have told you what size food your snake is eating and you will have some in the freezer, ready to go. I always feed defrost, never live, and wouldn't recommend anyone else tries live unless absolutely necessary- most corns will happily take defrosted prey items. I defrost the snakes food naturally, at room temperature, and feed them dry, inside the snakes enclosure. Do not defrost prey in boiling water or the microwave, the results are disgusting. Its always a good idea to offer your snake its food with long tongs to avoid nipped fingers and accidental injury, either to yourself or the snake. Some snakes will strike feed, others will only take food if it is placed on the floor of their tub and left alone.
Should I feed my snake in a separate tub?
The simple answer is- it's your choice.
Many keepers will tell you never to feed in the snakes enclosure because it will associate your hand with food, and start to bite you. I personally think this is nonsense and feed all mine in their vivs/tubs with never a bite to be had. Surely if the snake associates your hand with food as a result of feeding in it's home, then it would associate it's feeding tub with food as a result of being fed out of the viv, and therefore be just as likely to bite?!
If you want to feed in the viv it's advisable to feed dry prey items and feed off of a paper towel or sheet of paper to avoid substrate ingestion. If you are feeding in a tub then leave the snake at least 30 minutes after it's finished eating before you pick it up to put it back- and avoid the bump!!
How often should I feed my snake?
This depends on the age of the snake and the size of the prey item being fed. Young snakes and hatchlings feed more often than adults. A general guide is-
- Pinkies- every 5 days
- Double pinkies or fuzzies- every 7 days
- Smalls- every 7 to 10 days
- Mediums- every 10 days
- Larges- every 10 to 14 days
- X-large- every 14 to 21 days
I'm not big on set feeding schedules, so mine get fed when I decide to feed them, with the exception of hatchlings of course. This keeps the snakes active and encourages them to engage in "hunting" behaviour. The above guide will of course vary according to your snakes age, body condition, whether it is breeding or not, or if it has laid eggs.
Corns get fat very easily- do not over feed to make your corn grow faster or to get it to breeding size more quickly.
Corns can also be fed rats and chicks depending on size of course, but these should be fed less often than mice. Keep an eye on your snakes weight to ensure it doesn't become fat.
Shedding.
All snakes shed their skin as they grow during a process called Ecdysis. The time between sheds will become greater as the snake gets older, and so stops growing so quickly. Some snakes will appreciate the addition of a moist hide around the time of shedding, but room humidity is usually fine for them. Generally, the shedding process goes something like this-
- The snakes skin and eyes will become cloudy and dull, known as in "blue". This is more noticeable on darker snakes. Due to the snakes vision being impaired they may become irritable, snappy or go off their food.
- In about a week or so, the skin and eyes will clear and the snake will look like it has shed- this is the milky fluid, produced to aid the shedding of the old skin, being reabsorbed.
- A few days after the skin and eyes clear, the snake will shed. Check that the eye-caps and tail tip are on the shed, not still in the snake. Stuck shed can be gently removed with warm water and cotton buds, or by placing the snake into a damp pillowcase with a rock or other rough object to scrape on. Stuck shed can result in lack of blood flow, and tissue necrosis, so it's important to check for this.
I hope this helps some of you, I will be adding health and breeding sections shortly.
