Coachwhip care?

[Monocled Guy]

I was at the Repticon show here in Columbia and I ended up getting a coachwhip that was said to be wild caught in Florida. I'm assuming it is just a standard Eastern Coachwhip. I've had him for a few days and I have offered him pinky mice that are small enough for him to eat and he refuses them every time. He is in a 40 gallon breeder with a basking area at 90 degrees and around 78 on the cool end.

I am considering offering him some green anoles from the pet store to see if he will eat those. He is nearly 3 feet long and very alert and defensive. He has a plastic igloo to hide in and I cover the front of his tank so he feels somewhat safer. Anyone have any other ideas about what I can do to make him happier and get him eating? I realize he is adjusting to new surrounding but I worry that he will get stressed and then malnourished from not eating then crash on me. Other than not eating for me he looks very healthy.

[DJC Reptiles]

Coachwhips have been known to be very hard to keep in captivity, they eat insects, amphibians, lizards, and some rodents in the wild. Be aware even if you do everything right, your snake may never get accustomed to captivity. Wild caught imports are generally very dehydrated and should be soaked prior to being placed in its enclosure. There should always be fresh water available as well. It may be your snake needs more time to acclimate to it's new enclosure. Coachwhips are very nervous snakes so they should not be held. Make sure to provide plenty of cover with plants, fake or real it doesn't matter. Hotspot should be 90°F, and ambient temperatures should be maintained at 80-83°F for day time, and 75-78°F for night. There should always be a place your snake can retreat to if it gets to hot. A cool hide of 75°F will suffice. Temperatures should also replicate seasons meaning, warmer temps in the summer, cooler temps in the winter. Coachwhips are very shy so they will most likely not eat with you watching them, it is best to leave a live pinky mouse near a hide it enjoys the most. Overtime you can get them feeding on scented frozen thawed mice. Letting a couple live anoles throughout it's habitat will give it an opportunity to hunt, the same should be done with crickets. What are the dimensions in the enclosure? What are humidity levels? How long has the snake been in captivity?

Hope this helps!
-DJC Reptiles

[Andy_G]

You've had him only for a few days and have already tried multiple feeding attempts?

[DJC Reptiles]

You've had him only for a few days and have already tried multiple feeding attempts?

I agree with Andy G, feeding should not be attempted for at least a week, just make sure your snake is properly hydrated. If they don't eat then, don't try again for at least 5 days.

[Monocled Guy]

It's in a 40 gallon breeder tank. The seller said it was caught in Florida a few weeks ago. He has a hide in there but I can put some fake plants in there as well. I have a few laying around from older setups.

Yes I've tried multiple feeding attempts. I placed a pinky mouse in with him each day for about 4-5 hours and he ignores them. I remove the mouse and try again the next day.

[DJC Reptiles]

Has the breeder you bought him from had any success in feeding?

[Andy_G]

Consider always waiting a week before bothering new acquisitions, especially nervous species of wild caught origin and only offer food every 5 to 7 days.

[Monocled Guy]

Yes the seller said it was eating for her. It was packaged up and taken to the expo and put on display and then taken home by me so it is almost certainly stressed and I'm most likely expecting too much too fast from the poor thing. It does have a full water dish but I did not soak it before placing it in it's enclosure. Do you think I should leave it be at this point or try to give it a soak?

[DJC Reptiles]

Yes the seller said it was eating for her. It was packaged up and taken to the expo and put on display and then taken home by me so it is almost certainly stressed and I'm most likely expecting too much too fast from the poor thing. It does have a full water dish but I did not soak it before placing it in it's enclosure. Do you think I should leave it be at this point or try to give it a soak?

If what the seller is saying is true then yes give it a 15 minute soak, however, don't attempt feeding for at least 5 days after.

[dannybgoode]

I know a couple of incredibly experienced coach whip keepers here in the UK. I'll ping one of them a message and see if they can help.

[dannybgoode]

From the chap who keeps a number of coach whips...

---
Hi! No of course I don't mind.

What I have found with them is that they like very high heat over a localised basking spot - surface temps under the spotlight in the vivs for mine gets to 55c or so (wild specimens have been recorded on 70c surface temps).

Obviously having temps that high requires a very large cage as a gradient is required, the cool side of my cages goes down to about 25c, with ambients at the warm end of 35c or so.

In all honesty all the specimens I have kept (I have eight at the moment) were very easy to acclimate and get feeding. They don't take dropped food, only from tongs - they seem to require movement for best results. This can be tricky if they are still scared of the keeper, although if you can elicit a strike and they bite the prey, they tend to hang on.

They lose weight FAST so need a lot of feeding, especially if kept at the high temperatures they like.

My advice is simply a large, wooden viv (or any viv that has blocked sides) in a room with zero traffic (they are intensely aware of what goes on outside their enclosure so if they are in a noisy or busy house, they may simply stress and never eat). Plenty of deep burrows or places to hide.

They like lots of UV also.
---

Chap says he's happy for you to PM him on Facebook if you want any further help. Can pass on his details of you're interested...

[Monocled Guy]

Ok thank you so much for that.

[TRD]

I guess I know who that is... that guy has some incredible coachwhips. I'm sure he can help out getting yours to acclimatize fine and grow up to be an pure ******* like they usually are :)

[Monocled Guy]

I hope it does. It's such an interesting snake.

[dannybgoode]

I guess I know who that is... that guy has some incredible coachwhips. I'm sure he can help out getting yours to acclimatize fine and grow up to be an pure ******* like they usually are :)

Yes you do :). He's also sent me a billion photos to share. I'll select a few and get them uploaded

[SerpentineDream]

I hope it does. It's such an interesting snake.

The view of the inside of their mouths as they lunge to bite your face is very interesting too. :yes:

I hope she settles in for you. They are difficult to keep in captivity, particularly WC specimens. Good luck.

[Monocled Guy]

The view of the inside of their mouths as they lunge to bite your face is very interesting too. :yes:

I hope she settles in for you. They are difficult to keep in captivity, particularly WC specimens. Good luck.

Thanks. Yeah I soaked the snake in a plastic tub yesterday. It did go for my face and hands when I got him out (not sure if it actually is male or female). I soaked it and watch it drink. At least some positive news there.