Help !

[sslither]

Hi all !

I’m new here so I’m not quite too sure how everything works just yet here on the forum but I will try my best. I guess I will just get right to the point of why I decided to join this forum.

I came across a tank which was going to be thrown away. I asked if I would be able to buy it since it was in too good of shape to just go to waste in the trash. I took it home and gave it a good wash, now I am yet to determine what to do with it. I could either consider get new pet or just sell it and use the money for something else. I have been doing some research on what kinds of nonaquatic animals are suitable to live in the size of tank I have, especially at full grown since I don’t have too too much space at the moment. I would love to give an animal a new home. I already own a crested gecko and wouldn’t mind adding another reptile to the animal crew.

I grew up around snakes in the wild and occasionally caught them. Don’t worry, we released them shortly after. I wouldn’t mind owning a snake, my only issue is that I don’t really feel comfortable feeding mice or rats, for personal reasons. No, I am not afraid of either ones. I did some research and read that there are some snakes that don’t require a diet of mice or rats and I was wanting to learn more about those ones.

I believe the tank is approximately 40 gallons. I will of course do extensive research on whichever animal I consider getting but I just want to know which ones may be suitable beforehand so I can narrow down the search a bit more. I am also open to getting another sort of animal that would live happily in such a tank if anyone has better suggestions. I wouldn’t be against handling the reptile but I totally understand if they are more of a viewing kind of pet.

I just want to warn you all in advance that if I am able to proceed with getting a new addition, I will most likely ask a lot of questions and it may get annoying at times. I apologize in advance but I promise you that it is just because I want to know all I can before even considering taking a new animal home.

That’s really all I can think of off the top of my head at the moment but if I think of anything else, I will be sure to update this thread. Thank you in advance :)

sslither

[chairman]

A 40 gallon tank leaves you with a lot of options.

In the US we have a snake food product called Reptilinks. They are essentially sausages made from mouse, rat, etc. I don't know if they ship to Canada or if there is a Canadian company that sells a similar product. Such a product may make snake ownership easier for you. It would open up your options to traditional rodent eating snakes without having to feed something that still looks like a rodent.

Snakes that do not eat rodents will usually eat lizards, frogs, fish, eggs, snails, or insects. Most are require more advanced care. Most are also only available as wild caught so may come with health issues and require a lot of patience to get to tolerate handling.

Of insect eaters, the most common that I am aware of rough and smooth green snakes. They are slender arboreal snakes that do not usually like being held. The snakes typically eat dusted crickets or roaches.

Snail eating snakes are generally very specialized eaters and can be exceptionally difficult to find the right kind of snail to feed.

Egg eaters can be neat if you have a steady supply of quail eggs available.

Lizard eating snakes tend to include a variety of vine snakes. I think that a lot of them are technically venomous, so local laws may prohibit them. Vine snakes are also a lot like green snakes in that they don't like handling.

Several species of garter snakes can be fed fish and frogs. You need to have access to a supply of healthy fish, however. You can't just feed gold fish or rosy red minnows or the snakes will suffer from thiamine deficiency and die. You can research thiaminase free fish for feeding garter snakes.

Other fish eaters include elephant trunk snakes and tentacle snakes. They are, however, aquatic snakes, so you'd need a tank capable of holding water with a secure lid.

I'm not sure how hopefully this has been, but at least it gives you some options to look at for research.