Baby king snake

[Yellow66]

Hello, I never had a snake, but today I found a baby king snake.
How do I take care of it?
Thanks for any advice.

[andytheboa]

go to the king snake forum on this page.

[marisa]

Yellow66-

Yeah you accidently posted in the Boa forum. There is a Kingsnake forum specifically for all king species here under "Lampropeltis - King and Milksnake Discussion"

As for how to care for this new snake, I suggest letting it go first of all. You can buy captive bred specimens that are cleaner health wise, with a large variety of patterns and morphs available as well for you to pick from. Your newly caught snake probably most definitly has parasites, and could give you some headache for feeding, although it shouldn't be that big of a deal.

If you want to keep it, then tell us the species or at least a general description of its color and pattern so we can better help you with care details.

Marisa

[BoidKeeper]

Yup let it go and go buy a snake. You could actually be breaking a law. Bad idea to take a snake from the wild where it knew how to take care of its self and take it into captivity where you don't know how to take care of it.
Trevor

[concept3]

again another post where someone asked for help and didnt get any.......... I think he should let it go but he asked a question and no one answered it. I dont work with these snakes so I have no advice to give, but hopefully someone will give him answers

[marisa]

Excuse me....I MOST CERTAINTLY did answer it. And frankly if you cannot comprehend posts by me, or others make, stop reading them.

I purposefully went out of my way to not only ask for more details, but gave him a GOOD idea about why its just less of a pain in the *** to buy CB!

Marisa

[crimsonking]

Yellow66, I believe it is unlawful to keep an indigenous colubrid snake in GA., but I'm unsure. I am pretty sure it is not legal to buy/sell them. You might try a local herp society and/or your local Game Commission for legal answers.
Let us know what you find out.
If it's legal to keep a king, (pics would help ID it for certain) then we sure could try and help out.
If not, you may have to resort to releasing it very near where it was found. In some states even THAT is illegal!
Good luck.
In the meantime, try and find a few books to read up on their care as well.
I suggest Kingsnakes and Milksnakes (Markel)
Most here can answer any husbandry questions you might have.
A set up will depend on the species, size, and condition of the animal as will it's diet.
Make sure he has clean water to drink now.
*Edit*
after reviewing my copy of A Field Guide to Reptiles and the Law (Levell) ppg.85-87-- it seems that GA considers any native non-venomous snake possession illegal without permit.**
However my copy is dated 1997* so maybe the laws/interpretation of the GA Annoted code have changed.
:Mark

[Kevin McRae]

Keeping an native snake in Georgia..........oh yah thats gotta be illegal......

[Vanan]

Depending on the subspecies of your king (and size) you may need to find a source for small lizards as food items.

[munchy]

Originally posted by concept3
again another post where someone asked for help and didnt get any.......... I think he should let it go but he asked a question and no one answered it. I dont work with these snakes so I have no advice to give, but hopefully someone will give him answers
lol can you even read?

either way my suggestion to you would be to let the snake go where you found it and possibly look up some local breeders and buy a captive bred snake. youll have less problems with CB and also you can pick exactly which one you want. do a search on kingsnakes and you should be able to find many detailed care sheets. good luck.;)

[BoidKeeper]

Stay on topic people. If this turns into a flame fest it will be closed and warnings will be sent. Repeat offenders will be banned. There is going to be a complete and total crack down on flaming here at ssnakess.com.
Peace,
Trevor

[crimsonking]

Just trying to give a heads up on the laws. I talked with someone in the know and he informs me that keeping native non venomous in GA is illegal, but you may possess any native hot you want!
In other words, native non ven and non-native venomous is illegal, but (gasp!) keeping native venomous and non native, non venomous is legal.
What a crock huh?
I don't think the Game and Fish or whatever is out looking for someone who keeps a snake he finds, but those who may try and capitalize on the commercial aspects.
All that said, keeping most kings is relatively easy.
Clean, safe, secure housing. Clean water. Temps in the mid 70'sF.
Feed appropriate sized food items (small rodents or their pinks are preferable). Ask specific questions when you need to.
:Mark

[BoidKeeper]

Mark as always your post are very informative!
Cheers,
Trevor