Black Rat Snake

[Bouncingsoul]

This is my first post so please bear with me.

I have just removed (for the 2nd time) a fair sized black rat snake from a friends kitchen, where judging by the shedded skins under the sink it had been living for some time. If my friend did not have an elderly aunt living with him he would have let it live there but alas, he did not want to cause any undue heart attacks...

So I now I have a 4'+ fat bodied black rat snake. I did a fair amount of reading on cages, substrate heat etc. so I think I'm good there.

She(?) is super friendly after only three days in captivity, she lets me handle her with no problems and even spent a few minutes watching TV with me on the couch!

Yesterday she ate a mouse (live). It took her about 1.5 minutes from strike to finish, and afterwords she was "pacing" in her cage like she was looking for more food.

Ok so now my point/questions...

How much and how often to feed her? Since she is wc will she ever eat frozen? And if so how can I make that happen?
Her tail also seems really blunt, it isn't a point at all, kind of looks like a really small 2nd head, could she have had some trauma or is this normal?

Thanks in advance, and please don't yell at me for keeping a wc snake.

[mcfreshdeli]

"fat bodied" + Ratsnake x breeding season + blunt tail= possibly gravid

my parnets have a gravid one in thier back yard. and my dad is scared to death of snakes. its gonna be funny watching him freak when they hatch and he has a but load of rat snakes in his yard.

one more thing. ANCHORS AWEIGH MY FRIEND

[TheLionsShare]

I'd just like to inform you (not yell at you) that if you are from ontario, it is illegal to keep black rat snakes... If not, good luck with your new pet:D.

[Crazycorn]

Keeping of WC's is fine and no one should yell at you for it. If they do they are ignorant and have nothing better to do. Really everyone has an opinion, lets just try and remember it is an OPINION nothing more, there is no reason there to get in an pissing contest over it. I always like to say "Thanks for your OPINION but I will do as I want to do". Either her tail has been lost or she is gravid. I would feed her once a week, 1-2 mice your preference. Best of luck with the new snake.

[Boakid]

The blunt tail is probably because of a retained tail tip in a shed skin. This cuts the blood supply off as it builds up and in the end the end of the tail drops off.

[Bouncingsoul]

Thanks for all the replies.

I'm from the US, and it is legal for me to have her.

So is there any chance she will ever eat frozen food?

And if she is gravid how might I be able to tell for sure and is there anything special she needs?

Thanks again.

[gonesnakee]

I have no idea what a blunt tail is supposed to have to do with being gravid LMAO I've bred lots of various Colubrids (many ratsnakes) & there is nothing remotely relevant about the end of the tail missing & being gravid LOL The tail is the same whether gravid or not. Will have a fat belly if gravid above the vent, but thats a pretty obvious sign, the tail below the vent is of no indication to being gravid or not. It most likely lost the end of its tail to a predator or an injury or as a shedding issue as mentioned above. Find someone qualified to sex it (probe) & that will tell you right away if its a male of course. WC snakes are frowned apon as pets because CBB (captive born & bred) stock is usually available & much healthier for starters & much easier to adapt to captivity as they were born into it. If you plan on keeping it you should make sure it doesn't have any external parasites (ticks/mites) & if it does treat them ASAP (see NIX treatment for snake mites, run a search of this site) Futhermore you should have a fecal done by a qualified Vet to check for internal parasites & treat as required. In the wild snakes can have all kinds of nastys inside & out, but they are kept "in check" because they are in the wild always moving around. When kept in captivity they are always in "close quarters" with them & will soon be "overrun" by them if not eliminated in the beginning & they will effect the overall health of the specimen & if left unchecked will lead to the specimens delcine & possibly even its death. Black Rats are also illegal in Alberta, but they are not native here as they are in Ontario. Anyhow make sure to check for parasites inside & out. In reguards to feeding weekly is good & 2-3 prey items of the same or slightly larger girth of the snake is a general rule of thumb & I would try to get it to eat either fresh killed or F/T prey. The F/T prey will have to be warmed up & it will have to be a tease feed as would fresh killed (tease fed that is) chances are being a Ratsnake it will accept "dead" prey as they usually have great appetities. (A dead mouse will never hurt your snake.) Good Luck with it & supercool it was living there in the house all that time, must be rodents around. Mark
P.S. not everyone supports the collecting of wild specimens for the other obvious reasons & usually those who do support it are the ones taking them from the wild, thus the laws in most provinces in Canada banning the collecting & keeping of native species to help stop poaching (thats what its called when you take one out of the wild where it is not legal too folks) & overcollection of them, which if not regulated can/will lead to their decline & possible even their existance in the wild. NUFF SAID! But thats just my opinion & that of all other conservationists fo course.

[gonesnakee]

I posted before you did again. If it is a gravid female she will need a nesting box to lay her eggs in. A smaller rubbermaid with damp spagnum moss works great. You will also have to read up on incubation & be ready if she? does lay, Cheers Mark

[thunder]

no one really answered your feeding questions, so i'll take a stab. yes, wc snakes, especially a hardy and non-picky obsoleta, who generally have a good feeding response, will eat dead prey no prob. i'd offer it one right away and see it it'll take it. if not, it don't think it will be hard. all of my wc snakes in the past eventually accepted dead rodents. as for how much you should be feeding it, one mouse is not really enough for a full grown obsoleta. like most colubrids, obsoleta have a faster metabolism than most boids. i would feed her a medium sized rat every 10 days. by medium, i mean a rat that i would pay $3 for, but you may not have the same prices wherever you get your rodents from, so just get one that is about one and half times the width of your snake at the thickest part. they can actually eat even more than that and stay healthy, especially if you provide them with a large enclosure with lots of climbing stuff, but it's not neccessary. reason i mentioned the climbing stuff, obsoleta make great display snakes as they are very active and interesting to watch. the health concerns that gonesnakee mentioned are very important: all wc snakes need to be checked for parasites. good luck! obsoleta rule!

[Bouncingsoul]

Thanks for all the great advice. If I can get hold of a camera I'll snap a few pics to share.

Thanks again.

[gonesnakee]

How many sheddings did you find BTW? You will have to let us know if your friends develop a rodent issue now that their "rodent patrol" is gone LOL Sounds like its been pretty domesicated already living at your friends house, just been taking care of itself (& all the rodents LOL). Mark

[SNAKE_GODDESS]

I havent done much with Black rat snakes because i just bought 2 and then the person turned around and released them on me.. i was so angry. i paid the person and everything.. i was so depressed..

[p8ntballer]

looks like every ones covered this subject lol
thats a nice black rat though