Black rat snakes as pets?

[brandonh]

i come across these sometimes in the wild and i always wonder how well they would do as pets ? :confused:

Thanks

[SSSSnakes]

They are normally aggressive at first but will settle down after a while. Be prepared to be bit a few times. Although wild caught normally have parasites and do not survive very well in captivity. Get yourself a captive bred one.

[brandonh]

thanks for the info :) i will see if i can find a cb for sale.

[youngster]

Saw these earlier today.
kingsnake.com Classifieds: 1.5 Yr Old Male Black Ratsnake (http://market.kingsnake.com/detail.php?cat=60&de=884269)
kingsnake.com Classifieds: Hatchling Black Ratsnakes (http://market.kingsnake.com/detail.php?cat=60&de=855234)

[infernalis]

If not, Panacure is a great dewormer for snakes. readily available at any vet, commonly used on dogs.

[SSSSnakes]

If not, Panacure is a great dewormer for snakes. readily available at any vet, commonly used on dogs.

It can also be ordered online. Some vets will not sell it to you unless they see the snake and then you have to pay a vet visit.

[brandonh]

thanks for the 2 links saved great deal of searching


thanks for the dewormer tip also how is the Panacure used?

[SSSSnakes]

thanks for the 2 links saved great deal of searching


thanks for the dewormer tip also how is the Panacure used?

Orally. Amount dosed according to body weight.

[brandonh]

ok cool, thanks for that

[Will0W783]

Rat snakes are cool as pets- they are active and curious snakes, but definitely get a captive bred one. Wild-caught snakes require parasite treatment and acclimation, which is not easy if you're not experienced.

[Shmoges]

Yeah I love The new Lucy's we got.

[brandonh]

Yeah I love The new Lucy's we got.

can i see pics of the lucy's?:D


dose the activeness and curiousness run in the rat snake family or just black rats?

[infernalis]

can i see pics of the lucy's?:D


dose the activeness and curiousness run in the rat snake family or just black rats?

Not really sure.. want an all black snake that is highly active, intelligent, inquisitive and always watching, Black Racers are awesome for that.

[youngster]

And MBKs (Mexican Black Kings). Though I like black racers waaaay more :)
And yeah lots of rat snakes are pretty crazy like that. :)

[snake man12]

Black rats are in the same genus as corns,they might be good

[brandonh]

black racers do sound like they are pretty awesome pets

[youngster]

Black rats are in the same genus as corns,they might be good

That's not necessarily true. King rats are in the same genus as well and they are nasty little buggers :P

black racers do sound like they are pretty awesome pets

I'm not sure petwise but lemme tell you, they are AMAZING animals.

[stephanbakir]

I always had fun with red tailed green rats, or whatever they are called, worked with em over a weekend and they were a handful.

[brandonh]

I always had fun with red tailed green rats, or whatever they are called, worked with em over a weekend and they were a handful.

those are beautiful snakes. i love the colors of them

[Coffee Black]

Used to see a tons of these at Mills Mansion and Norrie Point in Dutchess county when I lived there. Norrie point is filled with them. There was one that was a good 5' + that I used the see on a trail near the Hudson River there. I miss those trails :P

[SSSSnakes]

Racers and MKB are cool, but Black Rats get a lot bigger.

[Coffee Black]

Yeah the ones I found were fairly bulky. Maybe close to an inch and a half wide. Maybe wider. The big ones anyway. Awesome animals.

[brandonh]

Used to see a tons of these at Mills Mansion and Norrie Point in Dutchess county when I lived there. Norrie point is filled with them. There was one that was a good 5' + that I used the see on a trail near the Hudson River there. I miss those trails :P

what kind of habitat do you normally find them in?

[Coffee Black]

Woods. There was an old shack/shed type thing in the trails I would see them around a lot. Lots in trees too.

[brandonh]

thanks for the help.

[infernalis]

black racers do sound like they are pretty awesome pets

They make awesome observation only display animals.

My Toby is raised by me from birth, My hands touched his skin once, when he was delivered to me.

I opened the deli cup and the little monster flew right out and nailed me, so his first "hello" to me was a racer bite on my hand.

We get along wonderfully, I take good care of him, but he's a hands off kind of snake.

I love the way he behaves when Chomper is out wandering around, Chomper gets close to Toby's cage and that racer heads straight at him to go investigate.

[snake man12]

I found two black rat snakes in a retention basin,I often see kids there so I relocated them. One was about 5 feet other around 3 and a half

[youngster]

Wayne you're making me want a black racer more and more everyday! But fish and game won't let me :no:

[knox]

Black Rats are GREAT Snakes!

Black Racers will go out of their way to bite you it seems. I have more bites by black racers than all other snakes combined.

[kernel]

Are yellow bellied racers more laid back cause I found one in my yard(didn't keep it) and it was as tame as my corns?

[knox]

I have zero experience with Yellow Bellied Racers.

[Shmoges]

http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af309/Shmoges/Lucys/IMG_0005.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af309/Shmoges/Lucys/IMG_0006.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af309/Shmoges/Lucys/IMG_0007.jpg
http://i1018.photobucket.com/albums/af309/Shmoges/Lucys/IMG_0008.jpg

[brandonh]

Black Racers will go out of their way to bite you it seems. I have more bites by black racers than all other snakes combined.

i have encountered black racers in the wild and it dose seem they do come right at you.

i find this talk about black racers as pets very interesting.
i want to here more about it

as for Yellow Bellied Racers i have no idea i never seen one.
im not sure they even live in my area

your lucy's are very beautiful
thank you for your pics!

[infernalis]

Toby... he's cool

http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/general-colubrid-forum/84709-new-black-racer-pics.html

http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/general-colubrid-forum/82885-black-racer-baby-florida.html

http://www.thamfriends.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=69&pictureid=1230

[alessia55]

Wayne that photo of Toby is adorable

[millertime89]

those red tailed green rat snakes are awesome looking

[knox]

They are definitely interesting snakes! I love to see them cruising around. Of course, it's hard not to pick up any snake I see, so I always get tagged by the racers.

Great pics in that other thread!

[gonesnakee]

Coolest big black snakes hands down are Eastern Indigos, the Crown Jewels of North American Colubrids ;) Nuff Said Mark

[FangsAnarchy]

I love my black rat snake. He was wild caught/rescued but has adjusted well. He eats better than all of my captive bred snakes and has never been agressive when properly supported. He scares my fiance a little since he is still new to snakes but they are warming up to each other. One of my faves to be honest. I heard racers were mean but the person who told me that also asked if I wanted a towel to ride my horse with so... But Draco is a great snake I would love to get another some day.

[infernalis]

My black racer is strictly a hands off kind of guy. He even thumps his head into the glass trying to strike at us from within the cage.

Makes me love him even more.

[FangsAnarchy]

Aww, I don't know if I would be ok with having something I couldn't handle. Your racer is very cute though.