Lookin for some learnin.

[albertagirl]

Hi! I come bearing gifts. Just kidding, I come bearing questions. But we can get to those later.
I've had snakes for 2 years now, I currently have 5 corn snakes, a california king snake, an african house snake, and a tricolor hognose. As you can see, I'm a colubrid fan, but also hope to get one or two carpet pythons at some point.

I definitely want a couple more, but I'm having trouble deciding what's next, so I come to you for educated advice.

I'm guessing pictures are always appreciated, so here are a few of mine!
Here are the corn snakes:

Ultramel anery - Ripley
jan 2016 small 4.jpg

Cinder - Relic
april 2016 small 1.jpg

Fire - Raven
jan 2016 3 small.jpg

Ghost stripe - Meridian
jan 2016 small 6.jpg

Opal - Solace
jan 2016 small 2.jpg

[macandchz]

welcome! your snakes are really beautiful. how about adding a ball python for variety? of course, i'll always say that!

[Charis]

Hello and welcome!

(I'm Tavia on CS, Charis everywhere else.)

[Rockydaddy2016]

Hi mate if you want something different why not try a royal python they stay small an come in come amazing morphs if that is what u r thinking of. Some boas stay rather small but get big enough to be impressive an yet stay handable
What morphs do u have in corns snakes?

[EL Ziggy]

Welcome and best wishes AG. Very nice critters you have there. I'm a big colubrid fan too but I have to admit that the carpets have taken over in my collection. They're great display snakes and lots of fun to keep. You can't go wrong with a carpet IMO.

[Tiny Boidae]

Welcome to the board! I've been a boid person for years until I got my hands on a Baird's Rat Snake recently, and I've definitely developed an affinity to them (just much more cage active and personable in my experience), but you do you! I can't wait to see more from you- those corns are stunning.

[albertagirl]

Thanks everyone! I was going to do a second post with the rest of my snakes, but since that was my first post ever I guess I needed to wait for it to be approved first? Not sure.

As for my next snake, I'd like to find a snake that gets a little bigger/thicker than a corn snake (but NOT a ball python, sorry guys) while still having relatively easy husbandry and a manageable temperament. Other than a black milk snake, which is definitely on the wishlist, but next to impossible to find in Canada, I've looked at:

-GOPHER SNAKES, these look awesome, but the information out there on them is spotty and conflicting. I'd love to hear your experiences on size and temperament. Sources I've found say 2.5 to 7 feet. That's quite the spread. They also say everything from good beginner snake to horrible beginner snake. I've only had snakes for 2 years, so I'd call myself a novice at best. Nevertheless, these are currently the leading option I think.

-RAINBOW BOAS, husbandry looks high maintenance.
-BROOKS/FLORIDA KINGS, these look cool but I'm not convinced they get much bigger than corn snakes on average. Can anyone show me a comparison?
-TEXAS RAT SNAKES, these appear to get longer, but do they get any thicker than corns? Also, temperament is apparently a concern?

Any and all opinions are appreciated!! I've done a ton of research, but there's nothing like talking to people who have/love them! Thanks!!

Anyway, here are my others snakes:

Desert phase california king snake - Cipher
jan 2016 small 2.jpg

Cape african house snake - Eve
eve 325.jpg

eve 540.jpg

Tricolored hognose - Mercury
IMG_5727.jpg

Jan 2016 small 1.jpg

[Albert Clark]

Welcome and you don't seem to be a novice! Great collection and above all else you're reptile nation personell.

[albertagirl]

Originally Posted by Charis

Hello and welcome!

(I'm Tavia on CS, Charis everywhere else.)

Hi! I thought I recognized your suboc there... and your house snakes on facebook. I swear I'm not stalking you! I'm just looking for somewhere I don't feel so guilty focusing on non-corns. Hahaha

Originally Posted by macandchz

welcome! your snakes are really beautiful. how about adding a ball python for variety? of course, i'll always say that!

Originally Posted by Rockydaddy2016

Hi mate if you want something different why not try a royal python they stay small an come in come amazing morphs if that is what u r thinking of. Some boas stay rather small but get big enough to be impressive an yet stay handable
What morphs do u have in corns snakes?

I have cinder, ultramel anery, fire, ghost, and opal. I don't know why but I have no love for the ball pythons. I know, I know, everybody loves them! They just don't do it for me. *shrug*

Originally Posted by EL Ziggy

Welcome and best wishes AG. Very nice critters you have there. I'm a big colubrid fan too but I have to admit that the carpets have taken over in my collection. They're great display snakes and lots of fun to keep. You can't go wrong with a carpet IMO.

Carpets are definitely something I've always wanted. They are in the future plans for sure!

Originally Posted by Tiny Boidae

Welcome to the board! I've been a boid person for years until I got my hands on a Baird's Rat Snake recently, and I've definitely developed an affinity to them (just much more cage active and personable in my experience), but you do you! I can't wait to see more from you- those corns are stunning.

I've noticed with my king that having a cage active snake is really fun. I have a bunch of snakes now that will all be within a relatively similar size bracket and I'd like to go a little bigger. I've not researched Baird's rats yet, what size do they mature at?

[Charis]

Baird's rats are awesome! They are on my wish list as well but for down the road.

I hear you, corns are my first love and I enjoy the other forum, but with 16 other species, really need this forum to talk about/get advice on keeping the others!

[Tiny Boidae]

They're generally around the size of a corn snake, although I've heard they get a tad bit longer but a tad bit thinner, but I don't have a corn snake to compare my juvenile to so that's complete speculation. They're pretty mild mannered and curious, but you just can't compare their colors to that of any North American Rat Snake, not even the Corn Snake. Gorgeous things, and they're slowly gaining traction in the hobby. Sunshine Serpents, where I got my boy at, has great representative pictures of these animals.

Loma Alta Baird's Rat Snake Elaphe bairdi

They won't get bigger like you want, but if you ever get another snake after this one... well you know what to get

Edit: something to keep in mind, something that I've personally seen that I hadn't read about, is that they're not *quite* as hardy as corn snakes (even though they get compared left and right to them). I was taking my Baird's to the vet to treat an RI, and there was actually a guy next to me with an adult female that also had an RI when the temps dropped a few degrees when he was trying to brumate her. I just thought to warn you to be careful about that if you ever do get your paws on one.

[albertagirl]

Originally Posted by Tiny Boidae

They're generally around the size of a corn snake, although I've heard they get a tad bit longer but a tad bit thinner, but I don't have a corn snake to compare my juvenile to so that's complete speculation. They're pretty mild mannered and curious, but you just can't compare their colors to that of any North American Rat Snake, not even the Corn Snake. Gorgeous things, and they're slowly gaining traction in the hobby. Sunshine Serpents, where I got my boy at, has great representative pictures of these animals.

They won't get bigger like you want, but if you ever get another snake after this one... well you know what to get

Edit: something to keep in mind, something that I've personally seen that I hadn't read about, is that they're not *quite* as hardy as corn snakes (even though they get compared left and right to them). I was taking my Baird's to the vet to treat an RI, and there was actually a guy next to me with an adult female that also had an RI when the temps dropped a few degrees when he was trying to brumate her. I just thought to warn you to be careful about that if you ever do get your paws on one.

Thanks! They do look amazing, I will keep them on my radar. And this is what I'm talking about, exactly. The things you don't find on a care sheet, but that owners discover.

[EL Ziggy]

You have a gorgeous collection AG. The Cal King, Fire, and Ghost Striped Corn are some real stunners. If carpets aren't at the top of the list I'd highly recommend a gopher/bull snake. My female bull snake will be 3 in October and she's already pushing 7ft. My 2 yo male is a little over 5ft but not as girthy as the girl. I think they're the perfect colubrid. Bigger than my kings, beasts at feeding time, good temperaments, and the husbandry is a breeze. There's lots of nice morphs too. I don't keep rat snakes but I've always wanted one of those Texas Leucistic Rat snakes. They're beautiful but I've heard they can be pretty fiesty too.

[albertagirl]

Originally Posted by EL Ziggy

You have a gorgeous collection AG. The Cal King, Fire, and Ghost Striped Corn are some real stunners. If carpets aren't at the top of the list I'd highly recommend a gopher/bull snake. My female bull snake will be 3 in October and she's already pushing 7ft. My 2 yo male is a little over 5ft but not as girthy as the girl. I think they're the perfect colubrid. Bigger than my kings, beasts at feeding time, good temperaments, and the husbandry is a breeze. There's lots of nice morphs too. I don't keep rat snakes but I've always wanted one of those Texas Leucistic Rat snakes. They're beautiful but I've heard they can be pretty fiesty too.

Thank you! I can't wait to see everyone else's pictures too.
Carpets are high up there but not for this year. I still can't decide what subspecies/morph I want, and until I decide I can't buy. They're not quite as "space friendly" as corns, I can't have 5! But I'm really looking at Bredli or diamondxjungle. It's hard to find stuff without jag in it, it seems.

Wow, 7 feet! What do you feed her? What size cage do you keep her in? I don't have room for cages bigger than 4'x2', and definitely don't want to be feeding anything bigger than rats! I also have a tiny 6 pound dog that I don't want to end up as anybody's lunch.

[EL Ziggy]

AG- I keep my bulls in AP T8s (4x2x1) and it's just the right size. She eats a large rat, and sometimes a chick, every 10-14 days. I haven't found any xs rabbits for her yet. She's a total sweetheart too. She hissed at me and tagged me a time or two as a hatchling but she chilled out after a few meals. I do need some longer tongs now though. She comes lunging for food.