Gopher Snakes, Russian Ratsnakes, Subocs? - Page 2

jjhill001 · 08-02-17, 08:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trouser Snake

What are Baird's rat snakes like, for example, in comparison to Russians and Subocs?

I've never worked with those species before. I would hedge my bets that they would be closer to the Subocs. I've got two, a male and a female. The female is very bold and will crawl out in the open. My male is a bit more shy. Both however will regularly have their head poking from a hide watching me fold laundry and such. They are very "aware" of whats going on in their enclosures and outside of it and considering they have completely different personalities yet until recently were being kept in two cages set up the exact same with the same temps and everything. I would say that just shows me that they do have individual personalities and I'd imagine you'll find that with any species.

I don't hold them as much as I should so they can be a bit ornery when I try and get them out. Not looking to bite but more of a "Hey, how dare you" and they'll rattle their tails and what not but I've only been bit 2 times. 1 when the female was young and apparently really didn't like me changing the water bowl and when I was holding my male he accidentally bumped his head on my forearm while going down around my back and scared the crap out of himself bit my arm and just went back to what he was doing.

In the wild Baird's are known to be quite docile and many can be picked up with little fuss from what I understand. I have no doubt that if I had spent even a little more time handling them when they were younger they'd both be puppy dog tame. But I don't really handle my reptiles much as a personal choice so I deal with it. If I were to get something that could deal some damage like bullsnake or larger or a monitor lizard or something I'd hold them basically every day while young.

Sylphie · 08-03-17, 10:41 AM

Well, I'm a huge fan of Russians as many of you knows :P So I will always say go for Russian if you can find one!

As always temperament is a matter of personality, we had some babies that were sweet from the first moment of their lives right out of the egg, some who were totally crazy (okay, it was only one baby that we hatched out of the whole clutch and she calmed after a few months) and some who were rather shy and "flighty" as a babies but are totally laid back as adults.

What I like the most about them are:

size - they are slightly longer than corns/kings but waay more bulky, so you "feel" them more but they are still small enough to be handled without problems

hardiness - to have sick russian you need to basically leave them totally alone for a few months... If you have food, water and are cleaning their tank they will be happy, healthy and totally hassle-free

eating - I never heard of russian that was refusing food without reason (they will sometimes! stop eating during breeding season and some prefer smaller prey items so if you move them to bigger prey they might refuse)

personality - of course like I said they are all different but in general even the more nervous hatchlings calm down with age and size... they are very active and like to observe whats going on, are incredibly inquisitive and love to explore, they will often try to climb on hands while the owner is changing the water or spot cleaning their tanks. As they are hardy species that thrive well in „normal” temps they can be handled for a longer time than tropical snakes. If startled their first response is to run, not to bite, but most of the times they are more curious than scared. Out of all the ones I had, seen or heard about only one was biting... and it was that crazy hatchling of ours that calmed after three months.

And of course I also like their looks, even if they are not as flashy as some other species out there

Ps. Parts of these reasons were from article I wrote so sorry if it looks weird if I start sounding more "serious" in these fragments

Scubadiver59 · 08-03-17, 11:15 AM

I need to get a Russian Rat and name it "Putin"!

**Andy_G** · 08-03-17, 12:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scubadiver59

I need to get a Russian Rat and name it "Putin"!

Just get a canadian locality bullsnake and name it "Poutine" instead.

Scubadiver59 · 08-03-17, 12:32 PM

Gravy on FF? I'll pass...chili yes, gravy no.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andy_G

Just get a canadian locality bullsnake and name it "Poutine" instead.

dannybgoode · 08-03-17, 12:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scubadiver59

Gravy on FF? I'll pass...chili yes, gravy no.

You're clearly a Londoner and not a Yorkshireman

**Andy_G** · 08-03-17, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scubadiver59

Gravy on FF? I'll pass...chili yes, gravy no.

Eww...do you put ketchup on your mashed potatoes too, you monster?

Scubadiver59 · 08-03-17, 01:22 PM

No, no ketchup on my mashed potatoes...but I do put it on my Mac&Cheese!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andy_G

Eww...do you put ketchup on your mashed potatoes too, you monster?

Trouser Snake · 08-06-17, 06:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sylphie

Well, I'm a huge fan of Russians as many of you knows :P So I will always say go for Russian if you can find one!

As always temperament is a matter of personality, we had some babies that were sweet from the first moment of their lives right out of the egg, some who were totally crazy (okay, it was only one baby that we hatched out of the whole clutch and she calmed after a few months) and some who were rather shy and "flighty" as a babies but are totally laid back as adults.

What I like the most about them are:

size - they are slightly longer than corns/kings but waay more bulky, so you "feel" them more but they are still small enough to be handled without problems

hardiness - to have sick russian you need to basically leave them totally alone for a few months... If you have food, water and are cleaning their tank they will be happy, healthy and totally hassle-free

eating - I never heard of russian that was refusing food without reason (they will sometimes! stop eating during breeding season and some prefer smaller prey items so if you move them to bigger prey they might refuse)

personality - of course like I said they are all different but in general even the more nervous hatchlings calm down with age and size... they are very active and like to observe whats going on, are incredibly inquisitive and love to explore, they will often try to climb on hands while the owner is changing the water or spot cleaning their tanks. As they are hardy species that thrive well in „normal” temps they can be handled for a longer time than tropical snakes. If startled their first response is to run, not to bite, but most of the times they are more curious than scared. Out of all the ones I had, seen or heard about only one was biting... and it was that crazy hatchling of ours that calmed after three months.

And of course I also like their looks, even if they are not as flashy as some other species out there

Ps. Parts of these reasons were from article I wrote so sorry if it looks weird if I start sounding more "serious" in these fragments

They don't need no fancy morphs, absolutely stunning snakes... I'm guessing the females will probably hit the 6 feet mark but chunkier than most other rat snakes which is cool, I like that fact, chunky enough without being as overbearing as a large boa or python, heard so many people say they could actually be a great beginner snake being generally so hardy, the fact they seem to be so curious and tolerant of handling from what I hear does make me want to get one. I hope someone nearby has hatchlings soon.

Trouser Snake · 08-06-17, 06:12 PM

Do you keep them in RUBS?

SerpentineDream · 08-06-17, 07:31 PM

Russian rat snakes do not do well in RUBS past the hatchling / juvenile stage. They need a large, tall cage so that they have lots of room to climb and exercise. They are active, diurnal and semi-arboreal. They also need room for a large water bowl on the bottom so they can go for a swim when they want to as they love water. Mine have 36" W x 18" D x 36" H cages. They also like to be able to see out and keep tabs on what's going on around them.

IIRC Sylphie built an awesome enclosure for her Russian rats out of an old curio cabinet. Maybe she can post some pics of that project.

ETA: During brumation you might be able to get away with keeping them in a large RUB.

dannybgoode · 08-06-17, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trouser Snake

They don't need no fancy morphs, absolutely stunning snakes... I'm guessing the females will probably hit the 6 feet mark but chunkier than most other rat snakes which is cool, I like that fact, chunky enough without being as overbearing as a large boa or python, heard so many people say they could actually be a great beginner snake being generally so hardy, the fact they seem to be so curious and tolerant of handling from what I hear does make me want to get one. I hope someone nearby has hatchlings soon.

Look up Charlotte Wilford of AC Snakes. She breeds a number of rat snake species including Russian.

Trouser Snake · 08-07-17, 12:59 PM

Cheers, yeah I'm familiar with her website, I don't think she is breeding Russians ATM but has done in the past, definitely be interested if she does again though she has a great reputation as a breeder

dannybgoode · 08-07-17, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trouser Snake

Cheers, yeah I'm familiar with her website, I don't think she is breeding Russians ATM but has done in the past, definitely be interested if she does again though she has a great reputation as a breeder

Yeah Charlotte is actually great breeder. Andrew Grimm may breed them also - nice chap and I've just bought a couple of snakes off him.

SerpentineDream · 08-07-17, 09:31 PM

Even if she's no longer producing Russian rats herself, Charlotte may be able to point you to someone who is. Although I'm in the US rather than the UK I've found that breeders tend to know each other and can often help with finding a sought-after species. It may be a similar scenario there.