newbie snakes - Page 3

mistersprinkles · 04-14-11, 03:04 PM

That's exactly why I think it's a bad snake. If you don't know how to predict a snake's movements from years of experience, you shouldn't have a flighty snake. It could jump (they don't jump but you know what I mean) out of your hands when you least expect it and hurt itself.

I really think Garters and Corns are the best 1st snake choices.
Dekay's are beautiful snakes too if you have them where you are. Keep similar to a garter with a little more humidity and attention to hiding spots. Eat worms.

NennaMeerkat · 04-14-11, 07:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mistersprinkles

That's exactly why I think it's a bad snake. If you don't know how to predict a snake's movements from years of experience, you shouldn't have a flighty snake. It could jump (they don't jump but you know what I mean) out of your hands when you least expect it and hurt itself.

I really think Garters and Corns are the best 1st snake choices.
Dekay's are beautiful snakes too if you have them where you are. Keep similar to a garter with a little more humidity and attention to hiding spots. Eat worms.

If any snake is gonna "jump" from your hands it is a corn! Every corn I have ever seen and owned don't want to sit still they will throw themselves out of your hand no matter the height.

Every hoggie that I have had experience with or owned are what I call "careful". Even at her most startled if I am holding her in a hand she will not throw herself or "jump" from my hand. Same goes for a flat surface that is up high. They don't just throw themselves off they will carefully judge the distance, maybe stick part of their body down, but I have NEVER seen one leave a table high up.

But honestly have you ever OWNED a hoggie to know what you are talking about? I am not trying to be mean but I have owned corns and hoggies, helped a zoo with their own...thus have experience with both. I am not trying to be mean but you are speaking as if you know for a fact that hoggies are what they are. To me unless you have owned at least one you don't really know.

stephanbakir · 04-14-11, 07:15 PM

Ball pythons make fantastic starter snakes aswell.

mistersprinkles · 04-14-11, 07:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NennaMeerkat

If any snake is gonna "jump" from your hands it is a corn! Every corn I have ever seen and owned don't want to sit still they will throw themselves out of your hand no matter the height.

Every hoggie that I have had experience with or owned are what I call "careful". Even at her most startled if I am holding her in a hand she will not throw herself or "jump" from my hand. Same goes for a flat surface that is up high. They don't just throw themselves off they will carefully judge the distance, maybe stick part of their body down, but I have NEVER seen one leave a table high up.

But honestly have you ever OWNED a hoggie to know what you are talking about? I am not trying to be mean but I have owned corns and hoggies, helped a zoo with their own...thus have experience with both. I am not trying to be mean but you are speaking as if you know for a fact that hoggies are what they are. To me unless you have owned at least one you don't really know.

I've owned both corns and hognose. My corns were not flighty. Again this is all over 2 decades ago. At this point non-standard corns barely existed and western hognose were only a couple of generations CB, or not at all. The situation at that time was apparently pretty different because I raised a corn from hatchling that was the standard morph and it never once tried to throw itself from my hands. The western hognose I raised was quite the opposite. It also went off food easily.

NennaMeerkat · 04-14-11, 07:31 PM

Seems we have had 100% different and opposite happenings with corns and hoggies. Sorry that you have had off experiences with them! Perhaps you would consider looking into them again...even if you don't own one at least go to a reptile expo and find a breeder. Talk to them about the snake and ask to hold one! You will be surprised I think.

mistersprinkles · 04-14-11, 08:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NennaMeerkat

Seems we have had 100% different and opposite happenings with corns and hoggies. Sorry that you have had off experiences with them! Perhaps you would consider looking into them again...even if you don't own one at least go to a reptile expo and find a breeder. Talk to them about the snake and ask to hold one! You will be surprised I think.

I was never really into holding snakes. Handling them is more utilitarian- checkups, feeding, cleaning, etc.

thomas1123 · 04-14-11, 09:57 PM

soo anyways back to the topic lol my petstore didnt have sani-chips so i just bought some aspen bedding. i also bought a under tank heater, a rock hide, and a water dish i will buy the rest this weekend. i also just found out that one of my friends has a hognose lol he said i would like them. he said once i get it tamed down if its mean it will be pretty calm.

Jay · 04-14-11, 10:04 PM

Het. is short for Hetrozygous. Your snakes carries the gene but doesn't show it. What was your hoggie het for

belovedboas · 04-14-11, 10:06 PM

cornsnakes can be very flighty..owned many over the years and yes fairly fast paced...not all but most

dont know nothing about hoggies

thomas1123 · 04-14-11, 10:28 PM

it's a het albino western hognose snake male

blindfireak40 · 04-14-11, 11:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thomas1123

it's a het albino western hognose snake male

So that means that if you breed it to another "het albino" hog, you'll get roughly a quarter albino (homozygous albino), a quarter homozygous normal, and one half het albino in a given clutch.

Breeding it to an albino (homozygous albino) gives you half and half hets and albinos.

Snake Genetics are really very cool! Check out http://iansvivarium.com/cornsnakemorphs.php for some great info on corn snakes, which have really good genetics, especially for learning the way things work.

NennaMeerkat · 04-15-11, 12:22 AM

soo anyways back to the topic lol my petstore didnt have sani-chips so i just bought some aspen bedding. i also bought a under tank heater, a rock hide, and a water dish i will buy the rest this weekend. i also just found out that one of my friends has a hognose lol he said i would like them. he said once i get it tamed down if its mean it will be pretty calm.

I am glad that you are still going through! Hope you can find a breeder in your area. If your friend has a hoggie you need to find where he got his! Obviously with a friend that has a hognose they must have gotten it/them from a reputable breeder AND if you have problems of any kind with the snake you not only have us but him as well.

Everything you have gotten so far sounds okay. Gotta ask how big is the under tank mat? And what is the wattage on it...or how hot it gets if it says that. Also remember you need 2 hides. One on the hot side where the mat is and one on the cold side where no heat is.

thomas1123 · 04-15-11, 12:42 AM

yep i just love the way hoggies look lol but i got a 10g heat pad and its 24 watts. not sure how hot it gets yet but i will be setting up the tank tomorrow morning or this morning lol the bad news is is that my friend got his from petland :/ but that was before he new about reptile breeders and expos and what not lol im planning to get another hide this weekend. any tips on how to tame them down? i know holding them helps taming them down but i know not to hold him the first week i get him/her and not to hold it after feeding. like how often do you hold your hoggie?

Lankyrob · 04-15-11, 03:12 AM

With most snakes it is a case of balancing your desire to handle and their stress levels, take it slow once or twice a week and for five or ten minutes at a time at first and then its kinda up to you to judge how the snake is reacting - if it is stressing then stay at once or twice a week for a short time. If it seems relaxed then hold it for slightly longer, noe of our guys are out of their tanks fro more than 15 minutes as a maximum.

mistersprinkles · 04-15-11, 08:57 AM

You can technically let some snakes out when they're on patroll with zero stress provided the temperature and environment are right. A ball python under a red night light hunting for food won't be stressed if you gently let it out and let it move around the (dark) room for an hour then put it back. They actually enjoy hunting prey in a bigger space like that but you want to stay out of the way as they're not smart enough to tell you from a rat once they smell it. Picking up a snake that's 'blanked out' under it's rock for the second day in a row is stressful though.

I used to have a Ball python that was more like a pet rock. It was really unstressable. I fed it in the car once.