Snakes as Pets

[McBish]

So I was thinking that sometime in the future I might think about getting a snake as a pet. Anyone have any thoughts? Any good experiences, bad experiences. What would you say the costs and responsibilities are?

[the_tick_rules]

I dunno about cost. My step-sister had one and it wasn't much. The dead mice were cheap and I dunno how much the heat lamp cost in electricity. I guess the responsibilities are not to forget it's food, which can be hard since most snakes have days between feedings and to make sure you can replicate it's enviromental conditions like heat and stuff. Personally snakes aren't my thing for pets, you really can't play/pet etc. with them so for most purposes they are more like decorations.

[Icewalker]

Have one, in fact. Or rather, family does, now that I'm off at college I don't particularly myself. We found the snake in a driveway a few houses away from ours, checked around, nobody knew where it was from, left it at the vivarium to see if anybody was missing it, and when nobody was we took it in. Corn snake, not much of a bite, and no venom. Keep him in a big fishtank with sawdust and a log thing, and water.

Quite low upkeep pets, seems to me. Fed weekly, in this case a live mouse, which we bought from the vivarium. Refill the water if it's low or dirty, clean cage every once in a while, and it's good to take them out now and again probably. It's probably quite a lot cheaper and lower responsibility than a pet like a cat. In fact, it may be slightly lower cost than fish, because it seems that far less tends to go terribly wrong, and you don't have to deal with treating the water and whatnot.

[Haruki-kun]

Hmmm... I always thought of cats as pets that pretty much fend for themselves, but come to think of it, snakes seem to be a good choice, too.

Not sure if they're my style, though. Not very cuddly. :smalltongue:

[Syka]

The only real downside to snakes are that they are Houdini's. Like, hardcore Houdini's. The best method for keeping them in their cage is a heavy textbook like item on each corner. A friend of mine named his snake Carlos, because he kept jumping the border (completely not-politically correct, but amusing). I think that snake got out 3-4 times before they tried the textbook thing and he hasn't gotten out since.

Everything else is simple. Heat lamp, water bowl, newspapers can be used as bedding, mice every now and then. Even food isn't a huge deal- my friend's Cali King has gone months between feeding (it was his wife's snake until she died...for his and Carlos' sake, I plan on taking the snake when I move out...mom won't let me have one ever since Cal the Corn Snake pulled an escape trick and showed up a few months later (much larger) and got away again).

[Icewalker]

Ah yes, Syka raises a good point. Complete genius escape artists. The top of the aquarium must be locked or heavily weighted, if taken out never let them fully out of your grip, they move FAST and can go up walls.

[Savannah]

I haven't had a snake, but I've looked into getting one in the past. Unfortunately, it's been too long since I looked into it for me to give you much advice. I can say do your research instead of getting one randomly, as they do need special lights and so on, and it's not fair to the snake (or any live animal) to get one without fully understanding what you need to do to properly care for it.

I'd recommend going to your library and checking out at least 3-4 books, as you can miss out on some useful tips if you only look at one source. If you're not a library person, you can search online (and the same advice about multiple sources applies), but make sure that the website is written by someone who knows what they're talking about.

[Amiel]

Don't take your snakes on a plane.


I'm unsure of the requirements where you live, but you may need to obtain a special permit or special permission to keep a snake as a pet.

[Erloas]

I've never heard of any requirements for keeping a snake as a pet, and at least in the USA there are a number of types that are at pet shops all over the place. There might be requirements for keeping certain types, probably anything poisonous or something that would be likely become an invasive species if it escaped. But your traditional boa are available all over the place.

And one thing you want to be very sure of is what size the snake you are getting will grow up to. Some of the snakes that are fairly commonly available in pet shops can grow much larger then most people have room to keep. You also go from having to feed it a mouse or two a week to feeding them rats to rabbits.

I had a friend that has had a few snakes over the years. They weren't that hard to keep, but like all pets they can live a long time so its not a short term purchase. One of his happened to eat one of his lizards (we think the lizard was biting the snakes tail and it finally got mad and ate it)... which made for a $120 meal.

[Savannah]

I know that in the county I live in, there's a size restriction on certain types of boas, which I believe includes some of the commonly sold ones. So make sure your research covers the legality of owning whatever type you're interested in as well.

[Admiral Squish]

I knew a girl who wore her 18-inch boa into school, tucked into her collar like a tie.

[Skeppio]

That sounds amazingly cool.

[Lycan 01]

A friend of mine who has had tons of exotic pets told me that if you have a snake, feed 'em dead mice instead of live mice. Apparently it makes them more aggresive over time if the mice are alive, since they actively have to catch and eat them.

[Amiel]

Savannah gives good advice; be sure to read up on snakes and be sure to do the research.


Over here, and specifically in Victoria, those interested in keeping reptiles must apply for a Private Wildlife (Advanced) Licence before they are allowed under law to acquire, house and look after a reptile (this is because all reptiles and amphibians are protected in Victoria). This is to ensure that people don't shirk any responsibility and are committed to their animal's wellbeing and welfare.


While this link (http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/dpi/nreninf.nsf/LinkView/E974590621CF8B66CA256DC6000F7125E7F8E4DBA5A6FDD04A 256DEA0027A820') has information that is specific to Victoria, the general requirements et al it details may be applicable to your situation.
Hopefully it can be helpful to you.

I've also found some more information for you:
From the RSPCA Victoria website
Food
Snakes are usually accustomed to eating fresh dead mice, rats and chickens.

Housing
The correct housing is essential for reptiles, otherwise health problems will occur. Reptiles should not be kept in wire cages as injuries can result - use wood, glass or plastic. Correct temperatures are very important and some reptiles need to bask under a heat lamp. A safe heat source such as a light globe should be provided in one part of the cage to allow the animal to select a position that will provide the heat it requires. The globe must out of the animal's reach otherwise it might burn itself.

Humidity, ventilation and lighting should be checked and be effective. A light source providing a variety of intensifies or wavelengths may be best.

Shelter should provide absolute security, clean water for drinking and soaking in, and a rock to help with shedding the old skin.

Space should be available for some exercise. The floor of the enclosure can be sand, smooth gravel, leaf litter or absorbent paper.

[Coidzor]

Depending upon the variety, it's a time investment to get them to casually accept your handling. I've mostly dealt with small snakes that don't climb so they couldn't really be trained to be worn draped over one's self.

Mostly though, I've never really seen the point. They're neat, especially seeing the little freshly hatched baby snakes after accidentally getting a male and a female snake in the same cage... but there's not a whole lot of interaction I've found that can be had with them.

Feeding the ones that eat live mice is always interesting, especially for showing to guests, of course...

Even the really small ones will surprise you with their tenacity in attempting to escape, so never underestimate their potential ability to overpower whatever you have securing the lid in place or finding any possible holes that could be made or exploited.

Since you're in Minnesota, you're going to have to keep the room it's kept in fairly warm all year round even with a heat lamp for sunning it because you can't let it get that cold at night, and you're going to need a home-safe gas-heater or emergency generator and electrical heaters and a room small enough to be heated enough to acceptability for it in case of power outages in a blizzard. But you probably have that stuff already to keep you all alive in case of blizzards...

[GreyRat]

Hello, I had a ball python for several years, and it wasn't a bad experience.
Snakes have very primitive brains, so they do not recognize their owner or display affection; I would call them more 'high-maintenance toys' than real pets. They do require heating in cold weather, feeding and clean-up year round, and could potentially fall ill and/or hurt people by biting or constricting.
If you do get a mouse-eater, I recommend feeding dead mice, as a live mouse will fight for its life and can produce nasty infected bite-wounds. For the record, dead feeder mice can be frozen, thawed in the fridge, then lightly warmed in the microwave to entice your reptile.
Also consider the potential long-term fate of your prospective pet; when I went to college, my roommates refused to live with a snake, so I had to leave him at home. My brother tried to take care of it, but dead mice made him throw up, so I had to donate the snake to a museum. If you're an adult in your own place, that's fine, but if there's a chance your living situation might drastically change, as always, think twice before getting a new animal.

PS: Don't wear your snake. I said it was like a toy, but it's a living creature. It can get hurt or scared, and it can get out of control. Use common sense.

[Juggling Goth]

Corn (red rat) snakes are a good beginner's pet. They're pretty docile, non-venomous, and don't get big enough to be dangerous. And since they're native to North America, they need less environmental support in temperate climates than some others. (They do still need artificial heat, though.) They're also fairly reliable eaters (though mine managed to fast for six freaking months!), which is good, because when you've got one that won't eat for months (ball pythons are notorious for this) it can get pretty stressful. They eat mice or rats, depending on their size, about once a week. Before you get one, check that it's got a good record of eating dead mice - much less traumatic for you, the snake and the food than feeding live.

[Dusk Eclipse]

I wan to have a pet snake, but until I get my own apatment I can't have one......