Should I get a corn snake?

Question

If it's necessary to prekill the mice I don't think I can do that. Are they easy to take care of? I don't know too much about pet snakes. Thank you for any good info.

Answer 1

Yes, get a corn snake, you will love it! They are very easy to take care of and wonderfully placid creatures.

No, you don't have to kill the mice, buy them frozen from a pet store and keep them in your freezer. Thaw them out by putting one or two in a cup or bowl of hot water for about 10 minutes before feeding it to your snake.

Answer 2

Cornsnakes are a good snake for beginners, but try to get one that's a little older. Hatchling snakes are notorious for being hard to feed. You can buy prekilled mice (frozen) at pet stores or on the web. Just thaw them in warm water before feeding to your snake.

If you don't like the idea of feeding mice (even pre-killed), you should know that there are snakes that eat other foods. I currently keep a ribbon snake (he eats fish, insects and worms) and a rough green snake (eats insects). They are also smaller than a corn will get.

Before getting any snake, do a little research (food, size, temperment, tank size, and any special requirements that you will need to provide). Here are some good websites for you to look up different species: http://www.anapsid.org/mainsnakes.html
http://www.kingsnake.com/features.html
http://www.wnyherp.org/care-sheets/
http://www.coloherp.org/careshts/snakes.php

You can also visit your local pet stores to see what species they offer and their prices. BUT - don't buy anything until you've checked out what it requires first!

Good luck to you - I think you'll find that snakes are great pets (although they're not for everyone!)

Answer 3

Hi, i have never owned snakes, but i do know a little. You don't have to kill the mice yourself, you can buy frozen mice from the pet store. You will have to do research on the specific care for a corn snake. How much food they need per weeks, what size mice, the temperature of their cage, what kind of surroundings they need, and things like that. But we had a guy come into our class one day with like 20 different snakes, (i went to school to become a vet tech) and he had 2 corn snakes. When i held them they made me think about getting a snake. They were so beautiful and docile. I loved holding them. I think if you do end up wanting a snake, and feeling that you can properly care for a snake, the corn snake is a good one to get. They really are wonderful animals. Just be sure to do lots of research so you know what you're getting into.
Also research if it is a good idea to feed them life mice. I have heard that it is better, and i also heard that it is a bad idea. If the snake does not have enough room, or does not have the appetite to eat when you put the mouse in the cage it can really scratch up the poor snakes skin. Just look into it before you do it.

Answer 4

I work for a lady who has a wide variety of snakes. And her corn snakes are a favorite. They're very tame, as long as they're worked with often. The baby's eat pinkys or baby mice. When full grown they can eat a rat. Unless the snake has a physical problem there should be no reason to prekill its food as long as you've fed it live animals from the beginning. As far as care, very easy. Just replacing water as needed. After they eat, they will poop. The ones I take care of only are fed once a month, so you really need to thoroughly clean after it goes to the bathroom. Just spot clean the cage as needed. Good luck.

Answer 5

hi there
corns are good starer snake and are beautiful ....don't get anything big ... unless ur very experience and have lots of room for a big cage (eg. Burmese python need a full room once they are full grown)
don't Liston to the ppl that say to use rat poison if u do that it will kill ur snake...if u want to use pre kill mice then u can buy them at most pet stores that sell reptiles and snakes they are frozen and all u have to do is thaw it out and soak it in some warm water till it feels warm(body temp)... u can also feed live but i would breed ur own do to u know they will be healthy .. that's what we do most snakes prefer live but will take prekill/frozen thawed ...but live will liv if the snake doesn't take it at lease u can put it back in the cage for another time with prekilled u can freeze it with frozen u can re frozen it once then once you thaw it again and the snake doesn't take it u have to throw it out.. waste of money....good luck on ur new corn

Answer 6

one thing that puts most people off having a corn snake is that they do eat mice. the mice can be bought frozen which you then have to defrost or you can buy live mice. i recommend getting the frozen ones as live mice can attack and may even kill the snake. corn snakes are the easiest snake to care for but still need special care.they are fed once or twice a week on defrosted mice or yo can give them live ones. a baby corn snake can live happily in a 5-20 gallon aquarium or even a shoe box. they also come in lots of colour morphs like blizzard and motley. you will also need some substrate, i recommend aspen bedding but don't use ceder shavings as they are dangerous to snakes.you will also need a heat mat as they keep your snake warm. if you want more info i would go on a search engine such as google as their are a lot of good websites on the net. one good website is www.cornsnake.co.uk as there is some useful info on there. i hope my info has helped.

Answer 7

My son is four years old and he has a corn snake. They are very easy to take care of. You don't have to pre-kill the mice. Just make sure if you get one to feed it in a separate container other then it's cage. They paralyze the mice then eat them whole. They can eat about one to two a week depending on the size of the snake. They are nice pets. Just make sure if you do get a snake you get the proper cage and supplies for him/her. Ours is in a 20gal tank, with a screen lid. There is a heating pad under the tank on one side, and a "cave" for him to hide in and a water dish for him. That's about all he needs.... you can put other things such as branches but it is not needed. Hope this Helps!

Answer 8

I loved mine, He was a great snake. My husband and I used to travel with him, He had a small travel bag with a mesh top.
What I can tell you about them is they are very low maintenance and very docile. Also they stay relatively small in size. The only problem that I ever had with him was that he got a parasite in his intestine and I had to give him injections for about a month. But its really common for all reptiles to get parasites because they live in such close quarters with there own poop. So no matter what you get just make sure to clean the tank very frequently. The only time that we ever had to prekill his food was when he was sick (only like twice.) Other than that he had no problems doing it himself.

If you do find yourself with a snake that wont kill its own food though. You can buy frozen mice and then microwave them. I personally would never put a dead rodent in my microwave... but that's just me!

Answer 9

Only get a corn snake if you like snakes and this is going to be a pet. If you have a problem with mice, get the industrial strength mouse poison (not what you find in local stores). They are blue cubes.

Hire a pest company to come out and then, when they pull out that white bucket with the mice/rat posion, tell them to leave extras for you. You won't need to hire them for long if you do that.

Answer 10

If you are looking to just leave it in the aquarium a corn snake is not bad at all. They are not poisonous and will not attack you. If you are looking to handle the snake I would get a Ball Python. They are small, manageable and handle very well. Ball Pythons only get to a maximum of about 5 feet and are very beautiful.
You may eventually graduate to a Burmese Python, but beware it gets larger and eats more. Good Luck!!!