on the loose

Guess what everyone?!



I have a anery female, possibly gravid on the loose in my apartment! Isn't that just peachy? Well, at least she could be possibly gravid if I can ensure that she IS female. I'm kind of questioning now with all this new information at sexing by looking at the tail...

Would it be unusual for siblings (born 3 years ago) to have the brothers larger then then the sister??

Also, I tore apart my apartment looking for her...nothing...

What to do? What to do?

It probably is a little unusual because females generally grow larger then males. It's nothing amazing though.
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If you've searched all over the house and still not found the snake, it's time to set some traps.

The first type of trap to try is a sound trap. Lay some plastic bags around the walls and behind sofas and in gaps etc at around nine o'clock in the evening. Sit quietly in the dark for about half an hour and wait until you hear some noises. Work out where the noise is coming from and get over there while making as few vibrations as possible.

If that doesn't work and you want to go to bed: Lay a thick(ish) layer of flour on the floor and leave it until morning. If all has gone according to plan, the snake will have left a short trail, pointing in the direction that it was travelling in. If nothing else, this trick will help you determine which part of the house the critter is in.

If you still haven't managed to find the snake, it may be time to bring out the bait. Place a warm food item (smaller than usual) in a bottle with an entrance hole big enough for the snake. Cut plenty of holes in the top to allow the smell to drift out and place it near a radiator or somewhere warm on the floor. Depending on how long the corn has been missing, it will be hungry so turn the lights off and wait in silence. If you see the snake going for the meal, let it eat it and then try and catch it.

Once you have found your snake and it is safely back in its enclosure, make sure the whole setup is now escape-proof. Leave the snake totally alone for two-three days and then offer a smaller than usual food item.

I've always read the reverse of what Neil said, regarding size and sex of the snake. Males, as far as I know, tend to grow somewhat larger than the females. This is not a hard and fast rule, however. Some females do grow quite large, and some males don't. The difference may also be due to the fact that females who are bred spend lots of energy on their eggs and less on growing.

In any case, probing is a more accurate method of sexing a snake than looking at the tail.

I hope that you have found the girl by now. But if you haven't I have some suggestions (in addition to Neil's). This time of year in PA, the temperatures in you appartment may be quite cool, especially in some remote place where she is hiding. So, the snake may just go into brumation, and not come out of the hiding place. You might try raising the temperature in your apartment in the early evening to the mid 80's for 3 or 4 hours and turn all the lights out. This should make the snake more active, and more likely to come out of hiding. Then go looking for her about midnight. You might need to repeat this a few nights.

Good luck, and let us know when you find her.

Mark

I still haven't found her...

*sigh*

I've tried baiting her twice...no luck...

I might have to try the flour thing...but all but my kitchen is carpet...I don't know how well it'll work...and o crap, that's going to be a LOT of flour!

We found 3 holes in the apartment...2 in the bathroom and 1 in the kitchen...who knows where they go. I'm hopeing she hasn't found her way there...I'm afraid to clog them up because she might be in them now...

Grrrrr

Sry about the snake. That must be frustrating to loose a snake. I hope I never ever loose mine.

Dont panic i lost 20 normal babies after hatching. the incubator wasnt sealed properly and they hatched 2 dyas b4 i expected. Funny thing is i got almost all of them back - neighbours as far up the road as 8 houses were bringing them back to me seems baby corns have a thing for electrical equipment. Thing to do is make sure your nieghbours if you have any know about it. goodluck

I've only lost one of my corns, what I did was wake up in the middle of the night and around dawn to sneak around to look for her, since I figured she was waiting till I went to bed to creep around the house. Also be on the lookout at dusk as that is when corns are typically active.

The flour thing is a good idea, if you don't want to get it meshed into your carpet, lay cardboard down or a newspaper first and put the flour on that

be sure you look in areas that are warmer in your place too, like under the fridge and in the vents, I found my girl all curled up in on of the vents just keeping warm, she gave me this look of "aww is my vacation over already"