iNTERESTING EYE

[olyfarms]

This is 6 of 7 babies Pipped on 6\6\14. Have never seen this before. Looks like it is underdeveloped. I know this is the place for some answers. Thanks for your time and help,
Tim

[Nanci]

Right, underdeveloped. I've seen others post pics of this, and also snakes with one eye, and rarely, no eyes. They all do fine.

[olyfarms]

Right, underdeveloped. I've seen others post pics of this, and also snakes with one eye, and rarely, no eyes. They all do fine.

Thanks so much Nancy. Seems healthy other than the eyes. Glad to hear they live through it. Probably blind in this case. Thanks again
Tim

[Nanci]

It's usually VERY easy to find "pet homes" for babies like this- people love them! If you're not keeping him yourself.

[Shiari]

The technical name for what he is is "microphthalmia" which basically means "tiny eye". :P He's a cutie.

[ShelbyScott]

He looks like a sweet baby! I would love to keep one like that :)

[smigon]

I agree, I do a corn snake rescue for cases like this or just unwanted corns. I would love to give him a forever home!

[olyfarms]

Thank You everyone. If we want to get ride of him, I'll put him on here.

[Chip]

The only completely blind snake is the one with no tongue. But I'd think that fella could see, if poorly. One of the coolest patterned hognose I hatched last year had no eyes. At all. There were scales where the eyes would have been. I euthanized her.

[hypnoctopus]

It makes him look like a much older snake. It's only when I see the proportion of his head to his body that I realize he's actually very small.

[smigon]

The only completely blind snake is the one with no tongue. But I'd think that fella could see, if poorly. One of the coolest patterned hognose I hatched last year had no eyes. At all. There were scales where the eyes would have been. I euthanized her.

Since they mostly only "see" with their tongues, why did you euthanize her?

[Nanci]

Since they mostly only "see" with their tongues, why did you euthanize her?

Probably because there are tens of thousands of perfect cornsnake babies- more than enough for all the homes out there. With a deformed baby, you can't guarantee what the buyer is going to do with it- like breed and produce more.

I have a question- if I hatch a baby like this- I'd trust you to do the right thing and keep it as a cherished pet. Would you be interested? I think most of us have soft hearts, and a collection of, as Chip calls them, misfit toys, (or something like that) but eventually one runs out of space.

[Chip]

Since they mostly only "see" with their tongues, why did you euthanize her?

I consider eyeless badly deformed enough that the animal should never be allowed to reproduce. I have tubs and tubs of snakes that will never be bred because of one one reason or another (ranging from a kink to having egg bound to just being old and retired). And many of them are young and won't die of natural causes for a very long time. If I kept every deformed animal that hatched, I would soon run out of resources. And if something has a valuable trait (such as the banding on this baby hog), that "pet only home" -whether out of greed or ignorance -will sometimes breed them anyway. Culling is a sad, but necessary part of breeding.

[smigon]

Nanci, yes, I would absolutely want it as a forever pet, not for breeding.

[Nanci]

One of the most stressful things about breeding, for me, is the possibility of hatching deformed, living babies. The most stressful thing is egg-binding/oviduct prolapse, requiring surgery.