Bleeding during mating

[definitive_prankster]

Hi all

I have 4 corn snakes all in the same tank (don't worry, it's huge and they have plenty of room :) ) and have started finding small pools of blood dotted around (I say small, they are maybe an inch in diameter but I use kitchen roll to line the floor I imagine it will have spread out).

Last year I only noticed one 'pool' but all the snakes seemed healthy enough and happy, so it eventually left my mind.

But now there have been 3 in the last month or so, and I'm wondering if it is mating related (it was around this time last year last time), and more importantly whether I should worry.

Can anyone give me some advice please, as I am quite worried about my snakes (and it's even worse seeing as I don't even know which of the 4 is bleeding!). They have no external injuries, there is too much blood for a bite (they have been known to bite one another and they hardly bled) and none of the rocks/branches have blood on them, so it can't be that.

Which only leaves their insides...

Any ideas? I have no idea where a reptile vet is around here, as we moved and left mine behind, and I would have to take them all as I don't know which one it is!

[diamondlil]

seperate them, use paper towel for substrate, find out which one is bleeding and take it from there..........

[Taceas]

For the time being and the sake of argument, I'll ignore your name and any connotation it may refer to. It may later prove out your troll-like natures.

You are worried about your snakes, but yet you house 4 together? Now there's an oxymoron if I've ever seen it.

Do you even know what gender all of your snakes are? I pity having one female and 3 males in there, and I'd probably eat my own tail for suicide if I were her.

The bleeding is most likely due to mating, as I've had a female do it off and on when bred to different males the past couple of years.

1. Grow up and separate your snakes.

2. Separate your snakes.

3. Separate your snakes.

4. There is no man-made "cage" large enough to suitably house 4 adult cornsnakes without some sort of issue going on.

5. If you don't have a vet experienced in herpetological care nearby, the pressing need for steps 1-3 are even more apparent than before.

6. Didn't your mamma tell you being a troll was bad?

[diamondlil]

ah Misty, I forgot about trolls, thanks for the headsup

[definitive_prankster]

O...K...

Not been called a troll in a while.

I was going to open with "Gosh, so many replies so quickly!" but now I'll rephrase. And my username has been my username ever since I became an Offspring fan.


I appologise if you think I am the kind of person that would imply I had ill animals just to annoy other people. And if my post implies stupidity/naivety, then yes, I am all of those.

My snakes are 3 female and one male, which is why I am having trouble figuring out which one is bleeding (I'm assuming it is a female). And if I had another tank, or could afford another tank, large enough to take one out, I would, but as they have lived happily together for years I saw no point in pushing my overdraft further. Again, if my financial troubles imply stupidity or insensitiveness to the wellbeing of my snakes then apparently guilty again. But unless I believe there is a serious problem then why would I change anything?

Thank you for your suggestions (sarcastic though they became as the message went on), but please lay off the name calling.

Oh, and I'm 23, my mummy rarely tells me to go to bed anymore...

[Wilder]

My snakes are 3 female and one male, which is why I am having trouble figuring out which one is bleeding (I'm assuming it is a female). And if I had another tank, or could afford another tank, large enough to take one out, I would, but as they have lived happily together for years I saw no point in pushing my overdraft further. Again, if my financial troubles imply stupidity or insensitiveness to the wellbeing of my snakes then apparently guilty again. But unless I believe there is a serious problem then why would I change anything?


If you cannot afford a cage for each of your snakes, I have to wonder what you plan to do with the inevitable clutches of eggs. Or if a female becomes eggbound. It surely seems you won't be able to take it to a vet.

The original recommendation is perhaps the best one. Seperate them and see which is bleeding, or if the bleeding even continues. Plastic storage tubs are cheap and easy to outfit for a snake. So are cage dividers. You might want to be sure all the females have a laying tub, too, since you can't be sure which or even if all of them will give you a clutch of eggs in the very near future.

If you want to insist on forcing them to cohabitate and can't afford another enclosure, you might want to find a different home for the male at the very least. Having low funds is not a crime by any means, but part of being a responsible pet owner is knowing when they are better off with someone else.

[definitive_prankster]

Thanks for the advice.

I'll leave it there as most things I say and do seem to upset people here.

Thank you to those who helped, and to those who flamed me: it wasn't necessary.

Needless to say next time I have a problem I won't be asking here.

Continue to flame me if you need to, but I won't be here to read them.

Oh, and thanks to Bobo's Mama for her(?) help and advice.

[Plums]

Hi all

I have 4 corn snakes all in the same tank (don't worry, it's huge and they have plenty of room :) ) and have started finding small pools of blood dotted around (I say small, they are maybe an inch in diameter but I use kitchen roll to line the floor I imagine it will have spread out).

Last year I only noticed one 'pool' but all the snakes seemed healthy enough and happy, so it eventually left my mind.

But now there have been 3 in the last month or so, and I'm wondering if it is mating related (it was around this time last year last time), and more importantly whether I should worry.

Can anyone give me some advice please, as I am quite worried about my snakes (and it's even worse seeing as I don't even know which of the 4 is bleeding!). They have no external injuries, there is too much blood for a bite (they have been known to bite one another and they hardly bled) and none of the rocks/branches have blood on them, so it can't be that.

Which only leaves their insides...

Any ideas? I have no idea where a reptile vet is around here, as we moved and left mine behind, and I would have to take them all as I don't know which one it is!


My snake is a male & he was passing blood when he went to the toilet. Its best to get all of them checked out mate. I also used to house my two together & had to separate them as the biggest seemed to be annoying my youngest by chasing him round the viv.

They never bit eachother, but its quite worrying that this is happening with 4 of yours that are housed together.

Get to the vets, determine which one is bleeding, then asap house them separatley.

Good luck - Lisa

[BeckyG]

Thanks for the advice.

I'll leave it there as most things I say and do seem to upset people here.

Thank you to those who helped, and to those who flamed me: it wasn't necessary.

No one has flamed you. They have simply given you the best possible advice for the care of your snakes. And yes, if people are upset at what you say, it is because we care about snakes here, and hate to see them in less than optimal, even stressful, conditions. Four snakes in one tank is good for no one. It seems you are willing to sacrifice the poor innocent snakes just because you do not want to hear that you just might be doing something that is less than ideal.

Needless to say next time I have a problem I won't be asking here.

That's a shame. And why not ask here? Because the solution is not what you want to hear, but rather what you need to hear? Again, you were given the best possible advice for the health and well being of your snakes, yet you would disregard it because it isn't what you want to hear. And your snakes are the ones suffering for it. Frankly, this is the best place to bring your problems. I must ask you, do you want to have happy, healthy snakes, or do you want to be right?


Continue to flame me if you need to, but I won't be here to read them.

Oh, and thanks to Bobo's Mama for her(?) help and advice.

Let me reiterate, no one has flamed you. They have simply given you good advice, yet you do not want to heed it. Keeping animals of any kind means being responsible and doing what is best for your animals. There is no place for a ego trip in animal husbandry.

[princess]

Hi Prankster,

I must say up front that I agree with the advice given by the others here but I'll phrase it for you in a different way which you will hopefully find constructive and not an attack.

I co-house a number of my snakes so I'm not bagging you for that. The big difference is that mine are in same sex groups only. It's not at all a good idea to permanently house males and females together as it causes too much stress for the female(s).

I use under-bed storage tubs for housing the majority of my snakes and this works beautifully as a cost effective and space effective method of housing my collection.


Are you 100% sure that you have only 1 male in that terrarium? The reason I ask is that it's unlikely that 2 females will fight and bite each other and the way a male and female act at mating time can include some bites from the male but they are not at all the type that would draw blood. Seeing one snake mate with another snake does not mean the one being penetrated is a female. Males will mate with another male as a way of expressing dominance.

You say you have no money but I'm sure that's not so true. You do have 'some' money but you are not prioritising your funds so that you provide the snakes with the housing they need.

I had a female bleed a fair bit after mating a couple of months ago and she turned out just fine so if it is mating bleeding then you don't need to worry too much. Unfortunately you don't know if it was or wasn't mating related as you don't house your snakes in a way that allows you to monitor this.

My suggestion to you is that you get a plastic tub with a secure lid and a lot of air holes drilled in it and make that your male snakes home. Then start really paying attention to your females including when they shed, eat, refuse to eat, get a sharp spinal ridge, etc so you can gauge which one is or which ones are gravid and then take it from there. You will need to have the gravid female housed by herself so that she can have a lower stress environment to lay her eggs along with a suitable nesting chamber and a suitable incubator or place to incubate the eggs when they come. Once the female has layed her eggs, please keep her away from any other snakes for a while unless you are 100% sure it's a female (and I mean 100% sure like you've seen her lay eggs sure) so she can recover without becoming gravid again.


Also a little off topic advice. Getting annoyed at people getting annoyed at you won't get you anywhere here. As a new member here, others will be initially more interested in your snakes and their welfare than they are in being gentle and worrying about not hurting your feelings. If you volunteer information that shows that you are willingly and knowledgeably keeping your snakes in conditions that aren't good for them then prepare to be reamed by a whole lot of people!!! Count yourself lucky that some of the more 'harsh' people around here haven't responded to this thread...I think you got away pretty lightly.

Good luck with your snakes,

Adèle

[Roy Munson]

Count yourself lucky that some of the more 'harsh' people around here haven't responded to this thread...I think you got away pretty lightly.
What do you mean? Misty responded. ;) :sidestep:

(J/K Misty.)

[isobel]

Gosh i found all that a bit worrying, i agree with everything everyone has said "i'm afraid guys that some people just don't learn" or really don't want advise.
I would be quite worried about those snakes and FIND THE MONEY to seperate them

Hope the advise was actually taken in and not ignored, I'm sure everyone hopes that too :)

isobel

[Cycal]

Almost as good as "I cant afford to have my dog neutered, want a puppy?".

[isobel]

Almost as good as "I cant afford to have my dog neutered, want a puppy?".

Yes thats exactly what i thought, god help him when all those females lay eggs. It makes me wonder how he will be able to afford to take the nessesary steps to care for them and for hatchlings. its frightening :cry:

isobel