Will a corn snake eat other snakes?

The question lies in the title. Will it really hurt if I keep my baby bulls with my full grown corn? I know its not always acceptable to keep different species together, but I am very good about keeping their enclosures clean. I know once the bull snakes are full grown I won't keep them with a corn snake because the bulls have a tendency to eat rattle snakes, but I am just considering temporary husbandry of all three snakes together over the summer.

No snakes should be kept in the same cage PERIODE!!!It's like living with someone you hate with all your heart.
If need to just get plastic tubs..

You are mistaken, it is never ok to house separate species together. (with the possible exception of the house sized enclosure theory)

Do not house them together, it will cause stress. Yes, the corn snake could very realistically eat the other snakes, especially with a size difference. Heck, even without one snakes that are not naturally snake eaters have killed and consumed each other.

I repeat, do NOT house them together. No snakes should ever be housed with any other type of snake, not even of the same species.

I hear your concern about keeping snakes together. It is true to an extent about snakes sometimes being territorial and getting stressed, but my two bull snakes are together and happy, so are my boas. I believe it all comes down to the enclosure size and how clean the owner keeps it. I am only concerned if the corn snake would eat another snake, some species do this and some do not.

Remember some things about colubrids;
Bull snakes, racers, and rattle snakes (which are not colubrids) are different species and they all hibernate together and quite often share the same territory, especially in human territory such as barns where there is a lot of food, save for the rattle snakes.

I don't think you guys are giving bad advice, but I will make the argument you can keep the same species of snakes together as long as the enclosure is big enough and kept clean. I would not advise keeping bull snakes and boas together

But IF they do hibernate together at least they can get away.In a cage the snakes can't get away(innless in a house-cage)

But I am ok if with keeping snakes in the same place...just make a house a cage and then I would be fine with it.

Alast I can't make you not house snakes together but I can tell you your Bull Snakes aren't happy.

The only snakes I would ever feel safe keeping together would be certain types of garter snakes.

I think the cohabbing debate is largely myth-based. Nobody really knows for sure that it causes stress. Some snakes have lived long, happy lives with another of the same size, species, and sex.

Still, there are perfectly valid reasons why it is a bad idea. If you find a regurge, you won't know who did it if it's late enough in digestion. If one gets sick they likely both will, leading to twice the vet bills. Putting them together right after a meal is dangerous too because it can trigger a feeding response on the other snake. If one is sexed incorrectly they can mate when the female is too young which can be fatal.

Basically it's frowned upon.

Do not keep your bulls with your corns they are smaller and may very well become lunch. I've seen pictures of corns eat another corn that was the same size as them so it would be easy for your corn to eat a smaller snake. All species of snakes will eat other snakes.

Originally Posted by boabass6

I hear your concern about keeping snakes together. It is true to an extent about snakes sometimes being territorial and getting stressed, but my two bull snakes are together and happy, so are my boas. I believe it all comes down to the enclosure size and how clean the owner keeps it. I am only concerned if the corn snake would eat another snake, some species do this and some do not.

Remember some things about colubrids;
Bull snakes, racers, and rattle snakes (which are not colubrids) are different species and they all hibernate together and quite often share the same territory, especially in human territory such as barns where there is a lot of food, save for the rattle snakes.

I don't think you guys are giving bad advice, but I will make the argument you can keep the same species of snakes together as long as the enclosure is big enough and kept clean. I would not advise keeping bull snakes and boas together

Hibernating and being forced to live together are two different things and cannot be used to prove your point. Wild snakes do not live together. They may run into each other or gather in the same spot to hibernate but the don't travel around together. Snakes are solitary animals and forcing them to live together no matter how clean you keep the tank it is not fair they can't get away from each they are forced to stay there. Yes snakes can live long, healthy lives being cohabbed but that does not mean it was the right thing.

My first 2 corns lived together for years and I said the same things you are saying when I first joined here. My corns lived together with no issues that I noticed but I didn't know as much as I do now. My corns eventually started having digestive issues then they mated to young. After separating them I could tell they were living a much better life.

In my opinion forcing a solitary animal to cohabitate is cruel no matter how clean the tank is and I'm saying this from experience. I made my snakes live together and I feel bad about it now but I was able to make their lives better by learning. The only one benefiting from cohabbing is the owner beacuse it cost you less money and space, the snakes do not benefit, they don't desire company.

Yes in the wild the share the same range, territory and habitat, but don't spend prolonged periods of time together. The only exception is hibernation, and that is purely OUT OF NECESSITY. They also have many many square feet of woodland to explore and move away from another snake or species of snake they encounter.

20 gallon viv is not equal to a territory in the wild.

Get some shoe box sized storage boxes and make the bull snakes their own tubs. They are super cheap. Stack them on top of each other and get one UTH. Cover the sticky side of the UTH with foil tape and use it as back heat for the two tubs. Please make sure it is regulated in some way with a lamp dimmer or thermostat.

Total cost:
2 Shoe Box Tubs: $2.99 each (cheaper at local Walmart or Kmart) Link for online purchase.

1 UTH: $17.59 for small Zoo med heater (could be cheaper at local pet store) Link for online purchase.

1 Roll of Foil Tape: $5.99 (cheaper at local stores) Link for online purchase.

Lamp Dimmer: $10.03 (could vary, but always between 10-12) Link for online purchase.

Total: $39.59 but you could probably do it for around $30 by shopping local.

Make sure you can provide proper housing before you get more snakes.

The cost of keeping snakes correctly, in single tubs or vivs, is so minimal compared to the cost of keeping other animals correctly that it literally boggles my mind why people even consider cohabbing their snakes.

We are adopting a horse that was sent to slaughter early last year and rescued by a local horse group. Here are the costs:
- $400 rescue fee
- $150-200 to purchase the fencing wire to repaire/strengthen to draft standards the pasture she will be in
- $60 for posts
- $400+ to have her hauled to Virginia (or twice that much to repair the inlaws trailer)
- $40-70 a month to feed her
- $30 every 2 months to have a farrier visit
- Vet bills, as needed

We have two juvenile rabbits. The purchase cost of them was $40-$50 a piece. The neuter surgery and pre-neuter exam will total $119. The spay and pre-spay exam will total $145. Their cage was purchased new a few years back for about $100 bucks. Food? $30 a month. Hay? $40 a month.

Let's not even get into dogs and cats, with their required immunizations and high health care and feed costs.

So given how expensive other animals can be to purchase and maintain, why would we bother to cry about the cost of purchasing individual housing for our snakes??

The only reasons to house snakes together are because it's more convenient or interesting for the person keeping them. There are no valid, good reasons to house the snakes together for the snakes sake. They do not readily choose to live in close confines in the wild-- and they don't "like" to associate in captivity.

Couple this with the fact that very real and valid health risks are possible, including but not limited to egg-binding from an unplanned breeding, transfer of parasites, regurge issues and canibalization, and you've got a situation that works right up until the point that it doesn't work, and your snakes life and health are forefeit because you chose to make a decision that appealed to you without considering what is best for the animal.

That is the height of irresponsible animal ownership.