New snake

Hi!3 days ago,i recieved a corn snake from a friend of mine. It's app. 3 years old, and 1.3m. long. I was just had some questions, so that I can take care of him the best way possible.
I don't know what way he's been handled of the owner before me, netiher if the snake is an aggressive one or not. I know with what and how often they're supposed to be fed, and he lives in a nice cage.
So, I was wondering, what is the best way of picking it up and letting him get to know be better? I want him to be as tame as possible.Thx in advance

If you are brave enough, just dive right in there and pick up the snake. You will soon notice if its tame or not! Once the tank is open if the snake is aggressive, you may hear a rattling sound, thats just the tail, and they make that noise to warn you off just like us saying 'back off man, leave me alone'. Normally when my snake does this I just pick him up anyway, to let him know I'm not gonna hurt him and show him not to be afraid. Also the head may draw back and the neck go into an 's' shape, this is when it's ready to strike, but they rearly do, its just a warning to put you off. If by chance the snake does strike, then you probably wont feel anything, they strike so quickly you hardly see them move, its more shock afterwards that makes me shake. If they do end up biting you with their fangs which is unusual, then try not to pull your hand away as this could pull out their fangs and this isn't very plesent for the snake, but understandable is very hard for you not too. On the whole however, cornsnakes are very tame and love to be handled. So just go ahead and pick it up, the more a snake is handled the more tame its gets.

I would also recommend that you just reach in and pick it up. Try not to leave it dangling too much, as it's not very comfortable for them.

If you just got the snake into your home, though, you should probably leave it alone to settle in for a few days at least. This gives it time to adjust to its new home before it has to get used to new people too!

I agree it takes a week or so for them to "relax" and get used to their new home. Amd the best way to see if the snake likes to be handled is just to reach in and find out. What color/morph is your new snake?

I don't know what morph it is, and I don't have a digital cam, neither a scanner, but it looks pretty similar to the one pictured.
When I got the snake, a got the cage/aquarium with it,so it does'nt have a completely new home, but should I still let it be alone for a while for it to seddle down? Also, should I pick it out of the aquarium with my bare hands, or is it best to use a snakehook or something?

It could possibly be an oketee if the black bands are thick and stand out, but is most probably a normal. Normals are beautiful snakes. We have a male called Pumpkin.

Peter

I would still give it about a week to settle in to its new place. The tank may be the same, but the sights, smells, and sounds around it are different.

Pick it up with your bare hands! Corn snakes are rarely aggressive. The only time you're likely to get bitten is if your hands smell like mice, or you stick your hand in front of the snake and wave it around just after the snake has eaten. At that point, the snake would be in feeding mode, and might mistakenly strike at your hand thinking it is another food item. However, if yours does turn out to be an especially aggressive corn, you could try wearing gloves to protect your hands while holding it until it gets used to you. Chances are you won't need to, though.

Well since you said that you want to tame is down a bit more, be warned that adults (since you said it's already 3 years old and 1.3 meters long) are harder to tame if it isn't handled that much before. Some wont even lose the temperment of being aggressive even with lots of handling. But corn snakes are usally not that aggressive, it should settle down nicely within around a week or so. Give it some time to adjust.

Good Luck and Happy Herping!

since this is your first (corn)snake i advice you to buy The Corn Snake Manual by Bill and Kathy Love!

It helped me a lot over the past two months since i've got corns!

Okey,thx a lot for your advices!I really appreciate it
Is my corn fully grown at the age of 3?

Hmmm...don't seem to get any answers to that one =) I just think it looks big for a three year old
Well, I tried to pick up my corn for the first time yesterday. It seems like my snake is very jumpy, 'cause when i gently put one hand underneath it and carefully started to lift it up, it got really stressed out and "ran off" into it's claypot. Is this a normal reaction?Should I just have lifted it further up, and will it seddle more when i finally have it in my hands? Is Repti-bark a better surface than saw-spoon( or what the heck it's called in english =) same **** that you use for hamsters and mice etc.)

Hope you can give me some answers, thx in advance!

PS Any Norwegians on this board?

at 3 years old he is probably most of the way to being full-grown. (may grow some and bulk up girth-wise a bit) the behavior you described is quite normal for a corn. when it comes to fight or flight when they feel threatened they would almost always choose to try and run away. as far as bedding as long as the snake isn't on cedar or pine (less problems with pine but still not good) then your problems should be few. as far as wood substrates i think the best are aspen, beech, birch, or cypress. good luck with your new acquisition... ---jim

The term you used, "saw-spoon", makes me think of cedar shavings. Woods are named differently from one country to another. Cedar is the one you shoudn't use. It's reddish brown, and it is found in the US as fairly wide, flat, curled shavings for hamsters cages and is very aromatic. It is resistant and repellent to insects and cedar wood is often used in house construction, or to line closets to keep away moths. It's not toxic to mammals but reptiles are sensitive to it.
In your place I'd go to a pet store and ask for the bedding that is specifically recommended for reptiles, just to be safe. In fact, I'd ask several pet stores, you might get different answers, but learn a lot in the process.

THx again!I just talked to a friend of mine that I found out had a corn, and he said his snakes (wich is only half a year old or so) acted the same way when he picked it up, but it'd never bit him. So, I probably just have to go get used to it behaving that way.
I've only been to one petstore asking som q. about my snake.This is because I know the one working there, and feel comfortable talking about my snake, since snakes aren't allowed as pets in Norway, and I don't know how others will respond to it. But, I've read a lot on the IN, and know most of what I need to know now

If they're not allowed in Norway, then you can't freely ask around. You mentioned Reptibark, is that brand available there? You can use it. You can also use shredded coconut fiber. You can always use newspaper or paper towels, as well as cloth diapers (which you can wash and re-use). If you travel outside of Norway you can go to pet stores that have snakes and knowledgeable people. If you use shredded coconut be sure not to feed the snake inside the tank, as that stuff can stick to the food and be swallowed by the snake.

Well, I've finally picked it up now, and experienced no problems at all. Thx for your help!

sowwy but i am a huge animal rights activist and i hav to say this...
PLEAZ call your snake by a gender. i hate it when people call animals "its" if u dont know the gender just call the snake a him. im not trying to be pushy i just dont like people to talk about animals (especially snakes) as if they r objects