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Hello all.. new member here..

M

Mjaorny

New member
Hi! So initially I wanted to get on this website to find out what was going wrong with my baby corn snake. I got him, brought him home, did all the necessary things and then noticed he would not eat. He would do everything he could to avoid food and when in his cage he would curl up as far away from the heat as possible. ( The heat was the proper temp) And I would pick him up and he would be cold.. and he loved to be held. My husband and I agree that he "knew" who I was. if my husband was holding him, and I rubbed him head.. he would extend that body to come to me.. was adorable. But I started noticing little bumps/kinks in the end of his tail and wondered if it was causing issues. Yesterday he was so lively when I picked him up, curled right up in my hand like he always does and he always wrapped his little tail around my pinky finger. Well I put him down yesterday and started to defreeze a pinky hoping he would eat and I came back to the cage to pick him up and he curled right up in my hand.. and then went limp. It was not normal.. so I layed him down on the table straight and he "wagged" his tail. I gave him my pinky.. he curled his little tail around it.. and just layed there. He felt like he was getting cold.. so after a few mins of wondering what the eff is going on, I picked him up and helped him curl up in my hand... he just turned his head as hard as he could in an L position, his upper body he would not move.. and he started "spasming" and "rolling" in my hand.. it scared me soo bad. Once that stopped.. he layed gasping for air and passed in my hands. We buried him lastnight. It is still hard on me this morning.. I keep asking myself over and over in my head what went wrong.. and honestly there is no telling. I only had the baby for about a month, so he was not that old.. not even 10 inches long. I will wait until I clean out my tank before I get another.. want to clean it all out in case it was a disease that it does not pass to a possible new baby corn.
 
Hello and Welcome!

Other members will give advice and help to make sure your ready for a second snake. I'm sorry yours passed.

Tell us about your set-up..
Where did you get him?
Has he ever ate for you?

Some baby snakes are non-feeders, and have to be worked with to get them to eat.

More information will help me and others to be able to help you.
 
I am so very sorry to hear about your loss. Any information you can provide, regarding habitat, feedings, shedding, etc. Will definitely help us to help you. Tons of amazing people here with crazy amounts of knowledge. Don't hesitate to ask any question. It's sure to promptly be answered.

Welcome to the forums, and again. So very sorry to hear about your baby.
 
Got him from petco. He ate 3 days after I brought him home and that was it.

His setup is a 14x8x6. Water dish on one side with bush for hiding. Sticks and bush in middle for medium hiding and a heat pad on opposite side with wood hiding area. Gauges for temp and humidity on respectable sides.
 
I've heard a lot of horror stories of people purchasing from pet stores. Sometimes, they never stand a chance. It's good that he ate after he came home. Did you check for a regurge? I know it seems like a silly question, but with my air filter and bedding, it took me two days to find one regurge. The bumps/kinks, were they hard? It could have indicated an impaction. It sounds like you have a respectable setup. What type of substrate are you using? What did they have on the floor of his cage at Petco? As far as stress levels, did you wait a week to handle after bringing him home? Did you wait 48 hours after feeding to handle him? Did he ever shed? Was he rubbing "scratching" himself? Did you check the corpse for mites? Did he ever wheeze, sneeze, yawn or anything of the sort?

Sorry for the barrage of questions!
 
Oh no your fine. The petco had.. ( I cant think of the name ) light. colored soft bedding. I have Zoo Meds Premium ReptiBark.. 100%pure fir bark bedding. I checked for regurge and didn't find any.The bumps and kinks were not hard, firm is more of a word I would use. 3 of them right past his umm.. (butthole) .. lol they were symmetrical as far as distance apart.
I had him 3 days and fed him.. then waited 48 hrs to pick him up. I think on the 5th day I picked him up. He never shedded. No rubbing himself. No mites. No wheezing, sneezing, yawning or anything or that sort.
 
You can call it his "vent". It's good that there was no regurge. They might have actually been kinks. I really don't know then... I'm sure someone else probably has some ideas.
 
My first snake died in my hands as well. I know the feeling. Sometimes they are sick from the start, sometimes they get injured before you even get them. Petco snakes are not the best quality at all. I will never get another one.

The best thing to do is bleach out everything in the tank, throw out the used bedding, and start over with a home bred snake from a local breeder (or internet order). It may seem like they are expensive, but it is better to get a nice healthy snake from someone who's reputation is on the line rather then a pet supply chain store.

I am very sorry for your loss, it took me a bit before I could replace my own little guy. I am happy I continued and got healthier snakes. When you do get a new hatchling I suggest keeping him on newspaper or paper towels to better monitor his excrement for record keeping.
 
Yes I will def use some different kind of bedding to better monitor. My husband and I were discussing going to the local owned petstore to look around at the corns they have. The price is double but at least we know the snakes are bred there and they really care about their animals and people relations.
 
Good. Mom and pop stores need your support. :) The small stores are always the best stores. IMO. They know each of their animals as if they were their own pets.
 
Don't forget to look in the for sale section of this website. I don't mean to promote my own ad with this so nobody get the wrong idea but there are lots of snakes listed on here that are bred by people who know what they are doing and sell top quality & healthy snakes.
 
OMGosh I am so sorry you had to go through that.

Theobald Brooks said:
Don't forget to look in the for sale section of this website. I don't mean to promote my own ad with this so nobody get the wrong idea but there are lots of snakes listed on here that are bred by people who know what they are doing and sell top quality & healthy snakes.
Click to expand...

No promote away. I always trying to urge people to look through the sale section on here whether I have snakes for sale or not. Mostly because I know that most everyone would be available to help you and the baby that they got from you no matter what.
 
I need to keep out of the classifieds, lol!

When I was at petco the other day, they had 4-5 in a fairly large tank and they were all out roaming around. Mine hide all day and I wondered why these were just out looking all around.

I wish mine would.
 
schnebbles said:
I need to keep out of the classifieds, lol!

When I was at petco the other day, they had 4-5 in a fairly large tank and they were all out roaming around. Mine hide all day and I wondered why these were just out looking all around.

I wish mine would.
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All my corns except one generally hide unless they are hungry, thirsty or need use the facilities. When I see them out and about I know it's time to thaw out some mice. The one exception likes to hang out on the middle brace of the tank but even there I think he considers it hiding.
 
Mjaorny said:
Thank you all for your support!
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Definitely don't beat yourself up about it. I know it sucks but it happens. I'd bet that the issues were caused by poor conditions and diet from his experiences before you acquired him. Don't let this experience turn you off because once you get a friendly, healthy and hungry snake they are a lot of fun to own.
 
schnebbles said:
I need to keep out of the classifieds, lol!

When I was at petco the other day, they had 4-5 in a fairly large tank and they were all out roaming around. Mine hide all day and I wondered why these were just out looking all around.

I wish mine would.
Click to expand...

They could of possibly be hungry, which is why they were so active. Hatchlings will sometimes get nippy if hungry too.


To The Poster: There is a good chance something could have been wrong with the baby corn you got.

I recommend you clean everything really well, and let it all sit. Read up a bit more on them on here, and go looking at other places for another.

If you go with another pet shop ask to see feeding records and/or what day they feed. You then can stop in on the day they feed, and see if the corn has actually ate (you'll see a lump in the snake). I also recommend that you get one that has ate a few times with the store.

I also REALLY recommend the classifieds on here. One thing I know about stores around here is that the morphs other than normals cost $60-$80. For that price you can get one shipped to you from a breeder.

You can also go to a reptile show/expo which are normally held in most states once a month. Depending on your location though, it could be a few hrs drive.

Either way congrats on being a member! This is a great forum and when you get another corn, many people will be here to offer advice! :)
 
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