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Ball Python or Corn Snake

You guys have helped me alot. I want to thank you all for the suggestions and personal experience stories. It makes it alot easier seeing your stand point on the subject. I'm just having a battle with myself really when its not all that hard anyways. Keep the reply's coming!!!
 
Lol we're glad to be of help.

Like I said before, I have both. But my female BP is grumpy and is not overly fond of being handled, she's never struck at me, but she did try to eat me once (she was in feeding mode lol)
 
well I'm still having a little dispute with myself which way to go. But I'm leaning more towards a corn for my first. It just makes more sense to me to get something a little smaller that I will feel more comfortable dealing with. I know that your not supposed to rush this but I want one so bad that I just cant take waiting.
 
If you do decide on a corn snake, I recommend starting with an adult rather than a hatchling. Baby corn snakes aren't cute and cuddly like puppies or kittens. They're flighty, jumpy, defensive (because they're scared), and this often causes them to be quite nippy. A hatchling corn definitely won't hang around your neck for TV time like an adult. Even a yearling will be more handleable than a hatchling.
 
Snake Dave said:
Lol we're glad to be of help.

Like I said before, I have both. But my female BP is grumpy and is not overly fond of being handled, she's never struck at me, but she did try to eat me once (she was in feeding mode lol)
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I have just recently rescued an adult male BP and he is extremely nasty but i love him lol
 
texastailfeathers said:
If you do decide on a corn snake, I recommend starting with an adult rather than a hatchling. Baby corn snakes aren't cute and cuddly like puppies or kittens. They're flighty, jumpy, defensive (because they're scared), and this often causes them to be quite nippy. A hatchling corn definitely won't hang around your neck for TV time like an adult. Even a yearling will be more handleable than a hatchling.
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well i was thinking about that. but i dont want to pick one up that i cant handle because of its temper. i want to grow with my snake and we get a good understanding with eachother. I want to watch him grow as he watches me grow. thats the only real way to do it. i would rather him bite me alot when hes younger and him know that im there for him then for me to pick him up as an adult and him not know me at all. does it make sense?
 
4drbeemer said:
well i was thinking about that. but i dont want to pick one up that i cant handle because of its temper. i want to grow with my snake and we get a good understanding with eachother. I want to watch him grow as he watches me grow. thats the only real way to do it. i would rather him bite me alot when hes younger and him know that im there for him then for me to pick him up as an adult and him not know me at all. does it make sense?
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That plan makes sense for a mammal or a bird, but snakes don't operate that way. If you want a tame snake that you can handle, it is best to find an adult. Obviously you want to find a mellow adult, not one that is being rehomed because it is wild and bitey. *Most* adult corn snakes are very mellow, even the ones that haven't been handled much.
 
Well I have already told a breeder that I want a snake that they have and they have done all they could to get him to me as quick as possible so I'm not going to back out now. I thank you though. Its nothing personal but hes more than just a pet as I'm sure you understand.
 
texastailfeathers said:
Ah, then you didn't need advice after all. Glad you have it all figured out. Good luck. :cheers:
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But I do appreciate all of your help. I just figured that if I keep being indecisive I will just piss people off. And I'm good on my word so I'm excited and ready to see how this works out.
 
Well...you already made your decision, but here is my half-cent opinion, anyhow...;).

First, I disagree with TTF. I think that a hatchling corn is the perfect first snake. Why, you may ask? Because, yes...they can be flighty, and even a bit bitey...but this will help to prepare you for properly handling your snakes.

I agree 100% with your own assessment of watching him grow. It really is the only way to know 100% your snake's every attitude. You learn their feeding response, their handling response, their reactions to your presence, and all the other "finer points" of each individual snake, and these things will vary from snake to snake, even of the same species. They also TEACH you the finer points of handling snakes, and will better prepare you for the inevitable future purchases of a variety of species, because you will get more snakes, and you will expand your collection beyond 1 species. Everybody does.

I keep kings, corns, pituophis, BPs, and boas. My favorite snake to handle and "hang out with" is my boa. Second would be my BP. Third would be my kings, followed by corns and then pituophis. My favorite snakes to keep would be my corns followed by my boa, than kings, pituophis, and BP. Notice the difference? Yes, boids are more calm in hand, and easier to "chill" with. But the care requirements are much for finer in scope, and they do not respond well to mistakes. Corns are exceptionally easy to care for, and are VERY forgiving to the inevitable beginner mistakes that everyone makes...no doubt. Even small mistakes can put the average BP into a downward spiral of food refusals, bad sheds, tempermental behaviors, and aggression. Corns will usually recover fairly quickly from common rookie mistakes, with little residual or lasting effects.

Also...adult corns tend to be very calm. My adult female is a gentle lamb. I take her to my daughter's pre-school class to share with the kids. She is more "trustworthy" than my BP. I wouldn't dream of letting 15 3 year olds pet and handle my BP, because I am quite positive she would never eat again from that amount of stress. My yearling through adult corns take it all in stride. When I bring them back home, they hide for a few minutes, than return to their normal selves. That level of stress would probably permanently and negatively effect a BP, IMO.

So, really...all I am doing here is confirming your decision, and letting you know my opinion and experience, and how it relates to your decision. If you are getting a hatchling corn, I think you made the right choice. :cheers:
 
texastailfeathers said:
If you do decide on a corn snake, I recommend starting with an adult rather than a hatchling. Baby corn snakes aren't cute and cuddly like puppies or kittens. They're flighty, jumpy, defensive (because they're scared), and this often causes them to be quite nippy. A hatchling corn definitely won't hang around your neck for TV time like an adult. Even a yearling will be more handleable than a hatchling.
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Not that I have a huge number of corns - but my male is an '07 and my female is an '06 - and my female is sooo much more nippy / cranky / scared then the male - always has been!
 
both are easy to keep, and if your worried about there bite or agressiveness, both are docile, I got bit by both my female 5.5ft corn and my baby royal in the same night, none broke my skin! but I have fat hands lol :p

do what you feel you can do, we won't be keeping them, you will, if you want a royal, go for it, I'm sure if you get a decent breeder and do research on the snake your buying then you'll get a nice eating snake, not all royals stop eating, lots do, but not all. Same goes with a corn, if you want one, get one :)

Corns are actually pretty cool snakes, I want to breed them in the future, I do enjoy my corn's now they are grown up though, they can be a little jumpy and hard to handle when they are babys, :)
 
Eriathiel said:
Not that I have a huge number of corns - but my male is an '07 and my female is an '06 - and my female is sooo much more nippy / cranky / scared then the male - always has been!
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well, just to confuse people even more, my Nevada was an angel when he was a hatchling, until now...

he is almost 2 yrs old and is very flighty and whips his body around to get away, thank God he hasnt nipped or struck...yet lol
 
I think that if we grow together we will be fine. I mean if you think about it this is my first time handling and owning a snake and this is his first time being a snake so if we grow together we will learn eachother. The way we move and react to different things. I think its going to be an amazing experience and I cant wait for the little guy to get here. Anyone have any advice on how I should prepare for his arrival such as: how to set up the tank? what to put in the tank? what I should have waiting on him to make sure he is happy when he gets HOME. I want him to feel at home even though I know its going to take a couple days.
 
4drbeemer said:
I think that if we grow together we will be fine. I mean if you think about it this is my first time handling and owning a snake and this is his first time being a snake so if we grow together we will learn eachother. The way we move and react to different things. I think its going to be an amazing experience and I cant wait for the little guy to get here. Anyone have any advice on how I should prepare for his arrival such as: how to set up the tank? what to put in the tank? what I should have waiting on him to make sure he is happy when he gets HOME. I want him to feel at home even though I know its going to take a couple days.
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What did you get? But what ever it is, do not hold it for a week. Just leave it alone and let your pet adjust. Resist all temptation on holding it. This will stress them out, slowly handle your pet as time goes on. As for baby corns, I tend to let them be until their first year. I find all yearling snakes, be it kings, milks and corns, to be more mellow.
 
tricksterpup said:
What did you get? But what ever it is, do not hold it for a week. Just leave it alone and let your pet adjust. Resist all temptation on holding it. This will stress them out, slowly handle your pet as time goes on. As for baby corns, I tend to let them be until their first year. I find all yearling snakes, be it kings, milks and corns, to be more mellow.
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well I doubt I would ever be able to let my snake be for a year but back to what I was saying. I am not done buy things. What would I need to prepare for him?
 
Well, you'd obviously need all the essentials, these are:

A UTH/non-incandescant heat lamp
A digital thermometer (probe ones are the best)
A thermostat/rheostat (thermostats are best)
Water dish
A minimum of 2 hides; one on the warm side and one on the cool side
Substrate (I recommend paper towels/newspaper, these are safest for a young Corn)

Anything else would be mostly for your benefit by making the tank look more aesthetically pleasing, but adding artificial plants and other decor can help the Corn feel more secure and may aid in the adjustment period. Like tricksterpup said, a week without handling, just go in every other day or so to change the water, and that's it. After that it's all about how much you want to handle your snake. At that age it's not recommended to handle excessively, so that's more than 30 minutes a week, handling sessions should be a maximum of 5-10 minutes. But about the decor, it all depends on how big your tank and wallet is lol. Tanks that are too big will stress the little guy, but obviously too small isn't good either.

I hope that helps and I wish you best of luck with your first snake, keep us posted!

David
 
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