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Corn snakes and ...cats?

xxFrootLoopxx

xxFrootLoopxx

Lurking around the corner
I've been thinking about getting a baby corn sometime soon, but I also live with two cats. I wanted to know if/how they would affect each other. I don't want my baby corn too stressed with cats wandering around the apartment.
 
I have two cats also and to tell you the truth one of them could care less and the other is his friend. http://cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=64977

However, not all cats are like mine. At first your cats are going to wonder what the hell the moving thing is inside the tank so you have to make sure that the top is on tight. Clamps, locks, whatever you plan on using to keep the top on it has to be cat proof. If your using a screen top make sure that it can't be broken by the weight of your cat. Or just put the tank up high enough that the cats can't jump on to.

As long as your cats are not always right in front or on top of the cage it should be fine. Most of the time he'll be hiding anyways.

Good luck!!
 
I also have two cats....and two corns. My cats never go near my lavender's viv.. I don't know why. But both of the cats love to sit on top of my amber's viv. My amber is super friendly and seems to enjoy their company. He comes out and flicks his tongue near the cats' feet when they're up there. He never seems frightened at all.

Just like anything else in your house, once the cat settles on the fact that there's something new in the house, it will most likely pay little to no attention to the snake at all. However, there is a small chance that the cat will remain interested in the snake, which is fine as long as your viv is secure.

Some folks even have cats that care so little, they can actually put the snake on the cat without anything crazy happening. It really just depends on your cat's and your snake's attitude toward the other animal.

Just keep telling your cat: Snakes are friends, not food. And keep telling your snake: Cats are friends, but watch out for the claws.
 
Voodoo said:
Some folks even have cats that care so little, they can actually put the snake on the cat without anything crazy happening. It really just depends on your cat's and your snake's attitude toward the other animal.

Just keep telling your cat: Snakes are friends, not food. And keep telling your snake: Cats are friends, but watch out for the claws.
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She cared, she just did not do anything. She is a mellow cat and he is a mellow snake. Of course I would not just put them together and leave them, I'm always watching.
 
I also have cats (5 of) and corns (2 of) and don't really have a problem. When I first got the snakes the cats were very interested, but they got bored after a couple of days! They also did this when I got Hamsters, Gerbils, Fish, Rabbits and Guinea Pigs (not all at the same time!!) and if I move cages etc round they become interested again for a day or so and then the novelty wears off.

Having said that I wouldn't trust them without supervision so make sure the vivs are locked and secure! Although, I have had an escapee survive a month with the cats and show up no worse for wear (possibly more down to luck than judgement and probably the exception rather than the rule!!)
 
I would never allow any of my snakes to come in to contact with my cats. Even the friendliest of cats have a hunting instinct, and I know from mine that they can move FAST. I just don't think it's worth the risk, personally.

You should be okay as long as the viv is either well out of the cat's reach (difficult with cats), securely locked, or preferably in a room the cats don't access. My snakes are upstairs and my cats stay downstairs so I never have a problem with the two meeting each other.
 
Thank you all for the advice!

Unfortunately I live in a small apartment, and the cats have access to every room and can get on almost every surface. There's only one place they don't jump on: the small table next to my boyfriend's and my bed. Not sure if I can fit a 10gal tank up there for a baby corn.... Oo

And I'm mostly worried about one of the cats, a young male. We just randomly acquired him one day a couple months ago, and are having some problems with his behaviors. In a different thread someone said to lock the cats in a separate room while you have the snake out, but I can't really do that b/c the male cat FREAKS OUT when he's closed in a room. He'll wander frantically and vomit and/or defecate somewhere in the room.

I was just unsure what to do about that, because I intend on handling the snake frequently once he gets used to his new habitat
 
Thats a problem then. I dont let my cats come into contact with my snakes either. Its a big play toy to them....string that moves....I have a puppy now and when any snakes come out she goes into her crate because she is young and I dont trust her.

On another note, Ive owned cats for 23 years and that behavior of vomiting freaking out and deficating if you simply shut the door to the bedroom while their in it, is not normal. Have you taken that up with a vet? The cat sounds feral.
 
My roommates' friend took him to a vet when they found him. He had been hit by a car, but there wasn't any damage.... or so they said Oo

I don't know if he's feral or not. He looks like a generic tom cat to me; grey with black stripes, white stomach and feet.

The friend is going to take him to get neutered soon... we'll ask the vet about his behavior then, I suppose...

But anyway, it will probably be a month or so before I actually get the snake, so hopefully this might be cleared up by then
 
He sounds feral but he could just have problems.

I guess I'm the only one who trusts my cat enough to make a snake necklace around her. Oh well, I guess it really comes down to how much you know your own animals.
 
The cat used to be owned by an elderly woman. I'm not sure what his exact living conditions were like, but she apparently kept him in the house before she died. Then her neighbor started feeding the cat for a while. Not sure how long it was then before he got hit ...

he also paws relentlessly at the sides and top of the litterbox.... I still haven't figured that one out, either.
 
xxFrootLoopxx said:
My roommates' friend took him to a vet when they found him. He had been hit by a car, but there wasn't any damage.... or so they said Oo

I don't know if he's feral or not. He looks like a generic tom cat to me; grey with black stripes, white stomach and feet.

The friend is going to take him to get neutered soon... we'll ask the vet about his behavior then, I suppose...

But anyway, it will probably be a month or so before I actually get the snake, so hopefully this might be cleared up by then
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I tried to take in a feral kitten once. Totally un-socialized....I shut the back door and it ran in circles, realizing it was trapped and absolutely flipped out. Tried to run through my window and I had to let him go, he was going to hurt himself.

I dont think the neutering has anything to do with it, but I have never had a cat that wasnt fixed so :shrugs:

Male un-neutered cats are insane. They fight in my backyard and literally almost kill eachother. One male actually snapped the others tail, so they are quiet violent when not fixed.
 
xxFrootLoopxx said:
The cat used to be owned by an elderly woman. I'm not sure what his exact living conditions were like, but she apparently kept him in the house before she died. Then her neighbor started feeding the cat for a while. Not sure how long it was then before he got hit ...

he also paws relentlessly at the sides and top of the litterbox.... I still haven't figured that one out, either.
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Their obsessive diggers, that may be it.

My cat can poop, and bury it.....and I reach it and take the poop out....then she'll go back in and dig again when theres nothing there :shrugs::shrugs:
 
I found a forum about cats and made a thread there about him. He's not unsocialized, just crazy sometimes. I got a reply saying that he should calm down a lot after we get him neutered.

I wonder if he'll still scratch the box... that really is the weirdest thing. He doesn't really dig down in it; I peeked in there one day, and he was at the front of the box facing out, scratching at the inside of the top [we have one with a lid for privacy].

Anyway... about corn snakes: the last one I had I got from PetCo. It was healthy, ate, shed, and behaved normally... really sweet little thing. I was wondering if I just got lucky with that pick or is PetCo pretty reliable? I can't really afford to have one shipped to me
 
xxFrootLoopxx said:
I found a forum about cats and made a thread there about him. He's not unsocialized, just crazy sometimes. I got a reply saying that he should calm down a lot after we get him neutered.

I wonder if he'll still scratch the box... that really is the weirdest thing. He doesn't really dig down in it; I peeked in there one day, and he was at the front of the box facing out, scratching at the inside of the top [we have one with a lid for privacy].

Anyway... about corn snakes: the last one I had I got from PetCo. It was healthy, ate, shed, and behaved normally... really sweet little thing. I was wondering if I just got lucky with that pick or is PetCo pretty reliable? I can't really afford to have one shipped to me
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I would never buy any reptile from a pet store. They are not reliable and often send you home with more then you paid for IE mites and mouthrot.

You can have a nice corn shipped to you from a breeder, or someone on here in the for sale section for about 50$, not including the price of the snake.

Fifty dollars shipping isnt expensive compared to the maintenance the corn will need for the rest of its life which can be 15+ years. Heat, hides, tank, lid, clips, bowls, aspen, water conditioner and a thermostat. Those are all things youll need so make sure your able to provide all of those things for that long if finances are an issue for you.

Better to spend the 50 and own a healthy corn, IMO.

My petco wants 90$ for a ghost corn that had months of old shed stuck to him. I bought a ghost from a breeder on here AND got it shipped and I paid 90$ TOTAL. Shes a healthy beautiful girl who didnt endanger the rest of my collection with parasites.
 
hmm... that's interesting.

The PetCo I went to had candy cane babies for about $55, and the one I picked was fine... no mites or any other problems oO

but then again I know a lot of pet stores are notorious for not taking care of their snakes :(

How much would a baby charcoal cost me?
 
No idea I dont have any charcoals. Id check out the for sale section on here if I was you, or go to www.cornsnakes.net and get one from SMR

BTW, the "was fine" doesnt mean a thing. Mites embed themselves under the scales....and their are other internal parasites you cannot see not to mention most pet stores co-hab, feed live, dont change water appropriately, clean fecal etc. How do you know if the snake is feeding regularly by picking the snake up? Your not a vet....sick animals appear "fine" all the time, you cant tell by picking them up.....I would avoid pet stores altogether but that is me.
 
I"ll be saving up some more to order from a breeder... Definitely. Thanks again, Justine. You've helped me a lot :)
 
Justine, not all pet stores are bad. You can't say that. Many take very good care of their animals and do the best that they can. I know that the Petco near me takes damn good care of their animals other then their diet. They keep all the corns in their own little citter cages with moss and water and they check the water quite often. (I have spent a good deal of time wondering the store.) Some stores don't care for their snakes but some really do, it's the luck of the draw.

You don't have to get one from a breeder, people get snakes from pet stores all the time and things go fine. You could also think about getting one from a show then you would not have to worry about shipping and you could pick which one you want first hand.

Good Luck
 
I knew someone was going to say that. look I said what I did and stated it was my opinion, and that I would never buy from a pet store which is the truth. The average pet store has more then quadruple the animals then store workers, their in the business of selling you as many animals as they can possibly hold, the more they hold, the more they potentially sell...if you think in a situation like that the animals are well cared for over the duration of the stay in the store, fine.

I say what I do about pet stores because I have never seen any of them that didnt keep their animals in appalling conditions. With that said, Id be an idiot seeing what I have, and advising her it was alright to purchase from a pet store. I used to work in petco mind you.

Anyway, I can only give advice on what has without a doubt worked well for me, and that was purchasing from BREEDERS not pet stores.



You want an opinion on Petco, just search 'Petco nightmare' on this board

http://cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=59950&highlight=petco+nightmare

Someone went into a Petco and they were co-habbing and a baby ate another baby and puked it back up, without anyone noticing. Lovely huh?
 
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