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Cal king breeders?

spyderk

spyderk

Just a member
I am interested in getting a cal king hatching or yearling, preferably one that is similar in appearance to the one we interacted with a few weeks ago. In my research, it appears as though I am looking for a 50/50 white/black cal king.

I have searched some classifieds at kingsnake.com, but thought I would see if there are any breeders here or if anyone knows of any that they trust.

I handled a few kings today (not exactly what I was looking for) at various pet stores. One older yearling was lunging at the pet store worker's hand and bit and chewed on his (gloved) hand, but I took him and he was really calm and more laid back in my hands than some of my corn snakes. I was almost hoping for a bite, since I have yet to get one from my corns or milksnake, but nope! He was nice to me. I felt bad, because the kid said that no one wants to buy them (they had 2) because they bite every time you take them out, and they have been at the store for over a year at least.

Thanks.
 

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I can't think of anyone! I have one Cal King, and her owner gave her to me as a hatchling, and said she was the meanest snake in the world. She's never been "mean" with me, but she's somewhat preferential, and she definitely remembers the person she didn't like, even years later! I think they are smarter and so have more of an opinion than cornsnakes. Good luck! Maybe post a wanted ad in the Other section here??? And don't forget to check BOI no matter how well-known a breeder is. But there have to be nice retired cal-kings out there, don't there???
 
I am hoping to hatch some next year. I didn't breed them this year because I just got them and the female needs to fatten up a bit. Good luck in finding someone!!
 
I quit with them b/c they were a NIGHTMARE at the pet store. Everyone wanted to hold them, and 90% of them bit. Either defensively or feeding response, but the non-biters were rare. I was rather shocked to see that one as a program animal. I've had several over the years and never had one I would hand to a child. I agree, the "normals" are beautiful snakes, though.
 
The breeder who I got my Pueblan milk from has some baby cal kings. I guess they used to be problem feeders so he didn't sell them last year but they are doing fine now. I'll post a picture of the one I was most interested in. He says they are skittish but didn't mention any serious attitude.

BHB has a listing for them but I emailed and they won't be in for a few weeks. I could wait; I'm in no major hurry I guess. I found another elsewhere that is on young rat pups and is more expensive due to its age, I imagine. That would also need to be shipped. The baby cal near me is very inexpensive, and obviously I could just drive 40 minutes (and I already have a snake from this breeder so I trust him) and get that, but the pattern isn't what I first hoped for. It is CUTE, though!

Chip, this kid was trying to talk me into a Kenyan sand boa while he was trying to release this king from his glove. He looked nervous when I was holding it, but I told him I was okay if I got a bite. I was sad that these snakes had been there for over a year. I was not pleased with the conditions of the store (lots of puppies and small dogs housed together in small cages, lots of poop in the reptile cages (which were pretty small), and I just didn't get a good feeling about supporting a place like that. I was pretty sad when I left.

I did hold a striped black/white cal king at Petsmart, though, and I thought their setup wasn't as bad. The snake flung poop on my nice sweater, but I didn't care about that. She said it used to lunge at people taking it out but now it just tries to get away when someone wants to get it. I am thinking that a cal king isn't the best snake for a pet store, either!

I have a friend who says they are great, my breeder uses his male in educational things, that reptile event I went to had a great cal king, so I hope it's possible for us to find one that isn't awful all the time!
 

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If you want a king, I really really recommend get one from a face to face transaction. That way you can see how the babies handle.

Kings seem to vary a lot in temperament. Many tend to lean toward the bitey flighty side. They are poop flinging musk champ. There are some angels, but so many are devils.

I breed Lampropeltis m. mexicana x ruthveni kings. They are all absolute gems and sweet hearts. Sean at VMS herp breeds them too. Just tossing out another king snake option. :p
 
A good commercial source for the Cals is BHB here in Michigan. I have a few nice Kings from them, a really nice B&W Abberent Cal amongst the heard.

Kings can be a bit flighty when hungry in my experience, but I love mine as much as my corns. I have two 3 year old Brooksi females that are calm as can be...and will eat everything but the kitchen sink. <G>
 
I think you are probably right. I will look into the one I posted and see how it handles. I understand that babies are going to be flighty or skittish, probably similar to my Milkshake (the Pueblan), and that's okay. Milkshake is settling down really nicely, I think.
 
Gronk said:
A good commercial source for the Cals is BHB here in Michigan. I have a few nice Kings from them, a really nice B&W Abberent Cal amongst the heard.

Kings can be a bit flighty when hungry in my experience, but I love mine as much as my corns. I have two 3 year old Brooksi females that are calm as can be...and will eat everything but the kitchen sink. <G>
Click to expand...

BHB will by my second option, most likely, if I don't get the one I posted. I guess I am surprised that there aren't more breeders, but perhaps if I was looking in August or September, I'd be seeing more babies, huh?
 
Oooh, look at a Florida king! Same insane feeding response, but mostly even tempered otherwise. OR a Mexican Black Milk. HUGE black snake, generally even tempered.
 
spyderk said:
BHB will by my second option, most likely, if I don't get the one I posted. I guess I am surprised that there aren't more breeders, but perhaps if I was looking in August or September, I'd be seeing more babies, huh?
Click to expand...

You might come out better if you wait. Most colubrid eggs are just starting to hatch for the season. Breeders will have a much much better selection in late August.
 
Not to mention much more well-started babies....
 
I really like black milksnakes, too, and the breeder I talked about will have those later this season.

Heck, I like lots and lots of snakes and would get a bunch more if I could. But I have a 6-bin rack that my husband built, and it has 5 bins filled!

I'll look into Florida kings, too. I love the black/white contrast of the cal kings, though. I wanted an anery as my first corn and ended up with a ghost from PetCo, not knowing much about morphs at the time. Now I feel like I have all the corn morphs I want, though a milksnake-phase Miami is on that list ... lol. So who knows what'll go into that bin. I just really liked that Cal king!

What do you guys think of the picture I posted?
 
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