Needs Everyone's Opinion..

Nanci · Jan 8, 2007

bill38112 said:
1. Snakes are kinda boring compared to cats and birds.

No way! Choco and I just spent a peaceful and relaxing two hours watching Wild Boyz- and neither one of us was bored!

Nanci

Lennycorn · Jan 8, 2007

TaraRose · Jan 8, 2007

Thanks for all the info! Man am I glad I found this place!! Sounds like I got most of it covered..I just need to get another tank (which may be a while..I am pretty broke right now, but will keep an eye out for one on craigslist). Will they be depressed when I seperate them?

I did think of a few questions..

1. How often to CornSnake bites break the skin?

2. how much do I have to worry about salmonella? I know reptiles can carry it, but do you usually wash your hands after each time you handle them? What about clothing? Do I need to change that if they come into contact with it?

3. I will be feeding them in a seperate rubbermaide container and not in their home. What kind of precautions do I need to take as far as handling them after a feeding?

4

They are coming home on friday!! The husband is going to bring them over to my house and then help me feed them. I'm nervous and excited..

tyflier · Jan 8, 2007

1-I don't know as I've never been bitten.

2-It's rare that a person actually catches salmonella from a snake, but it is a good precaution tow ash your hands after handling them, especially for children. I would'nt worry about the clothes.

3-Wait at least an hour or two to put them back in their enclosures after feeding, than they should be left alone to digest for a minimum of 2-3 days before handling.

Jordan G · Jan 8, 2007

TaraRose said:
Thanks for all the info! Man am I glad I found this place!! Sounds like I got most of it covered..I just need to get another tank (which may be a while..I am pretty broke right now, but will keep an eye out for one on craigslist). Will they be depressed when I seperate them?

I did think of a few questions..

1. How often to CornSnake bites break the skin?

2. how much do I have to worry about salmonella? I know reptiles can carry it, but do you usually wash your hands after each time you handle them? What about clothing? Do I need to change that if they come into contact with it?

3. I will be feeding them in a seperate rubbermaide container and not in their home. What kind of precautions do I need to take as far as handling them after a feeding?

4

They are coming home on friday!! The husband is going to bring them over to my house and then help me feed them. I'm nervous and excited..

1, I've never actually heard of one breaking the skin.

2, You dont have to wash your clothes after it touches that but I reccomend washing your hands before and after.

3, After it eats pick it up around the middle as best you can (Without grabing the bulge where the mouse is!)

4, CONGRATS!! :crazy02: have fun.

Jordan G · Jan 8, 2007

Oops, forgot to mention what tyflier said about leaving them to digest for the few days.

Lennycorn · Jan 8, 2007

1. From what I hear too little to worry about.
2. very rare, Your more likely to get food poisoning
3. Just put them back in the cage after eatting and don't handle for 48 hr.
4.

TaraRose · Jan 8, 2007

I know if you disturb them too soon you run the risk of them regurgitating their food, but is that the only real risk?? Are they more aggressive/likely to bite after they are full?

Also, what about handling them after they shed? Do they need time to recoop? And will they be more aggressive/on gaurd just after they shed??

Lennycorn · Jan 8, 2007

TaraRose said:
I know if you disturb them too soon you run the risk of them regurgitating their food, but is that the only real risk?? Are they more aggressive/likely to bite after they are full?

Also, what about handling them after they shed? Do they need time to recoop? And will they be more aggressive/on gaurd just after they shed??

No, not more likely to bite.
Some prefer not to be handle before the shed.
But snake not like to be handle period. They aren't like dogs. They are solitary animals.

BeckyG · Jan 8, 2007

TaraRose said:
Will they be depressed when I seperate them?

No, they will be relieved. Snakes are solitary creatures and neither want nor need company. In fact, cohabiting them is very stressful. No, they don't snuggle. They compete for the preferred spot in the tank. When you do separate them, they will not look for each other. They will finally be comfortable enough to get out and explore.

Since they are male and female, definitely separate them now. Your female is too young to breed, but may do so anyway. She could die from this. Don't take that chance.

TaraRose · Jan 8, 2007

Unfortunately it will probably be at least a month until I can get another tank for them. Hopefully they will be ok until then...

tyflier · Jan 8, 2007

TaraRose said:
I know if you disturb them too soon you run the risk of them regurgitating their food, but is that the only real risk?? Are they more aggressive/likely to bite after they are full?

Also, what about handling them after they shed? Do they need time to recoop? And will they be more aggressive/on gaurd just after they shed??

My snake doesn't seem to mind being handled, no matter if she's just eaten, in "blue", or what ever else might be going on.

All snakes are different...

snakemom1961 · Jan 9, 2007

Yes snake bites can break the skin. Mine got me about 2 months ago, because of my own stupidity. Tiaga happens to stay in "hunt" mode for about an hour after eating. I didn't wait long enough to transfer her back to her tank and she tagged me. Didn't hurt, just startled me, then I looked down and saw blood, and about 6 pinprick, tiny holes in my finger.So yes they do break the skin if older, no, doesn't hurt at all.

TWGarland · Jan 9, 2007

I agree that a corn bite can break the skin, but its like being scraped by velcro or something, definately not as bad as the injuries your amazon has inflicted on you hehe! (still not to sure what an amazon is!? some kind of bird/parrot?)

The Salmonella risk i thought comes from all animals capable of laying eggs, and it is advised to wash hands, especially for kids, after handling reptiles.

A regurgitation is a very serious thing to a corn snake, and can seriously weaken/stress your pet, you should aviod them as best you can. One way i do this, is if your gonna feed out of the vivarium, in a seperate container, then why pick up the snake at all after its fed?, i carry my seperate container over to the vivarium with my snake still inside, and let 'beads' (my corn) slither his own way home! every little helps!

TaraRose · Jan 9, 2007

Good idea about letting him get back into his own cage

I am very nervous about them coming home..but excited too!

Doesn't sound like the bite hurts much, so that makes me feel better! These guys are used to being handled by kids, so hopefully they won't mind being handled by me. Also, they say sometimes they handle them together? Is there a bigger risk of being bitten then??

PS..yes, an amazon is a parrot with a pretty good sized beak! I believe their beaks have about 800 or 900 PSI when they bite..yikes! Sorry for not explaining sooner!! LOL

tyflier · Jan 9, 2007

Also, they say sometimes they handle them together? Is there a bigger risk of being bitten then??

I wouldn't think so. Most of the problems from cohabitation stem from territorialism and the spread of disease. Handling them together won't incorporate either of those into the equation.

I really don't think you have anything to worry about as far as getting bitten goes. Most of the time, bites can be avoided if you follow a few simple rules:

1-don't act like a predator. Trapping the head of you snake, hurting it, squeezing it, sudden aggressive movemnets, etc...these are all signs of predation. If you are slow and gentle at all times(that's how I taught my daughter

), and always allow the head freedom of movement, your snake is less likely to feel threatened.

2-Be careful of feeding responses. Use tongs to handle prey, and always wash your hands after handlng prey items and before handling your snake. If you have the odor of prey on your hands and get bit, it is your fault, not the snakes.

If, for whatever reason, you do end up getting bitten, do NOT just put your snake back in it's cage and leave it alone. This will "train" the snake to bite if it doesn't want to be held. Just ignore the bite, and continue doing what you are doing with your snake. It isn't a boa. Boa bites hurt, and bleed a lot. This is a corn snake. Their teeth are like needles at worst, and the bites can't possibly be that bad. I have never been bitten by a corn snake, but I got tagged by a Red Tailed Boa, and let me tell you...a corn snake can't POSSIBLY be as bad as that was...and it was 100% my own fault...

TaraRose · Jan 9, 2007

I am glad you brought up about the bites not being their fault. I personally tend to think that 99% of bites from ANY type of animal are due to human error. Of course there are going to be that 1% that were unprovoked, but for the most part they can be avoided. So being able to apply that theory to snakes makes me feel more comfortable. I guess from here it's just a matter of learning their body language and determining triggers.

Anyway..if you haven't noticed I tend to WAAY over analyze things (hehe), so I really want to thank you all for your willingness to share all of your knowledge and experiences

I am feeling much more confident about these snakes, and believe you me this is a VERY hard thing for me to do!!!

Needs Everyone's Opinion..

Nanci

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Lennycorn

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TaraRose

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tyflier

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Jordan G

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Jordan G

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Lennycorn

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TaraRose

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Lennycorn

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BeckyG

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TaraRose

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tyflier

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snakemom1961

Spring is here!

TWGarland

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TaraRose

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tyflier

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TaraRose

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