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New snake

C

Carnelian

New member
Hey everyone!
It has been awhile since I have posted any concerns or questions regarding my baby snake, Neal. He passed at the beginning of August and left me heartbroken for quite some time. I was given some advice to invest in a new baby cornsnake to help cope with my loss. We bought our new baby a few weeks ago from a breeder, so we knew he would have a healthy feeding response. His name is Alfredo, born on June 25th, a very gorgeous butter tessera. We waited a week for him to settle in before his first feeding, and within a few seconds of presenting the frozen/thawed, he snatched it. We have fed him three other times since, five days apart, using the smallest pinkies we have at the moment, and it is so heartwarming to see him eat.
The breeder claimed he was 9 grams when we bought him, but two days ago when we weighed him, he was only 7.4 grams. This raises quite some concern for me and my bf because we don't want be feeding him improperly and stunt his growth, which I think is possible. I need some help to figure out what I'm doing wrong so Alfredo can be as healthy as possible. We will be weighing him every meal from this point forward in order to keep track of his weight. He has never regurgitated and poops just fine :)
Thank you all for your time in reading this!
 
it's better to weigh after he poops. If you weigh after you feed him, you're weighing the mouse also.

Babies typically retain about 30% to 40% of their feeder weight. Their growth rate will gradually slow as they get bigger.

But if you're feeding 1 or 2 gram pinkies, then you can only expect a growth rate of about 1/3 to 1/2 gram per feeding. Because of this, it will appear he is growing very slowly, even though he's actually growing fast.

You'll not see a big difference in his size or weight until he starts feeding on bigger mice, like fuzzies and hoppers.

Until then, all you can do is just continue to feed as you are, and wait.

Being 7.4 grams (was this after you fed him or before?) you should be feeding him very small pinkies. About 1 to 1-1/2 grams each. Although the breeder told you the snake weighed 9 grams, if he weighed right after a feeding, he might have weighed the mouse too. And then when the snake pooped, he loses some weight.

Here is the feeding plan you should be using if you're not already: <Link Below>

http://iansvivarium.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=410
 
Don't worry about his growth so much, we have an anery that is 1 year old and 200+ grams and a shatter that is also 1 year old and 61 grams lol. they just grow differently, but definitely get a good reliable feeding chart.
 
I'm so glad you got Alfredo. It's so nice you have a healthy snake and that he's eating. Butter tessera sounds beautiful and I hope you can share some pictures of him in the future.

When starting out they may only gain a gram or two a month, especially the first month. It is not unusual for them to lose slightly or not gain with a shed, too.

One thing I do with Munson is to feed at the longer interval suggested and wait a bit into the next larger snake weight to size up mice. Munson is considered a little aggressive and should only be used as a rough guide.
 
Carnelian said:
Hey everyone!
It has been awhile since I have posted any concerns or questions regarding my baby snake, Neal. He passed at the beginning of August and left me heartbroken for quite some time. I was given some advice to invest in a new baby cornsnake to help cope with my loss. We bought our new baby a few weeks ago from a breeder, so we knew he would have a healthy feeding response. His name is Alfredo, born on June 25th, a very gorgeous butter tessera. We waited a week for him to settle in before his first feeding, and within a few seconds of presenting the frozen/thawed, he snatched it. We have fed him three other times since, five days apart, using the smallest pinkies we have at the moment, and it is so heartwarming to see him eat.
The breeder claimed he was 9 grams when we bought him, but two days ago when we weighed him, he was only 7.4 grams. This raises quite some concern for me and my bf because we don't want be feeding him improperly and stunt his growth, which I think is possible. I need some help to figure out what I'm doing wrong so Alfredo can be as healthy as possible. We will be weighing him every meal from this point forward in order to keep track of his weight. He has never regurgitated and poops just fine :)
Thank you all for your time in reading this!
Click to expand...

Hiya Carnelian!!! :welcome_back_01:

How ya been? Good to see you again! Congratulations on Alfredo! Glad to hear he's scoffin down the pinks and without spewing or hurling them outta the same end! LOL!

You and your friend certainly experienced some heartache with your other little sneaky one, Neal, who is now resting peacefully. Unfortunately, the most profound learning experiences are also liable to be the most painful ones. That being said, your response to that situation has also shown the capacity for love you and yours have for pets you have made a commitment to take care of. If I were a little sneaky one, I would wanna have someone like you to be taking care of me!

Thanx so much for sharing! You made my Saturday morning THAT much better!! (Think I might go do some jumping jacks in the middle of the intersection on the avenue JUST for the HELL of it!)

Please keep us updated on his progress! Also, please say hello to your other half for me!!
 
We weighed him before he ate and he was 7.40g the first time. On tuesday we fed him again and weighed him before feeding. He was 7.45g so I guess that's something. Is feeding every four days a bad idea? My partner thinks that he could eat every four days but I've been unsure.
Also, I was wondering if he was settled enough for me to start handling him. I'm trying to be very patient with this snake so that I can guarantee its healthiness. Everything is going fine right now and I don't want to mess it up :/ The snake arrived on August 24th so it's been about a month. What do you guys think?
 
You stated: The snake arrived on August 24th so it's been about a month. What do you guys think?

A month since what? He was last handled?

By all means, that's plenty of time. We usually suggest a week or 2, and most people don't even wait that long.

Just don't handle him after feeding. To be safe, wait for him to poop, then it's safe to handle.

Yes, you can feed a baby snake on a 4 day schedule. But keep in mind if you do this, you are taking away your chances and opportunities to handle him by another day. Also, you are "Forcing Him" to bulk up and grow at a faster rate. Not necessarily anything wrong with that, but all the risks that occur associated with feeding are now increased.

If you'll look at the feeding schedule, it states you can feed on a 4 or 5 day schedule, although "Most" of the folks here I think would tell you to always work from the farthest side of that schedule.
 
Karl_Mcknight said:
Yes, you can feed a baby snake on a 4 day schedule. But keep in mind if you do this, you are taking away your chances and opportunities to handle him by another day. Also, you are "Forcing Him" to bulk up and grow at a faster rate. Not necessarily anything wrong with that, but all the risks that occur associated with feeding are now increased.
Click to expand...

:iagree: My phet golden clutches are all eating on a ~4 day schedule, though I occasionally break it up giving them an extra day or two, especially if one decides not to eat. They grow incredibly fast on this schedule, but there's little chance to handle them for more than a minute.
 
Carnelian said:
We weighed him before he ate and he was 7.40g the first time. On tuesday we fed him again and weighed him before feeding. He was 7.45g so I guess that's something. Is feeding every four days a bad idea? My partner thinks that he could eat every four days but I've been unsure.
Also, I was wondering if he was settled enough for me to start handling him. I'm trying to be very patient with this snake so that I can guarantee its healthiness. Everything is going fine right now and I don't want to mess it up :/ The snake arrived on August 24th so it's been about a month. What do you guys think?
Click to expand...

Hey there Carnelian! How ya been?

Glad everything is working out with you and Alfredo. So long as he didn't hurl that last pinky, everything should be fine from here on out, as long as you prepare the pinkies all the same way. As mentioned, 4 days is cool, but 5 allows for another day of handling. Everyone develops their own schedules. My hatchlings eat every 5 days; my yearling every 7; and my adults corns every 14 to 21 days depending upon whether or not I give them a jumbo mouse or a small rat. I like to feed the adults relatively larger rodents because of the higher fat & protein content, but I'm not sure it makes a real difference in the long run. Only Bozo looks like he's a little fatter than he probably should be at 950 grams (he's probably hit 1000 by winter as he moves around a lot less by then but for a 5 footer, that IS kinda heavy).

So it's about what works for you and your snakes, once you get to know them!

In any case, I'm really glad it's all working out for you this time around!

Do keep us posted!!!!
 
Alfredo arrived at my house on August 24th. I would like to start handling him because that is the reason why I wanted a snake :) it seems like now is the right time so I will begin to handle him next week after he eats and digests. I'll keep with the five day schedule to avoid those added risks because I'm not in any hurry for him to grow fast, I just assumed that his growth rate was unhealthy. Thanks for all the advice and I'll try to get some pictures up! I was skeptical at buying him first because $200 was on the more expensive end for a baby cornsnake but he was very much worth every penny :'):eek:k_01:
 
I'm so glad things are going well for you with Alfredo! Keep us posted on the little guys progress.
 
Carnelian said:
Alfredo arrived at my house on August 24th. I would like to start handling him because that is the reason why I wanted a snake :) it seems like now is the right time so I will begin to handle him next week after he eats and digests. I'll keep with the five day schedule to avoid those added risks because I'm not in any hurry for him to grow fast, I just assumed that his growth rate was unhealthy. Thanks for all the advice and I'll try to get some pictures up! I was skeptical at buying him first because $200 was on the more expensive end for a baby cornsnake but he was very much worth every penny :'):eek:k_01:
Click to expand...

$200 for a corn snake? Not saying that any and all of my pets aren't worth their weight in GOLD to ME, but just curious: is Alfredo any type of rare morph or is he just considered to have a royal bloodline? LOL! Only kidding, of course, but that seems like an exorbitant price for a hatchling. I haven't sold any of my hatchlings only because that's not why I bred my snakes, to make any type of monetary compensation from them, but if I were to market them, I believe that anything above $50 or $60 would be tantamount to highway robbery! I HOPE you didn't spend that much at a local pet store! If you DID you should let others know!

Just sayin'. :my2cents_01:
 
Hiya again Axis.

$200 is a perfectly reasonable price for for a butter tessera. All tesseras are worth more but to make a butter tessera you need carmel, amel, and tessera genes!

Alfredo is quite a special snake!
 
I think 200 is probably very close to the average price I've paid for all of my snakes (minus '16 hatchlings, which were all essentially free). Tango was $255, Fox $235, London was over $300 because of international shipping, and of course Alpha fudges the average at $4000. I had someone quite willing to buy a pair of hypo lavenders from my clutch out of London for $350 when they hatched (he since vanished and I didn't have babies to sell anyway...). It really depends on who bred it and the quality of the line. Most would probably scoff at an $80 pricetag for a simple anery, but I think India was quite worth it with her solid black saddles and pale background. She will likely be an excellent start to a high-contrast line.

You'll be slowly spacing out feedings as little Alfredo grows, so when he's a little bigger you'll have more days in between to handle him, especially once he's on fuzzies. :)
 
DollysMom said:
Hiya again Axis.

$200 is a perfectly reasonable price for for a butter tessera. All tesseras are worth more but to make a butter tessera you need carmel, amel, and tessera genes!

Alfredo is quite a special snake!
Click to expand...

REALLY? (Honest to blog?). Whoa, I stand corrected Dollysmom! Thanx for the info! Didn't know the that those genes were so expensive when collectively applied! Good to know! (Exactly WHY, I don't really know, but one thing is for sure: None of us are EVER too old to learn something, so on THAT note . . . ). But seriously, thank you for taking the time to explain that simple but important nuance. That's one of the reasons why you are such an important component of this forum! Not to mention, one of the reasons I also stuck around here (I know not everyone is happy about that but what can ya do? It IS what it IS!).

:eatsmiley
 
Thanks for the kind words but Dragonling and other breeders here are the real experts. I just keep and love three snakes, two of which are corns.

I've never said how much I paid for my corn snakes. Cleo was a show special at $49. She normally would have gone for $69. Mandy was free, but I gave the rescue a larger than requested donation. Because it's a donation I'm not going to say; but it was more than I would have paid for an adult normal and she's worth at least 1000x that to me!
 
Rufus is a Striped Corn Snake, and I bought him locally, (Nashville) at a Reptile Store. I paid $65.00 for him. I've seen basically the same snake(s) at various online sites for anywhere from $40.00 to $70.00, but then you also have to pay shipping.

So I feel like I got a decent enough deal. He's certainly got "Personality" that you can't put a price tag on regardless of what I paid for him.
 
Don't get me wrong guys, I'm not the most frugal person in the world when it comes to finances, which may also explain why I'm always so broke I can't even PAY ATTENTION! :eek1:

Matter-of-fact, I made a somewhat feeble attempt to sell some of my snows, even coming up with a flyer which the wifey made into a somewhat presentable ad. However, to this day, I've rehomed 15 of 21 hatchlings without so much as making a dime on any. (So much for my entrepreneurial spirit!).

That said, I guess my initial reaction came from the fact that someone can pay $200 for a corn snake, ANY corn snake. Except for may the scaleless variety, a morph which begs the question of whether or not tinkering with genetics should be considered as mutation as opposed to a form of evolution.

Just a rumination from an endorphin-drenched brain! :blowhead:
 
Yesterday was Alfredo's next feeding day, and after having been gone for the weekend it was alarming to what we found. He had regurgitated his last meal and I have no idea why. he has been feeding quite well up until this point and he has been pretty active. My partner believes that the reason behind his regurgitation is because the pinky came from petsmart (all the other frozen pinkies had come from a reptile store an hour away from us). Is it possible for there to be bad pinkies? We didn't do anything different the last feeding so I'm wondering why it happened, and I would like to find answers as soon as possible. We did not feed him last night, so we could give him a few more days to recoup, but we need to know what went wrong so it won't happen again.
 
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