Newly arrived 5 month old corn very tiny!!

[drybgerg]

Just received Zea yesterday. According to breeder she is 5 months old and has been eating 1 pinky a week. She weighs in at 9 grams. Seems super small to me, due to feeding interval.

She came from across the state so her trip was a relatively short 130 miles (boxed up at 5 pm arrived to me at 10am following day). Her last feeding was on Monday 5/5.

I've got her in her new viv and she was active last night exploring, very lively.

I'm planning on feeding her 1 2-3 gram pinky in a week, then thinking of going to 6 days, then 5 days, then get her onto my normal 4 day schedule for this size snake. By then she'll hopefully be on to 2 pinkies every 4-5 days. Obviously I will skip feeds when she is in blue like I've always done.

Wondering If I should work her down like outlined above or go right to the 4 day schedule after her week to acclimate? Any additional thoughts welcomed.

 

[Chip]

To start her off, I wouldn't feed her before she has defecated the previous meal. If she's empty, she can eat. Once she starts pounding food, you can move her up to the Munson plan, or a modified version thereof. I don't don't why some people feed babies so sparingly -I guess the 1 X a week for adults rule of thumb is stuck in their head.

 

[Nanci]

Or they have so many babies they can't feed as often, time-wise.

 

[drybgerg]

Thanks for the advice Chip!

 

[Chip]

Or they have so many babies they can't feed as often, time-wise.

Then they need to hire help or breed manageable numbers, IMO (not that you don't know that). All they wind up doing is selling sub-par stock. My 2013 babies are 60+ grams (July-Aug hatch dates). They hatch at about 5 grams, so this poor girl probably hasn't doubled her hatching size after 5 full months.

 

[blue roses]

I just came home from a place called jungle bob's reptile world here on long island and saw some corn babies that he said were 6 mos old, but they looked small to me. He said they were eating frozen pinkies once a week, is this enough i would have thought they should have been bigger. I could hold the one i was looking at on the palm of one hand. It was so calm and pretty he called it a red okito. I was so tempted but the size was bothering me. If i bought it would it catch up in size if it ate more times a week. Or should i pass on this one.

 

[Chip]

If i bought it would it catch up in size if it ate more times a week? Or should i pass on this one?

In my opinion, yes and yes. It will probably catch up, but it will be behind for a long time. Six months is a long time for a baby to be underdeveloped.

 

[Nanci]

Blue Roses, did you know you can buy a big, healthy baby from a breeder, and have it shipped to you? Shipping is only about $50.

 

[smigon]

She's beautiful! You know, in the year and a half I have had corns (first one from a breeder then all rescues) the smallest I have ever seen were yearlings at 25g which is Scarlett (in my avatar) and <3. I definitely need a baby to experience the full life cycle!

BlueRoses, I agree, find a good breeder who has what you are looking for. You know what to expect and know it is healthy and on track.

I have never heard of a Red Okito and can't find anything on Google about it, are you sure that is what the name was? If it is, I would DEFINITELY not buy it!

 

[drybgerg]

Thanks smigon... You should someday get a baby and raise it to adulthood. Nice to watch them grow and change. I keep detailed logs and take photos periodically to document my snakes, it's amazing to look back at that information and see how much they've changed and grown.

 

[blue roses]

That is what he called it, It was so calm and just sat in my palm then scurried back into the box, he was kept in a box behind the counter with a bunch of other corns, i'd say there was 5 or 6 in the same box. I am not an impulse buyer i take my time but some times you just have that feeling you need to give it a home. I got 2 of my 3 cats that way, one was abandoned at my husbands job and the other was tossed over my fence. So feeling sorry for that baby corn made it hard to leave it there.

 

[Chip]

That is what he called it...
So feeling sorry for that baby corn made it hard to leave it there.

I bet he meant okeetee. As much as you want to save these corns, I wouldn't pay a cent for one. Why reward a breeder with money who doesn't properly care for the animals? Even those with the most open thoughts on cohabbing adults will tell you it's a disaster waiting to happen with babies. Buying this guy's snakes will pay for him to keep treating them this way. By saving one, you could be condemning many to improper care or death. People like him need to get out of the hobby, and the best way to facilitate that is to not buy from them.

 

[MysticExotics]

I agree with Chip, and not only what he mentioned, but also you could be buying one of poor health that ends up costing more money in vet bills.

You're better off finding one from a reprutable breeder.

 

[drybgerg]

I agree with Chip as well. By buying anything from a shop that doesn't offer the best care for the animals your just enabling to keep up their practices.

Buy from a reputable breeder, their knowledge can be invaluable. Check the Board of Inquiry at Fauna Classifieds before buying to see what if any feedback the breeder has.

 

[JessKeen]

When Vera came from BHB in February, she was supposed to be between 5 and 9 months old and she was a whopping 6.5 grams. She had a regurge and a rough shed and is now gaining weight rapidly, she was 10.5 yesterday before her meal. I'm feeding her every four days (except when I do every five out of time constraints or occasional forgetfulness.)

 

[MysticExotics]

When Vera came from BHB in February, she was supposed to be between 5 and 9 months old and she was a whopping 6.5 grams. She had a regurge and a rough shed and is now gaining weight rapidly, she was 10.5 yesterday before her meal. I'm feeding her every four days (except when I do every five out of time constraints or occasional forgetfulness.)

That's because they mass produce them and probably cannot keep up on proper feeding.

Now that she is in better care, hopefully she will recover and grow to be a healthy snake.

 

[smigon]

Thanks smigon... You should someday get a baby and raise it to adulthood. Nice to watch them grow and change. I keep detailed logs and take photos periodically to document my snakes, it's amazing to look back at that information and see how much they've changed and grown.

I am the world's worst photographer, hence no pics since I got Scarlett in December of 2012, made it my avatar here, and even that one is sucky! But I DO take very meticulous records of all my snakes, and I love to look back and see growth spurts, especially on the ones I rescued.

My oldest rescue just passed away this afternoon, she was 13 and has been really angry the last few months. She wouldn't eat, was losing weight, and I made her a laying box 2 days ago in case that was the problem. She laid 12 tiny eggs and then left the box and died. She was in the box when I checked them all this afternoon, I hadn't even known she had laid the eggs since I hadn't opened it since putting it in with her, I just went in there and found her a few minutes ago. Boo. I feel so bad, but lesson learned, and now I have a tank for a baby. Things always happen for a reason.

 

[smigon]

I bet he meant okeetee.

Ah, that is probably what it was. A bit slow today!

As much as you want to save these corns, I wouldn't pay a cent for one. Why reward a breeder with money who doesn't properly care for the animals? Even those with the most open thoughts on cohabbing adults will tell you it's a disaster waiting to happen with babies. Buying this guy's snakes will pay for him to keep treating them this way. By saving one, you could be condemning many to improper care or death. People like him need to get out of the hobby, and the best way to facilitate that is to not buy from them.

I totally agree. I stumbled on my first corn on accident, I was looking for something (can't remember what) and saw an ad on Craigslist for corn snakes. I clicked on it and saw a Fire Corn and was hooked. I contacted the seller, who is a small breeder here in Phoenix and Damon (http://www.arizonareptile.com/) and I communicated for several weeks, he was so patient with my millions of questions both before and after I bought Scarlett from him. After learning SO much here, I am happy to pay it forward to new corn owners like he did for me.

I then realized, from talking to friends about them, that there are so many corns out there that are "throw away pets", the kid wanted one, parents bought it, a year later the kid won't take care of it and the parents just want it gone. I have "rescued" 6 from these situations, I lost one the first night, he was only 25g, over a year old, and his viv had never been cleaned and he hadn't been fed in who knows how long. The girl who had him was going to dump him in the desert when her brother told her to wait, he called me and I took him in. The little guy was too stressed to even last the night.

Another rescue passed away today, see the post above.

Sorry for the rambling, I am sad about losing Snow today, so thanks for listening. Bottom line though (back to the point) is look for a good breeder here on the forum. Check out the BOI for their reputation, and you will find the perfect new baby for you. Hopefully you will find someone locally and can pick it up, no shipping necessary so no unnecessary stress.

Good luck, you will find the right breeder with the right, healthy snake.

 

[cjbage]

I am the world's worst photographer, hence no pics since I got Scarlett in December of 2012, made it my avatar here, and even that one is sucky! But I DO take very meticulous records of all my snakes, and I love to look back and see growth spurts, especially on the ones I rescued.

My oldest rescue just passed away this afternoon, she was 13 and has been really angry the last few months. She wouldn't eat, was losing weight, and I made her a laying box 2 days ago in case that was the problem. She laid 12 tiny eggs and then left the box and died. She was in the box when I checked them all this afternoon, I hadn't even known she had laid the eggs since I hadn't opened it since putting it in with her, I just went in there and found her a few minutes ago. Boo. I feel so bad, but lesson learned, and now I have a tank for a baby. Things always happen for a reason.

aww sorry to hear that

 

[smigon]

aww sorry to hear that

Thanks. My husband got home from work and we just buried her and her eggs next to the little guy who didn't last through the first night and the 3 kitties we have lost. The circle of life, I guess Miss Snow is telling me someone needs a home!