Question on Long Nose Snakes

Can anyone with experience with these snakes post tips and opinions on keeping these guys? I could look it up but you never know who posts what on the net.

For those wondering i found one today and think they are beautiful snakes so i want to know how to work with this guys before its to late and i have to let him go.

I've never tried keeping this species, but they are reputed to be lizard feeders. When I have snake that I'd like to get onto rodents, I give it a week or so to settle in. I'd recommend a substrate such as aspen that the snake can burrow in and some flat hides such as cork slabs, a small water bowl and a UTH. Depending on size, I'd select a tank that's on the small side. You want to have him in a tank that's a bit too small so that when you do try feeding, he'll always be in close proximity to the food. Once you get him feeding regularly you can upgrade.

I always offer an appropriately sized live mouse first (sometimes you get lucky) you want to pick a size that's small and would be very managable and unintimidating. If that doesn't work, get a frozen thawed mouse, wash it with a bit of realtively unscented soap to remove the mouse scent rub with a local lizard and place the mouse under the hide or somewhere the snake will come in contact with it. If this doesn't work, you can try with a bit of lizard tail etc shoved into the mouse's mouth. You may need to experiment with lizard species. I usually wait a week after each feeding attempt.

Some adult / large juvenile snakes are pretty set in their feeding habits and may never be willing to accept rodents and adjust to the confines of a cage. If you can't get the snake eating in 3-4 weeks, or if you feel that captivity is jeopardizing its health, you're best off releasing it.

-Alice

I've had pretty good luck keeping longnose from West TX on rodents, but to some extent it's a roll of the dice. Those that I have that took mice started right away without having to have scenting. Because of the relatively small heads, prey size needs to be fairly small. Mine do not seem to get fat on a mouse diet, but it does make sense to space feedings a little more than might be done for a kingsnake. In other respects, I keep longnose pretty much as I'd keep a kingsnake.

I wrote a profile of these snakes for the DFW Herp Society newsletter a while back. If you email me at - [email protected] - I should be able to send it to you as a pdf.

These are primarily lizard feeders in the wild and they vary in their willingness to eat mice. I've had several of these from Calif. for many years that took mice, and I currently have a Texas longnose that also takes mice, but it's not always an easy sell! An adult longnose does well eating 3-5 small fuzzy mice as opposed to one bigger mouse, so if you are buying your mice, it could be a more expensive snake to keep because of their small mouth. I have had the most success feeding frozen thawed, because most of the mouse odor is washed off when you thaw them in room temp. water before offering... You didn't say how big the snake is, but a larger (ie. older) longnose may be harder to reform than a young one. They are beautiful and docile snakes, but I agree with Alice: if it doesn't adapt in a few weeks I'd release it; also this time of year be sure you release it where you found it if possible, so it can safely hibernate. (they learn their way around...if you release it late in the year in new territory it may be a death sentence) Keep in mind also that because they prey on fellow reptiles, they can be heavily parasitized. I had one once that EAGERLY fed on mice, and too late I discovered that I was not only feeding the snake but also its parasites. ( it died) The longnose I have currently is also very shy about food...he likes to eat at nite, and he likes his food left outside the door of his hidebox, or on the roof of the hidebox. I use Carefresh and/or shredded paper for a substrate; if you use say shavings, you'll want to put his food on a small plate or bowl of some kind so he does not inadvertently swallow some substrate that could impact his digestive tract.

Don't bother keeping longnosed snakes in terria. As everyone has generally agreed', they feed on lizards; small scaled sleeping desert lizards;difficult to provide as aregular diet. I hope no one collects an albino and decides to breed them for profit! Babies languish just like adults. We need to realize that some snakes make poor captives.