Intro + Snake Help

[XxCodyDarnellxX]

Hello everyone! I've been browsing through various pets for about a month, considering everything from dogs to hedgehogs, and at last I've decided on a snake. But before I get in to that, here's a little background.​

I found this site via google, when looking for dealers of a specific snake I'm interested in. I'm familiar with a very similar layout of forum, on an entirely different subject, as I'm a laser hobbyist as well who uses a laser forum. I'm mostly intending to use this forum for the purpose of finding and purchasing a snake, as well as asking questions or expressing concerns I have regarding it. I currently also own a "Desert Tortoise" (which may be illegal in my state, according to the pet shop owner who sold it to me a few years ago...). Regardless of the weather out here in Oregon, he's doing very well. He's quite large for his age, and is very friendly with humans. He doesn't "turtle up" when touched, and follows hands and fingers around. He even prefers to sleep in cleavage (much like his owner ).

Now, to get to the business of "Snake Help". I've decided a snake would be the right pet for me, as they aren't exceptionally needy, don't need constant attention and feeding, and to be honest I've always been fascinated with snakes. I used to have a yard full of gartner snakes that I'd always be holding as a kid.

What I'm looking for in a snake, above all else, is a diet consisting of anything but mice / rats. Don't get me wrong, I would LOVE a nice sized king snake, but I could never feed an animal to it. Bugs are a different story, I can handle that. So the snake has to stay small enough that it won't require mice. I would also prefer one that has a harmless bite, or as close to harmless as it gets. And with that, I'm not hoping to get bit, so ones that are generally timid would be nice.

I had originally done research and decided a snake that meets these requirements, and is absolutely BEAUTIFUL in my opinion is the Ringneck Snake. The corkscrew shape of the tail while defending itself, and the vibrant red and orange colors sold me on it. However, the only dealer I could find that sells them online is "Backwater Reptiles", which after reading many nasty reviews and seeing their terrible treatment toward customers, I've backed off of.

So, could anyone recommend either another type of snake, or direct me to a dealer or someone on this website looking to sell a Ringneck? I would prefer one that has been in captivity, rather than someone going out in their yard and snatching one to ship to me. That just sounds unhealthy for the snake, and would make a relationship with it difficult (not an expert, just an assumption).


Thanks in advance for any replies, and sorry for anyone who thought "TL;DR". ​

 

[Fangthane]

Although I'm not sure how readily available finch or quail eggs may be; you may want to consider something from genus Dasypeltis - egg-eating snakes. Seeing as they apparently have no visible teeth, you wouldn't have to worry much about their bite.

 

[XxCodyDarnellxX]

Although I'm not sure how readily available finch or quail eggs may be; you may want to consider something from genus Dasypeltis - egg-eating snakes. Seeing as they apparently have no visible teeth, you wouldn't have to worry much about their bite.

Ooh, that's a great tip! I didn't even think about eggs. It could be a nice exception to feeding them mice, and still getting a fun sized snake. The image on their wiki page was of a pure black snake. Do they come in any other patterns or colors?

I think my only other question (for now) would be - How long do they stay all fat-like after eating an egg? Sort of loses the "Cute" factor at that point, and I'd be too afraid to touch it for fear of the egg getting pushed around.

 

[Ed Clark]

Hi Cody welcome to Fauna.

good luck with your search.

 

[Fangthane]

My halfhearted Google search implied that there was a good bit of phenotypical diversity within the various Dasypeltis species.

As with any snake, you don't really want to disturb them very much after they've eaten; but I'd have to imagine that the egg's shell would break somewhat quickly after ingestion. I don't have any experience with them, so I'm just guessing. Google is your friend.

 

[Brandonmarsh29]

Have you looked at the green snakes (opheodrys)? They are pretty small usually under 2' and can be sustained on crickets. The rough green snake is available more than the smooth green snake.... I usually see them available at LLL reptile under the bull, other colubrids section but they are good to by supplies from but anyone that carries as many reptiles as them is bound to have some problems with sick animals and stuff so take them with a grain or two of salt. Its always best to buy from breeders who take pride in their animals and appreciate their customers more. So you can also look under other colubrids on this sight and also kingsnake.com. Racers may also be a good choice but can be high strung and take some patience and handling but some never chill out. I wish I could offer more but I work with kings mostly also corns and bulls and pines but I hope I gave you an idea. I see quite a few greens and sometimes ringnecks on kingsnake.com. I would avoid dts herp farm as well based on the reviews on the boi on this site. He advertises alot on Ks so when you see his ads skip over em. Good luck with your search and I hope you find what you looking for!��

 

[XxCodyDarnellxX]

Oh, and I'm sure this was filtered and photoshopped a little, but it was this picture that got me on the whole "snake hunt", and specifically "ringneck snake".

Figured if anyone hasn't seen it yet (kinda trending atm), they may be able to appreciate it.

 

[XxCodyDarnellxX]

Have you looked at the green snakes (opheodrys)? They are pretty small usually under 2' and can be sustained on crickets. The rough green snake is available more than the smooth green snake.... I usually see them available at LLL reptile under the bull, other colubrids section but they are good to by supplies from but anyone that carries as many reptiles as them is bound to have some problems with sick animals and stuff so take them with a grain or two of salt. Its always best to buy from breeders who take pride in their animals and appreciate their customers more. So you can also look under other colubrids on this sight and also kingsnake.com. Racers may also be a good choice but can be high strung and take some patience and handling but some never chill out. I wish I could offer more but I work with kings mostly also corns and bulls and pines but I hope I gave you an idea. I see quite a few greens and sometimes ringnecks on kingsnake.com. I would avoid dts herp farm as well based on the reviews on the boi on this site. He advertises alot on Ks so when you see his ads skip over em. Good luck with your search and I hope you find what you looking for!��

Thanks for the reply! I'll look in to them and consider them. Don't worry about "not offering enough", any suggestion is better than no suggestion!

 

[XxCodyDarnellxX]

Well, further looking in to the 3 I had in mind so far --

The Regal Ringsnake seems to be quite rare, so I doubt I'll have any luck there.

The green snake (would prefer a smooth one probably) don't seem to be out there anywhere either.

The egg eaters are found a lot more frequently, however I have no access to quail or finch eggs, unless someone knows of a seller somewhere. Google showed me some quail egg sellers, but perhaps someone knows a good place.

Anyone else have suggestions for snakes? Only real requirement is that they don't get big enough to have to eat mice. As long as they can live their full lives on just bugs / eggs / etc. I'm fine with it. Colors would also be awesome, but I probably sound like I'm describing a "dream snake".

 

[Brandonmarsh29]

Well the rough greens seem to be alot more available nowdays than smooth greens. You talked about garter snakes there's alot of very cool things being done with them nowdays they have several morphs out as well and aalso their cousins the ribbon snakes. Most breeders feed the adults fuzzy mice or small hoppers but they aren't what those guys eat in the wild. I still keep garters sometimes and have always done good raising the babies on minnows like rosy reds or guppies then the sniners from a bait shop as adults. Don't do goldfish tho! They also eat nightcrawlers although if you are going to feed them exclusively then its a good idea also to supplement them with reptile vitamins.

 

[Brandonmarsh29]

Sorry my friend I meant shiners not sniners from the last post haha SHINERS from the bait shop

 

[XxCodyDarnellxX]

Good news, I found - http://www.dartagnan.com/Quail-Eggs/FQUMA009-1,default,pd.html

15 eggs for $8.99 isn't bad at all, so maybe I can get an egg eater after all! I was looking at pictures of the pure black one, and it reminds me of a "Toothless" from "How to Train your Dragon". xD

 

[Fangthane]

Good news, I found - http://www.dartagnan.com/Quail-Eggs/FQUMA009-1,default,pd.html

15 eggs for $8.99 isn't bad at all, so maybe I can get an egg eater after all! I was looking at pictures of the pure black one, and it reminds me of a "Toothless" from "How to Train your Dragon". xD

I'm almost ashamed to admit it - as I'm much too old for cartoons - but I loved that stupid movie.

There are some older ads for quail eggs in Fauna's Feeders Classifieds section. If you decide to go the egg-eater route, you could try either contacting sellers who've previously listed them for sale or posting a "Wanted" ad.

 

[XxCodyDarnellxX]

I'm almost ashamed to admit it - as I'm much too old for cartoons - but I loved that stupid movie.

There are some older ads for quail eggs in Fauna's Feeders Classifieds section. If you decide to go the egg-eater route, you could try either contacting sellers who've previously listed them for sale or posting a "Wanted" ad.

Don't worry, I've got at least 12 friends in their 30's that were beyond excited to see the 2nd one in the movie theaters. So many of them went and saw it the day it popped up on the big screen.

Thanks for the tip, I'll look in to people selling them here before buying them from a retailer, but it's good to know that the option is there, I was striking out before.

If I do get a Dasypeltis I'd probably want the "Dasypeltis Atra" I believe it's called, for the black color.

Does anyone know of a website or person interested in selling them?

 

[Brandonmarsh29]

I'm almost ashamed to admit it - as I'm much too old for cartoons - but I loved that stupid movie.

No shame haha I love that stupid movie as well! I'm 29 and I love the cartoons of my day bugs bunny Tom and Jerry, Scooby doo.... The cartoons kids watch nowadays tho make me miss the old days!
Anyway, those egg eaters are cool snakes I hope you find a nice one and good luck! Welcome to fauna as well I think you will come to enjoy this site there is alot of knowledge and good ppl on here!

 

[XxCodyDarnellxX]

I'm almost ashamed to admit it - as I'm much too old for cartoons - but I loved that stupid movie.

No shame haha I love that stupid movie as well! I'm 29 and I love the cartoons of my day bugs bunny Tom and Jerry, Scooby doo.... The cartoons kids watch nowadays tho make me miss the old days!
Anyway, those egg eaters are cool snakes I hope you find a nice one and good luck! Welcome to fauna as well I think you will come to enjoy this site there is alot of knowledge and good ppl on here!

Thank you, my only problem now is actually finding one. I like the one here - http://www.firstchoicereptiles.com/egg-eating-snake-for-sale/

However it's a fasciata, which apparently have some strict humidity / misting requirements.

 

[Helenthereef]

I think there are quite a few fish eating snakes, including Garter snakes, that should be easy to locate if fish are OK with you

 

[XxCodyDarnellxX]

Well, since my last post in this thread things have changed quite a bit. Now I've gone from not wanting anything to do with mice, to having a "California King Snake" as my 1st choice. I found a quail egg seller that would work for the egg eater, but I'm going to keep them as my 2nd choice for now.

Thanks for all the helpful responses, it has greatly educated and influenced my decisions.