My girlfriend talked me out of selling an old 20g tank. We wound up making it a tank for a new corn snake. I know nothing about them so any help would be awesome! We have a zoo here we have 4 dogs (with the addition of mine) 2 Rats, a snake and an overstocked 75g tank. Good to have a pet lover as my new partner.

Is it a hatchling or an adult? Either way they're pretty easy.

If it's a little guy, feed it prekilled pinkys every 7 to 10ish days. As it gets bigger go fuzzies, then small adult mice or even rat pinkys. If there's an Asian market around you, you could now and again get quail eggs. Only use 'em as an occasional treat though, since they're infertile they shouldn't be a staple.

Basking spot around 80 on a timer (or you could use an under tank heater too I suppose) a hide box and a water bowl, and some sort of substrate and your set. You can use pine bark, and it has to be pine cedar is toxic, or astroturf for substrate. If you do the astroturf get two pieces and just swap 'em out and toss the dirty one in the washer. Just make sure the clean one in there is dry. In a pinch I've even used felt from the fabric store.

Corns aren't snuggly like pythons, they tend to like to go go go, so something to be aware of if you try holding it, especially with the dogs around.

Well we got all the necessities, the substrate is like a brown eco compete type stuff some guy recommended to us that was in the store. Got a driftwood branch to climb on, water dish, etc.

That's cool. Pine chips and astroturf are cheap, so that's sort of my default.

There is nothing like a new animal to make you smile My grisl ferind and I just apdted 3 kittens an we bourght a english bulldog puppy. They are getting along great so far.The cats have figured out hey acn get away form the puppy by getting on the sofa his legs are not long enough he has not figured out how to jump .good luck with you rnew snake

Thanks...good luck with the three cats and the dog!

They are great I have missed have 4 legged critters around

We just saved a Whippet from the shelter. 2 dogs one cat and over 400 cichlids. for personnal pets here.

I want to thank mostly cichlids for this my grilfreind read your post about new animals we went for a hike out in the desert the other night and ran across a rosey boa he was to fast for me to catch (if I had I am sure he would have bit me) any way she went to a pet shop the other day to get some frozen food and she came home with a flyer for a reptile show that they have here every year in September. She has now decided that we need to add a snake to our growing list of animals.I found a tank on craigslist that wont hold water so I bought it and now all we are doing is waiting for the show to buy a snake. Does anyone have any suggestion what we should get I had a redtail boa several years ago but would like to try something else maybe something that does not get as big as redtails do.Thanks mostly cichlids and anyone else that has a suggestion on snakes.

Im no pro but I would get something you can house for life, some get huge. Anyway, glad I could be of assistance to your growing zoo in the making...lol!

Rat and corn snakes are good. Children's pythons are small too tho they're usually more pricey than corns or rats. There's some other smaller snakes, but they're not as big a fans of being held.

This is all your fault mostly cichlids.LOL I am up for it I have always loved animals no matter what they are. We are going to do some reading before we go to the reptile show next month. We go most years but just to but driftwood for the aquariums but this time we are going to leave with a live critter.Thanks saint_felony for the suggestion on the snakes I have nevr heard of a Children s Python but I will read every thing I can on them between now and the show.We want some thing that likes to be held wont bite and will feed with out a lot of trouble and that also dones not get to big that we have to find it a new home at some point.I agree what ever we get it will have a for ever home. Agian thanks I will keep you updated.

Children's pythons are a bit uncommon, but if it's a big enough show, I'm sure you'll see a few.

They're Australian, get out to about 2ish feet (some maybe 3) and while they can be a little more snippy than corns, are way more mellow once they get used to being tormented.. I mean held.

They're usually a bit on the pricey side, so if you do get set on one of those, try to do some research on a reputable breeder in your area or bring someone who knows snakes.

Make sure you handle the snake (any snake variety) if you're going to get one. The body should feel strong and firm with no lumps or bumps or unusual kinks and should move freely. The snake should be alert and its tongue should flick rapidly when first picked up and its eyes should be shiny and clear, the snakes vent should be clean with no sore red marks and its mouth should be tightly closed.

I'd avoid anything listed as WC or wild caught, they can have parasites, or other funk, and are generally a bitch to convert to pre-killed food. Make sure you ask too if the snake is taking pre-killed. Makes things much easier.

We spent some time researching snakes the other day and have deide to go with either a rat or a corn snake they are easy to keep and in the price range we where looking to spend. There is a good reptile shop here in Tucson we spent some time talking to the owner yesterday he suggested rat and corns. They also had some rosey boas that he told us that they get about 3 ft long and are easy to get to eat. The tank we have in a 30 gal some will be big enough to house our new pet for it life span. We are still plaining to wait untill the show at the end of Sep to buy aslo what do you suggest we should use as a media for the bottom of the tank the guy at the shop here said ground cocanut shells or aspen chips. thank D C in T

I want to thank my buddy mostly cichlids we did it we bought a corn snake this past weekend. We went up to Phoenix on our monthly pet shop trip and we found this shop that has mainly reptiles so we started looking and found a young corn snake that is about 2and a half feet long he will eat either live or dead mice.Since it was well over a 100 degrees (yeah but its a dry heat ) We decide to stop back to get him or her we also found some apistos that I have not figured out what they are yet they were labeled wild assoted apistos so I picked out 6 that looked the same they are in my hosbital tank right now. the corn snakee is easy to handle we have not fed him yet the shop told us they had fed 3 days before we got him.We have him on a bed of ground up cocanut shells we also put a couple of peices of driftwood in the tank.

Cool, they are fun our corn snake has shed three times and is eating small fuzzies already. Getting big fast, Ididnt know they grow so fast, wow! Good to hear what colors did you get?

Awesome! Congrats on the new addition.

I love snakes but if I ever got one I would be served divorce papers that afternoon. My wife's worst fear on earth is snakes. I found a snake shed once in the yard and brought it in to show the kids and she nearly had a heart attack. I guess what I'm saying is...show me some pics so I can live vicariously through you

LOL...ok dawg!

He is red he is so fun I havent kept a snake for a lot of years he is easy to handle and has never tryed to bite my girlfriends 5 year old want to hold him all the time so we had to out a lock on the cage. Hey dirtydwag10 just be glad you dont leave in Az where we are we are surounded by desert we have rattlesnkes all the time that most the time they end up at the bisness end of my shotgun and before every one jumps me abott shooting rattlesnakes I have a 5 year old child and a bulldog puppy that I have to keep safe. I the fish are all doing well no new spawns or many new fish right now it still to hot here to oder fish off aquabid. By the way the bulldogs name is Jhonny DOC Holliday and the 3 kittens are Wyat Virgal and Morgan Earp and yes they are brother.