Corn Snakes (Snakes)

Member Name: Buzby

Product:	Snakes
Date:	05/07/00 (367 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fascinating to watch

Disadvantages: None

If you would like to try keeping snakes, the Corn snake is undoubtedly the best snake to begin with.
They are non-venoumous snakes, and are usually placid and friendly with people, rarely biting. An adult corn snake will grow to around four feet in length with a circumference of approximately 3 inches, so they are a nice easy size.
Obviously, the more room you can give your snake the better, but a vivarium of 3'x2'x2' will give most corn snakes enough space. Corn snakes are great escape artists so you will need to have a secure house for them.
Some form of heating is needed in the vivariun, such as a heat mat or lamp, there are lots of types available from shops that stock reptiles. Corn snakes will do fine at a temperature of 75 to 80 degrees (24-27) during the day, dropping about ten degrees at night. Snakes are cold-blooded creatures, this does not mean they have cold blood it means they are unable to regulate their own body temperature, and need to actually move in and out of warm areas to maintain thier temperature. For this reason, heat mats and/or lamps, should be placed at one end of the vivarium, creating a warm area and a cooler area.
Corn snakes are fed (depending on their age and size) on baby mice (pinkies) up to small rats. These are bought frozen from your reptile shop and fed de-frosted to your snake.
An adult corn snake will probably eat about one large mouse (or small rat) a week, making them cheap to keep.

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