Andybarbet
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 posted on 13/3/13 at 11:38 PM |
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Son wants a snake, any tips ? or is it a bad idea ?
Our son wants a snake, he has been on about it for a while now, we have not kept a snake before & are looking for some impartial advice.
He will be 9 years old in May so thats when we plan on doing this unless anyone gives me a good reason against it ?
We have 3 fish tanks, a rabbit & cat so are fine with looking after critters & cleaning up poo etc 
Local pet shop recommended a corn snake but they were obviously trying to sell us one too, is this a good 'starter' snake ?
We were told they are hardy, easy to keep, dont tend to bite, dosile & grow up to 1.5m long, all sounds ok so far.
Also any recommendations for vivariums & what other equipment we need would help.
Cheers - Andy
Give a man a fish & it will feed him for a day, give him a fishing rod & you've saved a fish.
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splitrivet
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| posted on 14/3/13 at 12:12 AM |
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My daughters had snakes as pets since she was 21, she's 30 now and got 2 royal pythons, Ive got to say they really surprised me that they are
such good pets, very little trouble and they do get to know thier owners.
A corn snake is what she started with and I think they have to be the most popular starter snake, you may get the odd bite until the snake gets to
know you and its keepers but after that its a rarity even with the larger snakes but it happens so quickly you hardly notice.
I'd take the pet shop owners advice re a viv but try and find a local breeder who can advise you more and give you better advice and a better
deal.
Cheers,
Bob
[Edited on 14/3/13 by splitrivet]
I used to be a Werewolf but I'm alright nowwoooooooooooooo
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morcus
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| posted on 14/3/13 at 12:36 AM |
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Find out how much it's going to cost you to run a Vivarium, as I'm told by friends with reptiles that they can cost alot in Leccy and can
have a side effect of making your rooms hot. They tend to smell horrible, I think it's vivariums rather than the animals themselves but you
probably wouldn't notice it if you got used to it.
In a White Room, With Black Curtains, By the Station.
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zetec
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| posted on 14/3/13 at 07:20 AM |
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We "inherited" two snakes, a Corn and a King. Both grow to the size you mention, the King is a little more nippy if he confuses you for
his dinner. Food wise 1 med size mouse a week, clean out every so often and some fresh wood chips. Very easy to keep as they just need their water
topped up, and can go for 2 weeks if you go on holiday and have no one to feed them (one went 6 weeks without feeding, his choice I will add). We have
a heat mate and a downlighter, the vivs have a mesh top and we do not notice any smell. They are good pets but they do live a long while, are best
when handled on a regular basis.
[Edited on 14/3/13 by zetec]
" I only registered to look at the pictures, now I'm stuck with this username for the rest of my life!"
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Ivan
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| posted on 14/3/13 at 07:22 AM |
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I must admit to having a huge problem with keeping things like imported pet animals that could be supplied by the wild life smuggling trade - a huge
number of these are taken out of the natural environment and smuggled with great cruelty and high mortality rate.
If you go for the snake at least get something from your own country and that you know for sure is bred in captivity.
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cliftyhanger
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| posted on 14/3/13 at 07:30 AM |
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Both daughters have a corn snake. They don't get on (snakes, not daughters) so are in separate vivs
Anyway, they just have a heatmat each, started in small tanks with kit roll as bedding, now in chipboard vivs off the bay. Bits of gutter offcuts as
"homes" and a few sticks.
Top the water bowl up once a week, feed every week (sometimes the girls forget, I reckon longest feed gap has been a month) but they are easy pets for
holidays etc.
They smell as the crap is pongy, but clean it out and sorted.
I recommend them.
Downside is they have a long lifespan. We will probably "inherit" them when the kids leave and start out on their own.
EDIT
re viv, they both started out in a plastic fish tank, about 18" long with a clip-on lid (VERY important, they WILL get out if they have a
chance)
Moved up to a bigger version, now in these
Vivexotic Reptile Vivarium Medium Beech | eBay
well, similar anyway.
One snake is sleepy and docile, the other seems to have addh and is always on the move. When small they are quite tricky to keep hold of, once up to
2' a lot easier. And don't buy a "special" version, get the cheapest type as they are not overbred to look
"nice"
[Edited on 14/3/13 by cliftyhanger]
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r1_pete
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| posted on 14/3/13 at 07:49 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Ivan
I must admit to having a huge problem with keeping things like imported pet animals that could be supplied by the wild life smuggling trade - a huge
number of these are taken out of the natural environment and smuggled with great cruelty and high mortality rate.
If you go for the snake at least get something from your own country and that you know for sure is bred in captivity.
+1
I have no issue with pets, exotic, common or otherwise, but please make sure it is from a legal and 'sustainable' source.
Even dogs are now being illegally smuggled into the UK on false papers.
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splitrivet
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| posted on 14/3/13 at 09:04 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Ivan
I must admit to having a huge problem with keeping things like imported pet animals that could be supplied by the wild life smuggling trade - a huge
number of these are taken out of the natural environment and smuggled with great cruelty and high mortality rate.
If you go for the snake at least get something from your own country and that you know for sure is bred in captivity.
Dont think this is an issue there are more snake breeders than you can point a stick at, plus no-one is going to want a wild snake.
Cheers,
Bob
I used to be a Werewolf but I'm alright nowwoooooooooooooo
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wilkingj
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| posted on 14/3/13 at 09:08 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Ivan
I must admit to having a huge problem with keeping things like imported pet animals that could be supplied by the wild life smuggling trade - a huge
number of these are taken out of the natural environment and smuggled with great cruelty and high mortality rate.
If you go for the snake at least get something from your own country and that you know for sure is bred in captivity.
I quite agree. Also think of the leccy. Its doess not sound much, but when its on 24x365, it adds up.
We should not be encouraging the keeping of exotic pets. It just increases the trade in foreign countries, where the standards of catching, keeping,
holding and transporting are nowhere as good as in the UK where at least it is regulated.
Sorry... I dont agree with that sort of pet keeping and the trade that supports their supply.
1. The point of a journey is not to arrive.
2. Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.
Best Regards
Geoff
http://www.v8viento.co.uk
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parkiboy
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| posted on 14/3/13 at 09:16 AM |
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Don't worry about the cost of running the viv it's not alot, I dont keep snakes but do have alot of reptiles (they have there own bedroom
lol) and hardly noticed an impact on the leccy bill.
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balidey
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| posted on 14/3/13 at 10:23 AM |
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Recently got a bearded dragon for my son. Whilst talking to the shop owner we asked about snakes. No pressure of a sale and he also recommended a corn
snake, as several others have done on here.
I would get a snake for myself, but the beardie will do for now.
Many dealers also breed their own snakes, I know mine does.
I am sure snakes make great pets, but taking them for walks can be a real drag.... sorry.
Dutch bears have terrible skin due to their clogged paws
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coyoteboy
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| posted on 14/3/13 at 01:01 PM |
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quote:
I must admit to having a huge problem with keeping things like imported pet animals that could be supplied by the wild life smuggling trade - a
huge number of these are taken out of the natural environment and smuggled with great cruelty and high mortality rate.
Bought from a reputable supplier in the UK this should not be a problem, import is highly controlled and tends to be a problem only when buying from
joe bloggs out of gumtree, pretty much like everything. The only snakes wild in the UK are grass snakes and adders, adders are highly protected - no
idea about grass snakes. You cannot buy wild snakes, it's illegal to sell them or anything derived from them and it's up to you to prove
it's /not/ wild if you don't want to be prosecuted.
Family has kept snakes for a long time and I baby-sit a corn for a friend, runs a 20W heater at about 50% duty cycle and occasionally gets a light but
is otherwise happy. It'll vary depending on the snake purchased. They're "nice" pets but the bulk of the interaction with them
will be a 5 minute "hold" where they do very little and then 15 minutes cleaning them out as soon as they've been to the loo (if you
don't the house stinks and they get ill), and the interest of watching a feed. They're certainly not animals that are traditionally cuddly
and they tend to live a long LONG time.
[Edited on 14/3/13 by coyoteboy]
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