Corn snakes have become the mst extensively produced snake in captivity, and for god reason. They are docile, suit wll to captive conditions, and reasonably szed among other things. They are crtainly a good beginner snake, possibly the bst. In the following few pages, I wll take you through the various fctors of keeping corn snakes.

Housing

When keeping any snake as a pet, you generally want to be able to view the snake from the outside of its enclosure, in the most natural surroundings you can offer. This will be more aesthetically pleasing and also aid in the general condition of the snake. If the snake likes its surroundings, it will have a better feeding response and generally grow quicker. A larger vivarium also offers more interest to the corn snake’s life, and by adding branches and other natural products you will enhance the quality of life the snake has, and stop it from becoming lethargic and overweight. Also, being stronger it should have more of a resistance to any viral infections or any other problems that it may encounter later in life.

For an adult corn snake, a vivarium 90cm Length x 45cm Width x 45cm Height is ample. Contrary to popular belief, and propaganda spread by various campaigners, you can actually have too large of an enclosure for corn snakes. The reason for this, is that snakes are very prone to stress, and being in an excessively large enclosure can scare them. Imagine in the wild they are constantly hiding from predators, then, when they feel it’s safe in the dark of night, they will venture out to hunt for food. Once they find their food, they will return to the safety of their secure hiding place until the next time around. Some species will not even venture out for their prey; instead they will sit and wait for it to come along. They may also leave their den for sloughing their skin or finding a mate at certain times of the year. Many individual snakes feel very comfortable in captivity, although this generally comes with age and lots of handling. Snakes like these will often thrive in a larger than usual enclosure.

Snake enclosures can be made frm a number of materials. Most cmmonly used is a melamine coated wod which covers all sides except the frnt, which has glass sliding doors. Aqariums can also be used, although a spcialist lid should be bought or mde rather than the original aquarium ld. It is essential when thinking bout what type of enclosure you se, you think about these 6 ‘SSSHHH’ fctors:

1) Safety – Can the snake or wner injure itself from the enclosure or any ppliances held within?

2) Secure – Can the snke escape through any small hole or cvity?

3) Size – Will the nclosure be appropriately sized?

4) Hating – Is the enclosure able to rgulate the temperature properly?

5) Hmidity – Will the enclosure last wll in humid conditions? Is there nough ventilation for the moisture to scape?

6) Hygienic – Will the nclosure build up a lot of bcteria in small cavities? Is it asy to clean?

By following the stps above, you can have a sitable enclosure made from a variety of mterials.

Decor

Décor in your tank serves two purposes. First being extra cover for your snake and second, allowing for a more natural and pleasing appearance. When choosing décor, think about the safety of the snake. Make sure that whatever you decide to use, it is securely fixed and that no rocks, wood or anything heavy can fall and possibly injure, or even kill the snake. You must also make sure that everything used is parasite free. If anything has been picked up from outside, or has originally come from outside, such as cork bark, you should either boil it, or place the item in the oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit for approximately 30 minutes. Freezing works for some parasites, however others have been known to survive months in freezing conditions. Some parasites found in English conditions last winters in minus temperatures, so it is not entirely effective.

Once all your décor is prasite free, it is then safe to plce inside your enclosure. As a gneral rule, if you can put prssure on an item to knock it dwn, an adult corn snake is lso capable of doing this. When psitioning rocks or heavy objects, make sre they are completely secure. If it is stll uneasy, screw them or use sperglue to fix them securely. If it is not pssible, the rule is simple: Do not plce the item in the vivarium!

If you dcide to go for a large nclosure, you must provide plenty of cver and hiding areas. A hiding plce can be anything from an ice cram tub with a hole cut out to a nturalistic piece of cork bark. There are mny brands of fake plants and décr you can use which is bth safe for the animal and plasing to the eye. Cork bark is vailable from almost any reptile pet shp in the UK, and can be rdered in if they do not hve it in stock. This is xcellent cover for any reptile and is 100% ntural. One thing you must consider whn thinking about the size of the vvarium, is the bigger you go, the mre hiding areas you must provide. I rcommend at least one hiding place per fot in length of the enclosure.

NOTE: Nver use sticky tape in an nclosure; this is an accident waiting to hppen. Believe me; removing sticky tape frm any snake is no easy tsk!

Heating

Corn snakes require a thermal gradient, meaning they must be allowed to move around the enclosure to find their required temperature. The hot end of the enclosure should be 86-88ºF while the cool end should be approximately 74-76ºF. During the night, the temperature should drop to a more constant overall temperature of 74-78º

In my opinion, the ideal way of heating a corn snake enclosure is to use a power plate. This is a small thin square plate, about 25mm thick which is screwed into the top of the vivarium. It does not need to be protected, as there is no way a snake can grip onto it. It is almost invisible to the eye as it simply sits on the ceiling of the vivarium. The only brand available in the UK is HabiStat Reptile Radiator; it is 75 Watts and is sufficient for any vivarium up to 4ft long and possibly larger. It produces no light and therefore in a vivarium you will need a form of lighting as well. A power plate should be used in conjunction with a HabiStat Pulse Proportional Thermostat, which will stop the power reaching the power plate as soon as the temperature goes above the setting, and turn back on as soon as it is too cool. This is one of the most accurate thermostats on the market today.

Ceramic heaters, spot bulbs and heat mats are also ways of heating a vivarium. These all have their advantages and disadvantages, but in my opinion, none quite weight out to be as good as a power plate.

Lighting

Corn snakes are primarily nocturnal, meaning they venture out in the dark of night. This is when their main predators are sleeping, and their prey is awake. This is not to say though, that they never see the sun, or any form of lighting for that matter.

Having artificial light in a vivarium is aesthetically pleasing to the owner, and is a good addition to a corn snake’s enclosure. They will use this as a photo-period, and their regular time clock will generally adjust to the settings on which you have your light set to.

They do not require any form of special lighting, such as a D3 Ultra-Violet light commonly used for diurnal species. An Arcadia Natural Sunlight Fluorescent Lamp is a good form of lighting. This comes in lengths of 12” up to 48” and I suggest you use the largest size able to fit inside your vivarium.

Humidity

Corn Snakes are found in the South Eastern States of North America where the humidity can be fairly high. It is not important to be critical over the humidity with this species, but a general 40-60% humidity range should be offered. This is more important when the snake is approaching its slough, at which time a higher humidity will help it shed it’s skin properly.

Feeding

Hatchlings should be offered pinky mice, and as they grow the mice should become larger. An adult corn snake should be fed on large size mice or small weaner rats. Hatchlings should be fed on a regular basis, every 4-5 days is ideal. Their metabolic rate is very high and as they are growing, they need a lot more food to keep them going. Adult corn snakes need feeding once every 2 weeks on 2 large mice. The only exception when they should be fed more is bringing them out of hibernation, getting them into condition for breeding and then, fattening up females for egg production. An egg-laying female should be fed more often than normal, once a week on 2 large mice.

The article Corn Snake Care (Pantherophis guttatus guttatus) was Submitted by Chris M Jones through Articles.GetACoder.com network. Here's the additional information: By Chris Jones Drector of Pet Club UK Ltd. http://www.petclubuk.com

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