Introduction
Selecting a Pet Snake
Housing Enclosure and Space Requirements
Floor Coverings and Enclosure Items
Visual Security
Climatic Considerations
Lighting
Water
Feeding
Specific Dietary Recommendations
Shedding (Ecdysis)
Reproduction
Artificial Incubation of Snake Eggs
Introduction
Snakes are elongated, legless animals with dry, scale-covered skin. Their skin is unusually elastic, which allows it to stretch when large prey items are swallowed. Snakes are rather unique because of these features and because they lack moveable eyelids and external ear openings. Snakes may be only a few inches to several yards long.
Snakes inhabit a wide variety of ecologic habitats: land, trees, underground, fresh water, and salt water. They are found on every continent except Antarctica. No native snakes are found on the islands of Hawaii, Iceland, New Zealand and Ireland.
Selecting a Pet Snake
Some snakes are rare, endangered and protected by law. These snakes may only be kept by zoos and legitimate herpetologists with the appropriate permits. This is also the case with venomous snakes, which should not under any circumstances, be kept by the average hobbyist.
The most common snakes kept by enthusiasts are the many and varied constrictor species (boas, pythons, rat and milk snakes. etc.), and the racer, gopher and garter species. The husbandry and dietary requirements for these types of snakes vary considerably. Further, some of the same species (notably the boa constrictors and pythons) reach very large sizes in captivity, and their considerable space requirements must be anticipated.
Usually, an individual eager to own a snake already has a species preference in mind because of some familiarity with it (friend owns a snake of the same species, etc.) or because of an inexplicable attraction to a species' physical appearance, size, activity or habits. Before you acquire a snake, you should carefully consider the following recommendations.
Research the major husbandry requirements of the snake and determine whether or not you can successfully meet them now and in the future Husbandry requirements include dietary, environmental (living space, temperature, humidity, lighting, etc.) and sanitation considerations.
Research the temperament of the species. If you intend to enjoy your snake primarily by observing it within its enclosure and rarely by handling it, this becomes a less important consideration. If you intend to regularly handle the snake, however, you must be able to do so with minimal stress and injury to both the snake and yourself.
Snake temperaments vary among species and among individuals of the same species. Certain snake species almost always retain a gentle, docile nature when they are raised from infancy (boa constrictors). In fact, a healthy young boa constrictor makes the most suitable pet among the tropical snake species available. Other species (the larger pythons) are unpredictable and tend to be quite pugnacious as they mature, whether or not they are handled frequently. Reticulated and Burmese pythons are especially unpredictable when they are anticipating being fed. Snakes of these types, especially those handled infrequently, become conditioned to associating feeding with human contact and often cannot distinguish the difference between these two situations. The small Ball python has the most predictable and even temperament of all of the python species.
Some species (Anacondas) rarely develop temperaments suitable for captivity. Wild-caught adults of all species generally make unsuitable pets because they resist taming. One notable exception to this is the California Rosy boa. Even when obtained as an adult, they usually have a verve shy. docile nature. Select a snake that can feed without difficulty and one that is eating regularly. Select a snake that appears healthy in all respects. Avoid choosing an unthrifty-looking snake out of sympathy with the idea that you can nurse' the snake back to health. Many of these snakes have suffered irreparable internal damage and cannot be fully restored to health. Avoid selecting snake belonging to a species that is notoriously difficult to keep in captivity, requires difficult or elaborate environmental setupsor spends most of its time hiding or burrowed underground.
Avoid selecting a poisonous or venomous species. Only the verve experienced herpetologist should attempt to keep these types of snakes in captivity. State and local laws prohibit possession of venomous snakes except by experienced individuals holding legitimate permits.
Housing Enclosure and Space Requirements
As a general rule, snakes require relatively little space because of their limited and nonexertional activity. Generally speaking, the size of the enclosure should allow inclusion of certain required items (discussed below) and still allow the snake adequate space to stretch out and move about. Snakes will use both the horizontal and vertical space within their enclosure if provisions are made for this activity.
Aquaria or other similar glass or Plexiglas™-lined enclosures are usually most suitable because they allow optimum visualization of and safety for the occupant(s), and help to maintain desirable environmental temperatures and generally high relative humidity levels. Wire-lined enclosures may afford adequate visualization of the snake but certainly cannot contribute to the maintenance of desirable environmental temperature and humidity levels. Further, such enclosures promote injuries to the rostrum (nose and surrounding tissues) as snakes repeatedly attempt to "escape' through the wire mesh.
Any enclosure used must have a secure top and be escape-proof. All hinges and locks should be secure. All snakes are potential "escape artists'' and many (especially the California King snakes) can escape from almost any apparently secure enclosure.
Floor Coverings and Enclosure Items
Unprinted newsprint, butcher paper, paper towels, terrycloth towels and indoor-outdoor carpeting (although
this requires constant and through cleaning) are the most suitable materials for covering the bottom of a snake's enclosure. In fact, the first materials mentioned can be cut to size and placed many layers thick on to the floor of the enclosure. When the top layer(s) are soiled, they can be easily removed, leaving clean, dry paper. This makes cleaning of the enclosure very quick and efficient. If indoor-outdoor carpeting is used, it is best to have 2-3 pieces cut to the correct dimensions. This way, replacements can be used while the soiled piece is cleaned and disinfected.
Under no circumstances should pea gravel, kitty litter, crushed corncob material or wood shavings be used. These are unquestionably more visually aesthetic than most of the materials mentioned above: however, they are unsuitable because they trap moisture and filth, provide unlimited hiding places for external parasites, and make enclosures very difficult to clean. Furthermore, these types of particulate matter are easily and inadvertently eaten while the snake is feeding. This can cause mechanical injury to or obstruction of the digestive tract.
Various objects should be included within a snake's enclosure that occupy its vertical area. These include sturdy branches of various hardwood trees or those fabricated from artificial materials, driftwood, grapevine, hanging ropes, and shelves situated along the sides of the enclosure.
Visual Security
It is very important to provide some privacy for a captive snake. Many snakes will not feed without the privacy afforded by some degree of visual security. This can be accomplished by providing a ''hide box" into which the snake can retreat when it feeds or at other times when privacy is desired. Visual security can also be provided by the use and strategic placement of silk artificial plants (and trees if the enclosure is large enough to accommodate them). Silk plants are visually pleasing and easy to clean and disinfect. They require minimal maintenance, help to augment the relative humidity level of the enclosure if the foliage is frequently misted, and can complement a snake's ability to camouflage itself, thereby providing visual security.
Climatic Considerations
Tropical snakes kept in captivity (boa constrictors, pythons, etc) require relatively warm temperatures and high relative humidity. Daytime temperatures should range between 80°-85° F. Night time temperatures can fall between 70°-75°F without creating problems for most snakes. Native American snakes do well when maintained at 70° - 80°F.
Relatively large enclosures can be supplied with heat lamps or heaters equipped with thermostats, whereas small enclosures may be adequately heated by placing a heating pad directly underneath them. Exposed heat sources must be shielded to protect snakes from serious burns as they attempt to warm themselves by coiling next to them.
Large and small enclosures should also provide the snake a focal (spot) source of warmth. Small snakes should be offered a hot rock. Large snakes can use one or more well-protected and water-proofed heating pads. These appliances allow the snake direct, but safe contact with the heat source, which helps to raise their body temperature. This allows the snake to be more active and increases their rate of digestion. Check these appliances frequently for malfunction and periodically check the snake for evidence of burns because snakes generally do not move away from heat-generating appliances even if they are being severely burned.
Lighting
Ideally it would be advantageous for all captive reptiles to be housed in such a way that they could be exposed to and benefit from direct, unfiltered sunlight during the daylight hours every day. This represents the healthiest and most natural situation. Unfortunately, this set of circumstances can rarely be fulfilled by hobbyists because it is neither practical nor possible. The next best solution is to use an artificial ultraviolet light source rather than fluorescent or incandescent lightbulbs. One or more Vita-Lites™ should he used to illuminate the enclosure during the daylight hours. To approximate a natural photoperiod, it is best to supply 10-12 hours of daylight and 12-14 hours of darkness each day, with a gradual increase in the number of hours of light in the spring and a gradual decrease in the fall and winter months.
Water
Water should be provided at all times. Most snakes drink infrequently but use suitably sized container for immersing themselves and soaking. Another advantage for including a relatively large water container is that water evaporation contributes to the relative humidity of the enclosure. This is especially true if the enclosure is glass or
Plexiglas™-lined. The water container should be roomy enough to allow adequate soaking and heavy enough so it cannot be easily overturned.
Water containers must be thoroughly and regularly cleaned. Failure to do so encourages bacterial proliferation. Snakes drinking and soaking in this water soon become ill. Use a mixture of l oz. of bleach to 1 gallon of water and rinse well to disinfect the snake's enclosure and furnishings at least once every 2-4 weeks.
Feeding
Before specific feeding recommendations are made, it is very important to make several points and cautions regarding the feeding of captive snakes. The most respected herpetologists and experienced snake hobbyists all agree that captive snakes should be fed dead or incapacitated prey whenever possible. This is because such prey cannot injure the feeding snake. Providing killed prey that has been frozen is convenient and economical for the hobbyist. Snakes may be induced to eat thawed, frozen prey animals by clipping hair from the coat of a live rat and rolling the proposed food in it just before feeding.
Though freezing, thawing and subsequent feeding of whole prey animals is a common practice among hobbyists and herpetologists, some experts believe that such food sources should be "gutted" (eviscerated) before they are frozen. This greatly reduces the possibility of generalized bacterial contamination of the carcass. To replace those nutrients within the viscera that would otherwise be lost, the hobbyist can place a gelatin capsule filled with a vitamin/mineral/amino acid supplement into the body cavity before feeding the thawed prey animal to the snake.
Rodents (rats and mice in particular) left unattended and unobserved within an enclosure with a supposedly
hungry snake sometimes turn on the "diner'' and inflict serious bite wounds on it. These "dinner becomes the diner" incidents are most likely to occur when a snake is ill or otherwise uninterested in feeding.
If snakes do not accept freshly killed or well-thawed frozen prey, the live prey must be stunned so that it is sufficiently incapacitated and unable to injure the snake. Cervical dislocation of the spin is the preferred method to stun prey. If such an incapacitated animal is offered to a snake that is generally accustomed to receiving its food in this fashion and the snake refuses it, the prey animal can be killed and frozen, and offered at a later time.
If it is not possible to offer anything other than live and fully conscious prey for a snake to successfully feed, the encounter must be carefully supervised. If a snake shows no interest in feeding within 10-l5 minutes after the prey has been introduced, the prey should be removed and all of the possible reasons for the snake's lack of interest in feeding should be investigated. (See section on Failure to Voluntarily Feed). If other similar attempts to feed the snake within the next 1-2 weeks are equally unsuccessful, veterinary help should be sought at once
Snakes acquire a large number of infectious agents from the foods they consume, especially because of the snake's habit of feeding on whole prey items. It is not practical or possible to ensure that all prey animals are absolutely free of disease-causing agents. However, prey animals that are to be fed to captive snakes should appear healthy and come from a reliable source. Breeding of your own prey food will provide a constant and healthy food source.
Extreme caution should be exercised when feeding snakes. This is especially important if a given snake is expected to be hungry and if human-snake interaction is limited to feeding times. An overzealous and hungry snake is very likely to strike at a person immediately after the enclosure is opened and as the prey item is introduced. Large snakes can be especially treacherous and dangerous at these times because of their ability to overcome and overpower their keepers. Hobbyists and even a few expert herpetologists have been seriously injured or even killed at such times.
Great caution must also be exercised when feeding more than one snake within an enclosure. Serious problems result when 2 snakes choose to prey on the same food item. If one snake attaches to the front of a mouse and another attacks at the tail end of the same mouse, neither snake will surrender its hold. Both snakes will continue to feed and eventually one will consume the other! When 2 or more snakes are housed within the same enclosure, they should be fed individually by holding the prey animal in long forceps or tongs.
Captive snakes, as a group, usually do not suffer from major nutritional deficiencies, unlike the majority of reptiles kept in captivity. This is largely because pet snakes are allowed to feed as they do in the wild on whole prey items. The prey species fed to captive snakes are undoubtedly different from those present in the snake's natural environment. Further, the relatively narrow diversity of prey animals that can be fed to captive snakes due to practical and economic considerations is in contrast to the wide variety of prey animals potentially available to wild-living snakes. In spite of these major differences, the incidence of malnutrition and malnutrition-related problems among captive snakes is quite low, markedly contrasting the usual situation with most captive reptiles and their seemingly limitless malnutrition related disease problems. The potential for malnutrition and malnutrition-related disease tends to be greatest among juvenile snakes fed primarily very immature vertebrate (rodents, birds, reptiles, amphibians, etc) and invertebrate prey species (insects primarily). These food items are not as nutrient-rich as their more adult counterparts. In particular, young growing mice/rats are calcium deficient because their bones do not harden during the first month of life and therefore, “pinkies” should not be fed unless supplemented with calcium.
Feeding schedules for captive snakes vary with the age, species, size, condition and specific requirements of the individual. Generally speaking, pet snakes are usually fed once every 1-2 weeks. Juveniles and adults for which a relatively rapid growth rate is desired can be fed more frequently, providing that environmental temperatures are warm enough to allow complete and thorough digestion. Older snakes are usually fed less frequently, often once every 3-6 weeks. The number of prey animals offered at each feeding is determined by the same factors discussed above with regard to frequency of feeding.
Overfeeding must be avoided because of the risk of obesity. Too frequent feedings and allowing a captive snake to consume multiple prey animals at each feeding encourages rapid growth. It also leads to obesity in older animals. The relative difficulties in procuring food limits this phenomenon in the wild.
Specific Dietary Recommendations
The variety of snakes kept in captivity is considerable and their food preferences are quite variable.
Following is a list of preferred prey animals for the snakes most commonly kept in captivity:
Boa constrictors, pythons, rat snakes, gopher or bull snakes:
•Warm-blooded prey is preferred, such as rodents and birds. Juveniles of these species prefer the very small warm-blooded prey species.
•They may also consume very small lizards and snakes. Some tree boas and pythons prefer lizards to mammals and birds.
Garter snakes, ribbon snakes, water snakes, etc: •Fish, frogs, salamanders, toads, earthworms, slugs and carrion are preferred.
•Many accept dead mice if they are covered with the external mucus of frogs or fish before they are offered.
Indigo snakes, king snakes, and man' racers:
•Warm-blooded (mice, etc.) and cold-blooded prey (other snakes, lizards, etc.) are preferred.
•The Indigo snake prefers frogs but may eat anything when hungry, including dog or cat food.
Ring-neck or brown snakes and their relatives:
•Salamanders, earthworms, very small snakes and lizards are the foods of choice.
Racers, vine snakes, coachwhips:
•Lizards are preferred. Racers also eat mice and chicks of ground-nesting birds.
•The young of these snakes eat large insects, such as crickets and grasshoppers.
Shedding (Ecdysis)
Shedding is the process by which snakes periodically discard the outer portion of their skin. This activity is under hormonal control and associated with growth. Most snakes shed their skin 4-8 times per year. The frequency of shedding depends upon many factors, including environmental temperature, frequency of feeding, amount fed at each feeding and activity level. Young snakes shed more frequently than older ones because growth is relatively rapid in the first few years of life.
Healthy snakes usually have little or no difficulty with shedding and tend to shed their skins in one entire piece. Exceptions to this include snakes with injuries to the skin and/or scales resulting in scaring, and snakes housed in enclosures with suboptimal temperature and/or relative humidity levels.
The stresses associated with shedding can be substantial. Sick snakes, those suffering from malnutrition, or those whose health has been directly or indirectly compromised by poor husbandry experience delayed and incomplete sheds. These snakes tend to shed their skins in pieces. In fact, many of the pieces remain adhered to the underlying skin and eyes (retained eye caps).
The shedding process is preceded by a period of relative inactivity. This period usually lasts 1-2 weeks, during which time the eyes begin to exhibit a dull, bluish-white appearance. During this period, the snake's vision is impaired, which causes them to be rather unpredictable and sometimes aggressive. The skin during this period tends to have an overall dull appearance. The underlying new skin is soft and vulnerable to damage while the outer layers prepare to slough away. The eyes again become transparent after 7-15 days and shedding commences. A snake will make use of any rough objects or surfaces within its enclosure to help shed the skin. Shedding commences with the skin of the head.
Once the snake has loosened and dislodged the skin surrounding the mouth and overlying the rostrum (nose), it then passes between rough objects that can trap the loose skin and hold it as the snake glides out of the "old" skin. Discarded skin appears dry and tube-like or moist and crumpled in a solitary heap. Many snakes defecate after a successful shed, or consume large quantities of water.
Reproduction
Snakes produce offspring in 2 basic ways. The first involves development of the fertilized eggs within the body of the female. When the embryos are fully developed, the offspring are born, appearing like miniature adults. Boa constrictors, water and garter snakes, and rattlesnakes are live-bearing species and are considered ovoviviparous.
The second method involves deposition of oblong, leathery-shelled eggs within the environment, where the eggs incubate. At the completion of embryonic development, the eggs hatch, producing miniature adults. Pythons and rat and milk snakes are egg layers and are considered oviparous. In either case, the newborn or newly hatched can fend for themselves and receive no parental nurturing.
Many snake species readily mate in captivity. One mating may result in up to 3 clutches of eggs or 3 ''litters" of live young. This is because sperm can be stored within the reproductive tract of the female after insemination.
The proper pairing of snakes according to age and sex is essential if reproduction in captivity is to be successful. Sexing of snakes can be difficult because males generally resemble females. Male pythons and boa constrictors have a spur on each side of the vent. Some females have spurs but they are usually smaller than those of males. These observations can be misleading at times.
Snakes under 18 inches long can usually be sexed by exerting pressure on the tissues surrounding the vent. Male snakes have paired hemipenes (elongated, spurred structures used during copulation) than can be extruded with this maneuver. The widely accepted method for sexing most snakes over 18 inches in length requires specialized sexing probes. These elongated, blunt-tipped instruments are gently inserted into the vent and directed toward the tail. The probe penetrates only a short distance in females and a much longer distance in males. This procedure should only be attempted by experienced handlers
Artificial Incubation of Snake Eggs
Artificial incubation of fertile snake eggs is quite easy. A small amount of water is added to an empty Styrofoam picnic chest. Then a thick layer of peat moss, sphagnum moss, vermiculite, shredded newspaper, or paper towels is added. The eggs are carefully introduced into this medium. Slightly moistening the incubation material also helps prevent the eggs' drying out. Too much moisture, however, promotes formation of mold, which will destroy the eggs' contents. The relative humidity required to incubate snake eggs falls within the range of 75-85%. The covered Styrofoam chest is then placed on a heating pad, which is set on its lowest heat setting. The ideal temperature range for most incubation lies between 78° and 84°F. The average incubation period for most snakes ranges between 55 and 60 days.
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