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Posted by mark banczak on November 16, 2002 at 06:52:08:
In Reply to: New Rat Snake owner - 1st snake posted by kudleguy on November 16, 2002 at 00:13:10:
I don' think you can do better than Rats or Corns for a first snake. They are easy docile and fun. I got my first Rats this year and I've been thrilled with them. Assuming your new snake is a juvenile, a 10 gallon tank is fine for about a year. Make a concerted effort not to handle him for 4 or 5 days. He needs time to adapt to his new home and handling in the early days will just upset him. When you see him coming out to explore a lot, thats probably about when he's ready to eat. Give him a frozen/thawed pinkie and leave him with it for up to 4 or 5 hours. I just thaw them in the open, If you try to accelreate the thaw with direct heat, make sure you don't overdue it. They just get gross if they get cooked. Some new snakes may not want to eat until dark - just depends on him. A couple days without eating is nothing at all to be concerned about. The norm is about a week between feedings. I don't know anyone who uses hot rocks. I use a combination of heating pads (about $10 at WalMart) and clip lamps (for a basking light). Be sure to buy a couple strip thermometers to stick to the cage on both ends. That way you can ensure that the cage temps are in the acceptable range. If snakes are too hot or cold, they can go off the feed. Now, my personal touch, I have a plastic plant in all my Rat Snake cages and they absolutely love to climb them. It makes for good viewing, too.
Since you aren't certain of the exact species, we can probably be more helpful if you could post a picture.
Good luck and have fun. I'm sure I forgot something but Dwight, Patricia or one of the other real experts will fill in the gaps.
