Arizona Mountain Kingsnake Questions

[justinsane82]

I currently have Ball Pythons but I'm in love with the beauty of these Kingsnakes. I just have a few questions before I go out and pick one up.

1) Would they require a totally different set up in terms of temps and humidity then a BP? I've read that temps are close to the same but I would imagine that the humidity can stay low to medium?

2) As my wife isn't huge on me getting snakes, her one important rule is I can only house snakes with good temperaments. That being said, how are these snakes? I've read that they are great, so much so that they will even go as far as let you touch their heads once they trust you, something my BP's would NEVER do.

Those are my two big ones. If anyone would like to add anything you feel I should know that would be great.

[TJ'sHerps]

I like to keep mine at about 85F. They seem to be more comfortable at that temp. Hatchlings like it a little warmer, so maybe around 88F or so. As far as humidity, there is no need to worry about it. They need little to no humidity. When they are shedding you can introduce a humid hide or mist the enclosure lightly.


While they are smaller they can be pretty nippy. They chill out once they are handled more. I have had some that are docile and others that aren't. They calmed down with some handling. I have never had one musk on me, which kings are notorious for. They are great snakes.

[justinsane82]

Excellent. That's great news and now I'm even more excited about picking one up. This one here is around 5 years old and the guy is moving out of the country so he has this snake and a San luis potosi kingsnake but I'm more partial to the look of the AMK. Thanks again.

[kc261]

I do not have personal experience, but I've heard they have great personalities once they get past the skittish baby phase. They are supposed to be much better display animals than BPs are... roaming their enclosure frequently and not using the hides nearly as much.

I believe they require lower humidity and lower temps than BPs, which makes sense to me... arizona = desert, plus mountain.

[justinsane82]

Well that didn't turn out as I had planned. I went to view the snake today and it looked miserable. All his colors were washed out, whites were almost yellow, reds weren't vibrant at all and the black looked like it had a matte finish. On top of that, he did not like to be touched at all. I was able to hold him but he did everything he could outside of biting me to get away. That's too bad.

[TJ'sHerps]

Well that didn't turn out as I had planned. I went to view the snake today and it looked miserable. All his colors were washed out, whites were almost yellow, reds weren't vibrant at all and the black looked like it had a matte finish. On top of that, he did not like to be touched at all. I was able to hold him but he did everything he could outside of biting me to get away. That's too bad.

Bummer. That sounds odd regarding the colors. Any possibility it was in shed?

[justinsane82]

I guess it's possible that it could've been mid shed since the eyes were clean. But I asked her if the colors were a bit off and she said that that was about as normal as it got so I basically said "see ya".