Tell me about MBKs!

[Argentra]

Ok, a milestone is reached!! My dear companion, Ari, has decided that he wants his own snake! This would be only his second pet, ever.

At first he wanted an Indigo... Yeah Right. So then I showed him pix of Mexican Black Kings and he was sold.

Most likely, we'll be getting one from the All-mighty Neil Golli when he returns from the show, that is. So the source is found but now we need to know about their care.

Tell me all your experience with these snakes! How does their care compare to that of Ball pythons and Corn snakes (the two species I care for now)? What are the most important things to know about them? Would a 12qt tub be a good home for an '08 youngster?

I've never kept a Kingsnake before, so treat me like a new owner. Thanks!

[stangs13]

Corns and kings are pretty similar! The MBKs are awesome. I would keep a hatchling in a 6qt. Good luck!

[fergie]

Ok, a milestone is reached!! My dear companion, Ari, has decided that he wants his own snake! This would be only his second pet, ever.

At first he wanted an Indigo... Yeah Right. So then I showed him pix of Mexican Black Kings and he was sold.

Most likely, we'll be getting one from the All-mighty Neil Golli when he returns from the show, that is. So the source is found but now we need to know about their care.

Tell me all your experience with these snakes! How does their care compare to that of Ball pythons and Corn snakes (the two species I care for now)? What are the most important things to know about them? Would a 12qt tub be a good home for an '08 youngster?

I've never kept a Kingsnake before, so treat me like a new owner. Thanks!

When i first got my MBK she was a very defensive, flighty little snake but after six months to a year she calmed away down into this confident, inquisitive black beauty. I've had her three years now and she is probably the most laid back snake i have and tolerates handling brilliantly.

As for housing, i put her staright into a 24 inch x 15 x 18 viv and she resided there for about two years. I just made sure she had plenty of hides and fake foilage for her to climb through and feel secure.

Temps i have at 90 degrees warm end and 77 degrees cool end. I also mist the tank once a week, which she appears to enjoy and feeding her two adult mice every ten to fourteen days.

All in all a wonderful snake, very easy to care for and very rarely refuse a prey item.

If youn have anymore questions feel free to ask. Here's some pics of my girl.

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f2...yolandi015.jpg

http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f2...7/snake003.jpg

[Argentra]

Ooo what a pretty girl. I showed Ari and he's even more stoked now. Thanks!

Any other advice/pictures/comments?

[wilomn]

This care sheet is for Calkings but the MBK is a close cousin. I've kept them and bred them and had them be quite happy keeping them just like I do my Calkings.


General Care and Keeping of the
California Kingsnake


Members of the species getula, particularly the californiae species make excellent pets for a number of reasons which will be discussed in the following paragraphs. They are some very neat snakes.

First off, they don’t get so large that they would ever need anything larger than a three foot long by eighteen inches wide by twelve to eighteen inches high cage to live in comfortably for their entire natural lives which can be over twenty years. Cages suitable for housing California Kingsnakes are readily available at most pet stores. For those who are looking for an investment as well as a pet, they can also be kept quite easily and happily in a rack system.

If you start your new pet out in something at least a 10 gal terrarium, something made specifically for reptiles, you should have twelve to eighteen months before you need to get a larger home for your pet.

There are a variety of beddings that will work just fine. Newspaper, sand, large pebbles, paper towels and woodchips are all fine. Do not use aromatic woods such as cedar or eucalyptus; the oils and fumes are not good for your snake, especially when young. Cal. Kings like to burrow and will spend time under their bedding. This is normal and ok.

Your new friend would like a hiding place or two, preferably one on the warm end and one on the cool end. Your hiding place can be almost anything that your snake can fit inside of comfortably that will not break easily or fall apart if it gets wet. There are many types of hides available commercially or you can make something yourself. Abalone shells, bark, ceramics, plastic cups cut in half, all are fine for your new friend.

Cal. Kings are also good climbers and will readily use a branch or plastic plant to crawl about upon. Use the space above the floor of the cage. It’s amazing how they get about off the ground.

Cal. Kings don’t need a lot of heat, a hot spot of 82-86 is sufficient for these little guys and lows down in the 60’s is no problem so long as the hot spot stays warm and the snake has access to it. Cal. Kings, as with all snakes, will move into and out of the warmth to regulate their own body temperatures. Do not heat the entire enclosure. There is more danger to your snake from being overheated, a few minutes can be fatal, than there is from being too cold, they do brumate in the 30s. Be sure to get a good temp gun or mount a thermometer probe in the hot spot. Twenty minutes in extreme heat can kill your snake.

Cal. Kings like to soak and need a bowl big enough to get their entire bodies into. If you have a baby Cal. King do not use a smooth bowl that has a lot of slope to it, your snake may get in and be unable to get out. For the babies a bowl with a vertical side is best. Put the bowl of water nearer the cool end of the snakes enclosure than the hot end.

You will go look in on your little buddy one day and notice that it is looking pretty dull and dirty, the eyes perhaps having turned blue overnight. This too is a normal and ok thing. Every 8 to 12 weeks, depending on age and cage temperatures and feeding regimen, your snake will shed its skin.

There is a process for this and it goes in the following order. 1) Your snake will not be as vibrantly colored as is usual, perhaps not as friendly either, not aggressive as a rule, but not quite so nice as is usual. Some of its scales, particularly on the belly, may be flaking a bit. This too is normal. 2) The eyes of your snake will get cloudy or turn blue. If you do not see your snake every day you may miss this occurrence but rest assured, it happened. The eyes will remain cloudy for 7 to 10 days during which your snake will most likely be uninterested in food and much interested in solitude and soaking. 3) The eyes will clear and 1-3 maybe even 5 days later, after the eyes have cleared, your snake will shed its skin. Then you will have a bright shiny, new paintjob on the car shiny, and very hungry snake.

If your snake does not shed its skin all in one piece an overnight soaking will generally take care of the problem. Use a plastic container sufficient to put the entire snake in with room to spare. Perforate it, you don’t want to suffocate your snake. Put in luke-warm water, close to room temperature, sufficient to allow your snake to completely immerse itself while still allowing it to move easily and have adequate air exchange. Secure the snake in the container with the water, put the container in the snakes cage, midway between the hot and cool spots, close the cage up and leave the snake over night. In the morning if the skin has not been rubbed off it should come off quite easily with some gentle rubbing.

If your snake retains an eyecap, the scale that covers the eyeball of your friend, get some very sticky tape, take a very small piece of that very sticky tape and touch it gently to the eyecap that was retained by your Cal. King. The scale should adhere and then be pulled off without any pain or problem to you or your friend. It’s a lot easier than it sounds.

Feeding your snake is easy. Cal. Kings are known for their fondness of rodents. You will never need to feed anything larger than a mouse to your California Kingsnake. Your snake may want more than one mouse per feeding, but that is the largest rodent you will have to provide to keep your pet healthy and happy.

Baby kings eat baby mice which are also called pinkies. A pinky mouse is a small hairless mouse, hence the name Pinky. Start out feeding your hatchling Cal. King one pink mouse per week. When it looks hungry after just one, usually around 8 to 12 weeks of age, start giving it 2 pinkies per feeding. In another 6 to 12 weeks, depending on your snake and the temperature it is kept at, up it to 3 pinkies per week. When you have fed 3 pinks per week for at least 5 feedings you are ready to move up to fuzzy mice. A fuzzy mouse is a young mouse that has hair but still has its eyes closed. You should have a feel for the process now and repeat with fuzzies what you did with the pinkies. When your snake has eaten 3 fuzzies a week for at least 5 feedings in a row, then you are ready for small adult mice. Your snake will be shedding during this process. Do not just count the weeks but the feedings as there will be some weeks, sometimes two or three in a row, in which your Cal. King does not eat. This too is normal and ok.

Pinkies and fuzzies are ok to feed alive and some snakes do respond better to movement than others. We do not, however, recommend that you feed live mice any larger than fuzzies. The larger mice have very sharp teeth and voracious appetites and are fully capable of wounding or even killing a snake that does not want to eat. If you insist on feeding live mice and cannot be present leave some rodent, dog or cat food in the cage for the mouse to eat instead of your Cal. King.

[fergie]

Just one other thing. MBK's are quite aggressive feeders and once they are in feeding mode, anything that moves within striking distance will usually get tagged.

Even though on occasion i hand feed my MBK, this is only done whenever i feel she is relaxed enough and totally focused on her prey item.

[Argentra]

Hmm, good to know. I'll make sure I'm 'hidden' from view when feeding him.

I do have one specific question: I've seen many care sheets, good and bad, and can't quite figure out the temps needed. Can someone let me know what the BEST temps are to keep these guys at? I've seen warm spots from 80 to 90 and cool sides from 80 down to 70! Are they better off at a corn snake's temp ranges (82/74) or a BPs (92/82) or somewhere in between??

Temps are quite important, as we want him to be a healthy little guy.
Thanks!

[MarkS]

I've got several and have been producing babies for several years. They are great animals and easy to keep. Very similar to Cal Kings like Wes said. One thing about mine is that their personalities can be all over the place. I've got some that are as easy to handle as any corn snake and I've got some where I can't change the water bowl without bleeding. I've got a female that used to defecate so forcefully when you picked her up that she could hit the wall from over 5 feet away (sometimes she'd also bleed from her cloaca afterwards) You can tame them down somewhat with regular handling but I would say that it's better to start out with one that you can handle from the beginning. A tame and calm Mexican black king that is easy handling is a real joy to have. The ones that are a bit more high strung are a little less joyful but still impressive looking.

I keep my warm side between 80-85 and don't worry too much about the cool side. As long as they have a hide box and access to fresh water, you're good to go.

Mark

[Argentra]

Ooo good info. Thanks, Mark.

Hmm, you wouldn't happen to have any calm youngsters you could ship to Colorado, would you?

[MarkS]

Ooo good info. Thanks, Mark.

Hmm, you wouldn't happen to have any calm youngsters you could ship to Colorado, would you?

Well, I've got eggs incubating right now but they won't be hatching for about a month and probably wouldn't be ready to go until a month after that. And of course I have no idea how calm they're going to be yet. You'd probably be better off finding one at a show where you could handle it before buying.