Wild caught

I was working in a customer's yard and found a red rat/eastern corn snake(Pantherophis guttatus). If I left it there, the customer would have killed it so I decided to take it home with me. It was very deep in shed so I wanted to keep it until it finished shedding so that it could see when relocated.

After it finished shedding I wanted to try feeding a F/T mouse..I didn't at all expect it to eat, but it did! So now I'm wanting to keep it as a pet...

My question is, what does everyone think about keeping a wild caught snake? I know most people don't like wild caught that are shipped and sold, but what about just finding one and keeping it? I'm curious to know what people think. I feel bad because it will have a much smaller home than it did before... but it will be safe and always have food and water...

I will add pictures as I have time today while at work.

Here are a few pictures. If I'm able to I'll add a video of it eating later. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...1122248c8d.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...9bbdcfceb8.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...b29beda999.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...078df8acae.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...140263d997.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...0c7147ad98.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...e0e19ed021.jpg

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That's a tough call and depends heavily on your own sense of morality.

Personally, I don't think most snakes that are well kept suffer in any respect by being in captivity. Frankly, I think some species, such as BPs, are as close to happy as a snake can be living in captivity.

That said, you've moved this guy from his home. If released, he'd be going into a strange environment, where hides, food, and water are unknown. If your own backyard is safe, then that may be an option. Then he could be your own backyard snake!

Maybe what you could do, is try keeping him for time and see how he does. If he sheds, eats, and behaves like a healthy and unstressed snake, maybe keeping him is preferable to releasing him into who know's what.

I'd be curious to hear what the rest of the community thinks though.

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Originally Posted by JRLongton

That's a tough call and depends heavily on your own sense of morality.

Personally, I don't think most snakes that are well kept suffer in any respect by being in captivity. Frankly, I think some species, such as BPs, are as close to happy as a snake can be living in captivity.

That said, you've moved this guy from his home. If released, he'd be going into a strange environment, where hides, food, and water are unknown. If your own backyard is safe, then that may be an option. Then he could be your own backyard snake!

Maybe what you could do, is try keeping him for time and see how he does. If he sheds, eats, and behaves like a healthy and unstressed snake, maybe keeping him is preferable to releasing him into who know's what.

I'd be curious to hear what the rest of the community thinks though.

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I have a wooded area around my house so it's "safe". There's already a population of snakes here though. There's also several cats.. and like you said, it would be in a new area so it has no hides or anything. We'll see how things go!

Yeah, cats. I have two that I love dearly, but they are killers.

My first snake was a wild caught plains garter snake. Had him for about a year. He never settled down, would always musk and try to escape when holding him.

With him, our cats had caught him and brought him inside and we thought he wouldn't survive cause he was acting injured though he ended up being fine. Personally, I wouldn't keep a wild caught snake unless it couldn't be released. But honestly I see no problem with you keeping him as long as you provide proper care, which I'm sure you are.

I am not a fan of keeping wild caught native species. If it was an invasive species, the choices are clear: euthanize per Department of Wildlife request or keep it as a pet. That is what we did with a Cuban tree frog inside my home. Little guy grew in weight, eats well, had a missing leg so he would no longer have to worry about escaping from death again. But he will never be allowed out.

Lets say your wild caught snake did not carry any parasites or disease. In a bigger perspective, you took away his ability to do what he does best: hunt pests/rodents thus helping (no matter how little) keeping the rodent population down, contributing its genes if it survives long enough to breed to further increase survivability in its young or end up food for another predator that itself could need it to feed itself or its young. I know it sounds dramatic but if we are saying one's life matter that much in captivity, then same should be applied of its importance in the wild.

Look at this way too: there are thousands of captive bred corn snakes available. One of the driving reasons to captive breeding is so we don't have to take from the wild population.

It is hard to decide for our snakes that captivity is better.

With all that said, the choice is yours. I won't judge you for it as long as you are taking good care of it. I just want to think it through before you get more attached to it. That snake is kind of cute so I would have been tempted to do the same lol.

Not sure what the temperatures are there in Florida, but this is still winter & lots of variation anyway...it's not a good time to release a snake in a new place,
& since his place of origin isn't an option, I'd at least wait a month or more for the weather to stabilize & warm up...right now he might be too chilly to find
adequate shelter...snakes have to learn their way around, so in relocating them they need all the help they can get as far as luck. They'll also be competing
for food with snakes that may already live in whatever area you select, so re-locations are always a gamble for the snake to do well. When I've relocated
snakes in the past, it was in the desert where water & food were scarce, so I made sure they were fed & hydrated before putting them in a new location, &
always with the temperatures in mind.

As already mentioned, I would also consider his reaction to being in captivity & weigh that heavily: he may be restless & rub his nose raw trying to get out.
If that happens, I'd favor relocating sooner rather than later. He (-?) is a lovely corn snake that may or may not make a good pet: they aren't rare in the wild
(thankfully) but also, you can buy a healthy c/b normal corn for about what you'll pay to get his stool checked (I'd assume he has parasites needing treatment).

I won't think you are terrible for keeping him if he adapts well to captivity & if all his needs are met (stool check), nor will I blame you if you'd rather release
him when you can. As I've mentioned before, my second snake was a corn snake, I've kept some for many years, bred some in the past, & currently have 5.
They're great pets, & he's handsome, but I'd leave it up to him (or her) to make your decision in his best interests.

Cheese, that's why I asked. I want to know what others think. I had to relocate to keep it from being killed, I'm not sure releasing it will give it a good shot at survival since it has no hides or anything and there are lots of predators.

I originally planned on letting it go around my house and still might. Just thinking things through.

Thanks for the replies so far everyone.

Bogertophis I caught it last Friday when it was warm, today it's been cold again (34f this morning) so I know I wouldn't want to release it today. Lots of things to think about :rolleye2:

I won't judge someone for keeping a wild caught snake that is very plentiful in the wild. If you think about it corns and balls have some of the largest number of morphs in the hobby. Typically new genes come from wild caught animals that have been bred. It's also where you get locality based appearances.

I'm into corns and would like to someday obtain a wild caught corn from the region I live in.

I had a similar situation a while back. I found a baby black rat in my house trying to break into my rodent tanks. I had thought about just keeping him but in the end I decided he would be best in the wild and controlling the local rat population. I kept him in quarantine for a week and gave him a few meals, water and a safe place to sleep it off before putting him back outside.

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Originally Posted by SquirmyPug

Bogertophis I caught it last Friday when it was warm, today it's been cold again (34f this morning) so I know I wouldn't want to release it today. Lots of things to think about :rolleye2:

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You'd want to wait until the long-range forecast will be favorable for a while, when nights are well above freezing- that's why I'd wait, as long as he's not tearing himself
up. If you might be releasing him, do not handle him- it's safer for him if he's afraid of people. So for now (while you're deciding how he feels about being in a cage)
it's hands off...just try to read his body language, and don't get him used to eating f/t, btw. What are your daytime temperatures lately?

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

You'd want to wait until the long-range forecast will be favorable for a while, when nights are well above freezing- that's why I'd wait, as long as he's not tearing himself
up. If you might be releasing him, do not handle him- it's safer for him if he's afraid of people. So for now (while you're deciding how he feels about being in a cage)
it's hands off...just try to read his body language, and don't get him used to eating f/t, btw. What are your daytime temperatures lately?

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I'm not handling it, just when I had to catch it and put in a cage. I won't feed f/t much, I was mostly curious if it would even eat one since it's wild. I'll probably catch a lizard or something for it if I keep it a little while before releasing. Our temperatures here in north east florida are all over the place... today the low was 34 and high is 55. A few days ago the high was in the low 80s.. even in December and January temps can be hot enough that you are in short sleeves and sweating... and then a day later it's freezing..

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Originally Posted by SquirmyPug

I'm not handling it, just when I had to catch it and put in a cage. I won't feed f/t much, I was mostly curious if it would even eat one since it's wild. I'll probably catch a lizard or something for it if I keep it a little while before releasing. Our temperatures here in north east florida are all over the place... today the low was 34 and high is 55. A few days ago the high was in the low 80s.. even in December and January temps can be hot enough that you are in short sleeves and sweating... and then a day later it's freezing..

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Nothing like "bipolar" weather, lol. I wouldn't catch a lizard for it to eat (more transferable diseases & parasites, though as a wild snake it's probably on the menu anyway); I'd give it a mouse, personally...it's way more nutrition. Is he relaxed in the cage? or trying to get out?

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Nothing like "bipolar" weather, lol. I wouldn't catch a lizard for it to eat (more transferable diseases & parasites, though as a wild snake it's probably on the menu anyway); I'd give it a mouse, personally...it's way more nutrition. Is he relaxed in the cage? or trying to get out?

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He seems to be relaxed. At first he stayed in the hides but has already been exploring and just hanging out on top of the hides. Even when I reached in with the mouse it didn't freak out, just stayed still until it noticed the mouse. He didn't really strike, just kinda slowly bit it then ate without constricting.

All of the red rat snakes I've caught that were wild have been very calm. Never had one strike at me defensively. Yellow rat snakes though.... :O

Oh and he has definitely eaten lots of lizards growing up :) the amount of lizards around here is crazy.

I personally woukdnt keep it. I'm not a fan of catching wild animals as pets.

I wouldn't worry about it "not having hides" since there are woods behind your house. The woods are FULL of hides. That's where they live, after all.

Corns are so readily available and for short money. To me, captive born = pets and wild = wild.

Also, this is just a thought, I have no clue what laws are where you live. But in many places its illegal to keep native species.

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Originally Posted by craigafrechette

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I wouldn't worry about it "not having hides" since there are woods behind your house. The woods are FULL of hides. That's where they live, after all...

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They do need to go below ground level to survive freezing temperatures, and for much of the country this has been a wild winter so far. For a snake to find a good
shelter from the cold, they need plenty of TIME when they can easily move around (@ warmer temperatures). I have seen snakes unable to move when temperatures
drop suddenly (they have trouble at 55*, it doesn't have to be freezing!), & out in the open they are just food for something else, or they can freeze to death if not
adequately sheltered. Snakes must learn their way around...in a new place, it takes time, not just a day here or there in between very cold days. It also takes luck-
as underground shelter is often already occupied by the "locals" (though many do also share).

Yep there are lots of places to hide but most "hides" aren't hidden or warm enough to survive in for a long period of time. They need to find a spot to call "home".

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Originally Posted by SquirmyPug

Yep there are lots of places to hide but most "hides" aren't hidden or warm enough to survive in for a long period of time. They need to find a spot to call "home".

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That's why I said to maybe wait a month (depending on your weather), you want a good 10-days of decent temperatures so he can find his way around. It's just hard
not to get attached in the meantime...I know. ;) When I lived in the high desert, I didn't relocate during winter* (too cold) or during the hottest part of summer, as
that was just a death sentence. *snakes didn't usually turn up in the winter though- only once, from someone's wood pile.

Few years back I caught a black rat (5 footer) for photography purposes, and ended up keeping it for 3 months after inspection, it had a huge gash on his side that had fester, cleaned him up got him back him back in shape and released him back when healed up, he did fine in my care and ate well.

Why would I not keep a wild snake

• First if I want a snake I can just buy a captive one
• Catching and keeping wildlife in GA is illegal
• If their are wild snakes near by this means there is a food source, I would rather keep the balance and let them do what they are designed to do (eat wild mice and venomous snakes).

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Originally Posted by SquirmyPug

...All of the red rat snakes I've caught that were wild have been very calm. Never had one strike at me defensively.
Yellow rat snakes though.... :O ....

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I have native black rat snakes in my area (just a different color variation of the yellows) & I know what you mean...I can just imagine my 2.2 Florida rat snakes
if they were wild...as you said> :O -LOL. Mine are c/b blend of yellow/gulf hammock & probably some Everglades (one has a fair amount of orange). I've kept
most of their c/b "cousins" (grey, Everglades, amel. blacks etc.)- they make good pets if c/b but nowhere near as docile as corn snakes are. Formidable snakes! :)

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

I have native black rat snakes in my area (just a different color variation of the yellows) & I know what you mean...I can just imagine my 2.2 Florida rat snakes
if they were wild...as you said> :O -LOL. Mine are c/b blend of yellow/gulf hammock & probably some Everglades (one has a fair amount of orange). I've kept
most of their c/b "cousins" (grey, Everglades, amel. blacks etc.)- they make good pets if c/b but nowhere near as docile as corn snakes are. Formidable snakes! :)

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I have no idea what it is about wild yellow rat snakes... but every one of them wants to kill anyone near it :rofl: tail rattling, hissing, striking... I would rather handle a water moccasin haha

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Originally Posted by SquirmyPug

I have no idea what it is about wild yellow rat snakes... but every one of them wants to kill anyone near it :rofl: tail rattling, hissing, striking... I would rather handle a water moccasin haha

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You'd be surprised at how well-behaved my adults are...the 7' males even have multiple public 'meet & greets' under their so-called "belts"- even being held by
total strangers! :D The wild ones know how to repel threats, that's all. Great "actors"! ;) (not saying they wouldn't bite, just not as lethal as they pretend)

That's awesome :D and I'm glad they aren't as lethal as they pretend! I wouldn't want to reach into a hole with a wild one that's 7' like yours! :O even if it's just a few bites lol I've seen some that were big but never 7 feet long, how old are yours?

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Originally Posted by SquirmyPug

That's awesome :D and I'm glad they aren't as lethal as they pretend! I wouldn't want to reach into a hole with a wild one that's 7' like yours! :O even if it's just a few bites lol I've seen some that were big but never 7 feet long, how old are yours?

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They're pushing 11 years now. I love rat snakes...they're fun. :snake2:

But I'm also sure that the behavior of wild rat snakes is part of what keeps people from wanting them as pets...their "reputation" precedes them.
Same for bull/gopher/pine snakes...plenty of bluff to go around, lol.