My First Snake!

I picked up my first snake yesterday at the Manchester expo. She is a 2019 speckled kingsnake. I was originally planning on getting a Baird's rat snake, but things didn't work out with the breeder, so I ended up going with one of the other species I had wanted and researched. Even though she isn't what I was planning on she's still the best little snake and I'm really happy with her.
She seems to be settling in well. When I first put her in her tank yesterday she spent her first few hours exploring and from what I've seen (and haven't seen) of her today she seems content to spend most of her time in her hides, occasionally poking her head out (so cute!) and moving between them.
It's so nice to finally have my own snake, and every time I catch a glimpse of her in her tank it makes my heart happy :D

Congrats on your first snake. They really are amazing pets, does she have a name yet? :)

Congrats! Kings are awesome.. Glad to see you are happy with her!

Congratulations! Speckled king snakes are pretty cute, good choice for a pet & should be easy to feed (< understatement, lol). :snake:

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Originally Posted by Valyndris

Congrats on your first snake. They really are amazing pets, does she have a name yet? :)

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Thank you! She does not have a name yet. It isn't super important to me though, so I'm not in a rush to find one, but she'll definitely be named once I get a feel for her and find a name I really like.

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Originally Posted by cletus

Congrats! Kings are awesome.. Glad to see you are happy with her!

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Thanks!

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Congratulations! Speckled king snakes are pretty cute, good choice for a pet & should be easy to feed (< understatement, lol). :snake:

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Thank you! She is pretty darn cute, and hopefully that king snake appetite will make her first meal with me an easy one.

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Originally Posted by aurum

Thank you! She is pretty darn cute, and hopefully that king snake appetite will make her first meal with me an easy one.

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I would almost guarantee it. ;)

Congrats!!! Kings are fantastic snakes. My first snake was a King almost 20 years ago. With all the amazing species of snakes out there Kings always have been and always will be one of my favorites.
I've said many times, as long as I'm in the snake hobby I'll always have at least one King.

I often joke that my Cali King, Django would eat a slice of pizza if I dangled off tongs...as long as it's meat lovers!!! Hahahhaa, Kings are voracious feeders. Even all these years later it still amazes me.

Good luck and feel free to ask any questions you may have, we're happy to help!

...oh and make sure your enclosure is 10000% escape proof. Kings are incredible escape artists and when they're that tiny can fit through holes you wouldn't think possible.

Congratulations on your first snake. You chose wisely. :D

I want some pics haha


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Yessss! Ditto on Craig's warning that kings are escape artists! My first snake escape (decades ago) was an albino cal king that I housed in a small glass terrarium
with a sliding screen lid, held in place by a peg. Great...no way a snake can get out of that one, right? :snake: The peg held the top in place & allowed not more than a
1/4" of wiggle room, & sure enough, my cal king got out by following the track behind the lid with that tiny amount of space. I found her pretty fast...she went into
my closet nearby, & was hiding in the toe of a tall boot. The only way I could keep her in that cage from then on was to tape the corners so the sliding screen was
unable to budge at all. Snakes have nothing better to do than push the limits (or any weaknesses) of their housing...trust us. ;) And they're awfully good at "hide &
seek".

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

Congrats!!! Kings are fantastic snakes. My first snake was a King almost 20 years ago. With all the amazing species of snakes out there Kings always have been and always will be one of my favorites.
I've said many times, as long as I'm in the snake hobby I'll always have at least one King.

I often joke that my Cali King, Django would eat a slice of pizza if I dangled off tongs...as long as it's meat lovers!!! Hahahhaa, Kings are voracious feeders. Even all these years later it still amazes me.

Good luck and feel free to ask any questions you may have, we're happy to help!

...oh and make sure your enclosure is 10000% escape proof. Kings are incredible escape artists and when they're that tiny can fit through holes you wouldn't think possible.

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Thank you! Kings seem great, and I'm so glad I ended up getting one :)
My enclosure has four screen clips, one on each corner, and the lid almost doesn't move at all when I pull up on it, so hopefully that should be enough to contain her lol

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Originally Posted by John1982

Congratulations on your first snake. You chose wisely. :D

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Thank you! I'm very happy with my decision :D

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Originally Posted by MarkL1561

I want some pics haha


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It might take a little while for me to get some good pictures of her since I don't want to bother her with an actual handling session for a couple weeks and all I have right now is a crappy picture from the expo haha

Congrats on the new acquisition. I hope you get many years of enjoyment with it.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Yessss! Ditto on Craig's warning that kings are escape artists! My first snake escape (decades ago) was an albino cal king that I housed in a small glass terrarium
with a sliding screen lid, held in place by a peg. Great...no way a snake can get out of that one, right? :snake: The peg held the top in place & allowed not more than a
1/4" of wiggle room, & sure enough, my cal king got out by following the track behind the lid with that tiny amount of space. I found her pretty fast...she went into
my closet nearby, & was hiding in the toe of a tall boot. The only way I could keep her in that cage from then on was to tape the corners so the sliding screen was
unable to budge at all. Snakes have nothing better to do than push the limits (or any weaknesses) of their housing...trust us. ;) And they're awfully good at "hide &
seek".

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Originally Posted by aurum

Thank you! Kings seem great, and I'm so glad I ended up getting one :)
My enclosure has four screen clips, one on each corner, and the lid almost doesn't move at all when I pull up on it, so hopefully that should be enough to contain her lol

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Thank you! I'm very happy with my decision :D

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I use weather stripping on my enclosures with screen lids. I just apply it around the outside of the enclosure on the lip where the screen meets. It takes out any wiggle room and makes escape impossible.

I unfortunately learned that lesson the hard way many years ago.

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Yessss! Ditto on Craig's warning that kings are escape artists! My first snake escape (decades ago) was an albino cal king that I housed in a small glass terrarium
with a sliding screen lid, held in place by a peg. Great...no way a snake can get out of that one, right? :snake: The peg held the top in place & allowed not more than a
1/4" of wiggle room, & sure enough, my cal king got out by following the track behind the lid with that tiny amount of space. I found her pretty fast...she went into
my closet nearby, & was hiding in the toe of a tall boot. The only way I could keep her in that cage from then on was to tape the corners so the sliding screen was
unable to budge at all. Snakes have nothing better to do than push the limits (or any weaknesses) of their housing...trust us. ;) And they're awfully good at "hide &
seek".

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Oh no! At least you found her quickly and fixed the problem. My lid is on pretty tight so hopefully I won't have to deal with an escapee anytime soon, but thank you and Craig for warning anyhow :)

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Originally Posted by sur3fir3

Congrats on the new acquisition. I hope you get many years of enjoyment with it.

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Thanks! I hope so too :)

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

I use weather stripping on my enclosures with screen lids. I just apply it around the outside of the enclosure on the lip where the screen meets. It takes out any wiggle room and makes escape impossible.

I unfortunately learned that lesson the hard way many years ago.

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Thanks for the advice with the weather stripping! Just to clarify do you put it directly on top of the lip or around the sides of it?

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Originally Posted by aurum

Thanks for the advice with the weather stripping! Just to clarify do you put it directly on top of the lip or around the sides of it?

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Around the sides. If it's a screen lid that sits on top I go around the whole perimeter. If it's one of the slide tops held with pins I just do the front.

The screen lids that sit on top aren't usually a snug fit and they'll wiggle around. This eliminates that wiggle room and closes the tiny gaps.

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

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The screen lids that sit on top aren't usually a snug fit and they'll wiggle around. This eliminates that wiggle room and closes the tiny gaps.

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Yes, I've done that too, as needed, with the other kind of cage tops that aren't in a slide track...fill those gaps! ;)

Snakes are great teachers...:rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Yes, I've done that too, as needed, with the other kind of cage tops that aren't in a slide track...fill those gaps! ;)

Snakes are great teachers...:rolleyes:

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The little tricks of the trade. I wish us "old-school" keepers had these forums when we first started out!!!

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

The little tricks of the trade. I wish us "old-school" keepers had these forums when we first started out!!!

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Oh so do I...! :cool:

I offered her food tonight, a little bit earlier in the week than I was planning but I’m going to be away until Monday and I’m sure she’s hungry.
She was out cruising her tank (she could probably smell the mouse thawing) before I was going to feed her, but taking off the lid scared her a bit and she understandably went straight for one of her hides. I dangled the mouse in front of the hide entrance for about 30 seconds but she made no appearance. I ended up leaving the pinky at the entrance and a few seconds later she came out and swallowed it no problem (what a good snake!). I’m just wondering if she would have taken from tongs if I’d waited longer.

Thats great!!! Kings don't refuse food often...

As for the tongs, that may take a few feedings at least. Even Kings will choose safety over food. At that size, like mentioned before, everything looks like a predator. So they'll be more inclined to hide and wait for the next meal than risk being "picked off" by the larg predator with tongs.

Trust me, you'll see that confidence grow quickly though and your King will display that feeding response in no time.
I swear my boy Django looks like he drank a dozen Red Bulls when he smells his food. He's hilarious!!

Kings can just be drop fed ... left on a saucer or piece of wood ..

Safer as well :)


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Originally Posted by aurum

I offered her food tonight, a little bit earlier in the week than I was planning but I’m going to be away until Monday and I’m sure she’s hungry.
She was out cruising her tank (she could probably smell the mouse thawing) before I was going to feed her, but taking off the lid scared her a bit and she understandably went straight for one of her hides. I dangled the mouse in front of the hide entrance for about 30 seconds but she made no appearance. I ended up leaving the pinky at the entrance and a few seconds later she came out and swallowed it no problem (what a good snake!). I’m just wondering if she would have taken from tongs if I’d waited longer.

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As she gets a little older (ie. bigger, braver & more experience) she'll probably start taking it from your tongs...first from the safety of her hide, & then chasing across the
cage you for it. :D No exact time-line for when that happens...:snake: Yup, "good snake"!

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

Thats great!!! Kings don't refuse food often...

As for the tongs, that may take a few feedings at least. Even Kings will choose safety over food. At that size, like mentioned before, everything looks like a predator. So they'll be more inclined to hide and wait for the next meal than risk being "picked off" by the larg predator with tongs.

Trust me, you'll see that confidence grow quickly though and your King will display that feeding response in no time.
I swear my boy Django looks like he drank a dozen Red Bulls when he smells his food. He's hilarious!!

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That makes sense. There’s only so much bravery you can ask of a little hatchling that’s just moved in.
Still, it’ll be nice to see her gain some confidence with feeding eventually :D

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

As she gets a little older (ie. bigger, braver & more experience) she'll probably start taking it from your tongs...first from the safety of her hide, & then chasing across the
cage you for it. :D No exact time-line for when that happens...:snake: Yup, "good snake"!

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Yes, I think it’ll be really nice to see her getting more comfortable and confident, however long it takes :)

Second feeding was another success, this time she took from the tongs! I think it helped that this time she was already in a hide before the lid came off.

Congratulations on your new critter. I agree that kings are very cool snakes and the speckled ones are one of my favorites. Looking forward to seeing pictures of your girl.

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Originally Posted by aurum

Second feeding was another success, this time she took from the tongs! I think it helped that this time she was already in a hide before the lid came off.

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Awesome!!! She seems to be settling in nicely for you!!

And you're definitely onto something with her being in her hide. She felt more secure, so more confident. You're absolutely right!!!
Keep up the great work!!!!!

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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

Congratulations on your new critter. I agree that kings are very cool snakes and the speckled ones are one of my favorites. Looking forward to seeing pictures of your girl.

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You're gonna get another King one day....I just know it. You have too much love for them to stay away!!! Hahhahahahaa!!!!

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

You're gonna get another King one day....I just know it. You have too much love for them to stay away!!! Hahhahahahaa!!!!

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And if you don't already know this, we are totally-evil "enablers" here! :D

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Originally Posted by aurum

I picked up my first snake yesterday at the Manchester expo. She is a 2019 speckled kingsnake. I was originally planning on getting a Baird's rat snake, but things didn't work out with the breeder, so I ended up going with one of the other species I had wanted and researched. Even though she isn't what I was planning on she's still the best little snake and I'm really happy with her.
She seems to be settling in well. When I first put her in her tank yesterday she spent her first few hours exploring and from what I've seen (and haven't seen) of her today she seems content to spend most of her time in her hides, occasionally poking her head out (so cute!) and moving between them.
It's so nice to finally have my own snake, and every time I catch a glimpse of her in her tank it makes my heart happy :D

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Speckled king snakes are by far my favorite native snake. I’ve caught two in my back yard and stepped on one this year. I just move them to the patch of woods across the street lol you did a fine job picking a first snake in my opinion.


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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

You're gonna get another King one day....I just know it. You have too much love for them to stay away!!! Hahhahahahaa!!!!

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I definitely love them! I often regret rehoming my pair. They were the snakes that got me back into the hobby in 2012. They're really high on my wish list right now too. I've been looking at this empty 40g lately and I know a king would perfectly. I'd never have to upgrade enclosures, and the most they'll ever eat is a jumbo rmouse or a small rat, so they're not at all expensive to keep. They're ferocious little beasties too.

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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

I definitely love them! I often regret rehoming my pair. They were the snakes that got me back into the hobby in 2012. They're really high on my wish list right now too. I've been looking at this empty 40g lately and I know a king would perfectly. I'd never have to upgrade enclosures, and the most they'll ever eat is a jumbo rmouse or a small rat, so they're not at all expensive to keep. They're ferocious little beasties too.

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Hehehehe, i knew it!!!!
...and a case of empty enclosure syndrome!!! Hahaha :rofl:

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Originally Posted by EL-Ziggy

Congratulations on your new critter. I agree that kings are very cool snakes and the speckled ones are one of my favorites. Looking forward to seeing pictures of your girl.

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Thank you! I’m also a big fan of the speckleds, they’re plenty cute as babies and their pattern gets even prettier as adults.
I actually managed to get one picture of her in her tank that doesnt have awful lighting and reflections, so I’ll try and get that posted :)

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Originally Posted by Craiga 01453

Awesome!!! She seems to be settling in nicely for you!!

And you're definitely onto something with her being in her hide. She felt more secure, so more confident. You're absolutely right!!!
Keep up the great work!!!!!

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It was awesome to see her take from the tongs on only the second feeding! I thought she would have taken at least a couple more weeks, but nope! she came flying right out of her hide, very eager to get that mouse haha

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Originally Posted by aurum

It was awesome to see her take from the tongs on only the second feeding! I thought she would have taken at least a couple more weeks, but nope! she came flying right out of her hide, very eager to get that mouse haha

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Colubrids in general, whether kings or rat snakes, are much easier to feed than BPs...:D Plus they don't need such fussy temperatures & humidity to thrive. Great choice!

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Originally Posted by NewmanLovesSnakes

Speckled king snakes are by far my favorite native snake. I’ve caught two in my back yard and stepped on one this year. I just move them to the patch of woods across the street lol you did a fine job picking a first snake in my opinion.


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Speckled kingsnakes aren’t native where I’m from but it must be so cool to just see them out in the wild!
I’m very happy with my choice as well, although ultimately both the speckled king and the Bairds rat would have made great pets :)

https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...1f00e3b5e.jpeg

Finally managed to figure out how to post pictures, although it ended up sideways, don't know how to fix that :confusd:
But anyway, here she is being adorable in one of the only decent pictures I have of her lol

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Colubrids in general, whether kings or rat snakes, are much easier to feed than BPs...:D Plus they don't need such fussy temperatures & humidity to thrive. Great choice!

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The flexibility with temperature has been so much more convenient than if I had gotten a BP. I can't imagine trying to keep an enclosure at ~80* during New England winters :O
It's way easer to maintain about 70* in there and have her be able to handle both that and the higher 70s* that'll come in the summer.

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Originally Posted by aurum

The flexibility with temperature has been so much more convenient than if I had gotten a BP. I can't imagine trying to keep an enclosure at ~80* during New England winters :O
It's way easier to maintain about 70* in there and have her be able to handle both that and the higher 70s* that'll come in the summer.

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I totally agree. I love that my snakes are fine with the ambient temps. I keep my house at, along with UTH for good digestion. (Some have over-head warmth/lights too.)
I also prefer glass tanks, various reasons, including great visibility. And when it comes to winter, I live in a warmer climate than you (much further south) but even here we get some snow & less often, ice storms that can knock out power. It would be a much bigger challenge to deal with snakes that need those higher temps. to remain healthy in such emergency situations. Besides that, I love that colubrids are generally more outgoing & active...I love to watch my snakes & have them watching me back. :snake:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

I totally agree. I love that my snakes are fine with the ambient temps. I keep my house at, along with UTH for good digestion. (Some have over-head warmth/lights too.)
I also prefer glass tanks, various reasons, including great visibility. And when it comes to winter, I live in a warmer climate than you (much further south) but even here we get some snow & less often, ice storms that can knock out power. It would be a much bigger challenge to deal with snakes that need those higher temps. to remain healthy in such emergency situations. Besides that, I love that colubrids are generally more outgoing & active...I love to watch my snakes & have them watching me back. :snake:

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Yeah, even though my snake usually spends most of her time hiding I can still count on seeing her head poked out of her hide for most of that time, and I usually find her exploring her tank at least three or four times a day which I’m not sure I would get with a ball python (although I have heard that they can be pretty active at night)

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Originally Posted by aurum

Speckled kingsnakes aren’t native where I’m from but it must be so cool to just see them out in the wild!
I’m very happy with my choice as well, although ultimately both the speckled king and the Bairds rat would have made great pets :)

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They are the only wild snake I’ve seen in Louisiana since I’ve lived here, I had a lady through one up under my car after just getting it out of the undercarriage of her car when I was stationed at Ft Polk lol that was my first encounter with one. I’m a member of a snake ID page on Facebook and this summer I saw over a dozen ID request through different parts of Louisiana asking to ID speckled king snakes. Before I got my Rosy I was looked up prices and locations to get a speckled king I just could not find one.


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Woke up to a poop in the water bowl, I’m sure it’ll be the first of many :rolleyes:
I am a little concerned with how much she is pooping though. She’s probably pooped 7 times in the two weeks I’ve had her. They all look normal, but I’ve read that hatchlings usually use up most of the pinky and poop pretty infrequently so I don’t know if the amount of waste she’s producing is typical.

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Originally Posted by aurum

Woke up to a poop in the water bowl, I’m sure it’ll be the first of many :rolleyes:
I am a little concerned with how much she is pooping though. She’s probably pooped 7 times in the two weeks I’ve had her. They all look normal, but I’ve read that hatchlings usually use up most of the pinky and poop pretty infrequently so I don’t know if the amount of waste she’s producing is typical.

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Probably normal...colubrids have a faster metabolism than do some other snakes (like BPs). In this regard, they're the total opposite of blood pythons, for example.
If snake-poo was money, they'd be big spenders, not savers...:rofl:

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Originally Posted by Bogertophis

Probably normal...colubrids have a faster metabolism than do some other snakes (like BPs). In this regard, they're the total opposite of blood pythons, for example.
If snake-poo was money, they'd be big spenders, not savers...:rofl:

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LOL yeah she’s definitely a “spender”. She left me another present today, and right after I changed out the paper towel too! It’s good to hear that this doesn’t mean something’s wrong.

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Originally Posted by aurum

LOL yeah she’s definitely a “spender”. She left me another present today, and right after I changed out the paper towel too! It’s good to hear that this doesn’t mean something’s wrong.

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Young snakes eating baby rodents tend to digest them easily, meaning they digest quickly. Not living with your snake but if it really seems excessive defecation, you
might also have her stool checked for parasites. Captive-bred snakes shouldn't have any, but they can get them from unclean prey sources if & when fed live, & if that's
the case, it's easily taken care of & should be, so her growth isn't adversely affected. All may be completely normal, just suggesting another possibility to keep in mind.

I've actually seen a w/c adult snake that was so encumbered with 'worms' that he digested a large adult mouse in roughly one day, because he had so much 'help'. :rolleyes: But hopefully that's not the case here, just sharing where my perspective comes from. It's not likely to be the issue with yours.