what are rat snakes like to keep?

I am incubating these Yellow Rat snake eggs for my friend, and I am starting to catch the bug.. thinking of keeping one when they hatch. Well, what can I expect, rat owners? Are they ok to handle generally; my friends', the parents of these eggs, are super schitzo and not at all handling snakes, and they musk you as soon as look at you. I don't want something like this; if handled from birth, can they be docile and calm?
I know about caging, size, and feeding requirements; they just eat rats, right? I always have an oversupply of rats w/ our breeding projects; that's no problemo.
Any pros or cons would be greatly appreciated! Pics too if ya want!

Rat snakes are Corn snakes and vise-versa.


I've seen some incredibly tame corn snakes. I've also seen some really nice, tame rat snakes (a woman at the reptile show last month had a monster male of about eight feet long---black rat---but he was the nicest snake in the world. Not a twitch when he was picked up). I think they just need to be handled often as babies so they know you hurt them (though, like any other species, there are those random schizos that stay schizo).

Depends on the kind of rat snake, but yellow rats are from the same areas as corns so like the same temps etc. They will get a good 62 inches, 72in at the most. :)

I have had yellow rat snakes before, personally, I did not like them much. They were pretty spastic, they bit, they musked.. not much fun really. 2 of mine I raised from hatchlings, the female I was given, presummed wild caught at the time... she had an attitude from ....... the male, LTC, was the only nice one in the bunch.

There fun!!!!!!!!! They are more inergetic than bals (sometimes) dont go off feed at all (normaly) AND ARE INCREADABLY EASY TO KEEP!!!! I love my corns!! Get a pair for yourself!!! You wont be dissapointed!:D :pinkele:

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Originally Posted by ladywhipple02

Rat snakes are Corn snakes and vise-versa.

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According to this:

http://www.southalley.com/album_rat.html

Rat snakes ARE NOT corn snakes, and corn snakes ARE NOT rat snakes.

"The species name for the corn snake is guttata.

The species name for the Black Rat Snake, Yellow Rat Snake, and Gray Rat Snake is either obsoleta or alleghaniensis. "

:stupidme: My bad. Guess I should've clarified: much of their care and temperaments are the same.

They poop CONSTANTLY!

-adam

I had a Miami Phase corn snake who was crazy, he bit me once and I ended up with 8 tiny teeth in my hand. Needless to say I didnt notice all of them right a way, so over a few days my hand was really itchy and red :( I finally sat down with a pair of tweezers and dug them out.

And when he was sold to me he was 4 foot, and was used as part of an educational program at local schools (so they said) so I figured all the handling meant he was pretty tame, I didnt figure they would take a crazy snake to schools right?

He ended up having to go back to the store because he was just to mean, every time I would open the tank he would lunge. I couldnt do it any more.
I love my b/p's.

I have a corn snake and you can do ANYTHING with him!

I also have a leucistic rat snake who I have to handle with gloves & long seleves because if not, I have teeth in my hand or in my arm. She is a nut case! She does have her non spactic moments, but 95% of the time she is not nice.

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Originally Posted by Adam_Wysocki

They poop CONSTANTLY!

-adam

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Me too...

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Originally Posted by jglass38

Me too...

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That's from all that salad ... Nancy.

-adam

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Originally Posted by Adam_Wysocki

That's from all that salad ... Nancy.

-adam

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lol eat meat

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Originally Posted by Adam_Wysocki

That's from all that salad ... Nancy.

-adam

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Barbara, that is why I eat salad.

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Originally Posted by nathanledet

lol eat meat

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Ummm...Uhh..Oh nevermind

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Originally Posted by nathanledet

lol eat meat

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I did notice that you had soft hands. :P

-adam

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Originally Posted by Adam_Wysocki

I did notice that you had soft hands. :P

-adam

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:bow:

:hijackd: :hijackd: :hijackd:

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Originally Posted by Jeanne

According to this:

http://www.southalley.com/album_rat.html

Rat snakes ARE NOT corn snakes, and corn snakes ARE NOT rat snakes.

"The species name for the corn snake is guttata.

The species name for the Black Rat Snake, Yellow Rat Snake, and Gray Rat Snake is either obsoleta or alleghaniensis. "

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Pathrophis;) Guttatta Gutatta .

i heard (from a professor at my college that deals with snakes) that the new genus was only agreed on by an american group, and not the international group that officially decides on those changes, so.... technically it doesnt really apply untill it is accepted by the international group. Maybe someone else has more details on that?

Just like corn snakes that get a little bit bigger,

I heard the new genus only applied to American rats? Maybe because the international group hasn't agreed/said anything on the matter... least that's the impression I've gotten. I could be wrong.

looks like i have some research to do.

There, that should settle that. :P I just sent an email to the ICZN (the internation committee on zoological nomenclature). They are the group that makes the offical rules about naming. They should be able to clear it up for us, provided they write back. I'll keep everyone updated.

a cornsnake is a ratsnake, but a ratsnake is not necessarily a cornsnake, from what I know.

elaphe guttata guttata = cornsnake
elaphe ________ = ratsnake (elaphe mandarina = mandarin ratsnake, elaphe obsoleta = black or other ratsnake)

ahhh..what do I know.

ps, elaphe gutatta emoryi = emory rat snake (not a corn) :)

actually when using that nomenclature emory's are a subspecies of corn snake, so yes, they are a corn snake. :cool: The divinding point there is that the mississippi and ohio rivers form a natural boundry between the home ranges of the two snakes. I have heard that there are cases of interbreeding in nature though.