Looking to get a colubrid to keep but don’t know which one is best for me

[Cheesenugget]

I have a Cali king. While kings have a reputation of being too food aggressive, mine is not. Mine loves food but she had never mistaken my hand as food, even during feeding day if I have to pick her up to clean her age. She is also somewhat active, sleeping or hanging out outside of her hides or if she is not in the mood, she will stay in her hot spot and take a nap. Every time I pass by her cage, she would rear her little head up, flicks her tongue to say, "Food?" So depending on the age, personality, socialization and just being an exception to the rule, you can find a calm kingsnake that won't eat everything on sight. I would skip the baby stage and check out the adults, especially those who were pets that were socialized and they were surrendered. That is how I got mine.

My other recommendation to you are: woma python and Children's python. Husbandry are similar and almost as easy as a king or corn. Underrated too.

The woma is similar to the king in reputation: too food aggressive. Again, like my king, while my woma loves his food, he had yet to mistake my hand as food. The other day, I placed a plate of his food in his cage (That is how easy it is to feed them: I don't bother dangling his prey. I feed 4 smaller prey items (rats and mice) per meal for him and he eats them one by one without my help). He got too excited and moved to the opposite side of the tank. I picked him up and guide him back to his plate. Not once did he flick his tongue at my hand or show any sign of interest in eating my hand or fingers. I think this has much to do with the way he was bred as well by Chun and his team at Dynasty Reptiles. They had been breeding womas for awhile and mine is so calm and relaxed since I had him.

Children python may need a little more caution. Eats very well, small in size so less space needed but they do like to climb. Mine is in a 29g tall. As babies they are nippy as heck. I highly doubt you would find a calm baby. Mine was relentless and nipped me at every chance he got. Once they calm down, most people say they are fine which is mostly true for mine for the most part. Mine is still a bit psychotic lol. Anyways, if you know how to read snake behavior, don't mind the introductory nipping, and a small sized snaje, they are great to watch.

[Craiga 01453]

I admit I'm not very versed in king localities like what county or road they are from. I just know mine are cal kings. Once mine got bigger and more confident right around the 1yo age, they came out a lot more and stopped with the musking. But to be fair I've also had a couple (maybe two or three) of baby corns be similarly shy.

Oh ok. Yeah, I have to agree that juveniles are more like what you described. For some reason I had my mind more on adults. They definitely gain confidence as they get some size on them.

...and I honestly don't even know if "locality" is the right word, hahaha. I was just thinking about Cals, Mexicans, Easterns, etc...etc... all being slightly different.

Thanks for clearing that up for me.

[Craiga 01453]

I have a Cali king. While kings have a reputation of being too food aggressive, mine is not. Mine loves food but she had never mistaken my hand as food, even during feeding day if I have to pick her up to clean her age. She is also somewhat active, sleeping or hanging out outside of her hides or if she is not in the mood, she will stay in her hot spot and take a nap. Every time I pass by her cage, she would rear her little head up, flicks her tongue to say, "Food?" So depending on the age, personality, socialization and just being an exception to the rule, you can find a calm kingsnake that won't eat everything on sight. I would skip the baby stage and check out the adults, especially those who were pets that were socialized and they were surrendered. That is how I got mine.
.

My boy is the epitome of food aggressive. He cruises his enclosure like he just ate a handful of atterol as soon as he smells food.
However, with no aroma of dinner present he's an absolute sweetheart.

My others in the past were very similar to my current boy.

[Bogertophis]

Some of my afterthoughts:
No matter what kind of snake you choose, we can only tell you what is typical or what we've seen...snakes don't read any manuals, & often have their own personality-
if you are patient & have empathy, you'll get the best results no matter what is "typical".

King & milk snakes have comparatively small mouths (smaller gape), so their best defense as hatchlings is to squirt you with feces & musk when handled so you aren't
tempted to eat them! It must work, as I've never eaten any of the hatchlings I bred & raised but let me tell you, sexing them gets messy, lol. Anyway, they
calm down with growth & patient handling, & tend to be strong feeders. Some are just more food-frenzied than others as adults.

Children's python: I have had mine for about 10 years now & have a different experience than Cheesenugget. Mine was a yearling when I got her from a guy who
was fed up with her not wanting to eat live pinkies -he actually planned to "stick her in the freezer" - & after I read up a little, this is because they start on tiny
lizards in the wild, then get braver as they grow & take on small rodents in time. I had NO trouble feeding mine...she ate the same day she got here, 3 f/t pinkies!
She has nipped my hand by mistake only once in 10 years, so I'd say that's pretty good. These stay a nice pet size (I use a 29 gal. tank also), she climbs & basks-
& she's always so watchful that it's hard to sneak up on her cage without her knowing, which is really cute. Being "nosy" is what I love about rat snakes too. She
has successfully done "meet & greets" with strangers too, most that have never handled any snakes, & she never tried to bite anyone. These do tend to grip you
tightly (assuming mine is typical?), they need a warmer cage than most colubrids, & a humid hide to facilitate shedding. The ONLY time mine has ever turned down
food is when she's in shed...otherwise she GRABS the f/t small mice from my tongs. Fun pets, IMO, & another good choice to think about. Oh yes, and she has lots
of iridescence, especially after her sheds. Mine is a granite phase, also....not that it matters to me.

[Bogertophis]

BTW, you did say you want a "colubrid", & technically that leaves out Children's pythons.

I only brought it up since it already had been, & my experience differs some...they're a good pet choice as far as I can see, but they're NOT a "colubrid".

The difference in personality might be due to inbreeding...I've seen that in other animals too (specifically, with inbred hamsters that literally attacked people
relentlessly like a wild animal would to defend themselves & they could not be tamed as pets). Or maybe the one I have is the outlier...overly mellow? I only
have this one to base my opinion on. She has always fed enthusiastically for me, & just prefers dead prey only. I do NOT heat up her f/t either, & she doesn't
hide or care what time I feed her...she rushes up to her basking branch when I'm handing out "dinner" & it's all I can do to open the cage top...she's fun to feed.

[BPGator]

Children's python: I have had mine for about 10 years now & have a different experience than Cheesenugget. Mine was a yearling when I got her from a guy who
was fed up with her not wanting to eat live pinkies -he actually planned to "stick her in the freezer" - & after I read up a little, this is because they start on tiny
lizards in the wild, then get braver as they grow & take on small rodents in time. I had NO trouble feeding mine...she ate the same day she got here, 3 f/t pinkies!
She has nipped my hand by mistake only once in 10 years, so I'd say that's pretty good. These stay a nice pet size (I use a 29 gal. tank also), she climbs & basks-
& she's always so watchful that it's hard to sneak up on her cage without her knowing, which is really cute. Being "nosy" is what I love about rat snakes too. She
has successfully done "meet & greets" with strangers too, most that have never handled any snakes, & she never tried to bite anyone. These do tend to grip you
tightly (assuming mine is typical?), they need a warmer cage than most colubrids, & a humid hide to facilitate shedding. The ONLY time mine has ever turned down
food is when she's in shed...otherwise she GRABS the f/t small mice from my tongs. Fun pets, IMO, & another good choice to think about. Oh yes, and she has lots
of iridescence, especially after her sheds. Mine is a granite phase, also....not that it matters to me.

I’m with you on the Children’s. Mine is about 3 years old and is one of my favorite based on personality. Very inquisitive and great climber. He has never attempted to bite me. I’d give him a 6.5/10 for feeding response.

I bought him at a local show. Breeder had several from the same litter. I recall one of his sisters was nuts and snapped at everything.




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[Bogertophis]

I’m with you on the Children’s. Mine is about 3 years old and is one of my favorite based on personality. Very inquisitive and great climber. He has never attempted to bite me. I’d give him a 6.5/10 for feeding response.

I bought him at a local show. Breeder had several from the same litter. I recall one of his sisters was nuts and snapped at everything.




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Interesting to compare notes on these. Of course, getting snakes at a show, it's understandable some snakes get freaked out...it's a pretty scary "test" for them,
but given the choice I'd have taken the calm one too.

I bought (rescued) mine sight unseen from a guy halfway across the state, in a really strange way: since he was going to get rid of her anyway I made him an offer-
I had no way to assess her health & told him once I did & she was ok, I'd send him money for her, & I pre-paid the shipping & sent him what I wanted her shipped in,
along with instructions on what to do. He came thru & so did I...I thought it was hilarious that for a snake he had trouble feeding, she ate the very day she arrived
for me, 3 f/t pinkies...but he had only wanted live-feeding snakes. She's been a perfect pet, IMO, but I guess you can't please everyone?

[dakski]

First, I, personally, am offended by the angry emoji!

My vote is for a corn snake. I have limited experience with kings and milks, but adore corn snakes and had 4 throughout my life (including the two I have now).

Easy to keep, active both in tank and being handled, can get any color or pattern you can think of, with or without scales, cheap to feed, house, etc. and very hardy.

I have kept reptiles for a long time and currently have two corn snakes, each with distinct personalities as well. Figment is my adult Hypo-Lavender male and is extremely active when out. He's docile as can be but darts all over, want to explore, and does not sit still. Solana, my 1 year old scaleless corn, will just curl up in my hand and chill.

I got both under 5 months old and under 10G. Both were flighty for a few days and Solana even tail rattled and fake struck (mouth closed) at me a couple of times and then during her first cloudy eye/pre shed moment with us. By the time both were 12G (still completely and utterly unable to cause any harm) they were docile as can be. I would happily let anyone hold Figment or Solana.

Solana has never missed a meal and Figment missed one while in shed in 6 years. They could care less about F/T, warmed, etc. Defrosted and they are good to go. They are aggressive feeders, but unlike my Boas, neither corn needs to be hook trained, strikes the doors, etc. Aside from the fact they couldn't do any real damage, even as adults, they are very good at making sure it's a mouse before striking. Once they know though, look out!

My advice, if you go corn, is a 40G breeder for an adult, or similar PVC enclosure, but the latter is not necessary (although they are escape artists and are small and agile compared to a BP), a 83-84F hot spot, ambient at 78-80F, and a cool spot that can be room temp.

Both my corns are in Boaphile tanks, because all my tanks are, and they are stacked, but it's overkill for a corn. I keep hot spot about 84F for both with ambient about 78-80F and cool side about 76F, with a nice gradient. Solana is in a 3X2' footprint and Figment is in a 4X2' footprint (big, but he's about 5ft and 635G). Humidity is not an issue unless really dry or really humid.

I feed Solana an appropriate size mouse weekly and Figment an appropriate sized mouse every 2 weeks (males will get heavy easier than females). I did not put Figment on a 2 week diet until he was full grown. I never feed jumbo mice, and Figment, at 635G maintains his weight with an adult mouse (20-25G) every 2 weeks. If he drops below 635G, his stable weight, I offer a mouse 2 weeks in a row, and that gets him back on track. That happens 2-4 times a year.

Links to my two corns:

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...ow-Motley-Corn

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...nder-Corn-Baby

[Zincubus]

I’ve had a few of just about everything going but I’d always recommend Corn snakes to anyone and everyone !!

The only possible negative I can see is that they’re maybe regarded as a ‘starter’ snake..

How’s that a negative though ?


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[John1982]

I work with florida kings and corns. You really can't go wrong with either. Kings, on average, are more prone to becoming gnawers. If you handle with any type of regularity this is seldom an issue. It's more common in larger collections, where animals are seldom interacted with besides feeding and maintenance. If you plan on handling a fair bit, I'd say kings are on par with corns as the all around perfect pet colubrid. The less you handle, the more corns pull ahead in the race and this is why I almost always suggest them for a pet snake. If the keeper has a lapse in interest, as long as they're still tending to the animal, they can come back later and usually still encounter a relaxed handling critter.

I'd be remiss if I didn't give a shout out to black pines(P. m. lodingi). I'll start by saying I only have personal experience with the 2 animals I've raised up from hatchling status over the last 4 years. These are far and away the calmest, gentlest critters under this roof. The male from day 1, the female took about a year to mellow but this is with my minimalistic handling approach. Pituophis make up the vast majority of my collection(with an emphasis on bulls, P. c. sayi) and the genus in general is 90% bluff with actual bites being rare in my experience. I could probably count on 1 hand the number of times I've lost blood to an adult Pit, not including me getting distracted during feeding, haha. The black pines are on a level of their own, even within this generally benign(if overly exagerrative) group of snakes. When a visitor wants to handle a snake, I always give them one of the black pines. Sure they are a bit on the larger side, and this can make them more intimidating to the uninitiated, but their calm demeanor more than balances this out. They're also pretty much bullet proof when it comes to husbandry.