snake breed info please.

[joannarea]

Someone tell me about a banded water snake. I read it in someones thread (if I got the name right of the snake), because after I left, I forgot who it was...a daaa moment. Anyhow, I wanted a water snake that ate fish, or the like when I first started seeking out a snake. Can't find one in my area of Florida..all this water!! But then I was introduced to the BP and I am loving mine. I watch that she strikes her food, and sometimes while she consumes it, but seldom the killing/food dying process. It unsettles me alittle. But I still like the idea of a water snake, I have been looking at corn snakes, but have to learn much more about my BP before I add another snake. So I'm collecting info for the future choice.

[Nate]

you're not limited to live feedings. have you given f/t a shot?

[daniel1983]

I would recommend getting garter snake to start off with. They are readily available as captive born, they are quite common so tons of info is around, come in a wide variety of colors, and you can still feed it minnows or guppies if you want

[joannarea]

Not tried frozen, heard it is hard to get them to switch. Live seems right even if I don't like it, kind like keeping it natural for her. I had gardner snakes as a kid. My first love, specially since my brothers went..yeck!!! My grandfather taught me how to use a forked stick to catch and pick one up. To handle and respect then, that they eat bugs and such that do gardens harm. Farmer friend. I took my prize to school, in a jar, for show and tale..we kept our treasures in the teachers dest until show time. My jar was empty (lid came off), and when my teacher found out what I was searching for..she went spastic. New rules, nothing live for show time without clearance first. I found my snake, got to keep it in the jar at my desk..which I thought was totally cool.

[jjspirko]

If you want a water snake one of the Flordia Banded Water snakes is what I recommend. Many water snakes are down right fricking mean. Like mean as hell and will bite like crazy and seem to never settle down. I tried to keep several diamondback water snakes here in Texas and just to do cage cleaning is was well !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As a kiddo in Florida I found adult banded water snakes to be well pretty mean too but if you found a young one (under a foot) they tamed easy and fed on minnows you could net in any ditch until they got larger and you could move them to bigger fish or scented rodents.

There are some captive bred bandeds available on Kingsnake from time to time just watch the "other snakes" category. Many are really against keeping wild caught snakes but there are about 50 billion of those things in Florida. Just right now many are sleeping even in the sunshine state it is still winter time. So if you buy a CB or seek out a young wild caught you are probally going to have to wait till late spring early summer.

Just know if you try to catch an adult you are in for a real mean snake that will most likely NEVER tame down. Also there are a lot of cotton mouths in Florida and they like the same places bandeds hang out so be careful where you step and put your hands. A cottonmouth bite is very serious I can actually think of a few rattlers I would prefer to take a hit from over a big cotton.

Where do you live in Florida? I grew up in Jacksonville and could not pass a creek in the summer with out at least a few water snakes being seen,

[joannarea]

Jack,
Thanks for the great reply. I will take your advice on the water snakes as being mean, I don't want to get bitten. I'd store- buy if I got one. Wild carries risk, especially catching them and coming across a cotton. Then there are the gators. I've always been more adventurious then most females, me and 6 brothers I had to be!
But I don't go for dangerous and those wild snakes sound like it. I live in a small town, known for its water..Zephyrhills. Hear of it? Closest big city is Tampa. Years ago I lived near Daytona. I know of Jacksonville. I definatley will get more snakes after I get to Indiana, but for now I will concentrate on Chocolate, who has decided to stop eating. Anyone raised in a family of eaters, where if you left the table hungry it was your own fault...tends to get worried when someone...something stops eating. I am probably trying to adjust harder then she is.

Maybe you will answer another question? I haven't asked, probably get a few chuckles at my lack of knowledge. How do you feed a BP a frozen rat? Thaw, and throw it in, or wiggle it? Thaw, nuke and wiggle in front of her?

I am really learning from ground zero. I was looking at a corn snake trying to decide. I asked the store manager about the best first snake. She pointed to the BP. I was a little surprised, the size she'd get to, yet being gental. I had heard the stories of the more aggressive pyhons, and mixed them up with her type. So I bought her, and all I was told she needed.(Not even close) I have been learning a lot, and have a long way to go.

Thanks, Marsha(Joannarea)

[jjspirko]

Just thaw it and make sure it is fully thawed before feeding it to your BP. You should use tongs if you are gonna wiggle it but most Balls you can just set it in and in a bit the snake will eat it. No dumb questions here,

[jjspirko]

Oh and buying one of the banded is probally better then a Wild caught but MOST of them are from WC stock anyway.

The whole infection thing is WAY WAY over blown. Keep in mind the people screaming about wild caught are almost always BREEDERS think they may have a conflict of interest?

What you do is isolate any new snake (which you should do anyways even with CB) for about 90 days to observe them for any symptoms and you can treat them if you feel you need to.

If every wild snake was full of death causing parasites well there would not be any snakes right?

I get soooooooo ever loving sick of the elites that get on folks for keeping a wild snake. Sure a threatened species should not be colected and wholesale collection is wrong big time. But the hobbiest that collects a few animals of this species or that is no threat.

Heck things like banded waters, garters, racers etc are about as common as an anole is in Florida. Our cats ate about 20 of those a day in Florida and never dented the population.

The bigger issue is if you are not real experienced in wild herping is the cottonmouths. Honestly using your eyes and being careful is plenty of protection but they are sure out there. If you doubt yourself then indeed go to a breeder or dealor.

Just don't fear WC to the extreme elitists make it out to be. If no one ever collected from the wild there would be NO pet snakes.