Fell in love!!

[OhClueless1]

I have been toying with the idea of getting a corn snake for a while. Initially when I was trying to deciding what snake to get my daughter for her birthday, it had been a toss up between a ball and a corn. At the time I hadn't found any baby corns with the colorations that I like, only the oranges and reds. I had been looking for a lavender but hadn't seen any in ages. I found Sydney (bp) first and he absolutely beautiful and such a snake that I can't regret it.

Today I found the most adorable lil itty bitty snow corn. It must be a new baby or something because in all my wanderings and window shoppings I have never seen one so small. Probably thinner than a pencil this one is but OMG so adorable. I fell in love instantly. So now I am thinking that I would really like to get it. Its not the purply color I was looking for originally but this is one beautiful snake. I have a set up already that I just need to get a thermometer and UTH for. So whatcha think?? Everything I have read says they are great eaters and pretty docile snakes.

Oh.. OMT... It was a mom and pop place where I was shopping at and had come highly recommended to me from a very good friend of mine. They sell fish and herps and some spiders and what not. OMG I have never seen such pristine fish tanks in any store. Made me seriously want to consider setting up another SW tank. They had this green tree boa that was to die for along with a couple beautiful carpet pythons. <sigh>

[Mindibun]

If you're really that dead-set on the snake I would say to at least get the UTH first. Maybe see if they'll let you put a deposit on the snake to hold it or something until you finish getting ready. Then, consider the fact that if it's so small it might not be an established eater yet. And since it's at a petstore, momandpop or no, they *might* not be entirely truthful about it. (I dont know the store) You also don't know anything about the parentage. Honestly, if you want snow corns, there are tons of breeders out there who have slightly older, already established, healthy snakes.

Plus, the younger they are, the more likely they are to wiggle away, escape, or nip out of fear. And if it's a gift for your daughter then I would say nippy and wiggly is probably bad. I don't know how old she is though.

I'm by no means a corn expert, so maybe someone else with more experience will come along and put in their two cents. Personally, I think that you should wait and get an older animal from a breeder, and already have your tank *completely* set up before it arrives.

[OhClueless1]

It would be for myself, as much as she likes it, I think it will be too small and "wiggly" as you put it. Who knows though she surprises me all of the time. I figured the BP would end up "mine" in a month after she lost interest but she still takes Syd out everyday and she helps feed him and asks lot of questions. She is crazy about animals in general but I think most 10 year olds probably are.

I will talk to the guy on Tuesday when I go pick up my mice and crickets for the next couple weeks and see if I can put a deposit down and see how things develop. I may be paranoid but I don't shop online. So if I can't find it around the city somewhere I don't need it.

[Mindibun]

That's too bad that you don't shop online. Most breeders use paypal if that makes a difference. Or you can come up with other arrangements over the phone, so either way it's not really the same as online shopping.

Either way, let me know how it goes. ^_^

[ladywhipple02]

I guess I would add a couple cautions: Make sure you have a provider of the littlest pink mice. That's the only thing a corn that size is going to be able to eat. And, yes, you might have trouble getting it to eat, but persistance pays off.

Next, make sure you have a cage that's escape-proof! These little guys can slip out of the smallest, tiniest little cracks! A cage with a lift off top probably isn't the best. If you use tubs, you might want to get some clips to hold the cage closed. Seriously, I've lost a baby milk snake... I still have no idea how he got out of that cage!

Other than that, you should definitely ask the shop keepers about his past, his parents, where he comes from, how he's feeding, what he's eating, etc. If they seem to be avoiding answers or some of the things they're telling you don't mesh, I'd walk away. BUT, if everything they're saying matches the caresheets you find online, and their set-ups are as prestine as you say, I say... GO FOR IT!

We always say around here that you should wait until you find a snake that catches your heart... if this little guy does and you think you can make it work, well, why not?

[SoundUnsleep]

I had similar worries about the feeding issue about three weeks ago: I picked up a tiny little candy cane that's about the size of a pen, but not as thick around. She isn't nippy at all, is very healthy and is very docile (not jumpy). She takes rat tails right now and should be ready for mouse pinkies in another two or three weeks.
As to being wiggly: I think it's a matter of how much you handle the baby corns. They will become very used to being handled and calm down once they know that they are safe with you.

[clipclopclip]

Corns are very easy to care for. They are also forgiving of small mistakes in husbandry. I have two and both are voracious eaters and pretty tame.. they tend to be a little nippy when younger, but grow out of it in time. Even when they do bite it is hardly noticeable...doesn't really hurt. They do calm down quite a bit with handling.

They are a very good snake choice..good luck!

[Patrick Long]

when small....they poop on you....A LOT!

[OhClueless1]

I decided not to get the corn. When I went back to the shop it just seemed too small. Maybe some other time.