Chapter ONE: SELECTING YOUR CORN SNAKE
With proper education, even young children can safely handle corn snakes. Photo by Ryan Moss.
Like all pets, your corn snake will depend on you for its very health and welfare for many years. If you are not prepared to spend the appropriate money and time to keep it healthy, admire corns from afar. Just visit your friends’ snakes or enjoy the collections at your local pet stores or zoos.
Note: Never give any pet to someone as a gift unless that person is fully aware of the maintenance requirements and is prepared to accept the responsibility. “Disposable Pet” mentality is a growing problem in the pet industry today. Some people acquire pets just for the fun of having them and when finances or time are not sufficient to properly care for that pet, they abuse or neglect it. This often results in the death of the animal.
The first thing you should do before acquiring any pet is thoroughly research all media resources available to you. Besides books and testimonies from friends and acquaintances, the Internet is a relative wealth of information. Just remember that not everything you read on the Internet is accurate. Research many sources and “blend” the information gathered before making decisions.
Below is a checklist you should use BEFORE acquiring your new corn snake.
* Thoroughly research care requirements
* Talk to corn snake owners for suggestions and care tips
* Acquire a secure cage and accessories
* Buy a supply of appropriately sized rodents
* Prepare drinking water (city tap water is not recommended)
* Test heating devices and thermometers
* Test cage closing/locking devices to reduce chances of escape
Care and caging requirements are detailed in the HOUSING and FEEDING AND WATERING chapters.
Captive-Bred vs. Wild-Caught
Most corn snakes in the pet trade today are produced in captivity, but since many states still allow harvesting of this species, it is not uncommon to see wild-caught specimens. In some states within their range, it’s entirely legal to catch and possess corns. In other states, it’s not only illegal to collect them from the wild, but it is breaking the law to possess one without a special permit. If you’re considering capturing a corn snake from the wild, first check state and local regulations that may apply. Likewise, if you’re considering purchasing and keeping any corn, check to be certain it’s allowed where you live and if permits are required.
Captive-bred corn snakes are the smart choice for you and for the environment. Acquiring a corn that was hatched in captivity is more than just saving a wild one from being captured. The collecting of wild corns sometimes results in damage to their natural habitats. Some field collectors don’t leave trees and landscapes in the same condition in which they found them. This can have a negative impact on all life forms within those ecosystems.
Generally speaking, corns produced in captivity are free of diseases and parasites. Most breeders of corns are very responsible about reducing or eliminating internal and external parasites. It’s not only good for the health of the animals, but also good for the breeders’ reputations.
Captive-hatched corn snakes are available in a wide range of colors and patterns.
Most wild-caught corns have parasites that could cause health problems. Of course, transference of disease and parasites to your other pets from cross handling is always a possibility. Therefore, if you do get a wild-caught corn, it’s important to have it checked for parasites so you can eliminate them as quickly as possible.
Handling Corn Snakes
In an effort to lay out this book in the sequence of acquisition, it may seem out of place to discuss handling corn snakes here, but if you’re acquiring your snake in person and are able to handle it first, here are some recommendations you may find helpful.
For reasons of sanitation, it is always recommended that you not only wash your hands and forearms after holding any animal, but you should also wash before handling snakes. This reduces the chances of transmitting germs from one snake to another and corns may become confused about alien smells that might be on your skin from handling objects or other animals. You should also refrain from eating food while handling snakes.
Snakes are no different from any other pets in terms of being able to transmit germs to humans. Like most animals, reptiles are potential carriers of bacteria and other pathogens (causative agents of disease) that can be harmful to us. Most susceptible to these are people with inferior immune systems. Children under five years of age or any person that is ill or suffers from immune-suppression should avoid handling any reptile. The most infamous bacterium associated with reptiles is Salmonella. These are more commonly associated with raw or undercooked foods such as meats and eggs, but can be contracted from infected reptiles as well. Do not allow any reptile to come in contact with your mouth and don’t allow young children to handle corns unsupervised. Of course, you cannot contract anything from an uninfected source. To reduce the chance of such pathogens, keep the cage clean and practice sensible hygiene for you and your pets.
Biting
Like any animal, corn snakes are capable of biting. They have the best reputation among snakes for being tame, but they do have teeth and when provoked or stressed, they can bite. Most corns in the pet trade today have been selectively bred to be docile. On rare occasions, a corn snake hatches that just seems to want to bite everything that moves. When it’s not possible to personally handle a corn prior to purchase, ask the seller if it has shown a propensity for biting.
After shipping or traveling home from a pet store or reptile show, corn snakes can be confused and stressed. Ensure that temperatures are correct and that you have been handling your new pet with clean hands. Sometimes it’s a matter of the snake not yet being accustomed to the smell of your skin. If you suspect this to be the case, try putting an article of your clothing in the cage with the snake for several days. A shirt or glove you’ve been wearing should have enough of your scent on it to help your new corn become familiar with you.
Another common reason for corns biting humans is from enticement or confusion about smells. Sometimes feeding reactions cause them to non-maliciously “bite the hand that feeds them”. After thoroughly washing with soap and water, rinse off all soap residues and dry your hands and forearms prior to handling your pet. Ordinarily the smell of human skin will not provoke aggression or biting, but corns will sometimes react aggressively to seemingly benign odors on your skin. That sandwich you just ate, the tire you just changed, or even the cat you just petted. Avoid handling any other animals prior to picking up your corn as this can elicit aggression. A corn’s most trusted sense is that of smell. If your hand smells like prey or predator, you could be bitten.
If you are bitten by a corn snake, don’t panic. I’ve never heard of the bite from a corn snake requiring medical attention beyond routine cleansing and covering with an adhesive bandage. With six rows of tiny teeth, the chance of the bite from a corn snake penetrating your skin and causing bleeding is good. Most of the damage from such bites is the result of your instant reaction to pull away from the snake. When you pull back quickly, some of the teeth can cut and/or break off in your skin. Being essentially colorless, tooth parts that embed in your skin are sometimes initially difficult to find and remove. The bite site around a tooth in your skin will fester after a few days, making the tooth fragment easier to locate and extract. In the rare occasion in which the snake will not release its bite grip, you have a few options. Hold very still and it should realize you are far too large to consume and consequently relax its mouth. If that doesn’t work, go directly to the sink and run cold water on the head of the snake. This usually causes them to open their mouth quickly. If not, you can slowly add warmer water to the situation. Rarely should you need to resort to hot water and obviously this would not be safe for your snake. The teeth are curved inward so as to embed deeper when their prey attempts to free itself from the snake’s grip. Hence, pulling away from the snake can break off teeth and cause more damage to you and to your corn.
It is not wise to handle a corn snake that is about to shed. The shedding process takes approximately 10 days from when you first notice an overall opaque or milky look to when it sheds the old skin. More on this subject is detailed in the SHEDDING chapter.
When reaching to pick up a corn, approach it without delay. Sometimes, if you’re slow to pick up a corn or make hesitating gestures in the process, it might distrust your intentions. Not being social animals, all snakes are naturally suspicious when in close proximity to any animal larger than themselves. Pick up your corn mid-body without hesitation. Do not attempt to grab it by the neck or tail as these are the most sensitive parts of a snake. Snakes instinctively know these are the two most likely targets of attack by predators. The best way to pick up the snake is to put your fingers under it and lift it out of the cage. Letting its body rest on your hand instead of constraining it...
