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Can anyone tell the sex of this corn by this tail pic?

Lycari said:
I know that both of the reptile vets I see regularly (including board-certified reptile specialist Dr. Adolf Maas DVM, DABVP; one of only twelve such certified specialists worldwide) strongly discourage popping anything older than one month. Dr. Maas in particular told me about a couple of cases he's seen with male snakes that were seriously injured by popping. Maybe someone with sufficient experience could do it and the vets are referring to recommendations for inexperienced owners; I wouldn't know for sure because I haven't asked them. Either way, I'm only relaying their recommendations because I want to help ensure that he stays happy and healthy, that's all. :)

For anyone who cares to check (or needs to find a reptile vet in the area), the second reptile vet I mentioned is Dr. Elizabeth Kamaka, DVM. She was my teacher for exotic animals during my training as a vet tech, and I consider her a personal friend. I take my snakes to see Dr. Maas, because his practice is specially set up for routine, preventative, and emergency and long-term care for exotic animals of all kinds and because his practice is open every day while Dr. Kamaka's practice is only open three days a week. Both are excellent veterinarians who know what they're doing with these animals, are affordable, and have great personalities. The other vets working for Dr. Maas are just as good, as well.

Dr. Maas runs the Center for Bird and Exotic Animal Medicine in Bothell, WA
Dr. Kamaka runs Kamaka Exotic Animal Veterinary Services in Mountlake Terrace, WA

I understand that ACCES in Seattle also sees exotics, but they're more of a "companion animal" specialty center and I honestly trust Dr Maas more.
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While I understand vets would be professional enough to pop a snake, where I live it costs over $100 for just an appointment and nobody here specializes in exotics. I have worked alongside herpetologists and biology professors who said that they never use probes and always pop. But as you said, it's easier with experience.

OP, how old and large is your snake? You could buy a small probe set for like $15-20 and use it if you're uncomfortable popping.
 
Forgot to mention that yes, popping runs the small risk of a hemipenal prolapse in males.

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TyeW said:
While I understand vets would be professional enough to pop a snake, where I live it costs over $100 for just an appointment and nobody here specializes in exotics. I have worked alongside herpetologists and biology professors who said that they never use probes and always pop. But as you said, it's easier with experience.

OP, how old and large is your snake? You could buy a small probe set for like $15-20 and use it if you're uncomfortable popping.
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We got the snake for Christmas and it was very small at the time of purchase...about the size of a pencil. He or she is growing nicely and is probably around 20" or so when all stretched out now. I am absolutely not going to try the popping or probe methods as I really don't want to take the chance of injury. I was just hoping you guys who have much more knowledge than I do could tell from pics. If not, then we'll keep calling it a she! We got it at Petco (I know, I know...) but the guy helping us seemed very knowledgeable and he told us male at first, then changed to female upon closer inspection, but he wasn't positive. It's a wonderful snake with a great disposition. My daughter adores it and we couldn't be happier. My daughter was just curious about the sex of it. If we can't determine it won't be the end of the world.
 
Awesome, I think it's much better to err on the side of caution and not sex the snake, if there is no reason too.

The only thing to be aware of down the road is sometimes females will lay infertile eggs, but you can cross that bridge later if it ever happens.

Brownie is a nice gender neutral name, so I think the snake will be okay no matter what the sex is. ;)
 
Also, sexing by tail shape becomes a whole lot easier when the snake is two years old or so.
 
Are there any breeders near you? Not just Cornsnakes, but maybe Carpet Python or Ball Python breeders that can show you how to probe?
A friend of mine showed me how to do it, and it is really easy.
One problem with popping older snakes, is they have better muscle control and can resist it, which is likely where some of the injuries come from, if the person tries to force it.
With light colored snakes like Amels and Snows, you can often hold the tail up to a light and see the hemipenes.
Sorry if some of this is mentioned in other posts, I haven't read through them.
 
Thanks again for the info guys! Can anyone tell me what the coloring or markings on the snake are called? I hear all these descriptions like Amels etc. I have no idea what this one is classified as.
 
He looks like an anery to me, anerythristic- no red. His pattern is wild-type, or saddles, and the markings on his belly are checkers.
 
You _can_ palpate the hemipenes in a larger cornsnake, if you have the touch for it. It's best to practice on known snakes, first.
 
Looks like a female. There's the cloacal opening and then it's just thing all the way down. If it was a bit thicker after the cloacal opening, then it would be a male.

2.0 dogs, 4.9 cats, 1.0 turtle, 1.0 crested gecko, 2 ponds, & 6 aquariums
 
It's right in that grey area, really. XD

I had always guessed Saga was female by her tail (it was only slightly sharper a taper than Brownie's), plus she popped female I believe three times when she was a hatchling (MysticExotics was her breeder and did the popping), but when I took her to see Dr Maas the first time, he thought her tail looked male and was a little surprised when she probed female. XD That grey area makes it pretty difficult sometimes.
 
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