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Love vs practicality corn style

Frank update

Yesterday I found Frank in the substrate and put him in his feeder cage. lol that's one of the things that I bought that he probably doesn't need. Anyway his F.C. is much smaller then his home and has only a thin line of substrate in it. I looked him over carefully before placing him in it and all seems well. All my fretting was in vein because he ate like a champ, with me watching, and had no regurgitation problems. In fact he ate two pinks and yes I warmed them in hot water first and made sure there was no frozen parts. All in all it was a good experience for both of us. I left him in the feeder cage for a couple of hours before placing him back in his viv and now I'm satisfied that he's doing well and will leave him alone until next Monday when it's feeding time again. I had my daughter take a picture of him and will post it as soon as she emails it to me. lol I would really like to know what kind of a corn he is and maybe one of you guys can tell me.
 
I feed all of mine in a separate cage, but I don't put any substrate in it. One of the reasons for using a separate cage is so they don't accidently consume any wood products. Our first one, which was bought from a small pet store, was a non-feeder, so glad Frank is eating like a champ :)
 
CONGRATULATIONS! Glad he ate!

However, you should be aware that the most likely time for regurge is between 24 - 48 hours after eating (maybe 72 hours if it is a really big lump). So totally leave him alone for at least 2 or 3 days (unless you see or smell a regurge, of course).

I would have suggested very small meals (no more than 1 pink) the first few meals. That is because the snake is more likely stressed now than it will be after a few meals, and regurge is more likely in a stressed snake. He will probably be fine. I usually like people to be overcautious, at least at first. But if there is a regurge, be sure to avoid feeding again until you come here to read the FAQ on regurges.

I also agree that it is best to avoid bedding in the feeding cage. No point in risking ingested bedding when there is no need for it anyway.

Good luck - hope he continues to do great for you!
 
kathylove said:
I also agree that it is best to avoid bedding in the feeding cage. No point in risking ingested bedding when there is no need for it anyway.
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Ditto to that, nothing like losing/ having to take your beloved snake to the vet for some expensive surgery that could have been prevented. Feed seperate from home and without bedding.
 
Congratulations on the feeding!

We all love seeing pics, so we would love to see pics and help you identify Frank.
After he digests, of course.
 
Introducing Frank

I only have one picture of Frank, the one posted as my avatar, and it was taken by my phone so it's a little blurry. None of the other's were worth placing in here. If anyone can tell what breed of corn he is from this picture I would greatly appreciate knowing.
 
I'm viewing this thread on my phone but congratulations! I think it looks like Frank is a normal corn snake but then again I'm on my cell phone and others have way more experience than I do :)
 
From your avatar photo, he looks like a classic (or normal)! Very cute. For corn snakes, though, they have "morphs". Same species, just different coloring. Frank's morph is classic (I think).
 
Hi guys, It's been two months since bringing Frank home. He eats like a pig and has had two successful sheds. I have pictures and am hoping someone can tell what breed he is and an approximate age. Petco knows nothing about him or the breeder they got him from.

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He is a normal/classic as far as age we wouldn't really tell you other than it does look like he did hatch this year.
 
Yea I figure he's probably about 3 months old since he was so tiny when I got him. He's grown a lot and he's more red now then originally but he's still just a little guy as you can see. He wont be for long though since he eats 2 pinks twice a week. lol
 
I've enjoyed the story, even coming in to it late. :)

Others may disagree, but I'd suggest you cut back on his pinks a wee bit. (Unless the pinkies are super tiny ones.) Growing too fast and gaining fatty deposits is as unhealthy for snakes as for humans, and can shorten his life span! Most of mine that are approximately his age are eating 1 large pink every 5 days.

Hope he continues to do well, and good luck avoiding the addiction! :laugh:
 
Crturley,

I also only feed one item at a time.. it seemed like regurging tended to happen more often when feeding multiple items at a time. Not sure what this guy weighs, but I might look into moving up to a fuzzy if he's holding down 2 pinks with no problems. I have a local shop where I get my frozen and he'll let me go in the back and eyeball my purchases since I'm feeding six snakes different sizes... well, I'm down to just 3 now... weaned mice, adult mice and rat pups.... my two big guys had no bulge and always seem to be hunting on adults mice... and they are getting fed every 5-7 days since its easier on me to feed all six at one time.
 
Really? I should cut back on his meals? He always acts like he's starving but the biggest part of his body is still smaller then the circumfrence of a pencil. I thought about feeding him a fuzzy mouse but they are so much bigger then he is. So far the only time he's regurged is during his first shed when I naively fed him. I guess I'm anxious for him to gain weight since he seems unnaturally tiny. I just want him to be happy and healthy.
 
There is no link between regurging and shedding that I know... I've had them slip their skins right in the feed tank after consuming their meal. Too big, too much or too soon are normal causes for regurging. If you are feeding him 4 pinkies a week, it's way too much IMHO. He's probably getting as much to eat as my 10 yr old guy, who is five and a half foot long.... actually more if those pinkies weigh 10grams each! The rat pups only weigh in about 26-30 grams.
 
He always acts like he's starving
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Corns hunt constantly in the wild, because most of the time they don't find any prey. They don't understand that in captivity, we guarantee their next meal. Don't take hunting behaviour as the snake being hungry.

Its instincts tell it to *ook for food - that doesn't mean it needs food whenever it looks for it.

It's very easy to overfeed a Corn if you react to their hunting behaviour and effectively "feed on demand". Try to harden your heart to those puppydog eyes, begging for another treat!
 
Don't let Frank fool you. :) I have some snakes that would gorge themselves every day if I let them. It's good that he has an appetite, but just because he wants it, doesn't mean it's good for him.

All recommendations aside, a good guide is how fast he's growing. If he's shedding more often than a month to a month-and-a-half apart, then he's growing too fast. If he goes nearly two months between sheds, then feed away.

If he's as skinny as you say, then I would stay away from fuzzies for a while. And as far as feeding during shedding, it depends a lot on the snake and the temperatures. Hatchlings tend to feel insecure enough that--combined with the blue phase sluggishness--they're often reluctant to seek out the warm places to help with digestion. Not to mention they don't move much, and that also seems to slow the digestion process.

That said, I fed several of mine during sheds for over a year with no problems, before being advised not to. Now I try to avoid it, not because I've ever really had a problem with it, just because it seems better to give them time to clean out their systems and devote bodily energy toward the shedding process.
 
crturley said:
That said, I fed several of mine during sheds for over a year with no problems, before being advised not to. Now I try to avoid it, not because I've ever really had a problem with it, just because it seems better to give them time to clean out their systems and devote bodily energy toward the shedding process.
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Kieran is 10 yrs old now and I got him when he was about 2 months old.... Bellona is my youngest at about a year or maybe two... time flies by :) and I feed on schedule. Nicevenn is the only one that may (or maynot) refuse when blue.

Michael is the only one that I have trouble with regurging still even though he's older, for some reason, he's very sensitive to size.
 
I had many snakes over the years that would happily eat when blue, and suffer no problems. But I did have a few that had a tendency towards regurging when fed during the shed cycle. So I just started offering all of them smaller food during shedding. You may well find that a particular animal likes to eat when blue and never regurges. I just always advocate being conservative when feeding at that time until you know for sure.
 
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