Q:  I was thinking about getting a snake.
Are there any snakes that stay small, are
easily handled and eat insects their entire
life?

A:  There may be some snakes (not many) that fit that description, but most snakes commonly kept as pets eat rodents. If you insist on an insect-eater, that would severely limit your choices.

I suspect you aren't comfortable with feeding rodents to a snake and that's why you'd rather have a snake that eats insects. I can understand where you're coming from, but what you may not realize is that you can feed frozen/thawed rodents to a snake, and as a result you never have to see a rodent die. They are quickly and humanely sacrificed by someone else, and you buy them already frozen in a zip-lock bag. Just put the zip-lock inside a brown, paper bag if you care about what other people may think, and nobody will even know they are there. And if the idea of dead rodents in the freezer freaks you out initially, just remember, if you're like most people, you already have meat in your freezer from dead chickens, cows, pigs, etc.

However, if you continue to feel strongly about this issue, you can always check out the garter/ribbon snakes, green snakes, brown snakes, red-bellied snakes, etc. Many of these will eat insects, earthworms, or goldfish. Unfortunately, you may not be able to get a nice, healthy captive-bred baby of many of these species, and a reliable food source will be more difficult to locate than a source for rodents would be.

You should choose a captive-bred baby or juvenile over a wild-caught animal, if possible, because you don't know what health problems a snake from the wild may have and some won't do well in a cage. However, I have kept several of these non-rodent-eating species (wild caught) through the years and most did well in my care. If you do your research, you should be able to find a snake you'll be happy with.

I hope you won't let anything stand in the way of experiencing the great joy of snake keeping!

Q:  Could going from the 84 degree snake room
(with a common boa) to the rest of the house,
which is about 66 to 68, during handling for
an hour or less cause any type of problem respiratory
or otherwise? It is common sense that they shouldn't
be subjected to large temp changes but would this be
considered one? It may seem like a strange question but
I will do anything possible to keep them healthy.

A:  I would consider that to be a significant temperature change. Whether or not it will adversely affect your snake depends on many factors; including the size of the snake, if you're holding it or putting it on the floor (where temps. would be lower), its overall health status, etc. Occasional handling for short periods of time in the conditions you state should not be a problem for a healthy boa, but you should always have your eyes open for signs of illness when you interact with your snake(s).

Q:  Do boas "yawn"....my 7 ft boa
does this yawning behavior every once in awhile
...it will open its mouth to extent that his
mouth is open in a T shape position...what does
this mean?

A:  It's normal for boas to yawn from time to time. Of course, they do it to realign their jaws after consuming a meal, and they may do it at other times, too. Just observe closely and make sure that your snake doesn't rest with its mouth constantly open, and be sure that you don't see any excess mucus bubbling out around its lips or from the nostrils. That would indicate a health problem.

Q:  My understanding about boas and pythons in
general is that they have spurs--Males typically
having larger ones than females. My Brazilian
Rainbow Boa is supposedly a male and has no spurs
at all.

A:  It's true that both sexes have spurs, but a female's may not be very visible. The male's spurs are usually larger, and in my experience with a small number of BRB males, the spurs have been visible even on very young animals. I mention it because if breeding is your intention, you may want to confirm your animal's sex before purchasing a mate. The "male" that I bought from a very well-known breeder gave birth three years later! Luckily I had determined the correct sex of that animal and obtained a mate (of the proper sex) from another breeder.

Q:  I just noticed my male surinam basking under
the ceramic heater. He has his head raised slightly
and is waggling his tail like a lure. I know that
other species of snake do this but never heard of
boas.

A:  Yes, it does sound like your snake was caudal luring. That behavior has been previously reported for boa constrictors. It is not unusual for them to do this, but it is probably not as well known as it is in some other species, i.e. Green Tree Pythons (and many others).

Q:  Just curious Barry, what is caudal luring and
what causes a snake to do this?

A:  "Caudal" refers to the snake's tail, and "luring" (derivative of "lure") is like what someone does when they go fishing, using a lure on the end of a line to attract fish. Some snakes wiggle their tails to attract prey close enough for capture, and that's caudal luring. In fact, numerous species of snakes are born with bright-colored tail tips (i.e. yellow tail tip on an otherwise brownish snake), so the snake can lie camouflaged in leaves, for instance, and the tip of the tail would be the only part of the predator that's visible. However, even snakes that don't possess a light colored tail tip are known to caudal lure. It's an adaption that evolved to help increase the animal's chance of getting food and therefore allowing it to survive long enough to reproduce and pass on its genetic code.

Q:  We just got my 6 year old son a baby albino
cornsnake today, He had a bearded dragon, and
finally convinced his dad to let him trade it
in for a cornsnake, First time we have a snake,
please let me know how often he should handle it.

A:  The first thing you want to do after you put a new snake into the habitat you've created is let it settle in and get comfortable for a couple of days. After that start feeding. Assuming the snake is feeding well, then you can start handling the snake for short periods of time on a fairly regular basis. You need to take your cues from the snake. If it acts excessively nervous when it's being handled, you should put it back in its cage and not handle it again that day. If the snake starts to refuse meals when you think it should be hungry, stop the regular handling until you get it eating again. In addition, do not handle the snake from the time its skin starts clouding, prior to a shed, until the shed is complete. And it's best to wait at least a day after feeding the snake before you handle it again. You made a good choice for a first snake. Most corn snakes can be handled regularly, and they will continue to eat with no problem as long as you've set up the cage properly.

Very often young people can be a bit too rough with a baby snake because they haven't been trained. Instruct your son to use small, slow movements while handling it. The snake should not be waived around or used to chase someone. Think about how you would feel if a "giant" were holding you, and try to think about it from the snake's perspective.

Q:  I got a cal king from a breeder he probably
wasn't feeding her a whole bunch. She eats like
a pig and has had good weight and girth now.
I hear from many people that their kings and
milks are 3 FEET by one year and am wondering
if this is true or if many just like exaggerating
their snakes' size. How big will she get?

A:  You're right,  it's common for people to exaggerate the size of their snakes (and other things!). Of course, it's also very difficult for most people to accurately judge the length of a snake that's coiled up, especially if they're excited about growing it up to that size from a neonate (their enthusiasm causes them to exaggerate).

It's difficult to predict the ultimate size of your kingsnake. It depends on many factors--genetics being an important one. You could ask the breeder how big the parents are and under what conditions they attained that size, and that may give you some idea. It may be possible for you to monitor the snake's rate of growth as time passes and tell when its growth slows down. I did that once for a Brazilian Rainbow Boa, graphed it out, and published the information.

Q:  Hi...I have a very simple question. I was just
wondering how long it takes a california kingsnake
to reach full length.

A:  Kingsnakes do most of their growing within the first three years of life, assuming they have the proper habitat and an adequate food supply. They continue to grow after that but at a much slower rate.

Q:  I have a juvinle California King that I found
injuried by a cat in my back yard. He recovered well
and I have had him for about 3 months. The only
problem is he spends alot of time rubbing the tip of
his nose on the glass as if trying to get out. Whats
wrong with him? Is there a way to curb this behavior?

A:  It sounds like you really helped this injured snake, and I thank you for that.  A larger cage may help. Also, it may be that your snake just doesn't understand glass (probably none of them really do), and it actually thinks it can get out if it keeps trying. You can tape a piece of cardboard or something else opaque (not see-thru) over the glass to block the snake's ability to see what's outside its cage. That may help. Also, be sure you've got a proper setup with hide boxes, a thermal gradient, etc.

In any case, keep an eye on the snake's nose. Even a small abrasion can turn into a serious infection. Since this is a wild-caught snake, you may eventually have to face the painful truth that you've already done all you can do. It's possible that for the sake of the animal, it would need to be released if it doesn't quit rubbing its nose. Not all wild-caught snakes adapt well to captivity, and in the long run, if you want a pet snake, you're much better off with a known-healthy, captive-bred animal anyway. Good luck.

Q:  Why does my albino california king snake shake
his tail like a rattle snake when he is nervous?

A:  It's normal for many snakes to vibrate their tails like that. Some people believe that this behavior evolved for defensive purposes and to "mimic" rattlesnakes (it does result in a similar sound when they do it in certain substrates, like in dry leaves or against a hard surface like the side of a cage).  Others disagree with the "mimic theory".  That's not my area of expertise, so I don't want to express an opinion one way or the other.  I'm not sure we can ever know for sure why they do it. Some people tap their feet when they get nervous; I don't know why.

Q:  i have a 7 1/2 foot boa female that was in with a boa male for
2 months. i believe she is gravid. when would the babies be born?
she is not eating now for a month. good eater before. male is not
with her now. she is getting bigger in last 1/2 of her body.
Is this how you tell?

A:  It's impossible for me to tell whether or not your boa is gravid based upon the information you've provided, but let me try to give you some help anyway. It sounds like your snake could be in either of two parts of the reproduction cycle. Without getting overly complicated, the important event to look for that separates these two parts of the cycle is called "ovulation". That is when the unfertilized ova are pushed out of the ovaries and into the uterus, where they are eventually fertilized by the sperm present from previous breedings. Just before ovulation happens, a large lump appears near the mid-body of the female. It can look so big that it may be like your snake just had the biggest meal of its life. That lump is present for less than a day, and disappears once the ova are spaced out along the length of the uterus. Your snake may be gravid if ovulation has already taken place. If ovulation has not taken place, you would want to have the male with her now.

We're only discussing a relatively small part of the overall process, but assuming that the female is in a reproductive cycle, and is now or will become gravid (from already deposited sperm or from future breedings), then you will want to provide a heating pad large enough for the female to get her entire body onto it. She should be able to maintain a body temperature of about 90°F, and you will probably notice her spending lots of time using the extra heat. If you start counting days from the time of ovulation (and you're providing the proper conditions for the female), the gestation period will be about 4 months. Don't count on getting babies yet because there are a lot of variables that make up a successful breeding and birth, but I wish you luck.