Purchase

Although it can never be guaranteed that any particular animal will be healthy and live a long life, there are steps that can be taken to minimize the chances of selecting a sickly corn snake.

FEEL FOR GOOD MUSCLE TONE. A corn snake should have a feeling of strength to it when it is being held. Avoid any animal that seems physically weak as weakness is an excellent indicator of ill health.

SELECT AN ANIMAL WITH GOOD BODYWEIGTH Avoid skinny animals that have a prominently visible backbone.

LOOK FOR ATTENTIVENESS A corn snake should seem interested in its whereabouts when it is placed in your hands. This will manifest itself especially by tongueflicking behavior, and in most cases, by a distinct interest in moving around. Healthy animals may be reluctant to move around if their eyes are clouded in preperation for skinshedding.

LOOK FOR DEFORMITIES AND SCARS Check for kinks, bumps and depressions along the backbone, especially near the tail. Scars may not be a health problem, but you may find that they detract the animal.

CHECK FOR THE PRESENCE OF MITES Mites are relatives of spiders. Many species of mites live by sucking blood. They can be seen as tiny dark round 'bugs' crawling on the snake and possibly on your hands after handling an infested snake. They attach themselfs to skin between the scales and around the edge of the eye. The mites that live on snakes will not feed on humans or other mammals. Captive-hatched baby corn snakes will seldom be seen with mites, but it is always wise to be on the alert for them. Avoid a mite infested animal unless you are prepared to quarantine it and treat it.

CHECK FOR SIGNS OF MOUTH OR RESPIRATORY INFECTIONS Signs of bubbly mucus from the mouth or nostrils will be a sight of respiratory illness. The inside of the mouth should be free of any sores or cheese-like matter which could be due to mouthrot.

CHECK THE UNDERSIDE The vent should be externally clean and free of any encrustation. The belly should be free of any abnormal looking scales that might be a sign of a skin infection.

CHECK FOR ANY OTHER OBVIOUS SIGNS OF PROBLEMS Look for lumps on or in the body. Check that the eyes are clear and of equal size and colour.

ADDITIONAL TIPS FOR CHOOSING A HATCHLING

It is preferable to select a hatchling corn snake that has started feeding regurlarly on pinky (newborn) mice. Otherwise, you must be prepared to forcefeed or use lizard or lizard scented pinkies as food. If possible, ask to see the parents. This may help you predict what the coloration and temperament of the baby may be when it matures. It would also be worthwhile to verify that the parents are strong and vigorous animals. Don't be too concerned if a hatchling seems a little more nervous or agressive than you would like. Calmer babies will probably make calmer adults, but baby corn snakes are to be expected to be distinctly more nervous than most captive adults. You might also want to consider getting more that one hatchling. Hatchling corn snakes, at least of the normal variety, are quite inexpencive, and having two would provide more assurance that at least one would survive. If both survived, you would have the option of keeping both and maybe breeding them, or you could keep only the one you thought had developed the best color and temperament.

ADDITIONAL TIPS FOR CHOOSING AN ADULT

There are fewer special concerns in choosing an adult, at least a captive raised adult. If the animal is captive raised, find out its age. It may be an old animal pasts its reproductive years as these are often gotten rid of by breeders. That may not  necessarilly matter to you if the animal is nicely priced, and you are not interested in breeding it. Be aware that an adult (unless it was recently removed from the wild) should not be expected to improve appreciably in temperament. If it is too high strung for you tastes, it is best to avoid it. Also, be aware that the coloration of adults can change somewhat in time, though not nearly as much as the changes that are often seen with babies. Generally, corn snakes seem to show their brightest coloration around the age of one or two years. After that age, the coloration of some adults may darken, and their pattern will tend to lose some contrast