| Author |
 Topic  |
|
|
EeZee
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
10 Posts |
 Posted - 22/07/2012 : 21:38:52
|
Hi guys,
I've been reading A LOT on corn snakes over the past fortnight. Scouring the forums for different eventualities and just general reading on these lovely creatures. Today i decided i'd had enough of simply reading and went to my local exotic pet store, where i held two four year old King Snakes. The petstore owner advised me that a basic setup for an adult would be around £100 and that the snakes between £50 - £60 but unfortunately he didn't have any adult Corn Snakes. He had lots of babies but having discussed it with him i would probably need na adult as i'm going to be handling my snake quite alot and i live with 5 other guys.
I emailed him a list of Morphs in the hope that he could source these for me and i would carry on researching. Anyhow, later this afternoon i came across someone located in the immediate area selling a full setup with a 3 year old Amelanistic Corn Snake. This was ideal for me as it was a suitable age and it looks brilliant;
I contacted the seller and discussed purchasing it, she said she had people coming to see it later this month (i was sure this was a lie) and that she had already declined to sell to someone who thought that a 7 hour journey home was acceptible for the snake. This give me a good impression of the seller straight away, taking the snake into consideration over a quick sale.
Up at £150 i thought it was a reasonable price, but i have since managed to get her down to £110 for a pickup tommorow night. The following is included;
- 3 Year old Amelanistic Corn
- 36 x 18 x 18 wooden viv with four vents at the back and sliding glass doors with wedge.
- jungle vines, driftwood and three Exo terra items - the large corner water bath, and two large shed boxes
- Lamp and Guard
- Heatmat and Thermostat
- digital thermometer
- Large bag of hemp bedding
- Couple of large frozen mice
This seems like a bargain to me for £110 all in, and usually when something seems to good to be true it usually is.
Firstly, i was under the impression most keepers just used a heatmat rather than both a heatmat and lamp? is the lamp really necessary as the lady at petshop said they don't use them either.
Secondly is there anything else i should consider purchasing? and can i add things to the vivarium (which already looks pretty packed) or will it upset the snake since.
Thirdly AND MOST IMPORTANT - What should i ask the seller before i agree to take the snake, and what should i check on the snake to make sure its 100% fit to go?
She said that i should bring a cardboard box with air holes in, and they'll probably transfer her shed box (where she usually is) straight into the box for transportation. Does this sound like a good plan?
Any further advice is greatly appreicated as this is my first snake or reptile of any nature.
Thanks!! |
|
|
ScalySituation
Fully Grown Corn
United Kingdom
5292 Posts |
|
|
EeZee
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
10 Posts |
Posted - 22/07/2012 : 21:53:07
|
quote:
Originally posted by ScalySituation
1. To handle before you leave
2. Shedding ok?
3. Feeding ok?
4. Toileting ok?
5. Weight
6. Why are they selling? (Don't want to get it home and realise its really ill)
think thats all but some one else will be along if i've forgotten anything
The owner is 33 weeks pregnant and said because it slithers all over when she holds it she has to shower after holding it and she just doesn't have the time to do that regularly enough. (Presumably to not harm the baby with snake bacteria).
She says it is still shedding, do they get to a point they stop shedding or something?
It stopped feeding for 2 weeks around 10 weeks ago when they moved the viv from upstairs to downstairs but has been alright since. One large mouse per a week. She said it poos more like once every fortnight.
I didn't ask about weight, what is the average for a 3 year old female>?
Does that all seem ok?
I've got plastic boxes without lids (which i could maybe improvise al id with) or just cardboard boxes. I will have it on me at all times and its a 20 min car journey so i'd notice if it escaped? |
Edited by - EeZee on 22/07/2012 21:54:24 |
 |
|
|
ScalySituation
Fully Grown Corn
United Kingdom
5292 Posts |
Posted - 22/07/2012 : 21:56:39
|
no, they dont stop shedding, just slow down so its 3-4 times anually
tbh im not that sure on what weight she should be, from the pic she looks a good size
I'd go with the plastic box and tape it up good, we had on here a youngster who escaped in the car and didnt come out for a good 3 weeks |
1.0.0 Butter motley corn (Sheldon)
0.1.0 Caramel Corn (Maggie)
0.1.0 Caramel motley corn (Echo)
1.0.0 Cat (Angus)
1 mealworm colony
RIP Skye x
Sleep well Sonny, Mummy loves you xx
|
Edited by - ScalySituation on 22/07/2012 21:57:58 |
|
|
|
lotabob
Fully Grown Corn
United Kingdom
4334 Posts |
Posted - 22/07/2012 : 21:58:31
|
Looks good to go and not badly priced for all the stuff you are getting. As above the lamp would need to be non heat emitting or controlled by a thermostat (easiest way to go is an energy saving bulb) but nice looking if not a tiny bit chunky but its not obese or anything dont get me wrong.
You need to just check it over, the eyes should be clean and free from debris, check the belly for any crustyness, all the body for cuts and scars, and the tail, make sure its not got anything dodgy on the end. |
Anery Corn snake SPOT. Royal Python, DUKE. Hogg Island Boa, SANKE. Albino House Snake, HAL.
Harlequin Crested Gecko HARLEY
Albino Horned Frog WAKA
Chilean Rose Tarantula TRIXIE. Brazilian Salmon Pink Bird-eating Tarantula SAM. Orange Baboon Tarantula BORIS.
Giant Asian Forest Scorpion, SALLY.
Giant African Land Snails, SHELDON & MICHELLE.
Budwing Mantis, MAIA
Dubia Roach Colony. Silkworm Colony. Mealworm Colony. Waxworm Colony. Fruit Beetle Colony.
MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL http://www.youtube.com/user/alocheeky |
|
|
|
EeZee
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
10 Posts |
Posted - 22/07/2012 : 22:20:40
|
| I've just setup the cardboard box for transportation. I've made sure there are no holes and cellotaped the bottom quite a bit. Its quite a rugged strong box. I've put 8 airholes (poked through with pencil) and 4 airholes about 2/3 of the way up each square of the rectangle. Once again with a pencil. Will these holes be big enough for good ventilation! And there is no chance a snake that size could get through a pencil hole right??? |
|
|
|
lotabob
Fully Grown Corn
United Kingdom
4334 Posts |
Posted - 22/07/2012 : 22:34:31
|
| Selotape is snake Kryptonite, I would avoid it being anywhere near a snake. Snakes are very strong and can push their way through most stuff, if it then comes up against tape it can get stuck to it, rip its skin and scales and even get its tongue stuck. A plastic tub with air holes will be a much better idea or do what most people do when moving a snake, put them into a pillowcase and secure the opening. Keeping them dark is key to keeping them calm. You can then put them into a small box to stop them rolling about in the car. |
Anery Corn snake SPOT. Royal Python, DUKE. Hogg Island Boa, SANKE. Albino House Snake, HAL.
Harlequin Crested Gecko HARLEY
Albino Horned Frog WAKA
Chilean Rose Tarantula TRIXIE. Brazilian Salmon Pink Bird-eating Tarantula SAM. Orange Baboon Tarantula BORIS.
Giant Asian Forest Scorpion, SALLY.
Giant African Land Snails, SHELDON & MICHELLE.
Budwing Mantis, MAIA
Dubia Roach Colony. Silkworm Colony. Mealworm Colony. Waxworm Colony. Fruit Beetle Colony.
MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL http://www.youtube.com/user/alocheeky |
|
|
|
leee123
Snake Mite
United Kingdom
40 Posts |
Posted - 22/07/2012 : 23:40:25
|
| Hi everything looks good with viv and snake, I'd go with a pillow case for moving her, tie the top up with a lace out of an old pair of trainers. I brought my two home like that from Stoke to Liverpool no problems. |
0.0.1 Amel Buster 0.0.1 Snow Casper 0.0.1 Snow Lucky 0.1.0 Miniature Yorkie Tilly 0.0.2 Goldfish Bella and Nemo 0.1.0 Horsfield Tortoise Harry |
|
|
|
NexivRed
Yearling
United Kingdom
551 Posts |
Posted - 23/07/2012 : 00:00:00
|
Just to throw a spanner into the works, I don't agree that your first corn snake need cost what that guy said it would. I too had the advice of getting an older (and more expensive) snake and set up because I wanted to handle it. Thing is this really compromises what type of corn snake you can get. Most shops have no idea of morphs so it's normally just a normal, snow, amel or perhaps anery. If you're happy with that or not too bothered about what the snake looks like then that's fine. But of course one of the fantastic sides to corn snakes is the amazing array of colours.
I got my first a couple of weeks ago. She's in a plastic tub with drilled holes which I already had so that was free. My heat mat, thermostat and 3 digital thermometers were £37 in total. My snake was £40 because I wanted a specific morph (she's a pewter) and she's a yearling not a hatchling. My hides etc were home made until I could afford to replace them with better stuff, but for me it's all about getting the snake *I* wanted.
So I just want you to think if this is the snake you want, and not to get suckered into the deal because you think it's good value for the setup. Plastic tubs from IKEA are dirt cheap, and you can make hides and water bowls out of anything. I used kitchen roll as substrate until I was able to afford a £6 bag of beech chips. The only bits you can't compromise on are the heating bits, but like I said I got mine off eBay for less than £40. And they're known brands as well. |
R.I.P. 0.1: CB10 Ophion - pewter masque het amel
1.0: CB10 lavender stripe het ??? - Alabaster (Bats) Codify
0.1: CB12 hypo plasma het amel - Nebula
0.2: CB13 diffused 66% pos het cinder - Demeter (Mimi) & Bombulurina (Reenie)
1.0: CB13 hypo cinder ?% pos het amel stripe - Huckleberry
0.1: CB13 anery aztec het amel - Tetris
1.0: CB13 gold dust motley stripe - Helios |
|
|
|
Hissyfit
Fully Grown Corn
United Kingdom
2214 Posts |
Posted - 23/07/2012 : 10:43:43
|
She looks lovely, and her set up is great  I would ask if she keeps feeding & shedding records, if so ask if you can have them when you re home the snake. It would be useful to ask how she's fed, in a RUB or in her viv, so you can keep her routine normal at the start. Don't forget to leave her to settle in for 7 days before handling |
 |
|
|
|
Lozzy
Sub Adult
United Kingdom
1556 Posts |
Posted - 23/07/2012 : 11:15:08
|
| Looks like a good deal to me and you seem to have all the information i would have offered so good luck and look forward to seeing pics of your new addition whether this one or another :) |
0.1 CB10 Snow Cornsnake - Galaxy ~(Currently MIA)
1.0 CB11 Ultramel Anery Consnake -Orion
0.1 CB11 Lavender Cornsnake - Star
0.1 Leopard Gecko-Simo
1.1 Jack Russell-T.J and Harley (Minature)
1.1 Cats-Rascal and Dizzee
1.0 TB Horse-Mickey |
|
|
| |
Topic |
|
My POTENTIALLY new Corn snake & SETUP PLEASE READ
