About 2 buy a Kingsnake

[taorchard1987]

Hi. First of all i'd like 2 say hi 2 all u snake keepers. Im more into my Tarantulas myself but am in the middle of choosing what snake my girlfriend can get me for Valentines day, lol.:}
Anyway i was looking at the snakes in the reptile shop the other day and seen a really cute baby Kingsnake, not sure which one, it was jet black with a bright white stripe going down it.
I was wondering would these be ok for a snake beginner, i've been told 2 go with a corn snake but for some reason they dont appeal 2 me (sorry corn snake ppl).
Also how much abouts would i pay for a baby one of these snakes, as im working on a budget as my girlfriend is turning out 2 b a little tight arse, lol.
Thanks for all the help people.

 

[dirtborder4life]

kings

Hi,yes,kingsnakes are a good beginner snake in my opinion.Alot of them do tend to be a bit nippy,and prone to musking when they are little,but with gentle,consistent handling,that should soon stop.I've had quite a few kingsnakes in times past,but dont have any right now.Most petshops around here sell baby striped,banana,albino,and reg.calif. kings for about $60.00,but you can get them for$30.00 or less from an online breeder,(which i recomend).

Anyway,good luck.

 

[ReptileMan27]

Kings are great begginer snakes but like already said, they do tend to be nippy and like to musk. I would highly reccomend a cornsnake .

 

[Stardust]

hmm..Jet black wif white stripe ? sounds like a stripe king to me ! Awesome snakes they are,currently i am keeping a 5ft california kingsnake...so far onli got tagged once...

 

[taorchard1987]

Hi,yes,kingsnakes are a good beginner snake in my opinion.Alot of them do tend to be a bit nippy,and prone to musking when they are little,but with gentle,consistent handling,that should soon stop.I've had quite a few kingsnakes in times past,but dont have any right now.Most petshops around here sell baby striped,banana,albino,and reg.calif. kings for about $60.00,but you can get them for$30.00 or less from an online breeder,(which i recomend).

Anyway,good luck.

So is it ok to handle snakes on a regular basis, because with taranulas you are supposed to only handle them when its absoloubtly necessary.
$30 eh, suppose they'll b about £40 over here in england then.
I was thinkin about orderin 1 onlione, but i thought i would prefer 2 get it from my local pet store as im quite good m8's with the bloke who owns it so i can actually trust that the snake is in good condition. Thanks for the replies :worship:

 

[dirtborder4life]

handling

Yes,it is ok to handle snakes(not hots),on a regular basis.The more you handle them,the more docile they become.I never handle my T's,but i handle all of my reptiles every other day or so.

 

[Mushroom Spore]

Yes,it is ok to handle snakes(not hots),on a regular basis.The more you handle them,the more docile they become.

This is true, but with many snakes handling *too* much can be stressful, or at least I know that's true for some ball pythons I've heard about. It all depends on the individual snake, really. I'd go with not pestering it at all the first week or so, to let it settle, and then maybe try handling a few times per week for short periods until you and the snake get comfortable with each other, and go from there.

Don't handle the snake on feeding day and for at least one day afterward, and ease back on handling in general if it starts refusing food. That's pretty much the only real rule I know of.

Best of luck! Snakes rule!

 

[taorchard1987]

okay then thats great, thanks all. but im in the middle of a dilemma now, i went to the petstore to have a look and saw a 1" T.Blondi T in there, for those of you who keep T's you now how hard a decision this is and ive always wanted a Goliath but i really want a snake now also, what can i do?:wall: :wall: :8o

 

[jwmeeker]

Get them both!