so I'm about to become a snake owner

[skilletsteve]

I was at my LPS (good one, don't worry) and talking with the owner like I normally do on my visits. I noticed a new snake in and he told me the story. Apparently the owner of the snake died and none of his relatives wanted it so they dumped it off at the nearest pet shop (at least they didn't kill it).

So i'm going to pay him a few bucks like an "adoption fee" and take home my first snake!

It is a Nerodia species, common name "broad banded water snake" I believe.

This is not the exact specimen, but looks very similar.

I will be taking her home early next week (need some time to set up a nice enclosure).

Anyone have one of these? anything i should know?

 

[pitbulllady]

That's not a Broad-Banded, but a Common Banded(Nerodia fasciata fasciata), and yes, I DO breed these! They are great, wonderful snakes, with a horrible and much-undeserved reputation for nasty behavior. I haven't found any Colubrids which become tamer, and in such a short amount of time, as these.

You will need a basic set-up for this size of snake, keeping it just as you would a Corn or King Snake-DRY, clean substrate with a bowl just large enough to soak or drink from if the snakes wants to do so. I recommend newspaper for several reasons; one, it is easy to clean, and you will need to clean often with Water Snakes. They have a fast metabolism and poop A LOT. Two, it will not stick to their food items and become ingested, where it can cause impactions, and this can happen with any loose-particle substrate like wood chips. Water Snakes tend to "got nuts" when eating, and will grab just about anything and start swallowing it when their brain goes into "food mode", so you don't want anything around that will be gobbled up along with their food. It is absolutely IMPERATIVE that you keep the substrate as clean and dry as possible, since these snakes, in spite of their name, are highly susceptible to potentially-deadly skin infections if they are kept damp. Nerodia are fish and frog eaters, but do NOT feed them goldfish, or "rosy reds" or catfish, as these fish contain an enzyme which prevents the snake's body from utilizing vital nutrients, eventually causing damage to the nervous system and killing the snake. I have yet to see a Banded that would not readily take to cut strips of fresh salmon, trout or tilapia from the supermarket(NOT frozen); just sprinkle with some calcium powder for reptiles and you're good to go. Most younger ones will readily accept fish-scented frozen-thawed rodents, as well, but adult Bandeds can be a bit more difficult to switch over to rodents. They will also eat frogs and toads.

When first captured, many will try to bluff you by puffing up, spreading their jaws to look like a venomous snake, and making fake strikes. Don't let this intimidate you. If you aren't certain, use a towel or a pillow case to pick up the snake at first...plus it might come in handy to wipe up any musk they fling your way, since that is their most-effective defense, by far. Every single one I've had, including large wild adults, settled down within an hour and was as tame as a Ball Python. They are good "lap snakes", because they will just sit on your lap for hours, like a cat, while you watch tv or surf the 'net, but they aren't very good "neck snakes" because they have no concept of heights or of holding onto anything, unlike a Boa or other arboreal snake.

Congratulations in any case, because if your new snake IS a Broad-Banded, you are getting a species that is almost NEVER offered in captivity.

pitbulllady

 

[skilletsteve]

I did have the oppurtunity to hold it for a whille at the LPS and I must say it was very friendly, I don't think I will have to worry too much about aggressive behavior. I think it must have been a great companion for the original owner, and I look forward to having a pet I can frequently hold (unlike my Ts and Frogs). I was planning on having a separate 'feeding tank' that i only use for feedings and clean right after, is this a good idea for a snake like this?

Edit: how big do you think this will get? the guy at the LPS believes it is a female.

 

[pitbulllady]

I did have the oppurtunity to hold it for a whille at the LPS and I must say it was very friendly, I don't think I will have to worry too much about aggressive behavior. I think it must have been a great companion for the original owner, and I look forward to having a pet I can frequently hold (unlike my Ts and Frogs). I was planning on having a separate 'feeding tank' that i only use for feedings and clean right after, is this a good idea for a snake like this?

Edit: how big do you think this will get? the guy at the LPS believes it is a female.

Female Water Snakes get quite a bit bigger than males, and the average adult female Nerodia fasciata confluens is around four feet in length. I don't feed mine in a separate tank except where I have two that cohabitate, since they will fight and bite each other over food, and these are the only Colubrid snakes I've seen that will actually clamp down and shake another snake like a dog to get a point across when it comes to who owns the food. I just use tongs to hand them strips of fish, like I do with my Boas. Once they smell food, it will hard to pick one up without getting nailed, since they will grab anything that moves or anything that is shiny(guess it resembles shiny fish scales), like jewelry. It's best to just go ahead and feed them once you open the enclosure. Most will also pick up strips of fish off the floor of the enclosure. They do not need to be in water to eat. They have a feeding response equalled only by Reticulated Pythons and False Water Cobras, in my experience. Other than that, Water Snakes are the most docile snakes I've ever kept, with the possible exception of Boa Constrictors. You might actually get lucky and find that the one you're getting is already eating rodents, so just dangle one with tongs and see what happens, though in my experience, Northerns and their southern subspecies, the Midland Water Snakes, are the most reliable rodent-eaters.

pitbulllady

 

[skilletsteve]

looks like I'll be taking her home Sunday or Monday. I'm very excited to say the least.

 

[Halfbreed]

Congratulations! My wife and I have snakes as well. MOstly corns at the moment. You will love owning them though I feel you need to be forewarned...they are just as addictive a Ts! Make sure you post some pics.

 

[skilletsteve]

Congratulations! My wife and I have snakes as well. MOstly corns at the moment. You will love owning them though I feel you need to be forewarned...they are just as addictive a Ts! Make sure you post some pics.

haha, they are addictive even before owning them. Sometimes I'll spend hours looking around the kingsnake classifieds. If it wasn't for the other people I lived with I'd probably already have 20+ snakes.

 

[SixShot666]

Congratz on your first snake!!! :clap:

 

[Shrike]

Just out of curiosity, what kind of set up does this species require? I've only kept kings and milks. Would the requirements be similar?

 

[paul fleming]

These sound similar to another of my fav colubrids....Hydrodynastes gigas.
These do require highish humidity and a water bowl to soak in
ps....not an easy first snake but well done and welcome to the best part of the forum......only joking of course
set up would be the same except for a large water bowel...we use orchid bark as sub to aid in higher humidity over here.
I would put money on you getting tagged in the first week BTW.

 

[Halfbreed]

haha, they are addictive even before owning them. Sometimes I'll spend hours looking around the kingsnake classifieds. If it wasn't for the other people I lived with I'd probably already have 20+ snakes.

YES!!!! My wife and I do the same thing! We just can't get enough. Don't wrry though. Now that you are getting your first one you will definitely end up getting more. Good luck and congrats again!

 

[pitbulllady]

These sound similar to another of my fav colubrids....Hydrodynastes gigas.
These do require highish humidity and a water bowl to soak in
ps....not an easy first snake but well done and welcome to the best part of the forum......only joking of course
set up would be the same except for a large water bowel...we use orchid bark as sub to aid in higher humidity over here.
I would put money on you getting tagged in the first week BTW.

Actually, Nerodia require a BONE-DRY enclosure, with just a water bowl. Orchid bark or any other bark substrate will hold too much moisture and will inevitably give you a dead snake. I cannot emphasize enough how succeptible to "scale rot" these snakes are, no matter how clean you keep their enclosure. You can clean it twice a day, but if it's the slightest bit damp, you WILL run into problems with these. I've kept many species for several years, and I had to learn that the hard way. There were no care sheets for these snakes because most people were scared of them, thought they were ugly and only wanted them as feeder snakes for Cobras and other ophiophagus species.

pitbulllady

 

[skilletsteve]

Congratz on your first snake!!! :clap:

thanks

Just out of curiosity, what kind of set up does this species require? I've only kept kings and milks. Would the requirements be similar?

From what I've read it is very similar to keeping a corn except with a larger water dish.

These sound similar to another of my fav colubrids....Hydrodynastes gigas.
These do require highish humidity and a water bowl to soak in
ps....not an easy first snake but well done and welcome to the best part of the forum......only joking of course
set up would be the same except for a large water bowel...we use orchid bark as sub to aid in higher humidity over here.
I would put money on you getting tagged in the first week BTW.

Everything I've read says to keep it try except for the water bowl (obviously). Hopefully I don't get tagged in the first week, but if I do, oh well. :}

Actually, Nerodia require a BONE-DRY enclosure, with just a water bowl. Orchid bark or any other bark substrate will hold too much moisture and will inevitably give you a dead snake. I cannot emphasize enough how succeptible to "scale rot" these snakes are, no matter how clean you keep their enclosure. You can clean it twice a day, but if it's the slightest bit damp, you WILL run into problems with these. I've kept many species for several years, and I had to learn that the hard way. There were no care sheets for these snakes because most people were scared of them, thought they were ugly and only wanted them as feeder snakes for Cobras and other ophiophagus species.

pitbulllady

I don't know how anyone can find this species ugly. After months of planning on getting a corn I saw this snake and just had to have it. I'll definitely keep it super dry for her.

 

[pitbulllady]

thanks



From what I've read it is very similar to keeping a corn except with a larger water dish.




Everything I've read says to keep it try except for the water bowl (obviously). Hopefully I don't get tagged in the first week, but if I do, oh well. :}



I don't know how anyone can find this species ugly. After months of planning on getting a corn I saw this snake and just had to have it. I'll definitely keep it super dry for her.

Have you ever seen any of the Hypomelanistic Water Snakes? If you do a search, you can find my thread on here somewhere, with my Hypos in it. They blow a Corn Snake away any day of the week.

I've had more Water Snakes than most folks will ever see in a lifetime, and I've only been bitten ONCE that was not an accidental feeding response. ONE time, and I've been bitten more times by Corns and Ball Pythons, two supposedly docile species(as opposed to the perception of Water Snakes), than I can even count. With the exception of the babies I bred myself, all of my Water Snakes were wild-caught, since almost no one is breeding these. If this snake has been in captivity for any time at all, and has been handled at all, you won't get "tagged" unless you smear fish oil all over yourself. I will put a Banded Water Snake especially up against any of the popular pet species, as far as reliably docile temperament.

pitbulllady

 

[Matt K]

I would recommend an excellent book:

North American Watersnakes -A natural history by Gibbons/Dorcas

Authors are J. Whitfield Gibbons and Michael E. Dorcas with a foreward by legendary Roger Conant. This book was being offered by University of Oklahoma Press for $12 and is a hardback book, nice illustrations and photos, well worth alot more than the going price (I got mine through Amazon.com I think).

Just an FYI

 

[skilletsteve]

Have you ever seen any of the Hypomelanistic Water Snakes? If you do a search, you can find my thread on here somewhere, with my Hypos in it. They blow a Corn Snake away any day of the week.

I've had more Water Snakes than most folks will ever see in a lifetime, and I've only been bitten ONCE that was not an accidental feeding response. ONE time, and I've been bitten more times by Corns and Ball Pythons, two supposedly docile species(as opposed to the perception of Water Snakes), than I can even count. With the exception of the babies I bred myself, all of my Water Snakes were wild-caught, since almost no one is breeding these. If this snake has been in captivity for any time at all, and has been handled at all, you won't get "tagged" unless you smear fish oil all over yourself. I will put a Banded Water Snake especially up against any of the popular pet species, as far as reliably docile temperament.

pitbulllady

From the 10-15 minutes I held her she did seem really docile. I would be very surprised if i did get tagged, but if it happens it happens.

I would recommend an excellent book:

North American Watersnakes -A natural history by Gibbons/Dorcas

Authors are J. Whitfield Gibbons and Michael E. Dorcas with a foreward by legendary Roger Conant. This book was being offered by University of Oklahoma Press for $12 and is a hardback book, nice illustrations and photos, well worth alot more than the going price (I got mine through Amazon.com I think).

Just an FYI

That book does look good, but it looks like maybe because of a new edition or something it is more expensive. used ones on amazon are $43 and from the University of Oklahoma press it is $50. Maybe some day, but not in my budget right now.


I'm going to take her home today, in just a couple of hours. Very excited.

 

[pitbulllady]

Can't wait for photos of this girl!

pitbulllady

 

[skilletsteve]

Can't wait for photos of this girl!

pitbulllady

Just got her home and she is settling in right now. I probably wont take any pictures until later tonight when my girlfriend comes over, I'm a rubbish photographer.

also, When I got her home i just picked her up and gently placed her into her new home. She was a little edgy, but didn't tag me.

 

[skilletsteve]

I really couldn't get any good pictures but I took a short video with my cell phone.


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[Matt K]

That book does look good, but it looks like maybe because of a new edition or something it is more expensive. used ones on amazon are $43 and from the University of Oklahoma press it is $50. Maybe some day, but not in my budget right now.

Rats... I got mine maybe 6 months or so ago and it was 12 plus 4 for shipping... and it looks to be the current issue. Wonder whats up...if I find one for the cheap I'll send you a PM. I shop for books often...

Oh well!