DeKay's Brown Snakes

[HannahBewsher]

Hi,

We had an 'earth' snake when I was very young, so I barely remember it and wasn't the one caring for it, but I was wondering if anyone here keeps these little guys, and are they comparable to garters in respect to lifespan, diet, and behavior?

Hannah

[guidofatherof5]

Storeria dekayi-Brown snake. Awesome snakes. Eats earthworms, night crawlers, slugs, snails. Can be kept similar to garter snakes.
A number of forum members have kept or are keeping them now. I'm sure they will give you some advice.
Welcome to the forum.

[HannahBewsher]

Ah, good to know. Thank you. They have surprisingly handsome markings and sweet faces. =)

I went herping this morning and found three large (8-15 inch) healthy browns. I haven't sexed them yet, because I don't want to handle them too much. I've got them in a 25 gal, with the same set up that I'd give a garter. They seem very skittish, so I've provided plenty of cover.

Should I use soil as a substrate so they can bury themselves, or stick with aspen bedding? And also, I was told that we housed our brown snake with a garter and never encountered problems.. Do they do well in a communal setup, like these three? And is it safe to keep them with garters, or were we lucky? lol

Thanks in advance for any advice,
Hannah

[infernalis]

My favorite subject!

My best girl Xena lived to be 7.

I have always kept Dekayi and garters in the same tank without a problem.

Heck Xena even started taking pinkie mice after watching her cage mate garters eat them. ( I miss her terribly :( she was a sweetheart)

They like moisture, so bark or coconut substrate works best, keep it mildly humid, just not sopping wet.

http://www.danceswithreptiles.com/DKeatsPinky/XenaPink3.jpg

http://www.thamnophis.us/snakes/new/DKpluskyle.jpg

I took this picture in the wild! they were both under the same board together just like this.

http://www.reptard.info/pic/gs2.jpg

[Mommy2many]

My Dekayi was snuggling with his cage mates yesterday as well!

[HannahBewsher]

Thanks for all the pictures and sharing your experience. =)

[infernalis]

Thanks for all the pictures and sharing your experience. =)

You are very welcome.

Dekayi are awesome little snakes.

[HannahBewsher]

Well, they seem to be happy enough; they've been mating all evening.. lol
http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//500/medium/BROWN_SNAKES_059.JPG

[guidofatherof5]

Great news. For the snakes:D
OK, you too.

[Snakers]

Are those snakes getting a little ttttoooo friendly??

[Mommy2many]

Ooohhh... More tail holding going on!

[Holly]

Has anyone actually managed to get their to eat snails? I've tried a bunch of different sizes, even smashed one open and took all the shell off for him one time when I ran out of slugs and worms and he still wouldn't go for it!

[guidofatherof5]

Within moments of releasing some I observed them eating small black snail. 30 seconds after release they found food.
It made me feel good.

[infernalis]

Has anyone actually managed to get their to eat snails? I've tried a bunch of different sizes, even smashed one open and took all the shell off for him one time when I ran out of slugs and worms and he still wouldn't go for it!


Yes... Here you go. ;)

http://www.thamfriends.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=17&pictureid=861

http://www.thamfriends.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=17&pictureid=862

http://www.thamfriends.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=17&pictureid=863

http://www.thamfriends.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=17&pictureid=864

[Holly]

Did he eat the shell? I heard they have specially hinged jaws to get the snail out.

We tried with our guy and he just kinda fiddled with it for a bit and then gave up.

[infernalis]

No she spit the shells out.

Actually, they roll the shell off the snail.

[Holly]

Mine must just be lazy then!

[Mommy2many]

I believe my Dekayi ate snails. My sister gave me a bunch with some slugs and I put them in the house with him. I found empty snail shells later!

[guidofatherof5]

It's pretty cool how they pull the snail out of its shell.
I guess they evict the snail from its home.:D A permanent eviction.:eek:

[chris11]

i have one and its very shy. i havent had much luck with feeding her tho :/

[HannahBewsher]

Wow, I was wondering what they did with the shell... Haha xD That's awesome.

Now, here's a question: what would you feed a baby brown..? I'm worried I'll end up with a bunch of tiny snakes in the middle of winter, if their behavior is anything to go by.. I can see getting stuck trying to buy really, really tiny food items.. lol Has anyone ever had a litter?

Here's the girl swimming in circles, Haha, funny little things.. x)

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//500/medium/BROWN_SNAKES_dish.jpg

[infernalis]

Three litters to be exact ;)

Baby slugs and newborn night crawlers.

It's not an easy undertaking, but with a bit of work, it can be rewarding.

You will have to start a worm and slug colony in your home to keep food handy.

http://www.danceswithreptiles.com/stuff_files/dk1.jpg

This is in a cup that was on the top of children's cough syrup (small like a shot glass)

http://www.thamfriends.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=17&pictureid=339

[guidofatherof5]

I've raised one group so far. I was shocked to see how tiny the babies are when they are born. I started feeding them very tiny pieces of slug and earth worms. Of the 12 born I lost 4 to "failure to thrive". The others ate like pigs and grew fast. I released the babies back into an area I knew had dekayis. They are a great snake with a super attitude. It's easy to fall in love with them.

[Mommy2many]

I didn't have a litter but I had my Dekayi for the first time over the past winter. I kept a slug colony and he actually converted to earthworms, though slugs are his favorite! I'm going to keep a slug colony again, so he can have his treats during the winter. They are easy to keep, you may want to start collecting them now as the weather starts to get cooler. Pretty easy, just don't let them get too war,. I killed mine last week:( I forgot about them outside, wasn't pretty.

[infernalis]

Basements are the best place to keep a slug colony.

You will need a container that seals well, they can squeeze out of the smallest of cracks.

[guidofatherof5]

Wayne,
Which do you think would be easier to keep: slugs or snails?
We have a marsh area about 1/2 a mile away from us which is full of those small black snail.
A person could collect a few hundred of those without too much effort. Setup an aquarium and bingo-bango, Winter food for the dekayis.

[infernalis]

Temps and diet seem the same, so either should keep without too much trouble.

[Mommy2many]

I personally had better luck with my slugs last winter than my worms.:rolleyes:
Ooops, thought we were comparing slugs to worms, not slugs to snails.
As Wayne stated, don't see much of a difference between slugs & snails except the absence of the shell.

[infernalis]

I bet snails would be easier to keep in the container, the shells should make it harder to escape through a small crack.

[Mommy2many]

That's true! I have had the slugs squish themselves thru the little holes on the screen top of the enclosure.

[HannahBewsher]

How often do you feed your adult browns, or a juvs for that matter? I've had this group approaching a week, and though I offer food whenever they seem to be 'hunting', they are still too skittish to eat while I'm there, so I don't know who's eaten what for sure.. Except the female, who doesn't seem to mind feeding in a plastic tub, and she's only had a small red worm that I'm sure of.

How do you guys handle dinner time..? lol x) Any tips would be much appricated.

Hannah

[Holly]

I feed my guy every second day. At first he wouldn't come out if I was there so I would drop his worm or slug into a gatorade lid and leave it, it would usually be gone within half an hour. Sometimes he wouldn't eat for an entire week.

Now he'll take the food right from our fingers.

[guidofatherof5]

I feed my guy every second day. At first he wouldn't come out if I was there so I would drop his worm or slug into a gatorade lid and leave it, it would usually be gone within half an hour. Sometimes he wouldn't eat for an entire week.

Now he'll take the food right from our fingers.

It's always a good feeling when they hand feed.
Glad to hear he's trusting you, now.