Random Snake News

[katach]

I was thinking about all the stuff that happens here my house with our snakes. I always think that would be fun to share, but I don't think it needs a whole thread just for that... Maybe this could be a place to share those random happenings.
* Mods, feel free to do with this as you need to.*
I'll start. :)

We moved our tank to the living room today. They are quite happy, and the temps seem to be a little more consistent now that they are not next to a window.

[angrygamer]

Hey, do any of you that rent have issues with snakes and your landlords?

[katach]

Mine doesn't know. :)

[chris-uk]

Neither does mine. Not about the cat which has been here for 6 years, the snakes or the fish.

[PINJOHN]

Good idea for a thread Kat i normally don't bother with the incidents in my day to day interactions with the snakes as it often means breaking someones ongoing posts[ so this is perfect] ....about two weeks ago i left a sliding door on the young checkered's viv slightly open, after a head count there seemed to be one missing, i have only done this once in recent years it was about twelve months ago with a Florida blue which was soon rounded up,... however a number of years ago i went through a series of escapes mainly with young snakes and in every case they made their way down to the bedroom floor [from the loft] ...there to leap out and attack my wife...at least that what she claims, no matter how hard i looked on each occasion they would wait and then show themselves to my wife, we all know that garters have a high intelligence level but does that include a perverse sense of humor,for those that don't know, my wife has a strong dislike for snakes and that's describing it lightly,....anyway i am sure by now you are all ahead of me with this story, while pottering about in the loft several days ago a piercing scream rang through the house [and the entire neighborhood i would think] with a sinking heart i knew straight away just what the cause was ....while sitting on the toilet[not a pretty picture] the little checkered sauntered between my wife's feet,<br>you might say things have been a little strained since then, i think the only thing that has kept her from throwing me out is my amazing resemblance to George clooney [did i ever mention that]

[angrygamer]

Neither does mine. Not about the cat which has been here for 6 years, the snakes or the fish.

Six years? Wow. Sorry this turned out long, a lot of drivel.

Well, he is going to find out sooner or later, I live in a really small complex with only about 11 or 12 units. He comes in my apartment at least twice a year to turn the heat on/off...it a wall gravity heater. He also comes in once a year to inspect the smoke alarm and change the battery.

I had Glyph in the 10 gallon last Fall, but I had him off to the side of the apartment and with the makeshift lid I built for that tank you'd have to get up sort of close to tell what it was.

When I cleaned the 30 gallon I bought in December with that muriatic acid, I had to get access to the water spigot which is in a maintenance closet. He at least thinks I have fish, and didn't say anything about that. The lease says, "no pets without written consent" but he has said in passing conversation he pretty much doesn't want pets whatsoever...but I'll take the written interpretation first.

I kind of screwed this up, but I honestly was under the impression that even if a landlord said "no pets" that small animals that were caged didn't fall under this provision...partly because growing up we moved a lot, my mom had birds while my brother kept gerbils, and we never had any problems with them, one time even having a run-in of sorts with a landlord, only to find out that, "eh, they are just birds". Also to blame is the internet, (heh, well not really) but I read a few accounts, one in particular about how this one guy who has had birds for 30 years and every apartment he has moved into, even the ones with a "no pets" clause, and he never had a problem, he said he was just honest with the landlord.

The problem I ran into though, which worries me is that while I was cleaning the fish tank outside my apartment, my neighbors were looking on. Sometime earlier, a week or so maybe I found out that this neighbor wanted birds, but he said "no" because he was concerned about diseases birds carry. So the landlord was standing there while I was cleaning it and she was asking, "so what are you going to do with that?" I looked at my landlord, and he said, "just tell her you are selling it."

We haven't talked about it since, so I don't know WTF.

I have a good working relationship with my landlord, and I have a few other ways around this, so we'll see.

I just wanted to hear others' experiences with this.

[Light of Dae]

I'd personally just be straight honest with your landlord n explain that Glyph is healthy, carries no diseases, and doesn't make any stains on the carpet, and when Glyph sheds it's in one piece n also doesn't make a mess, as well there is no stink from your snake. lol Explain that it's cleaner then having fish and less stinky and no risk of water damage etc. He is going to find out about your snake at some point, and its better that he has a heads up about it rather then find out about it on his own n freak out.

[chris-uk]

The cat we always take out of the house and hide his bowl and things when the letting agents come to do their annual inspection. The first few years they actually looked round the house, the last 3 inspections the agent hasn't got out of the hallway. And the last time she could see the fish from where she was stood.
I think a lot of reasonable people will turn a blind eye and not ask too many questions if you aren't obviously taking the mickey. Perhaps if you subtly concealed the tank no questions would be asked. It's a judgement call on how well you know your landlord.
We plan to move this year, so starting with a fresh landlord will need to be more careful and probably come clean about the animals.

[Light of Dae]

I couldn't imagine....
1. Living in a city.
2. Living in an apartment.
3. Living anywhere without pets.
lol I couldn't do it anymore... I mean I did it when I was 14-16years old living on my own... but not since then have I lived in town. I love the country. And my landlord is awesome, He comes by once a month to collect rent n say hi. But he doesn't check the house or anything he don't care, He's seen our pets. He always lets us know before coming for rent etc. We are thinking about asking him if we can rent to own...

[Selkielass]

It's a warm, rainy day Here in Metro-Detroit and Abby, my Eastern Garter snake woke up 'frisky'.
Theres no doubt she's looking to attract a male. She shed three days ago and now she's transversing every square inch of her tank, dragging her tail heavily and rubbing her head along every branch and rock in a manner simalar to a cat scent marking her territory with her cheek glands.
Do garters even have cheek glands? Abby is sure acting like she's scent marking with her nose and labials.
She hasn't been Brumated, but our hose is distinctly cooler in the winter time and I have shortened their light cycle somewhat.
Too bad I don't have a male Eastern to pair her with- I'm afraid she is going to bloody her nose with all her rubbing, and I wouldn't mind returning a batch of babies to the Bee-yard where I caught her.

No sign of friskiness among the Butlers, but then I believe any males I have are still way too small. (Not sure I managed to keep a male even, and I've never managed to catch a wild male.) The basement also holds a steady, if cooler temperature than the living room.

[EasternGirl]

@angrygamer...because your landlord saw the tank and told you to tell the neighbor you are selling it, it sounds to me like he already assumes you have a pet that you are not telling him about and has chosen to pretend he doesn't know. I wouldn't worry about it. I think he would have pressed further to know what was going on if he was angry and planning on telling you to get rid of whatever you had in the tank. Unless he says something to you, I wouldn't say anything. Sounds dishonest I know...but he isn't stupid, he must have known you were using the tank for something. You obviously aren't the first person to hide a pet. I had several apartments when I was in college that my cats were living in with me and were not allowed. You do what you have to do to have your pets.

[angrygamer]

@angrygamer...because your landlord saw the tank and told you to tell the neighbor you are selling it, it sounds to me like he already assumes you have a pet that you are not telling him about and has chosen to pretend he doesn't know. I wouldn't worry about it. I think he would have pressed further to know what was going on if he was angry and planning on telling you to get rid of whatever you had in the tank. Unless he says something to you, I wouldn't say anything. Sounds dishonest I know...but he isn't stupid, he must have known you were using the tank for something. You obviously aren't the first person to hide a pet. I had several apartments when I was in college that my cats were living in with me and were not allowed. You do what you have to do to have your pets.

Well the thing is, I was still under the impression that small pets in cages are OK no matter what at the time, so I didn't announce it to him or anything, I just called up one day and said, "hey, I need to clean this fish tank, can you let me in the closet with the water spigot?" In any event, he didn't bat an eye. Come to find out that, yes, if a landlord doesn't want pets whatsoever then he can exclude them.

He didn't say anything else though, and he has really taken to me in the 6 1/2 years I've lived here. I've never been late with the rent once, not once. We've only argued about something one time. It's his son who I am worried about, he's the actual owner, but he's not here that often, and usually only when emergencies arise. He can come off like a real prick sometimes, and I don't why he's got such an attitude problem.

So as of now, I think I am going to just wait it out. If worse comes to worse though and he is going to try and make me give Glyph away, I have one more course of action to take.

In other news, Glyph chomped on me real good the other day, enough to draw blood. I had just eaten dinner and washed my hands, and I went to move some stuff around in his tank a little bit and put down a little fresh moss. I know he thought I was food, I had just had lamb for dinner and even after washing and sanitizing my hands there was still probably a scent of it on them.

This is only the third time he has bitten me since I have owned him, right after I took him to the vet he nibbled on me twice in one day, and I'm sure he thought I was food then as well. But it wasn't anything like this.

I felt his teeth dig into me, and I don't know if you've ever pulled milkweeds, but when you pull a big one with your bare hands, the stem has these little thorns in it that you can barely see, but you can feel them when you try and pull them up out of the ground...it felt a lot like that.

It took me second to realize what was happening, because for a moment I thought it was something sharp in the moss...then I was like, "hey wait a minute, moss wouldn't do that!" I looked down, and there he was, nom nom nom. Cleaned and bandaged it and it's much better now.

We did our normal thing later that evening, I usually take him out 5 - 6 days a week and we hang out together for a while...so there was nothing out of the ordinary.

[kibakiba]

Lucky. If my snakes drew blood, my hand would be swollen and purple with a numb/tingly and prickly feel pulsing through it.

[EasternGirl]

Cee Cee lunged at me today with her mouth open and tried to take a nip but I jerked my hand out of the way in time. I don't know what is up with her lately. Good luck with the landlord situation and keep us posted.

[infernalis]

Hey, do any of you that rent have issues with snakes and your landlords?

I don't rent anymore, but that's what started the whole thing, My landlord would not allow any cats or dogs, he did not allow aquariums (water damage risk) but he did allow me to have a snake...

When we got the house, I set up a reptile room and well now snakes are such a part of everyday life, my whole family is very involved in it, can't imagine not having snakes.

[katach]

That's the great thing about snakes, no fur, no feathers, no dander. If you care for them properly, no smell. They don't bark, meow, squawk, or cry. They are the prefect pet for a rental.

[kibakiba]

The only "downside" to them is that they carry so much less disease than a human being. Or even a kid, those things get sick so much it isn't even funny! Every time I see my therapist, theres always at least 5 kids in the waiting room... I get sick a lot because of them.

[EasternGirl]

Tell me about it...I've been sick since my son was born! Lol...

[kibakiba]

It's kind of funny that they this snakes are a horrible spawn of satan, when kids kick, scream and a full of contagious sickness. Snakes are quiet and compared to kids, have literally no disiease or sickness causing crap. I've had bad expreriences with kids thouigh... Twins... Spawns of freaking satan himself. Need birth control? Baby sit them! You'll hate being around kids for life... Lol.

[katach]

Finally got all of the snakes on pinkies without scenting! :)

[guidofatherof5]

Good to hear.

[kibakiba]

Yay! Go Kat!

[EasternGirl]

Good job!

[katach]

Thanks guys! Bill helped.

[PINJOHN]

It's kind of funny that they this snakes are a horrible spawn of satan, when kids kick, scream and a full of contagious sickness. Snakes are quiet and compared to kids, have literally no disiease or sickness causing crap. I've had bad expreriences with kids thouigh... Twins... Spawns of freaking satan himself. Need birth control? Baby sit them! You'll hate being around kids for life... Lol.
I QUITE LIKE KIDS MY SELF, CHANTEL BUT COULDN'T,EAT A WHOLE ONE ....BOOM BOOM. THE OLD ONES ARE THE BEST ONES:o [ EER THATS JOKES NOT KIDS ]

[katach]

Willow has been very cuddley today. She was sitting on my keyboard perfectly still for a bit and now she is crawling through my glasses. :D

[RedSidedSPR]

Tomato.






I'm subscribing.

[EasternGirl]

Subscribing to what? "I write weird stuff that just pops out of my butt magazine"? :D

[RedSidedSPR]

To the thread. And that one you just mentioned.

[kibakiba]

So... A tomato popped out of his butt? I think you need to get that checked out, Jesse.

[EasternGirl]

Rofl....

[RedSidedSPR]

It's pronounced "waffle"


So... A tomato popped out of his butt? I think you need to get that checked out, Jesse.

I guess so. O_o

[katach]

All the snakes seem very restless today. Conditions are all normal and they were fed day before yesterday. ot sure what's going on. The weather outside had been cold and snowy/rainy. I can't think of anything that has changed for them to be so restless. Maybe it is their internal alarm clock going off?? Maybe we are about to have an earthquake :D

[guidofatherof5]

Or they're hungry...........again.:D

[EasternGirl]

You know, my easterns have been awake during the middle of the night for weeks now. They used to always go to sleep like clockwork around 8pm every night. I used to joke that Cee Cee was like a little old lady...she would always retire to her slim jim can at the same time every night regardless of the lighting in the tank....the lights could be on or off, but when 8 o'clock rolled around, she would slither over to the cool side of the tank and go to sleep in her can...and Seeley would follow. Then all of the sudden I would find them on the warm side at night, up and slithering around or looking out of the tank. I tried adjusting temps...thinking maybe it was too warm or too cold...tried turning off all the lights...but they still continue to stay on the warm side of the tank now...awake at night. It can't possibly be too cold in there at night. I keep it pretty warm for Cee Cee with her respiratory problems. I can't figure out when they are sleeping! It's strange.

[katach]

Hey Chantel! Your birthday present ate unscented pinkies today! He us doing really well! I can't wait for you to meet him!

[kibakiba]

Awesome! I'm glad he's doing well!

[katach]

I'll get some pics up soon so you can see how fat he's getting. Have chosen a name? Or did you want to wait and see what he's like?

[kibakiba]

I'd like to wait until I see him. Kyle is going to have some say in his name also, so I'll have to ask him too.

[katach]

Cool! Want to do a pinkie order again?

[kibakiba]

I still have a bag and a half. My main pinky eaters passed away.

[katach]

Oh, ok. :( Sorry. Well let me know if you want we could split it different. Like 300 for us and 200 for you or something like that Of coarse you would pay less of it.

[kibakiba]

We'll have to see how our money is. It's always nice to have extra pinkies.

[katach]

Ok. I'm not ready to do it right away. Maybe next month or so. We have some bills to pay first and then rent. We'll figure it out.

[katach]

I got some pics of him for you Chantel.
549955005501

[katach]

That was pre shed, here is post shed.
5511551255135514

[guidofatherof5]

Looking fresh and clean.

[katach]

Yes he is. :) He is a very handsome boy!

[ProXimuS]

Wow, and I thought he looked nice before shedding!

Kat, is he a pickeringii?

[katach]

Yes. He is a pickeringii. This wonderful guy is Chantel's birthday present from me and my honey Bill. He is a picture prefect snake. Friendly, but still has spunk, eats anything offered, and he gets along with all the other snakes beautifully. I can't wait to bring him up to her.

[ProXimuS]

What a nice present :D And he's already unwrapped himself for her!

[kibakiba]

He's beautiful. I can't wait to meet him.

[katach]

As soon as I have a day off with some extra gas money we'll be there. It's been rough this month. Should get better once the pay raise from promotion kicks in.

[kibakiba]

No need to rush, I know how tough it is when there's no money left over. Just focus on paying the bills for now and save up a little money when it's possible. :)

[katach]

Ok. He's is in good hands. We have some pinkies left still and fish is really inexpensive (plus we can use the food card for that). Probably in a few weeks or so.

[kibakiba]

If you like, you can pick up some of my pinkies when you drop by. My little snakes only eat 6-8 a week, so I can spare one of my bags :)

[katach]

We'll see. I think once things settle down with the bills, we are going to put an order in a Layne. I think we're good for now though.

[guidofatherof5]

If you like, you can pick up some of my pinkies when you drop by. My little snakes only eat 6-8 a week, so I can spare one of my bags :)

That is a very nice offer Chantel. Good going.

[kibakiba]

Well, Kat is my good friend.. She brought the pinkies over for me when we split an order. My main pinky eaters (Snap and Ember) passed away, so pinkies are being used more slowly. She also has a lot more snakes than I do, now! :)

[Didymus20X6]

Cleaning out Pop's house the other day, and I rescued this little booger:

5522

Most likely a Grey Rat Snake. Down here, people just call them "oak snakes".

He was hiding behind a plank at the entrance to Pop's basement, with his tail sticking out. My brother spotted him - I had my hand right next to his tail and didn't even realize it. Managed to coax him into the trash can, but he was long enough and agile enough to keep climbing back out. My brother took this pic right before we released him into the woods.

[katach]

Bill saw some great stuff this last couple of days while helping a friend on his 40+ acres if land. Yesterday he saw an albino shed and today he saw a melanistic ordinoides. He couldn't find the albino as the shed was a day or so old and the melanistic was too fast.

[guidofatherof5]

I think that albino is the one I lost. It would be great if you could catch it and ship it back to me. Thanks.:D

[katach]

Awwww Steve I'm so sorry you lost an albino ordinoides. I'll do my best to find it. Was it a boy or a girl? ;)

[ProXimuS]

Cool news!

How can you tell an albino shed from a regular snake?

[katach]

The color of the shed is a bright clear and has no markings. It's hard to describe. Next time my albino sheds and a regular sheds I'll keep them both and post them side by side.

[ProXimuS]

Awesome, thanks!:D

[Invisible Snake]

Snake fact - If you ever find a fresh straight shed in the wild always remember that the tail points in the direction the snake went.

[katach]

7545

So cute!

[Selkielass]

Aww, that's a sweet one!

[guidofatherof5]

7545

So cute!

Well put.

[ConcinusMan]

The color of the shed is a bright clear and has no markings. It's hard to describe. Next time my albino sheds and a regular sheds I'll keep them both and post them side by side.

There's markings. It's really barely different than a normal shed in most cases. I really don't see how someone finding a skin in the wild can determine with any certainty that it was from an albino snake. If it had no markings, it's more likely it wasn't from a garter at all, or it was from a patternless melanistic. Also, I've seen northwesterns before as they were getting away and could have sworn they were melanistic. Coming back later and capturing the snake proved I was wrong. Just turned out to be a very dark individual with low contrast.

[Foxrun402]

Willow has been very cuddley today. She was sitting on my keyboard perfectly still for a bit and now she is crawling through my glasses. :D

Thats soo funny lol Suzi did that the other night I had her out jogging across my hands then she turned and looked dead at me and zoomed into my frames I was like OMG!!! and then she just kinda sat in my frames trying to see what I was looking at? I guess? lol... too cute

Edit: Oh btw snakes are contagious.... I let my buddie watch Suzi attack a worm... and now he owns a baby corn snake lol

[guidofatherof5]

Awwww Steve I'm so sorry you lost an albino ordinoides. I'll do my best to find it. Was it a boy or a girl? ;)

I hadn't sexed it yet so it doesn't matter.:D

[Selkielass]

My albino checkered's sheds are as white as the paper towel.
My easterns and Butlerii shed grey, w shadowy markings.
The wild ones ive found were too dirty to tell much

[katach]

Best friends forever!
7608

[guidofatherof5]

Looking good.

[ConcinusMan]

Extra upper labial scale on that pickeringi.

[ProXimuS]

Adorable:)

[katach]

Clown coconut
7627