Pine snakes

[Edcase]

Has anyone ever kept these snakes? What are they like for keeping ive heard they can sometimes be aggresive but are easy to keep??

what would be better this or the great plains rat snake?

[adamanteus]

That just about sums them up, Joe. The aggressiveness will fade in time. They are dead easy to keep, but have a prodigious appetite!

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

i have never kept pines snakes but i know snakes like these like the back of my hand. if you are looking for a highly active, pretty colored, full of attitude snake with a voracious appetite then they are for you! usually they tame down but if you never handle them expect them to treat you to loud hisses and a "dont tread on me" attitude. One time I almost bought a leucy pine for $20.... he was that price because the breeder showed me his neck and how as a baby he got his head stuck on the tank lid and because of it he had a "bent" neck lol! it was kind of cute in its own way and I wish I would have given him the chance.

[Loren]

I keep Gophersnakes- closely related. If raised from young, and handled semi-regularly or regularly, most will calm down pretty good.
They are neat snakes in my opinion. If you get one, you may think about starting them on rats from a young age, because waiting until when they grow out of mice may be a challenge. Of course you could just feed a few large mice per feeding. My 5 foot female eats a 100-120 gram rat per feeding.
A good fiesty wild caught adult is good to learn snake handling with though- you definitely will find out what handling moves make snakes feel threatened, and which ones do not- though I wouldnt recommend a w.c. adult be kept for a pet, as they will often be a challenge to feed and handle.
As far as what would be better? Get a pair of each!
I think the pine would be prettier, but they both would be good captives if captive born and handled from young ages.Some of the rarer pine localities are pricey, but very beautiful. The great plains rat snake would be much like a grey colored cornsnake from what I understand(closely related), not to say they arent pretty too.

[ScimitarX]

We have an adult pair of northern pines, definitely great snakes. They have a good appetite, and are fairly active. Yes they can be feisty and do hiss quite a lot when we handle them, but they never bite or strike at us.

[Charlet_2007]

i have a pair for sale right now male and female.. 250.00 for the both we got them for 400.00..

[adamanteus]

Whoa! Nice Pines, Jerry!

[Edcase]

Great pics, i read some of that link you psted...really interesting about the hissing being so loud sometimes that you cant have a convo over it lol sounds surreal.

How active are they usually??

[anji1971]

I really enjoyed the info on that link too. Thanks for sharing that with us Jerry!!

[Loren]

Great pics, i read some of that link you psted...really interesting about the hissing being so loud sometimes that you cant have a convo over it lol sounds surreal.

Some of the large gopher snakes( very close relatives of pines) that I have had hissed so loud that you could easily hear them in another room even with the door shut.