Another ignorant pet store.

[gregmonsta]

Some of you might remember my reservations about one of my local exotic pet shops. I 'rescued' Panama (a gulf coast ribbon) from there last April. Here's a summary -

I asked about wether he'd be interested in CB garters ... answer was no - they wouldn't sell ... yet a couple of months later there was a gaggle of WC ribbon snakes (ie cheap as chips and likely to make a good profit).
Found out they were fed on sprats (a seafish) and crickets. Made my comments, was ignored and met with 'Well, the crickets are dissapearing so they must be eating them.'.
I 'rescued' one and haven't been back to the shop since. On the online site they are still advertised as feeding on worms, crickets/etc which:
1) goes against the caresheet they have in their caresheet section or indeed goes against any advice given in the John Coote book on garter snake husbandry which they actually stocked (I know ... I bought it).
2) thamnophis species are NOT insectivorious and have been known to become impacted on a diet of insects through bad husbandry.
3) doesn't mention 'safe' fish ie freshwater thiaminase free fish, for example salmon and trout fillet.
4) a diet of nothing but earthworms will lead to issues with lack of phosphorus and calcium.
I joined the forum. Did my best to give advice and have pursued this, since last April, on other forums and also with other shop visitors that weren't happy with the owner's attitude.
I am not happy with the 'I know better because I've been doing this for years' approach.

Certainly, when it comes to Thamnophis the guy is seriously out of touch (ie stuck in the eighties).

The shop is well stocked and looks in good order and the practices with other species may well be in order but my experience with them mentioned above leaves a lot to be desired.

To this day they are still advertising their ribbons as being fed on worms and insects.

My other issue was that they were advertised simply as Thamnophis sauritus (when there was a clear variety of ribbons in the tank, which I estimated at being 80% proximus variants).

Recently I was told by one of the staff as being ignored because I was being 'rude' .... I was just being direct because I was being rudely ignored .... funny that!

Here's a link to their page - Strictly Exotics | Reptile Care & Breeding Centre | UK, Scotland, Dundee

[guidofatherof5]

Greg, do you think a few emails from us forum members with regards to the keeping of his ribbons will do any good?

[gregmonsta]

Well, I'm not sure (considering the bigoted attitude I've been met with), but I would hope that a few more voices could turn the tide so to speak. I'm planning to mention it to my vet next week.

[ConcinusMan]

I know of somebody local that bought baby corns from petco. The dang things nearly starved themselves to death because they will only eat crickets. That's what petco feeds their baby corns. Stupid.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

I know of somebody local that bought baby corns from petco. The dang things nearly starved themselves to death because they will only eat crickets. That's what petco feeds their baby corns. Stupid.

corn snakes wont actually eat crickets... thats just what some petcos THINK they eat so they put them in with them! idiots.

[ConcinusMan]

corn snakes wont actually eat crickets... thats just what some petcos THINK they eat so they put them in with them! idiots.

No seriously. Baby corns are induced to feed by the visual motion of a cricket and some will eat them. So will small ribbon snakes. They want to hunt! In my opinion they offer baby corns for sale as pet before the snakes are ready. Before anyone has time to assess the young they are already up for sale. Nobody cares because these are mostly "excess" young produced by breeders as "by product" if you will, and are mostly unwanted snakes. Nobody has taken the time to rear these young properly and see that they are eating rodents before being offered for sale. I would only buy such a batch of unproven feeders or hatchling snakes if I got them at a rock-bottom price and I would probably only use them as feeders for snake-eating herps.

Bottom line is, most will not make it from pet store to adult. A very sad fact.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

I don't buy it! I want video footage of a corn snake catching and eating a cricket! and then, i want to slap whoever took that footage for even offering the snake a cricket!

I have seen a photo of a corn with a cricket in it's mouth, but the owner of the photo willingly stated that the snake grabbed it on impulse and immediately spat it out in disgust. He did it to prove to himself that they will bite just about anything that's moving.

[Charis]

Sometimes corns do actually eat them, though. On the corn forum a few months ago, there was a new member who bought a snow corn from a pet store & it had eaten a cricket. It died a week after they bought it because the shell of the cricket sliced it up inside.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

Sometimes corns do actually eat them, though. On the corn forum a few months ago, there was a new member who bought a snow corn from a pet store & it had eaten a cricket. It died a week after they bought it because the shell of the cricket sliced it up inside.

Did they open the snake up? It's likely that the shell simply caused an impaction because it was not digested and could not be passed. A cricket would not cut the insides of a snake up, seeing as there are snakes out there that do eat crickets this would be rather bad if crickets could cut up intestines! I would have to assume that it had been force fed the cricket. I don't see a corn snake, no matter how hungry, willingly swallowing a live insect. Striking at one defensively, possibly!

[Charis]

Did they open the snake up? It's likely that the shell simply caused an impaction because it was not digested and could not be passed. A cricket would not cut the insides of a snake up, seeing as there are snakes out there that do eat crickets this would be rather bad if crickets could cut up intestines! I would have to assume that it had been force fed the cricket. I don't see a corn snake, no matter how hungry, willingly swallowing a live insect. Striking at one defensively, possibly!

You know, I'm not sure about that. Probably it was an impaction, like you said. The thread was started about 6 months or so ago & I don't remember all of it. I remember thinking exactly what you said (bolded) when I read that. I think, it was probably tossed out there as the cause by somebody else & not the OP. I do remember the pictures of it, it was a snow & you could actually see the mostly whole cricket inside the snake.