I'm measuring my snakes--Ask Me Anything. n/t

[Ladyhawk]

[arcane1]

1. how do you make them straight enough to measure?

Had a ball python at one time, and that damned thing was always curled up...

[Ladyhawk]

3. I lined up bricks to create a passageway barely large enough...

...for the snake's body and guided them into it.

My smallest is now 13" long! She was 9 inches when I got her.

[arcane1]

4. brilliant!

:toast:


what kind of snakes are they?

[Ladyhawk]

7. Ahem...must create list.

Kingsnakes:

Lampropeltis pyromelana pyromelana Arizona Mt. kingsnakes 1.1
Lampropeltis zonata zonata Mt. St. Helena kingsnake 1.1
Lampropeltis triangulum amaura Louisiana milksnakes 1.1

Corn Snakes (Elaphe guttata)

Okeetee 1.2
Albino Okeetee 1.2
Crimson 1.0
Hypomelanistic 1.0

Whew!

This is my largest: the male Arizona Mt. kingsnake:

[arcane1]

11. wow. What a shrine to herpetology

pretty snake, too :)

[blindpig]

12. another method:

clear plastic tube of appropriate diameter. They sell over-priced sets of these at reptile shows. They're very useful when one must get personal with "hot" snakes.

[Ladyhawk]

13. Yeah, I've seen them used with hot snakes all the time.

It's the most humane way to control them without being bitten. Pinning snakes can be harmful to their delicate vertebrae.

I'm not planning on owning any "hot" snakes. I'd be the stupid one who got herself bitten, no doubt.

[blindpig]

16. quite right

had any luck with those L t amaura? Babies could be a bitch, might require the dreaded pinky pump.

[Ladyhawk]

17. I haven't bred them yet and I got my little female...

...when she was well-started.

The hatchlings are teensy!!! Only 5 inches!!!

Here's Bijou at 9 inches.



Mind you, I have rather small hands. She was so cute. It makes me want another teensy snake. Bijou is still small, but well past the "teensy" stage. She's quite robust as well.

[fortyfeetunder]

26. Er, what's a hot snake?

I hadn't heard that term before!

[Sabriel]

2. And that's a euphemism for what? n/t

[Ladyhawk]

5. Sorry, my breasts are not long and thin, nor do they coil up. :) n/t

They're the size and shape of grapefruits, if you must know. :)

[Up2Late]

6. Anything?

You wanna measure MY Snake? :evilgrin:

[Ladyhawk]

8. Sure, but you have to trust me to put it between two bricks.

:evilgrin:

[Ladyhawk]

9. I've measured three and taken a small break. Now for the corn snakes.

I'll be back when I need a break to answer more of your questions. :)

[underpants]

10. Do you compare them to your men?

God talk about pressure. :bounce:

[Ladyhawk]

14. No, but I once had a dream where a man's...um, never mind. n/t

[Ladyhawk]

15. Ooooo...some exciting vital statistics.

Bijou, my Louisiana milksnake is 13 inches long and 1 and one-quarter inches in circumference.

Arthur, my Mt. St. Helena kingsnake is 18 1/4 inches long and 1 and 3/8" in circumference. (These snakes are long and thin.)

Kernel, my male Okeetee corn snake is 21 inches long and 1 and 1/2 inches in circumference.

I'm finding it harder to measure girth. They get ticklish and squeeze their muscles. :)

I have to measure Lestat next. He isn't called Lestat because of his good nature. :)

[Up2Late]

19. Got me beat on length

I haven't had that trouble with the ticklish thing though.:silly:

[skygazer]

18. Your snakes are lovely

I adore snakes but have always had the cursed bad luck to be involved with men who will not set foot in a place where snakes might even remotely be found. Funny how people seem to either really enjoy them or be deathly afraid of them.

I used to have a friend who had a pretty large (I believe) ball python - very sweet snake but the guy was leery of it because it once bit him and you know how snakes are - they feel you if you're tense. So he never handled it. I used to give him a call now and then and ask if I could come over and play with his snake. :evilgrin:

[Ladyhawk]

20. He was probably annoyed when you got there and took out the ball python.

Hehehehehehe. :)

[RebelOne]

21. I had two boa constrictors, one measured at 6 feet

and the other at 7 feet. Finally have to donate them the local junior college for hands-on classes for kids. I just could not bear to feed them live animals anymore.

[Ladyhawk]

22. You know, that bums me out, too.

I only have one snake that will not eat frozen/thawed mice.

Because of my ongoing health problems, I've seriously considered selling part of my snake collection. The older female who won't eat frozen/thawed would be one of the ones to go. Definitely.

It's not a natural situation putting a live animal and a snake together in a cage. There's much more of a chance that the snake will get hurt and it's hardly fair for the prey animal. A prey animal in the wild would have a chance to get away.

[Ladyhawk]

23. All done...but my back is gonna HURT tomorrow!

Kingsnakes (Lampropeltis)

• L. pyromelana pyromelana ♂ (Name: Aragorn) 38” – full-sized mice; eats once every two weeks
• L. pyromelana pyromelana ♀ (Name: Arwen) 36" - eats two live hopper mice once every two weeks
• L. zonata zonata ♂ (Name: Arthur) - 18 ¼” long; 1 3/8” circumference
• L. zonata zonata ♀ (Name: Guinevere) - 16” long; 1 3/8” circumference
• L. triangulum amaura ♂ (Name: Bayou) - 19” long; 1 7/8” circumference (eats once every two weeks)
• L. triangulum amaura ♀ (Name: Bijou) - 13” long; 1 ¼” circumference (eats once a week)

Corn snakes (Elaphe guttata guttata): All eat once a week

• Okeetee ♂ (Name: Kernel) – 21” long; 1 ½” circumference
• Okeetee ♀ (Name: Selu) – 23 ½” long; 17/8” circumference
• Okeetee ♀ (Name: Cobb) – 22” long; 1/ ¾ circumference
• Albino Okeetee ♂ (Name: Ringo) – 21” long; 1/ ½” circumference
• Albino Okeetee ♀ (Name: Luna) – 21” long; 1 5/8” circumference
• Albino Okeetee ♀ (Name: Starr) – 16” long; 1 1/8” circumference (had some early problems with this one)
• Crimson ♂ (Name: Lestat) – 21 ¼” long; 1 ¼” circumference
• Hypomelanistic (rosy corn; Name: Akasha) ♂ - 16 ½” long; 1/ ¼” circumference (hypos tend to be smaller; I acquired her later and she was smaller to begin with)

On edit: It will be nice to have this at DU where I can refer to it. :)

[Lady Effingbroke]

24. Wow, Ladyhawk, impressive information!

Herpetologist extraordinaire!

[Ladyhawk]

25. Thanks! I love life sciences.

I'm re-reading a dinosaur encyclopedia right now. I'm trying to learn the family names and when each lived: Triassic, Jurassic or Cretaceous. I am also going to re-read an encyclopedia on marine mammals.

I love stuff like that. :)