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 #1626415


Dms
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 Northern or florida pine

can someone actually tell me what exactly he is? I think he is a Florida pine but I am not too sure. i have had him now for about 4 months now, found him at our SPCA of all places, they found him on a street down town. I live in northern Canada and snakes are not seen much, not even as pets. He is about 5 1/2 feet long and growing !!!, any idea the age. thanks.
02/16/08  06:52pm

 #1626589


Pit.Krazy
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   Message To: Dms   In reference to Message Id: 1626415


 Northern or florida pine

That is a paternless southern Pine snake. I breed these. Great snake. I am going to assume that it is a captive bred escapee. It is a member of the Pituophis genre. They are found from southern Jersey (south Jersey) south through Florida & west to Louisiana. In the mid-west they are known as bull snakes.In the west they are known as gopher snakes.
They make great pets & get HUGE! They are easy to keep & will readily except pre-killed rodents.
Keep it on several inches of subsrate because they like to dig & burrow. It will need a secure hide box. they do not require any special lighting but will need heat. An under tank heater is required, but I recommend an over tank ceramic heater. Keep the hot side of the tank at 75-85 degrees, the cool side @ 65-70. No less then 60 @ night. You do not need to hibernate but they my go off feed during the winter.
The bigger the tank the better. These are North America’s largest non-venomous snake.
GRAT FIND!!!!!! Contact me w/any questions.



02/16/08  09:49pm

 #1626970


Dms
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   Message To: Pit.Krazy   In reference to Message Id: 1626589


 Northern or florida pine

wow!! North Americas largest non-venomous!!, I was told he was a Florida Pine... Go to know. How big can they get and how long do they live?? How old do you think this guy is?? what else can I feed him besides Rodents?? I have given him other things like eggs and budgie birds, he seems to have no problem digesting and passing them. What about fish. All I know is that this guy is a Monster, he will always eat and is getting bigger every day... I have him in a 33 gallon tank right now with about 3 inches of substrate and newspaper under. I do have a heating pad under on third of the tank, and over that end I have a red heat light 100w, he seems to be doing o.k. I also have a a sort of log pile for him to hide under.



02/17/08  11:19am

 #1627894


Pit.Krazy
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   Message To: Dms   In reference to Message Id: 1626970


 Northern or florida pine

Age is hard to say, maybe 3-5 years. Southern pines range from the Carolinas down to Fla. They are monster eaters & will eat every day. Stay away from eggs, messy out come. Are the birds wild caught? If they are the snake can & will get parasites. I also don’t recommend birds because they cause looser fecal matter. Snakes sometimes become prey specific when fed birds & that can become a pain. Stick to pre-killed rodents. You’re snake should take 1 mediume to large rat a week.
A natural setting always looks great but aesthetically the snake does not care. Remember, these snakes are very large, very active & very messy. The simpler the set up the simpler to keep clean. I recommend CareFresh brand bedding. It lookes very nice & is super absorbant. I do not leave water in my tanks. I offer water every other day. This way I can monitor water intake & no spillage. NO cedar or pine shavings!! THESE CAN KILL THE ANIMAL!!
These animals can reach over 6’. I had a bull snake growing up that reached over 9’. No kidding!! My largest pine iis a 7’ northern pine from nj.
Good luck!! Contact me any time. NO EGGS!!



02/17/08  11:43pm

 #1628730


Dms
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   Message To: Pit.Krazy   In reference to Message Id: 1627894


 Northern or florida pine

thanks for the info
great help
i will let you kown if and when I need some more advice
02/18/08  06:34pm

 #1629200


Pit.Krazy
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   Message To: Dms   In reference to Message Id: 1628730


 Northern or florida pine

Any time
02/18/08  11:23pm

 #1631737


Dms
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   Message To: Pit.Krazy   In reference to Message Id: 1629200


 Northern or florida pine

would my snake do better in a screen cage as appose to a glass one?
I know my Chameleon needs a screen cage but would it also be better for my snake. i am planning on building one any tips? what would be a good volume?, Dimensions...
also do you know of any one who will ship pre killed feeders to Canada? It is really hard to find them here, all the rats and mice are sold first as pets then as feeders.
Thanks again.
02/21/08  07:53am

 #1658324


Wisema2297
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   Message To: Dms   In reference to Message Id: 1631737


 Northern or florida pine

Quote:

In the mid-west they are known as bull snakes.In the west they are known as gopher snakes.



A little misleading? The gophers and bulls are a different snake than the pines. They are totally seperate species.
03/12/08  03:33pm

 #1956215


Archangel99
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   Message To: Pit.Krazy   In reference to Message Id: 1626589


 Northern or florida pine

ACTUALLY North America’s largest non venomous snake is the Eastern Indigo Snake.they reach a length of 9’
02/20/09  11:03am

 #1957218


JackAsp
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   Message To: Archangel99   In reference to Message Id: 1956215


 Northern or florida pine

In general they do not do better in screen than in glass or plastic. There are a few herps, such as chameleons and tortoises, that break that rule, but burrowing snakes can and will thrive under conditions that a mammal would consider stuffy. Screen can make heating more difficult and it can confuse and stress them, leading to nose-rubbing.

Now that said, I have had three Pits, used screen fronts for all three of them, and had no trouble at all. With the pines I only did it when they were babies, then switched over to more conventional housing. With my bull, I’ll probably just keep housing him the way I am unless I see trouble developing or unless he outgrows a 48"X21" footprint. I get sniffed at through the screen a lot and he used to check it out looking for loose spots, but he figured out where the screen was as quickly as they usually figure out where the glass is. he never seemed to rub HARD, just to investigate.

So if you have a large screen cage lying around that you want to try, I’m quite open to the idea that it will work out well for you. But I wouldn’t specifically seek screen out. The only reason Winkle has a screen front is that it’s actually the hinged cover for his 55 gallon fish tank, which I turned sideways because they’re much roomier that way.
02/22/09  12:51pm

 #2035706


Reptaking
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   Message To: JackAsp   In reference to Message Id: 1957218


 Northern or florida pine

that snake looks cool



07/07/09  05:26pm


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