Western Hognose vs Mexican Black King.

[Blue Crab of PAIN!!!]

Hello again! The following quote is a post I made at Monsterfishkeepers, so if you're active there you may recognize it. It's always nice to have additional input though.
Thanks! :-D

Hello everyone! I am interested in getting a (first) pet snake and I am unsure which species I would like to keep.

My pet Arg. B&W Tegu (Tupinambis merianae) named Taco went into hibernation about a month ago and now I'm lonely, because I have no real life friends and I finished Mass Effect 2, so now I need a winter friend!

What I'm looking for is a snake that stays manageable in size, can eat a diet of pre-killed mice, and does not have particularly strict requirements. The size thing is important becaus I would have to move it from college to home a few times each year (its going to be hard enouogh with the Tegu). As far as its demands I am most worried about humidity: I can keep humidity high easily enough but I can't keep it low.

From what I gathered both the Kinsnake and the Hognose don't need high humidity. Are either one of them adversely affected by particularly high humidty though? I'm also reading consistantly mixed reports on their UVB requirements. I'm not unfamiliar with providing these types of things to reptiles (Tegu needs it), but I would appreciate your input.

I like Black Kingsnakes because of their sleek color and appearance, and I like Hognose snakes because they're fat, short, chunky and always have a smile on their face (like the Tegu). I personally haven't encountered a corn-snake morph that I particularly like.

Of the two species, which would you personally recommend?

Oh, and I AM aware that hognose snakes are mildly venomous and I'm okay with that.

Oh and following:

I should take into account that my family (mother in particular) are not reptile lovers to any extent. How exactly they've come to accept a lizard that will grow to 4ft long is beyond me, but then again he's not big yet. I'm 19 now so what they say isn't an absolute determining factor but it is worth considering.

I've also been considering a legless lizard (Eastern Glass or Scheltopusik) since it isn't a snake (use that loophole with them) but I've heard that they're... unsociable.

Unfortunately I cannot really consider getting a monitor at this time. Until I graduate and have a place of my own I cannot handle more than one BIG lizard at a time. Unless it was one of those pygmy short-tailed goannas (I wish), even an Ackie may be pushing it. Also I'm not too big of a fan of anything warm blooded.... they poop too much.

Oh, another question for you guys. Is there a particular season when babies of either snake species are most abundantly available? I saw a baby M.B.kingsnake at my local petstore the other day, but its been a while since I've seen a baby hognose.

 

[Guest]

The hognose snakes we had in the wild made great short term pets when we were kids ... They would hiss violently and strike then roll over and play dead .. If you would turn them right again they would roll over again immediately. in one fluid motion .. We would mistake them for water moccasins on occasion ...with the predictable fuss that goes along with a water moccasin...

 

[Guest]

I know what you mean about winter-time tegu withdrawal. I acquired a jungle carpet about a month ago just in case my tegu does decide to hibernate. Now that Javier has started to slow down, I'm glad to have another ectotherm to interact with and care for on a daily basis.

I've never owned a hoggie, so I can't share my thoughts on the direct comparison, but I have kept a few kings in my day and absolutely loved them. I would highly recommend them for beginning and experienced snake owners alike.

Mexican black kings are probably my favorite New World colubrid. They are handleable, beautiful, and very hardy. Having worked with pickier eaters in the past, I really appreciate their great feeding response. The don't need UVB and thrive with moderate humidity (nothing like desert conditions).

Let us know what you decide!

Cheers,

David

 

[Blue Crab of PAIN!!!]

I've been thinking about it a lot now and I've been considering your collective inputs... and now I'm no further than before
Because now I'm starting to consider a Fire Skink or any small North American skink (like Five Lined or Broadheaded).
It will be another two weeks before I'll even have the opportunity to get anything else; in the meantime I'll need to do MORE THINKING!

.

I quote here again because I have a few more question! :-D

Fire Skinks: What would a STAPLE diet for these guys be? From what I could gather their care is very similar to the care of a baby tegu of equivalent size: similar caging, humidity, substrate, lighting, etc. If they could be fed a staple diet of supplemented ground turkey then that would be FANTASTIC. If they'd also be partial to fortified canned crickets or something, that be good too.

Broadheaded skinks: I couldn't help but notice that these dudes were featured on the Varnyard website: and the question begs to be asked: does Bobby ever have these available for sale?
Oh, a friend of mine is also interested in buying a Jeweled Lacerta over the summer. She can't commit to anything at this point in time but if they were made available here that would be great: I have personally vouched to her the quality of the reptiles sold here. I'd rather buy from here than another online dealer like lllreptile.

I'd be Okay feeding any lizard I get live crickets as a main staple: originally I thought it would be a problem before my roommates bought Leopard Geckos and now they need them anyway. It would be.... convenient though.
Thanks for your input as always!