How to Breed Corn Snakes

If you're going to breed corn snakes, it's very important become completely familiar with the snake and its habits. Corn snakes can live in captivity for up to ten years, so make sure you know what you are going to do with the babies. This breed of snake is one of the best types to keep as a pet.

Things You'll Need

• Male and female corn snake
• Snake food
• Separate cages
• Water
• Water bowls
• Box
• Incubator
• Sphagnum moss or paper towels

Instructions

Before Brumation

1. Place your male and female snakes in separate cages before brumation.

2. Feed your corn snakes twice as much as they normally eat starting at the beginning of September to make sure they have enough nourishment to last them through the winter.

3. Stop feeding your corn snakes for three to four weeks before the brumation period begins. It's essential that their stomachs be completely empty when they go into brumation. Keep the temperature at a normal level during this time.

4. Provide the snakes with fresh clean water every day.

5. Cool the temperature down slowly to 61 degrees F over a two-week time span after you are certain their stomachs are completely empty.

6. Reduce the amount of light the corn snakes are exposed to during this time. By the end of the second week, it should almost be dark.

7. Give your corn snakes fresh water two times a week, but be very careful that you don't disturb them.

After Brumation

1. Warm your corn snakes slowly over a two-week period until they reach their normal body temperature of 85 degrees F, usually by early March.

2. Begin feeding your snakes once their temperature has been back to normal for about a week.

3. Place the male corn snake in with the female corn snake once the female has had her first shed after brumation.

4. Leave the two snakes together in the female's cage overnight to make sure that mating takes place.

5. Put the male snake back into his own cage and let them both rest for a few days, then put the male back into the female's cage for another day. Repeat this process five times if necessary.

Caring for the Eggs

1. Know that the female sheds her skin 10 to 14 days before she lays her eggs.

2. Place a box inside the female's cage that 's large enough to hold two snakes the size of the female. Fill the box with damp sphagnum moss or paper towels.

3. Cut a hole into the box so that she can lay her eggs inside it.

4. Make a pencil mark on the top of each egg shell to make sure that you keep them right side up before you transfer them to an incubator.

5. Transfer the eggs from the nesting box into the incubator a few hours after the female has laid them. Place the eggs on a damp layer of sphagnum moss and then cover them with another layer of moss.

6. Keep the incubator temperature at 80 degrees F. The corn snake eggs should hatch and about 10 weeks.

Tips & Warnings

• Brumation should last between 2 1/2 to 3 months and is similar to hibernation.

• If the eggs are in big clumps in the nesting box do not separate them. Place them into the incubator exactly as they are in the nesting box.

• If mating has been a success, the female will lay her eggs in approximately 30 to 45 days.

• Make sure the sphagnum moss in the incubator is only damp not wet. Wring out any excess water from the moss before you put it in the incubator.

Resources

• Go here for more information on snakes and other reptiles