If you are researching corn snake care and have questions about feeding your snake, feel free to print out this list of feeding tips. These tips come from my many years of keeping and feeding snakes, including corns.
- Feed baby corn snakes about every 5 - 7 days. Feed juvenile to adult corn snakes about once ever 10 - 14 days. Overfeeding your snake will make it fat and unhealthy, just as it does in humans.
- Offer rodents (rats or mice) that are about the size of the snake’s midsection, or slightly larger. Feeding your corn snake rodents that are too small will leave it hungry. Feeding it rodents that are too large could lead to regurgitation.
- Avoid feeding your corn snake wild-caught rodents, as these can transmit parasites to the snake. The best option is to offer frozen / thawed rodents, as the freezing process kills any potential parasites the rodents might be harboring. You can order frozen rodents from the Internet, just as easily as you’d order steaks!
- Leave your snake alone for at least 48 hours after feeding it. Handling a snake too soon after a meal may cause regurgitation.
- Be sure your corn snake has proper cage temperatures to help it digest its meal (and for general health reasons). Stress and improper cage temperatures are two of the most common reasons that corn snakes refuse to eat in captivity. A snake with a proper environment is more likely to eat on a regular basis.
- It is not necessary to supplement snake meals with vitamin powders or similar products. Snakes get all the vitamins and minerals they need from their meals, without the need to add anything. Most of these “snake supplement” products are nothing more than a money-making scheme.
- If your corn snake refuses a meal, leave it alone for a week and then offer another meal. Make sure the snake is not shedding because this is a common reason for corns to refuse meals. Also, make sure the snake’s environment is set up properly (check cage temperatures, and make sure the snake has places to hide inside the cage).
- Generally speaking, corn snakes have a reputation for eating consistently. I’ve never had any feeding problems with a healthy corn snake (unless it was in shed). If your snake refuses meals consistently, and you’ve checked everything listed above, it’s probably time to call a vet for help.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this guide to the corn snake feeding process. If you found this article helpful, you’ll love the book below:
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